Lenten blog | April 4, 2025

Epaphro - who?

Throughout the year, the Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ reproduces the Daily Lectionary for use by churches.  These are the suggested readings for April 4th: Psalm 126; Isaiah 43:8-15; and Philippians 2:25 – 3:1.  I would encourage you to read these short selections as part of your Lenten practice.

 On this Lenten Friday, let’s think about the example of Epaphroditus.  This is how Paul describes him in today’s passage:  “[M]y brother and co-worker and fellow-soldier, your messenger and minister to my need.”  Epaphroditus is a co-worker with Paul the apostle, which means he helps to share the gospel with people who have never heard of Jesus.  His relationship with Paul, however, is more than utilitarian, more than a co-worker.  Paul calls Epaphroditus “my brother.”  There is an emotional closeness between them. 

I have never experienced the extreme emotions of battle, but I have heard of the closeness that develops between people whose lives depend on one another.  I remember that when those looking to bring Private Ryan of the eponymous movie home from the front lines of World War II he objected.  Even though his biological brothers had died in that war and he alone was left for his mother, his connection with those in his unit was so strong that he was ready to refuse the offer of his own safety.  This is the closeness the apostle Paul calls forward when he names Epaphroditus a “fellow soldier” in the struggle to share Christ and the gospel with others no matter the danger.

To the Philippians, Epaphroditus was “your messenger.”  He was the trusted companion of Paul who maintained the apostle’s connection with this early church.  Paul as an apostle was constantly on the move.  His calling as an apostle was to spread the gospel and grow the church. Co-workers such as Epaphroditus developed closer, more personal connections with the people of these earliest Christian communities.  These are the ones who maintained the connection between the community and the apostle.  Thus, when Epaphroditus grew deathly ill, the people of Philippi were understandably shaken.  And their anxiety troubled Epaphroditus.  By sending him to Philippi, Paul could sooth both the church’s and the co-worker’s anguish.

Epaphroditus was also called “minister to my need.”  Paul suffered greatly for his apostolic ministry.  He often ran afoul of the authorities for the disturbances he initiated by preaching Jesus.  At the beginning of this Epistle, Paul informs us:  “In my imprisonment.” (1:7)  Epaphroditus ministers to Paul in his times of need.  Paul is able to survive imprisonment and even continue to work in spite of his confinement because of help offered like that of Epaphroditus. 

Of Paul’s struggles, we are familiar.  Tradition holds that he is executed in Rome because of his faith.  Of Epaphroditus we may be less familiar even though “he came close to death for the work of Christ.”  And how many other score or hundreds of those earliest Christians faced persecution and even death for the sake of Christ and the gospel, and we will never, ever know their names.  They are not mentioned by Paul in a piece of correspondence that is eventually included within the biblical canon.  They disappear from history, but they had to be there.  There had to be countless souls that sacrificed greatly so that the One who dies alone on the cross could be heard of throughout the ancient world, and eventually by us.  It is upon their sacrifices that the church was built, and upon their sacrifices that we have been able to hear the name of Jesus.

On this Lenten Friday, let us think about the sacrifice of Christ and also the sacrifices of those who believe in Christ.  Sometimes our faith in a crucified Saviour calls upon us to sacrifice as well.  This is the idea behind this weekend’s Lenten retreat “Christ and the State / Christian and the State.”  The struggles that Jesus endured are the struggles that we have inherited.  Faith is not only about what we get from God; it is also about what we return to God.  I invite you to join us this Sunday afternoon.  If you have any questions, please email me at the address below.

If you would like to join us for our online Bible study, please send an email to [email protected] for the Zoom logins.
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If you’d like, here is the link to the Southern New England Conference’s daily reading schedule:  www.sneucc.org/lectionary.