The book of Philemon is only 25 verses long. It is nothing but a short letter written by a "spiritual father" to his "spiritual son"; by a mentor to a mentee; by a discipler to a disciple; by a leader to a follower. Yet this book is so packed with teachings we will not be able to study it in one day.
The relationship between these two men was obviously very close that Paul was able to ask Philemon some very strong requests quite confidently. In my life, I clamor for a relationship such as this where I am asked with directness concerning my Christian walk and my relationships specially with my wife and family. We all need an accountability partner like Paul who is so concerned about his friend's obedience to God. I believe we will be able to avoid a lot of problems in life if we have friends like Paul.
I have such friends in my life who can question me anytime about my physical, emotional, spiritual and relational life. They have the green light to call me anytime without asking for permission. And I treasure those times specially when I travel away from my family.
Philemon was a slave-owner who was wronged by his slave Onesimus who must have ran away with his money and/or precious things. It is when, I suppose, the money had ran out that Onesimus met Paul and stayed with him during his house arrest in Rome. At that time, Onesimus became a genuine believer in Christ and had been discipled effectively by Paul to the point that Onesimus was ready to face the consequences of his sinful acts against Philemon. Paul emphasized the importance of facing your problems and not run away from it.
What Paul was asking Onesimus was not easy. It was not easy for Philemon to receive Onesimus either. Even for Paul, it was not easy for him to let go of a person who became his personal assistant who was able to help him in his physical and ministerial needs. What Paul is saying here is that:
"THE EASY ROAD IS OFTEN NOT THE MOST BENEFICIAL ROAD."
I can almost hear Onesimus begging Paul: "Bro. Paul, please don't send me back to my master Philemon. I don't know what he might do to me. He could have me jailed or even worse hanged. Just let me stay here and I will serve you for the rest of your life. Please ask my master Philemon to just give me to you as your slave. It will be better for you and me!"
In the case of Philemon, he could have taken the easy road too and say: "As far as forgiveness, Bro. Paul, I have forgiven that "snake" with all of the pain he inflicted on me and my family. God knows how much I took care of him and yet he paid me back with this. But I am over it already Bro. Paul so it is best for you to keep him. If you send him back, I might not be able to control myself and kill that guy. It will be best for all of us if you kept him there to help you with your needs. You have my blessings to keep him. You need some help anyway and since I am too busy to help you, let him be my contribution to your ministry. Another thing is that my other slaves may get the wrong idea if they see that guy here and get away with what he did to me. The other slave owners too are up in arms when they got the hint that I might let that guy off the hook. My wife could not stop nagging me about it and I feel that I am being laughed at by people in my town. This way I could tell them that I sent him to you to do my work. I think this is best for all parties."
Paul on the other hand could also look at his own need and say: "Philemon, since you owe me a lot when I led you to Christ, let me have this guy Onesimus as your contribution to my ministry. He is too valuable for me so please consider him sold to me. God bless."
I am sure that some of you, like me, could be nodding your head in agreement with these. But the reality is that as Paul mentioned, it is best for Philemon to do things without compulsion but out from his heart. It is good for Philemon to face his problems and apply his Christian principles accordingly. Obviously Paul was asking Philemon to forgive Onesimus unconditionally which he gladly complied. Since Onesimus came to face Philemon, he too had a changed heart willing to accept the consequences of his mistakes. But Onesimus met grace instead. How beautiful that meeting must have been!
How did I know this? If this letter from Paul so annoyed and offended Philemon, we would not be reading it today. It would have been a good fire starter for Philemon's fireplace.
Next we will learn how Philemon responded to Paul's request. Be blessed.
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