Philemon's Response to Paul

Ted Newkumet

See Paul's Letter to Philemon in the New Testament.

Philemon your Servant in Christ.

To Paul who taught us freedom while in chains.

You know I too thank God for you and your trustworthy service to the Lord Jesus. I am all the more thankful for the good spirit evident in your letter. Those of us who journey with you eagerly await the day you get to share the good news of our Lord Jesus with Caesar.

Seeing Tychious, as always, encouraged me anew. The packages he bears from you are always surprising and useful. As I am sure you know, the ones from his most recent visit were even more so.

His arrival caused quite a stir among my servants. Normally, he is greeted with excitement. This time they were reluctant to bring him to me. When at last they did, I could understand why. Half-hidden behind him was my tormentor. As I began to order my servants to prepare Onesimus for his proper punishment Tychious told them to wait. Then in his firm yet gentle manner, he insisted I read your letter before having my orders carried out; then he sent Onesimus to go be with my servants.

Before I had read you letter I could boast that there was nothing I would not do for you. And now the folly of that boast was staring me in the face. I had thought I had already forgiven Onesimus and reconciled that I was never too see him again. But in truth, I had merely counted him as dead. I had loved him as more then just a servant and his betrayal crushed my soul.

It would have been better that you kept him. Failing that, it would have been better you had chosen to order me to accept him. I would have been free to set aside the desires of my heart out of obedience to you. By making it a choice you have placed the responsibility upon me to search my own heart.

As you remind me, I do owe my very self to you. I owe you my life and so much more. You taught me that while I was still his enemy, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ died so that my sins would be forgiven. How could I deny Onesimus after receiving such a great and wondrous gift. I am praying daily for new eyes so that I can see him as a beloved brother and not a formerly disobedient slave.

As for Onesimus' debts, Tychious has led me to see that in truth the little bit that he took did me no harm and has in fact already been restored to me many times over through God's blessings.

Give my greetings to all who are with you. A special thank you to Luke for the portion of his manuscript that Tychious delivered along with you letter. It must have been the Holy Spirit that guided him to send me the story that Jesus told about the son who took his portion of his father's estate and left home. Surely Luke did not know how relevant it was to our little conflict.

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you always.

The Letters (Epistles) of Paul were real letters to real people dealing with real situations. How would you respond to Paul if he asked you a big favor? Take a few moments to read Paul's Letter to Philemon and try coming up with your own response.