Philippians 2:25-30

STP Devotional for the Week of 11/17/25

We finish up Philippians 2 with a look at Epaphroditus.

I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need, for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill. Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me. Philippians 2:25-30

The name Epaphroditus comes from pagan origin meaning “belonging to Aphrodite.” Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love and beauty. His parents were probably worshippers of the goddess and named their son after her. There is no evidence of a temple to Aphrodite near Philippi, so Epaphroditus was probably not born there.

Epaphroditus was a Greek believer who delivered gifts from the church to Paul. They had gathered supplies that they thought Paul could use during his imprisonment and sent them with one of their own parishioners. He remained to serve Paul as the Philippians asked him to help while Paul was imprisoned. When Paul sends him back to the Philippians, Epaphroditus delivers Paul’s letter to the Philippians.

Epaphroditus became seriously ill while serving Paul. He definitely “count[ed] others more significant than [himself] (Philippians 2:3) and risked his life in his obedience to the calling of caring for Paul. He continued to work while he was ill, becoming distressed only upon hearing that the church in Philippi was concerned for his health.

There are several things we can learn from Epaphroditus. First, Paul called him his “brother.” Paul is talking about the family of God. When we become believers, we become one family – brothers and sisters in Christ, serving Jesus however we can. At STP, we’re fortunate enough to be able to serve not only each other as Christ’s family, but also to serve our audience as a united group of believers.

Secondly, Epaphroditus served the gospel of Jesus Christ so well that Paul considered him to be his “fellow worker.” Whatever purpose Epaphroditus was to accomplish by serving Paul, it was accomplished with excellence to the point that Epaphroditus “risk[ed] his life to complete what was lacking in your (Philippians) service to me.” (v.29) Imagine risking your life to serve Christ! What devotion and love.

Finally, Epaphroditus “minister[ed] to [Paul’s] need.” It would have been easy to think only of himself. It would have taken approximately 40 days to walk from Philippi to Rome. He would have been exhausted by that time and the excitement of serving Paul might have diminished a little. Nope. Epaphroditus threw himself into ministering to Paul and serving alongside him for the cause of Christ. We will see Epaphroditus and the gift from the Philippians mentioned again at the end of the letter. Paul considers both to be a “sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.” (Philippians 4:18) As we move through our week ahead, let’s try to follow the example of Epaphroditus and serve each other well, in a way that’s pleasing to God.

AT HOME:

• How can you serve those who are around you (family, friends, castmates)?

• What can we do to keep ourselves from becoming weary of serving?