Before coming to Gurukul, during my probationary period I worked in the Kalvarayan hills. This is the place where Ms.Helga Johanson, a missionary from Denmark worked. During her early days of missionary work she used to walk upon the hills to meet people. One fine evening when she was walking upon the hills she met a person with leprosy. She asked him “ Why there are rashes all over your body?”. The person answered “ It’s Not only me but there are many in the villages who are affected like this”. She immediately started to work among them, cleaning their wounds, applying medicine with bare hands, by doing this she took risk of her life. She lived one among them and many were getting cured. She built a hospital to cure people affected with leprosy where still patients are treated for this disease. She lived for those people who were affected with leprosy and laid her life for them.
The text which we heard tells about Paul writing to the Philippians about Epaphroditus and his service rendered to Paul. The Philippians on hearing that Paul was in person decided to send him a gift through Epaphroditus. They were not able to go and meet Paul as it was the distance which prevented them. They not only sent Epaphroditus as a bearer of the gift but also to be Paul’s personal servant and attendant. Really Epaphroditus was brave man who took risk of his life. Being a personal attendant of A MAN who is awaiting trial on a capital charge is laying himself open to the very considerable risk of becoming involved in the same charge. In truth, Epaphroditus did risk his life to serve Paul.
In Rome Epaphroditus fell ill. He was so ill that he was near to death, but God in His mercy spared the life of Epaphroditus. Paul says that for the sake of Christ Epaphroditus gambled with his life. He recklessly risked his life for the sake of Christ. In the days of the early church there was an association of men and women who were known as gamblers. It was their aim and object to visit prisoners and the sick, especially those who were ill with dangerous and infectious diseases. In the middle of 3rd century a plague broke out in Cartage; the heathen threw out the bodies of their dead, and fled in terror. Cyprian. The Bishop, gathered his congregation together and set them to bury the dead and nurse the sick in that plague-stricken city; and by doing so they same the city, at the risk of their lives, from destruction and desolation.
A Christian minister must have the courage to gamble his/her life to serve Christ and to serve people who are in need. The church needs the gamblers of Christ. All of us must have to take some risks in order to achieve any change in the Church or in the world. The people who are in need must be get benefitted by the risk which we take. We risk making mistakes and being misunderstood. “ If you don’t take risks, you’ll never take anything”, said a soldier. ‘Taking risk in the service of Christ’ is one way of describing ‘ FAITH IN CHRIST’. Let us ask God to give the courage to risk our life for Christ and to be a witness for his ministry. Amen.
[ This meditation is led by Anandraj Paul Jacob, Final Year BD student ,on September 16, 2010.]
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