The ideal church member

But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, co-worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. So then, welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honour people like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ. He risked his life to make up for the help you yourselves could not give me. Philippians 2:25-30

What makes the ideal church member?

Answer: there is, of course, no such thing, for however Christlike and Spirit-filled a person may be, they still fall far short of perfect. Yet probably all of us can summon up a mental picture of the kind of person we feel privileged to have around us within the body of the church.

Very early in my ministry, when I still knew next to nothing about how to go about the job, I was in a pastors’ meeting one day when fellow-ministers were offering their take on what might constitute the ideal church member. It came round to a Pentecostal pastor whose church was known for the full array of what we might now call the charismatic gifts. It was a lively, growing church and I think, looking back, that in my immaturity I was slightly in awe of the pastor.

So I was very interested to hear what he might say. Somebody “baptised in the Holy Spirit”? Somebody who spoke in tongues and had various other gifts? Somebody who had pastoral gifts and was also a gifted preacher and teacher? I “listened up”, as they say!

And what did he say? Well, first he hesitated slightly, giving it some serious thought. And then: “The first thing I look for is reliability…”

I can’t now think what else he went on to say, but that is what struck me and has remained with me for over 50 years. I was surprised and, if I am to be quite honest, perhaps a little disappointed. It seemed rather flat and ordinary – where were the charismatic qualities? the dramatic stuff? the obvious signs of being “baptised in the Spirit”? (Oh, how green I was!)

Well, meet Epaphroditus.

All right, you’ve probably met him before, but I’m sure that an even closer acquaintance can only be good. We meet him in the Bible here in Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi (he also pops up in 4:18), and it’s striking what a high opinion of him Paul has – Paul, the great apostle of Christ. See what he tells us about him…

First, he was Paul’s “brother”. A reminder that the church is not a club or organisation, but a family. Who can we rely on better than the members of our own earthly families? – always there for us when we need them. (It’s a sad situation if that isn’t the case, and you certainly have my sympathy.) That’s what Epaphroditus was for Paul in a spiritual sense.

Second, he was Paul’s “co-worker”. A reminder that the church is not simply a community of people who have a mutual interest in “religious” matters, but a work-force who are joined together in the service of the kingdom of God. There are few things which bond people closer than co-operating  enthusiastically in a shared project.

Third, he was Paul’s “fellow soldier”. A reminder to us of the sort of work Christians co-operate in – nothing less than spiritual warfare. Our world is marred by evil forces, powers of darkness intent on opposing God and putting out the light. In this battle Epaphroditus, it seems, stood shoulder to shoulder with Paul.

Brother… co-worker… fellow soldier. You can sense Paul’s respect and indeed love for Epaphroditus in every word, can’t you?

But there is still more to come…

Epaphroditus was also a “messenger” from the Philippi church to Paul in prison, probably in Rome, a messenger “whom you sent to take care of my needs”. He was no “fair weather friend”, but a brother who was happy to put himself out for Paul’s sake, even to the point of risking his health and indeed his very life: “he was ill and almost died”.

We don’t know what Epaphroditus’ health problems were – but we can be sure that the journey between Philippi and Rome, by land and sea, would have been arduous and dangerous.

News of Epaphroditus’ sickness got back to his spiritual family in Philippi, and this, apparently, upset him: he was, says Paul, “distressed because you heard he was ill”. You can’t help smiling at that, can you? Epaphroditus was upset because his fellow-Christians were upset because he was ill. He really didn’t want them to have to bother about him! Could we wish for clearer proof of the sheer affection and love which binds God’s people together?

No wonder Paul tells the Philippian Christians to “honour people like Epaphroditus”. No, he is certainly not perfect, and is not to be put on a pedestal. But “honoured” is something different, meaning “held in respect”, perhaps also “taken as a Christlike example”.

How we need Epaphrodituses (female as well as male) in the church today! Is it your humble heart’s desire to be one?

Father, thank you for the gift of your family on earth, the body of Christ of which I, by your grace, am a part. Make me, like Epaphroditus, worthy to belong! Amen.