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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.
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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]
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