The title must be changed (Philemon 1:9-14)
Contents
Rather, out of love, I beg you, as I, Paul, who is old, now also a prisoner for Jesus Christ, I beg you for my son Onesimus, who was born in prison. I want him to remain with me to serve me instead of you in prison for my gospel, but I do not want to do anything without your consent, so that your good work may not be forced, but will be voluntary.
In the content of the text, Paul introduces a man who has been transformed by the gospel.
He is Onesimus, Philemon's servant. Introducing Onesimus, he says:
“I am sending him back to you, because he used to be of no use to you, but now it is to you and me.” In other words, the unprofitable person was transformed into a useful person.
What changed him?
① It is the gospel.
Originally, Onesimus was a servant of a man named Philemon. But Onesimus escaped from Philemon's house. If a slave escaped from his master, under the criminal law at the time, it was a felony that could be executed without trial by the master.
Onesimus, who escaped from his master's house, met Paul while on the run.
It is not known how he met Paul, but it is believed that he came to Paul in prison and heard the gospel because of the expression “a son born while in prison...” in the text.
Paul preached the gospel to Onesimus, who was a slave, and Onesimus believed and accepted Jesus Christ and became a new person. It was the gospel that changed him.
The gospel has the power to change people.
A missionary named "John Kedy" from Canada took the gospel to a small island where cannibals live.
He preached the gospel to the cannibals even though he felt his life was in danger. With the love of Christ, they cared for them, acquired the language, translated the Bible, and educated them. After he finished his ministry and died, people erected a monument to him.
On the monument, people wrote:
"When he first landed here in 1848, there were no Christians here. But in 1872, when he died, there were no cannibals here."
That is, he made all the islanders Christians.
Christians They were no longer cannibals. The gospel has the power to change like this. Cannibals can also become Christians.
There was a slave trader.
His highest goal in life was to make money by selling slaves at high prices.
The words sympathy or love were only extravagant feelings for him.
People around him called him a 'cold-blooded man'.
But one day, the gospel entered his heart.
This is J. Newton, who wrote the lyrics of the hymn, 'You saved a sinner like me', the most sung by Christians around the world. His hymns have a powerful power to touch the souls of believers as well as unbelievers.
The gospel changes people's values and makes them revise their goals.
And it lets you know what your real investment is.
② It is love.
Paul says that he is praying out of love, returning Onesimus, who has been converted and converted, to his original owner, Philemon. what kind of love It is a love born while in captivity.
The text reads, “I, on the contrary, beseech you out of love, as I, Paul, who is an old man, now again a prisoner for the sake of Jesus Christ, I plead with you for Onesimus, my son, whom I begotten in prison.” That's right.
The greatest love among love is the love born.
Paul gave birth to a son of the gospel out of love while in prison. That's why he uses the expression "begotten son" proudly. Onesimus was Paul's son of faith and Paul was his spiritual father.
Paul’s love born of love completely transformed Onesimus, who was harsh, stubborn, and disobedient.
He was a slave who escaped from his master's house, a stubborn, tough, disobedient man. But when I met Paul, my heart melted in his love. The warm south wind melts the frozen earth, and the heat of the furnace melts iron. It is love that can melt people's hearts.
Paul's love melted the hearts of Onesimus' people. So Onesimus was changed.
③ It is the filling of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is a transforming spirit.
But there is something more difficult than that.
It's time to look at people who don't change.
I pray every time.
Originally filled with the Holy Spirit means "dynamite". That is the meaning of the explosion.
No matter how big a rock is, if you dig a hole in it, fill it with gunpowder, and explode it, it will break into pieces. The power of the Holy Spirit breaks people into pieces and creates a new person.
Let us be filled with the Holy Spirit.
How has it changed?
① Changed into a useful person. Let's read verse 11 again.
"It was useless to you, but now it is useful to you and me..."
It is unclear why Onesimus ran away from his master Philemon. However, in Mon 1:18, Paul said, "If he has done anything wrong to you or has lost anything against you, account this to me." It seems that he caused damage to his master's property and ran away because he could not bear it. Paul even says that if Onesimus owes Philemon anything he will repay him.
Onesimus was a life that only harmed his master. So he was useless. But, according to Paul, it is now beneficial to you and beneficial to me as well.
If it is beneficial to you and me, it is to be beneficial to everyone. In particular, Paul says that he has become indispensable to his gospel ministry.
How are you guys?
You must be a useful person. Be useful, especially for the gospel.
② He has been transformed into a pawn.
In Mon 1:11-12 it says, “He was once of no avail to you, but now he is useful to me and you, so I am sending him back to you, because he is my servant.”
The word “pawn” is the Greek word for “Splanknon”. Originally derived from the internal organs, the center, it means sympathy or affection. It means someone who cherishes and loves from the heart. It means a loyal person who is moved by that love and can give even his life.
He had previously been disloyal to his master, Philemon. Therefore, he was a useless servant who had no choice but to run away at the expense of his master.
But now, he expresses himself as one of Paul's own servants. So Paul wanted to let Onesimus stay with him. However, since he was a slave with a strict master at the time, he wanted to return him to his old master, Philemon, and get official permission from Philemon to keep him by his side. So Paul wrote the letter to Philemon with great respect and courtesy. As such, Onesimus was transformed into a man of loyalty.
He became Paul's servant for the sake of the gospel.
I want all the members of our church to become servants of God with me. A servant whom the Lord always wants to have by his side.
Who are the servants of the Lord in our church?
In the Bible, Moses is called God's servant and Joshua is called Moses' servant. Onesimus was transformed into a man who could be with Paul for Christ's sake.