Phil was a leader of a large organization in Turkey. He and his wife Abby followed Christ, and groups of other Christians frequently met in his home. He had an employee named Owen, who had recently stolen some money and fled. Phil and Abby were upset for many reasons, not the least of which was the fact that Owen had run off to Rome to help a friend of Phil’s with a project he was working on.
While in Rome with Paul, Owen heard, understood, and accepted for himself the message of the gospel of Christ. He and Paul built a deep friendship and Paul came to rely heavily on Owen for help as well as companionship.
After a season, Paul felt compelled to write to Phil, telling him that his runaway employee had come to Rome and was living with Paul. Along with the update was an appeal for Phil to forgive Owen and restore him to his former position. Paul was sending Owen back to Phil and Paul was going to take care of any compensation for whatever Owen had stolen from him. His reasoning? He’s more than just an employee now; he’s our brother.
Now you’re caught up on the background story of the New Testament book of Philemon. That’s where this week’s passage lives. The short letter bears reading over and over as it is rich with relationship issues, reconciliation guidelines, and more. Paul was in prison in Rome when he wrote this letter to his friend Philemon and his wife, Apphia concerning a runaway slave, Onesimus, who was with Paul and had recently responded to the gospel. I strongly encourage you to read the whole letter – all 25 verses. It’ll take you all of five minutes.
4I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, 5because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. 6I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. 7Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints. (Philemon 4-7)
Since we started with the interpretation of the text in our fictional account of Phil and Abby, let’s look at some observations that will take us directly to personal application of the concepts in the passage. When reading the preceding verses, I quickly came up with several questions that not only related to the individuals in this situation, but to my life as well. See if any of these resonate with you.
1. Who am I thanking God for? Paul is thanking God for Philemon and his wife. There are people in my life who have encouraged me, blessed me, loved me well, and sacrificed for me. Do I live in gratitude for the quality of relationships God has put in my life? And do I thank Him for those people?
2. For whom am I praying on a regular, passionate basis? Verse 3 implies that thanking God for Philemon and lifting him up in intercessory prayer is commonplace for Paul. Am I listening for the Holy Spirit to prompt me in praying for those I love? Am I even asking Him to? Sadly, too often the answer is no.
3. Who is hearing about or seeing my faith in Christ and my love for others? Paul writes that he is thankful for Philemon because he hears about his love and faith. Philemon’s reputation had gotten to Paul in a Roman prison. And it was all good. What do people see in my life? Am I loving others well? Is my faith evident? Or would observers of my life be surprised to learn of my faith because there’s so little evidence of it?
4. To whom has my love given great joy and encouragement? Am I purposeful in blessing others? A reality check may be in order on either end of the spectrum. Some days I’m convinced no one would care whether or not I was around. Other days, I’m just as certain that the world can’t do without me. Reality is somewhere in the middle and hearing the truth from God does much to bring my perspective in alignment with His.
5. Who gives me joy and encouragement? I love that Paul is letting Philemon know that their friendship and ministry together has been uplifting to him. It encourages me to be aware of those who spur me on and to let them know the impact they have on my life.
6. With whom am I sharing my faith? Paul sees and has lived with the benefits that come with actively telling his faith story. Now he prays for Philemon to have the same boldness. This is the clearest place in Scripture for motivating us to talk to others about what God means to us and is doing in our lives. Just like the best way to learn something is to teach it to someone else, so by sharing the gospel message and its implications with those around us are we made more aware of the doctrine that is the foundation of our faith.
7. Who needs prayer to share their faith more boldly? For some, talking about Jesus is as natural as breathing. Others need a little push. But all are called to give a testimony about what Christ’s death and resurrection mean to them. Why not ask God to give opportunity and eloquence to His more reluctant children?
8. Do I have a full understanding of every great thing I have in Christ? By sharing our faith with others we come to understand more deeply all the good things we have in Christ, according to verse 6 of this passage. The first two chapters of Ephesians is a good place to look for a list of all that God has taken the initiative to do in our lives. Here is a direct correlation between sharing our faith and understanding it. With understanding comes a deeper appreciation. Worship and gratitude follow.
9. Who has refreshed my heart? There are people who are effortless to be with. They are not focused on themselves and they actively engage in conversation by listening and sharing what is real. These people refresh my heart. They help me see God’s activity in their lives and they encourage me to look for Him in mine.
10. Whose heart have I refreshed lately? Do I make it a point to bless others just because? Do I know someone who is blue and needs an outing? Is there a special treat or a kind word that would bring fresh air and life into someone’s day? As I am refreshed, I hope to refresh others.
Paul’s letter to Philemon serves not only to outline practical steps toward reconciliation, but it also highlights some of the more poignant relationship characteristics that Christians can share. Intercessory prayer. Purposeful encouragement. Joy in sharing a common bond of Christian doctrine. Things that knit our hearts together as we grow in our faith in Jesus. My prayer is that God would open our eyes to the blessings of relationships in our lives and that He would grow us into followers who refresh the hearts of others and demonstrate His love to the world.
• Read all of Paul’s letter to Philemon and list any other questions you think of relating to the text.
• Read Ephesians 1 and 2 and list all the heavenly blessings we have in Christ.
• Ask God who He would have you intercede for or encourage this week.
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