DAY
SEVENTEEN
READ: Philemon
1 (Please read it again if you read it yesterday.)
In this short book Paul calls himself a prisoner three times. This is
significant because in each case he calls himself a prisoner of (or in) Christ.
Paul is a smart man! He has studied and been taught as a Pharisee in the past
and is highly educated. It is not by accident that he calls himself a prisoner
of Christ. Even though Paul is actually under arrest as he is writing this,
just by reading this letter we wouldn’t know who was holding him prisoner. Paul
does this purposely because he wants to make the point that only Christ can
hold him prisoner. Even if he were out of jail, he would still be a prisoner of
Christ Jesus. This will have a great impact on Philemon, the slave-master.
Paul’s point is not to be pitied because he’s a prisoner. No way!
Instead he wants Philemon to see that anyone who is a follower of Christ is a
prisoner. His words challenge Philemon to reconsider his identity: instead of
being a master, in Christ, he is literally a slave or prisoner. These would
have been hard words to swallow for a man who owned people to do his bidding
and cater to his every whim. Philemon had the power, legally, to kill Onesimus
for running away. He held the life and death of his slaves in his hands according
to the law. Now Paul is challenging him to think of himself on the other side
of his own table.
Paul is respectful to Philemon, even while he is challenging and
instructing him to do a very difficult thing. He says he could flat out tell
him what to do but instead, he’s asking nicely. Onesimus had obviously become
very close to Paul, but that actually is not the point Paul is making. It’s not
only his relationship with Onesimus that Paul refers to. Rather it is
Philemon’s relationship with Paul and with God and with the community of
believers. This whole chapter is about relationship! Paul loves Philemon and
Onesimus. Because they are in a broken relationship, Paul is instructing
Philemon to fix it. As the master of Onesimus, Philemon has the power to
transform that relationship from slave-to-master to brother-to-brother.
Paul wants Philemon to know this: all believers are prisoners of Christ,
therefore no matter the status or rank, in the eyes of God we are all equal. So
if some can be considered family, then all must be considered family.
JOURNALING
AND PRAYER
1.
Ask the Lord to speak to you about your life as a
prisoner of Christ. Ask Him to give you a picture of some recent events you
have experienced where you submitted to Him like a prisoner, and perhaps where
you didn’t. Confess if necessary. Ask Him to grow your understanding of
yourself as a prisoner of Christ.
2.
Ask the Holy Spirit to bring to mind anyone you
have dismissed or treated as less-than (a customer, a neighbor, a family
member, a stranger, someone with less money, someone who doesn’t dress in
fashion, etc.). Ask God to show you what your responsibility is to treat this
person (or these people) as family and with the dignity He has assigned to
them. Confess any sin He reveals. Ask God for an opportunity to practice this
today.
3.
This letter speaks strongly about relationships
within the Body of Christ and how it is practically worked out by treating each
other well. Ask the Lord to reveal to you anything you have done to offend or mistreat
another believer, regardless of what they have done to you, that you need to
apologize for and make right. Confess your sin to the Lord and ask if there is
anything you need to do to set things right with this person or people.
4.
Ask God to fill you with overflowing love for
others in the Body of Christ.
