Philippians chapter 2

vs 21

Typical of the human condition, that everyone, even Christian workers, even the people Paul 'has' still are somewhat selfish.

vs 22

The idea being that a good son doesn't go off to do his own thing (like the prodigal son) but rather follows in the footsteps of his father, learning the job and continuing the work.

vs 23

Sending Timothy to them, then, should show them how much he cares about them, and about the gospel work that is going on in Philippi.

vs 24

A bold confidence to have, and we just don't know if he did. Depends on when you date Philippians and how you read Paul's journeys.

vs 25

So Epaph is a Philippian, probably the one they sent with the gift for Paul. Weird to think that you had to send a person with the gift, that's a whole lot more commitment than just sending a bank transfer.

vs 26

I think Paul had a habit of assuming that the people sent were part of the gift, and putting them to work for the gospel. But Epaph got sick, and even though he's better now, he misses home, and he is also worried about his fellow churches because they heard how sick he was.

vs 27

God's mercy was bountiful - in one fell swoop, he both saves Epaph's life, and also save's Paul from the heartache of telling one of his favourite churches that the person they sent died.

vs 28

The sooner he gets back to his church family, the less anxious about him Paul will be. But also, of course, the greater their joy will be. And such a transfer of people can only help to further strengthen the relationship between Paul and this church.

vs 29-30

Even though the Philippians helped Paul a lot, there is only so much they could do in absence. But Epaph was there in presence, and so he could help directly. He even got sick doing it, and so put his life on the line to serve Paul. It is these sorts of people that Paul thinks should be honoured, because their faith is strong enough that they put God's work above even their health. And because of that, of course, Paul benefited. So he's happy too.