Praise God for His faithfulness and loving kindness in our lives during the past week!  It is certain that He will remain faithful to all of us in this week as well as for the rest of our life. In response to God’s faithfulness to us, we also need to be thankful to the Lord our God for all the goodness and kindness that He has been bestowing upon us and the untold number blessings we receive from Him. We need to be thankful to God for our very life because we are created by Him, as it is mentioned in Scripture that It is He who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture (Psalm 100:3; also refer to Genesis 1:26-27; 2:7). We need to be thankful to God for offering us salvation and the resources He provides for us to live in this world. Every person who benefits from God (both righteous and unrighteous) ought to praise His holy name and be thankful for every blessing they receive in life. In the Bible, King David praised and thanked the Lord for all the blessings he received from Him, saying: I will give you thanks in the great assembly; among the throngs I will praise you (Psalm 35:18), and again he said that I will declare your name to my people; in the assembly I will praise you (Psalm 22:22). In addition, King David praised the Lord his God for all His benefits to him and he specifically spelled out some of the benefits he received from God, as it is mentioned in the Psalms:

Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s (Psalm 103:1-5)

Thus, as the dear children of God and faithful followers of Jesus Christ, we need to be always thankful to God and praise His holy name in response to every blessing we receive from God.

Let us now focus on the Scripture passage we chose for our meditation, that is Philemon Vs.4-7 (mentioned above). It is a very interesting passage and it contains Paul’s personal appreciation to Philemon, his dear friend and fellow gospel worker (Philemon 1:1b). Before we analyze and study the passage, let us focus on some of the common factors that are discussed in the Epistle to Philemon in connection with Philemon and Onesimus and Paul’s bonded relationship with both of these men. Apostle Paul’s conversation with Philemon reveals that there was a personal relationship that existed between Apostle Paul and Philemon. We can assume that Philemon was a resident of Colossae and became the follower of Jesus Christ through the ministry of Paul (Philemon v.19). Apostle Paul addresses Philemon as a dear friend, a fellow worker, and a dear brother (Philemon Vs. 1b, 7), all of which unfolds the fact that there was a spiritual bond, that includes a personal relationship and ministry partnership, which existed between Apostle Paul and Philemon. In fact, Apostle Paul always maintained a personal relationship and ministry partnership with the believers as well as with other ministers of the gospel, which is really remarkable in Christian ministry. Due to such a spiritual bond that existed between Paul and other believers and other ministers of the gospel, Paul addresses the believers and the ministers of the gospel as: (i) brothers and sisters (1 Corinthians 15:58; Philippians 1:12; 2:25; 3:13; Philemon v.1b); (ii) dear friend (Philemon v.1c); (iii) fellow-workers or co-workers (1 Corinthians 3:9; Philippians 2:25; Philemon Vs.1d, 24); (iv) fellow soldiers (Philippians 2:25); (v) fellow prisoners (Romans 16:7; Colossians 4:10; Philemon Vs.1a, 23); (vi) partners in faith mission (Philemon Vs. 6, 17); and so on.

Philemon was a wealthy slave-owner who became a follower of Jesus Christ through the ministry of Apostle Paul, who gradually turned out to be one of the leading ministers of the gospel in Colossae. Onesimus was a runaway slave of Philemon (perhaps, he ran away with some valuable goods from Philemon’s household [v.18]) who became a follower of Jesus Christ through the ministry of Paul (Philemon v.10). Both these men, Philemon, the master of Onesimus the slave (Philemon Vs. 10-12), and Onesimus, the runaway slave of Philemon (Philemon Vs.18-19), became believers in the Lord through the ministry of Apostle Paul. So, both these men (Philemon and his servant Onesimus, in other words, a master and his slave) have a personal as well as spiritual connection with Apostle Paul. And so, Apostle Paul takes up the position of a mediator between these two estranged men and urges them to forgive each other and reconcile with one another, which means, Paul is appealing and urging with Philemon to forgive Onesimus for his wrong and accept him back as a dear brother in the Lord (Philemon Vs.9-10). The underlying focus of Paul’s conversation with Philemon was to urge him to love and reconcile himself with Onesimus because Philemon is a believer in the Lord and a minister of the gospel (Philemon v.16). Humanly thinking it might be a hard thing to do so, because Philemon is the master of Onesimus, the runaway slave. In addition, we can understand from Paul’s words that Onesimus did some serious wrong to Philemon and/or took some valuables from Philemon’s household while he was running away (Philemon Vs. 18-20). In such a situation, it is hard for an average person to reconcile with the wrongdoer but, for Paul, Philemon is not an ordinary person rather he is a believer in the Lord and a minister of the gospel. In this context, let us try to know about Philemon and Onesimus and their relationship with Apostle Paul.

(a) From Paul’s conversation, we can understand that Philemon was a dear friend, and a dear brother, and a fellow worker to Apostle Paul (v.1b, 7). Philemon was a Christian leader in Colossae and he was rich enough to own slaves. Although, it is not specifically mentioned, we can assume that Apphia was his wife and Archippus his son (v.2a). He hosted a church that meets in his home (Philemon Vs.2b, 4-7; Colossians 1:3-8; 4:15b). Paul’s Epistle to the Colossians could be written to the church that met at Philemon’s home where Epaphras, a dear fellow servant, and a faithful minister of Christ, was also served as one of the ministers (Colossians 1:7-8; 4:15-16; also compare Colossians 1:3-8 with Philemon Vs. 4-7). In all respect, he was a devout follower of Jesus Christ who loved all God’s holy people (Philemon v.5). Philemon was a man of prayer who particularly prayed for the ministers of the gospel, especially for Paul (Philemon v.22). Apostle Paul said: Your [Philemon’s] love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people (Philemon v.7). Philemon was a person who refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people, especially Apostle Paul’s (Vs.7, 20).

(b) From Paul’s conversation, we can understand that Onesimus was a runaway slave who was owned by Philemon, a wealthy Christian believer and minister of the gospel at Colossae (Philemon v.2; Colossians 4:15-16). Although Onesimus ran away from Philemon’s household at Colossae, he traveled (or he was taken) to Rome where he met with Apostle Paul and became a Christian believer through his ministry. After a while (perhaps, after he became a devout follower of Christ), Paul sent him back to Philemon at Colossae along with Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord, with a letter (perhaps, the Epistle to Philemon) appealing and urging Philemon to forgive and accept Onesimus, his runaway slave (Philemon Vs. 12-16; Colossians 4:7-9). Paul assured Philemon that if Onesimus owes him anything (which could be any wrong he committed to him or any valuables he has taken from his household while running away), Paul himself will pay it back in full, as Paul wrote to Philemon that: If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me. I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. I will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your very self. I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ (Philemon Vs. 18-20). This means, Paul agrees to bear the consequences of the wrongdoing Onesimus committed against his master Philemon and pay the price himself for any wrong he committed or any valuables he has taken while running away, so that Onesimus can be reconciled to his master, Philemon. This is what exactly Christ did for us – He paid the debts of all our sins with His very life (Colossians 2:13-14; also refer to Isaiah 43:25; John 3:16), as Apostle Paul stated: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).

(c) From Paul’s conversation, we can understand that Apostle Paul had a very close spiritual connections with Philemon as well as with Onesimus, Philemon’s runaway slave. Paul, was a dear brother (v.7), a good friend (v.1b), a fellow worker in the Kingdom of God (v.1c), a ministry partner (v.17), and a spiritual leader and mentor to Philemon (Philemon Vs. 17-20).  And so, we can understand that Paul’s words will mean a lot to Philemon and he will definitely listen to Paul’s spiritual counsel and will forgive and accept Onesimus his runaway slave who repented and became a believer in the Lord (Philemon v.21). Although, it is not specifically mentioned in the Epistle, we can believe that Philemon must have willingly welcomed back Onesimus and accepted him not as a slave but as a dear brother in the Lord, as per Apostle Paul’s recommendations to him (Philemon Vs. 15-16). Apostle Paul stressed on the idea of ‘not as a slave but as a dear brother’ because all those who are in Christ are a new creation, as Paul mentioned: if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here … (2 Corinthians 5:17-18); and they are all equal before God: There is there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all (Colossians 3:11).

Let us reread the Scripture passage we chose for our meditation and try to analyze and study it again as we meditate upon it (Philemon Vs.4-7).

• • Paul always thanks his God for Philemon (v.4a)
  • Paul always remembers Philemon in his prayers (v.4b)
  • Paul appreciates Philemon’s attitude of loving God’s holy people (v.5a)
  • Paul appreciates Philemon’s wholehearted faith in the Lord Jesus (v.5b)
  • Paul prays for Philemon’s partnership with them in the faith (v.6a)
  • Paul prays for Philemon to be effective in every good works (v.6b)
  • Paul, along with other ministers of the gospel, share good things with Philemon for the sake of Christ (v.6c)
  • Philemon’s love has given Paul great joy (v.7a)
  • Philemon’s love has given Paul great encouragement (v.7b)
  • Philemon has refreshed the hearts of Paul as well as other Lord’s people with his love and good works (v.7c)

Dear friends in the Lord, as we conclude our brief meditation on the selected Scripture passage (Philemon Vs. 4-7), let us try to understand the reason/s for Paul to ask Philemon to love, reconcile, and welcome back his runaway slave who wronged him and accept him as a brother in the Lord. Paul’s view here is that any one who is reconciled with Jesus Christ ought to reconcile themselves with others – whatever it may cost, because reconciliation with one another is the only way to heal/restore the broken relationship between two parted friends. God the Father did it for the world (2 Corinthians 5:19), Christ did it for us; and, now, we need to maintain the restored relationship between us and Christ by reconciling and restoring our relationship with one another. The best examples to mention here is that Christ reconciled Himself with Paul, a persecutor of the church; Christ reconciled Himself with Philemon, a slave owner; and Christ reconciled Himself with Onesimus, a runaway slave of Philemon. Paul knew the face value of godly reconciliation because Christ reconciled Himself with Paul, who was an opposer of the gospel, a persecutor of the followers of Christ, and the one who claimed himself as the worst of all sinners – who in turn became one of the most effective ministers of the gospel of all time. In the similar way, Christ reconciled Himself with Philemon, a slave owner, who in turn became a minister of the gospel. Now, Christ reconciled Himself with Onesimus, a runaway slave who became a faithful follower of Jesus Christ and an attendant to Paul in prison. Taking all these matters into consideration, Paul decided to send Onesimus back to Philemon with a letter appealing to Philemon to forgive and reconcile himself with his runaway slave Onesimus and accept him back as a dear brother. As we have mentioned earlier, we can believe that Philemon must have willingly welcomed back Onesimus and accepted him not as a slave but as a dear brother in the Lord, as per Apostle Paul’s recommendations to him (Philemon Vs. 15-16). As the devoted followers of Jesus Christ, there are many lessons for us to learn from the life of Paul, Philemon, and Onesimus. Perhaps, we might have done similar mistakes in our life like Onesimus who ran away from his master Philemon or not forgiving the wrongdoer like Philemon who did not forgave his runaway slave Onesimus before Paul’s intervention. According to Paul, these mistakes are not the signs of godly behavior.  A born again Christian believer must be able to forgive others even if they have wronged them and accept them as dear brother and sister in the Lord for the glory of God. In the light of what we have learned, let us submit to the will of God and pray to God to grant us ability to love everyone around us, including our enemies. May the Lord God Almighty bless us all! Amen!