Our Old Testament lesson this morning comes from Jeremiah 23. We'll be reading the first six verses. That's Jeremiah chapter 23. Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture, declares the Lord. Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel concerning the shepherds who care for my people. You have scattered my flock and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for your evil deeds, declares the Lord. Then I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will set shepherds over them who will care for them. And they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed. Neither shall any be missing, declares the Lord. Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous branch. And he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days, Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell securely. This is the name by which he will be called. The Lord is our righteousness. Our New Testament lesson and sermon text this morning is found in Philippians chapter 2. That's Philippians chapter 2, reading from verse 17 through to the end of the chapter, verse 30. Our particular focus this morning is going to be on verse 19 through 24. Even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise, you also should be glad and rejoice with me. I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon so that I too may be cheered by news of you. For I have no one like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. for they all seek their own interests, but not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy's proven worth, how as a son with a father, he is served with me in the gospel. I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me. And I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also. I've 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 more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, 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. This is the word of the Lord. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, would you incline our minds and our wills to your word, strengthen our hearts with your grace, and cause us to follow Christ more wholeheartedly. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Our text this morning highlights the beginning of a new section within Paul's letter to this church in Philippi. Up until now, we've seen two major sections within the letter. After his introductory comments and greetings and his prayer for the church, we see that Paul updates the saints on his condition and his ministry. And so from Philippians chapter 1 and verse 12 onwards, Paul gives an apostolic and missionary update. He reports that although he is in prison, what has happened to him has really served to advance the gospel. The entire imperial guard now knows that what has happened to him, his imprisonment is in fact for Christ. What we also see is that ministers of the gospel have become encouraged by what has happened to them such that now they are far more bold to speak the word of God without fear. And it's in this that Paul rejoices. Christ is being proclaimed. Then, almost out of the blue, in chapter 1 and verse 27 of the opening chapter, we see that Paul changes tack. All of a sudden, there's something new. It is as if he pushes pause on his ministry reports. And out of his concern for them, he exhorts this church in Philippi to one thing and to one thing only. And he says, only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ. So that whether I come and see you, I am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel. This is the heart of Paul's exhortation. And this exhortation, in fact, runs for the next 22 verses, all the way into chapter 2 and verse 18. This, dear friends, is in fact the heart of Paul's letter to the church. And here, in verse 19, there is again a change. And just as the church in Philippi has been concerned for Paul for his welfare while he is in prison, he too is concerned for their welfare, their welfare in the gospel. There's been a measure of disunity within this church. How much? We cannot fully know. But what we do know is that it hasn't risen to the level of needing a rebuke. All this concerns disunity is a terrible thing in the body of Christ. It does such harm to the people of Christ. And it's antithetical to the very nature of the gospel. It's antithetical to the unity that is seen between the father and the son, which is thus to be reflected in the church, which is one body. We are to be one, even as the father and the sun are one. And today we live in increasingly and incredibly divided times. Polarization, suspicion, accusation, and hostility have become the norm. Cancel culture with its vitriol, its shaming, and its ever-present hashtag is simply one of the signs of our times. And having been animated by deep-seated fears so that people become defined by what they are against with little nuance and with a boatload of anger, I find this is something of the snapshot of our society today. And yet to the church, Paul says we are to be different. When you are in Christ, you are animated by a different spirit. You are in a different kingdom, citizens of a different kingdom. Our baseline hope is different. And you and I are no longer what we once were, now that we are in Christ. We live not for ourselves, trying to build our own kingdoms or seeking every possible way, this and that, of how we can flourish in the here and now without God. No, these are the kind of things that belong to our former way of life. We died to that life with its idolatry and its ensnaring powers. We are now in Christ. Like a major artery that courses its way through the body of this letter, Paul exhorts his readers to let their manner of life as citizens of this other kingdom, this heavenly kingdom, reflect the work of the gospel in your life and mine. Have the same mind, which is the mind of Christ. Have the same love, which is the love of God in Christ for him and for one another and be in one accord. This, dear friends, is the mark of the church. Don't be like the world, Paul says, which is marked by tribalism and segregation, but rather love one another just as Christ has loved the church. And this really is a challenge to the evangelical church today, where fragmentation really does appear to be taking root more and more. I think Paul would suggest one of the ways forward for us in our day is that of humility. which, as we saw in chapter two, is a vital component of authentic Christian unity. As Paul says, in humility, count others more significant than yourselves, that each of you look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others, he says, which is a mark of what it means to live lives that are worthy of the gospel of Christ. In this very language, it typifies Christ, who is our ultimate example. These exhortations are none other than what is true of Christ and His earthly ministry. Christ lived not for His own interest, but for the will of His Father, for the glory of His Father, being perfectly obedient, becoming obedient even to the humiliating death on a Roman cross. This brings us to our text this morning, the ministry of Timothy, which is a very tangible picture that Paul is displaying for us of selfless service and ministry to the saints. His life and his ministry are marked by a genuine concern for the welfare of the church because his interests are the interests of Christ. Christ's interests have become his own. In our passage in verse 19 of chapter 2, we find that Paul has now returned to his apostolic ministry report. Remember, it's as if he pushed pause in chapter 1 and took that quick or sudden tack and moved to an exhortation. It's now as if he's returned to this ministry report. which is not limited to telling us or telling the Philippian church of how he's doing in his imprisonment or what it is that God is doing through him, but it's informed by a deep love for this church and a mutual partnership in the gospel. Before we have a look at the pattern of Timothy's life, which is our second point, let's look at the mutual partnership in the gospel that is found between Paul and this Philippian church. Two Ps, partnership and then pattern. And so, partnership in the gospel, our first point. In verses 17 through 30, we find three men are being set forth as examples in the faith. The godly ministers of the gospel who reflect the perfect example of Christ in the hymn of Christ. And these three men at the time of writing were all together in one place. We're talking here about Paul and Timothy and Epaphroditus. And Epaphroditus, he comes into the picture because of a fourth person that is in the room. Someone that is never mentioned or described in the letter. The fourth person is a Roman soldier. There's a Roman soldier in the room because he's chained, likely to Paul's ankle. Paul has been placed under house arrest in Rome and he is awaiting trial. And this trial could in fact go either way. He could be acquitted and so released and thus travel as his heart desires back to the church in Philippi. Or he could in fact be seen as a threat to the empire and thus be executed on account of the gospel. And although Paul is restricted in his movements, As being under house arrest, we see that friends may come and go. And so this is true of Timothy and Epaphroditus. They find themselves in fact in harm's way. Why? Because they are now associated very obviously with Paul. Paphroditus is involved, he's in the picture, because he's a member of the Church of Philippi. He's been sent to Paul on behalf of the Church. He is their messenger, his minister to take care of his needs. And in Philippians chapter 1, we might remember that we see the believers in Philippi are all partakers of Paul, or with Paul, of grace, both in his imprisonment and in the defense and the confirmation of the gospel. It's their mutual desire to gather to see the gospel advance. which is in fact what's taking place through Paul's imprisonment. Though to the naked eye we would assume the exact opposite. Paul rejoices that Christ is being proclaimed more and more boldly because of his imprisonment and it's that which matters most to him. This gives us an opportunity to pause and to ask ourselves the question, what is the mission of the church? Why do we exist in the here and now rather than every Christian being immediately transported into heaven at the moment of their conversion? What is it that the church is uniquely called to do in distinction from any other body or organization on the face of the earth? What is it that the church is about? It's this. And it can be summarized by five words, five words that are recorded in some of the last words of Christ before he ascends into heaven. It's these, go therefore and make disciples. These five words are to capture the attention of every saint, every deacon, every elder, being branded upon our hearts and our minds, not simply theologically, but animate the very desires and the focus of what we do. And the context of these five words are critical for us to actually understand them. And it's explained by the second word, the word therefore, go therefore and make disciples. These are the words of the exalted and the risen Christ, the one who has conquered death and the grave, who has disarmed principalities and powers, demonic principalities and powers, triumphing over them in his resurrection and in his finished work on the cross. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him as mediator of the new covenant. And that's important for us to grasp. And so it's in the light of this exalted status as resurrected Lord, as he who now brings his kingdom promises to completion through the church, in the power of the Holy Spirit, Christ says to his disciples, in his new exalted status, go therefore and make disciples of all nations. You might say, if the mission of the church is to go therefore and make disciples, what about that summary statement of man's life that the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever? Well, in a closer look, To glorify God and enjoy Him forever is in fact included in, go therefore and make disciples. To be a disciple is to be a disciple of Christ, a follower of Christ, where Christ becomes your desire and your new Lord. This is exactly what takes place when Christ calls us to himself. You might remember he says to Simon and to Andrew, his brother, follow me and I'll make you fishes of men. He says to Matthew, the sinner, as he sits at his tax collecting booth, he says just these two words, follow me. Time and again, as we read through the gospel accounts, these very simple two words, yet so profound, come to the fore. Follow me. This is at the heart of what it means to be a disciple of Christ when he calls you to himself. And yet so often one is prone to argue with him. to dig one's heels in, to say no to his call, to say no to his commandments, and to follow your own way. You see, to follow Christ is to have Christ as your ultimate desire in your life. You are no longer enslaved to the desires of sin because Christ now surpasses everything else. This is what Paul says later on in his letter to the Philippians, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. Christ has become the love of our hearts, which reflects Augustine's statement that our heart is restless until it rests in you. Friends, disciples of Christ make disciples of Christ. Those who follow Christ and who desire him above all else is what it means to be a disciple. Those who thus glorify and enjoy God with all that they have. Are we to do this to the very ends of the earth, to both our neighbors and to the nations that are around the world? The disciples with Christ were to go with Christ's authority and with his word to those who did not know Christ. Those who were followers of sin, of darkness, of the idols of their own heart. That's Those are the folk to whom they were to go. And you see, in preaching Christ and him crucified in the power of the Spirit, God would call unbelievers to himself to be followers and disciples of Christ. And these new believers, who would now be babes in Christ, would need spiritual milk. as nourishment for their souls. And as they would grow, in their conformity to Christ, in their discipleship unto Christ, they would need solid food as mature believers. And the mission of the church, as was with those first disciples, is true today. It remains the same, to make disciples of Christ to all around. to unbelievers, to babes in Christ, to our covenant children, to those who are mature in Christ who in turn would seek to make disciples of Christ. This is what we find in Ephesians 4 where pastors, teachers, and evangelists are to equip the saints for the works of ministry. so that elders and deacons and saints in accordance with their various and specific callings go therefore and make disciples of Christ. See friends, the mission of the church is never just to the mature, or just to the lost, or just to our covenant children, or just to babes in Christ. It is to all of the above, all the time, with all of Christ. That is the mission that is set before us by Christ. And so when we look at Paul's ministry reports, we see Paul's concern is not for his own welfare, but it's for the welfare of this Philippian church and for the advancement of the gospel. In very practical terms, it's what it looks like to go, therefore, and make disciples. The salvation of the lost and the welfare of the church are intertwined. They are the interests of Christ. So included in the advancement of the gospel is the maturing of the church, which necessarily reproduces itself. We are to go and to grow. We are to make disciples and to be discipled. And so in their partnership for the advancement of the gospel, what we find is that Paul and the Philippians have a mutual concern for one another. As the Philippians have sent Epaphroditus to Paul, now Paul sends Timothy to them. And it's here that we find these two major emphasis in Paul's letter thus far, they come together. Paul's missionary report concerning the advancement of the gospel and his exhortation to live lives worthy of the gospel. Those two things come together in his report and in his now setting Timothy forth. to this church in his concern for them. And so let's turn now to the pattern of Timothy's life, our second point. Timothy is, he eagerly desires to, or sorry, excuse me, Paul eagerly desires to be with this church, but he is unable to do so. He's thwarted by his imprisonment because of the gospel. And so in his place, he's gonna send Timothy, his true child in the faith, who serves with him in the gospel as a son does with his father. Timothy is unique to Paul. He has been one of his close companions. He's been a fellow worker in the gospel for many years. And Paul has sent Timothy to the churches in Macedonia. to Asia, to the cities of Corinth, to Thessalonica, and to Ephesus. We read that Paul and Timothy are together when Paul writes his letter to the church in Rome. In fact, Timothy is shown to be a co-author of many of Paul's letters. He is described as a fellow servant in the gospel with Paul, who himself has been imprisoned for the gospel. This is A little snapshot of who this man is. And what comes into focus in our text is that Timothy serves with Paul as a son does with a father. Timothy is Paul's protege, we might say. This relationship is not only that of a disciple to a great teacher, but of a son to a father. And so Timothy is quite unique in the way in which he follows the faith of Paul as they both follow Christ. Today, we use that idiom, like father, like son. Paul says, I have no one like Timothy, someone who is genuinely concerned for the welfare of the Philippian saints, someone who seeks the interests of Christ and not his own interests. Timothy is a faithful shepherd. He is like a eunuch that is preparing the bride of Christ. There's no selfish ambition here. Timothy is a picture of humility, a man who counts others far more significant than himself. He looks to the interests of others, to the interests of Christ. Friends, in the life and in the ministry of Timothy, a number of traits come to the fore that are so exemplary. He is servant-hearted. Timothy is sacrificial. He is humble. In the person of Timothy, Paul gives the Philippians another example of what it looks like to let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of life. I mean, just sermon after sermon in this series, just continue to echo that theme because it is the primary artery that courses or one of them that courses its way through this letter. Up until now, we've seen some of the most exquisite theology on display in all of the New Testament. the matchless hymn of Christ, the richness of what it means to work out your salvation in the fear of the Lord. But here, in our text this morning, in verse 19, there's a gear change. We've moved from incredibly nuanced and rich theology to a few simple descriptors about an upcoming visit. And this simplicity can in fact lead us to the temptation of in fact glossing over this text. We want to kind of give us, give us more nuance, give us some more substance. We've just come out of the hymn of Christ with just some of the most profound theology in Paul's letters. And now we have this. Something so simple. Let's remember friends that scripture is filled with many genres and many idioms. They all point us to Christ and they all make us more like him. And what we have in front of us is not a set of deep or complex dogmatic statements, but rather what we have in front of us is the example of an exemplary life. An example of faith to be followed, which is one of the strongest motivators of action in all of life. It's so sad to see so many of our friends or those who we've heard preach or others who have been hurt by friends, hurt deeply in the ministry, and yet their beliefs and their theology change because of great hurt. What we need is Paul is putting in front of us is not simply a man who believes certain theological convictions, But those theological convictions have gone deep into his soul and he's been fashioned and informed into the likeness of Christ. What we have in display here is not a brief text that we should quickly run over in search of rich, deep truths. There is rich, deep truth in its display here in the life of Timothy. And Paul says, I'm gonna show you a man who displays what it means to live in the light. of Christ. A life worthy of the gospel of Christ. A profoundly strong motivator for you and I. We find this is true also of Paul. He says to the Corinthians, be imitators of me as I am of Christ. Paul has directed us theologically, is now giving us a role model to follow. He's saying, pattern your life after Timothy, who is concerned for the welfare of others, who is concerned about the interests of Christ. This is not standard fare. Paul actually says, I have no one else like him who is unique in seeking the interests of Christ and your welfare alone. None other do those two things. Lastly, we find Timothy to be a man of proven character. He's been tested. He's come through to the other side. He's been in a furnace, in the fires of trial and hardship, and he's gained something on the other side that he just didn't have before. I mean, this last year has been hard for all of us, some more than others, but there's no one in this room that could be exempt from the hardship of this last year. It's been a trial. Part of that is we want to, in Christ, gain something that we did not have before. that something proven worth that has come out on the other side, that in the midst of the fire, in the midst of the trial, as difficult as it is, Christ wants to form something in us, proven worth like Timothy had. See, the word in the Greek for proven character, it conveys the sense of going through a test so that character can be produced. Character is not formed in beautiful, blissful times. No, character is formed in the fire. It's formed in the most difficult of times where we cry out to God in need of His grace. God does something in us as he gives us his grace, and he strengthens us in the pain. And something happens that we are even at times unaware of. And in hindsight, as it's so often true, as we look back and say, I never want to go through that again, but I am grateful what God did in me through what I just went through. And there is an intent in God of something of great value being formed in us when we go through trials. We read in James's letter, he says that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Let's close here. Paul will write to Timothy himself a few years later, exhorting him with some of the same things that we find in the opening two chapters in Philippians. This exemplary life in the faith, the life of Timothy, would himself need encouragement and grace to run the race and to fight the faith, or to fight the fight of faith, the good fight. It appears as if Timothy himself had grown a little weary. Paul writes to Timothy not just once, he writes to him twice, and both times he begins and he ends with grace. Grace be with you, Timothy. As God exhorts us this morning to be front-footed in our gospel partnership and to pattern our lives after Timothy's exemplary life, where we know the grace of God in abundance as we follow Christ and seek to disciple others in the power of the Holy Spirit. Let's pray. Almighty God, thank you that you are at work in us by your grace. Thank you for the example of Timothy's exemplary life as a pattern for us to follow as we follow Christ May we walk like him for your glory and for the advancement of your gospel. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.