sponsored by:   and 

Wednesday, September 01, 2010

Forgiveness

 

Send a link to a friend

[September 01, 2010]   --"Perhaps this is the reason he was separated from you for a while, so that you might have him back forever, no longer as a salve but more than a slave, a beloved brother-especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord."-Philemon 1:16

First, some context.  Philemon is a brief letter from the Apostle Paul to, you guessed it, a man named Philemon.  At issue is a man named Onesimus, a slave belonging to Philemon, who has found his way into Paul's life, and become very important to Paul.  Paul is writing in the hope that Philemon will forgive Onesimus his transgressions, thought to be theft and desertion, and then, embracing him as a new brother in Christ, send him back to Paul.  Paul penned this particular letter from prison, where he had been locked away for proclaiming the Gospel, and had come to find Onesimus to be an important companion.  There, context.  Don't you feel better? 
Anyway, there is a lot to say about this short letter but I want to focus on one simple thing this morning, reconciliation.  Paul is writing with the idea of freedom for Onesimus, but more that Onesimus and Philemon might be reconciled to one another. In the ancient world, the slave-master relationship was complex.  Some slaves were treated with distinction, practically as members of the family, while most were treated poorly, as property.  Either way, it is unlikely that these two had ever had anything resembling an egalitarian relationship.  Yet in the passage above this is what Paul invites them to, beloved brotherhood.  And in this invitation we see a clear example of Paul's theology in action.  He truly believed that Christ cut through this important social barrier.  As fellow believers in Christ, Philemon and Onesiums could be reconciled to one another in a new way, through Christ, and their new relationship could reflect their new creation in Jesus.  As for us, we should remember that shared faith is the greatest bond we can have with another person.  In Biblical times, that faith was considered more powerful than even family bonds, more powerful than slavery, more power than ethnicity.  Today we are reminded that, whatever challenges we have with others in our lives or in the world, those challenges are not greater than the Gospel.  We should remember that in Christ, we are one. 

Prayer:  Lord, I pray for those damaged relationships in my life, and I ask that you would be present amongst them.  Help me to find reconciliation in and through you.  I pray in Jesus' name.  Amen.

 

[text from file received from Phil Blackburn,

First Presbyterian Church]

< Recent articles

Back to top


 

News | Sports | Business | Rural Review | Teaching & Learning | Home and Family | Tourism | Obituaries

Community | Perspectives | Law & Courts | Leisure Time | Spiritual Life | Health & Fitness | Teen Scene
Calendar | Letters to the Editor