Day 7: GRACE: How God Works in His World Through Us (Philemon)
There are so many wrongs in the world. Slavery, sex-trafficking, and more. The world often cries out, “Where is God?”
When we started exploring this Letter to Philemon, I asked, “What is God saying to us? Is there anything that God might want to say to me through the Letter to Philemon?”
I come to the end feeling personally challenged—it has reminded me that God works in His World by working through US!
For me it started with the simple observation that Philemon was being asked to do something counter-cultural regarding someone who had wronged him.
Furthermore, to get something out of this letter, I needed to put aside my skepticism and cynicism. I need to receive this letter as a letter from God that had something to say to me.
Which brought me to the characters, and looking at how, what would seem like a terrific idea—giving Onesimus his freedom—required tremendous courage on the part of each of them.
Each of them, as they practiced GRACE would face challenges. I was once asked to describe what grace actually was. They wanted to know if they could see it. This letter certainly gives a vivid picture of what grace in action looks like, and what it will cost.
What I find further remarkable is that this is how God works in His World. Now for me, this is not new information. Yet this short letter has put a rather sharp point on it. A Bible Commentary by R.C. Lucas, The Message of Colossians & Philemon (The Bible Speaks Today Series from InterVarsity Press) has helped with what follows.
How is God dealing with slavery? Does he have Paul give speeches against slavery? No, he has Paul deal with it within the Body of Christ—His Church. He does this one person at a time.
You and I are used to living in a society that was shaped by Biblical values. I am not saying we had a church that was a branch of the government. Rather, the laws that were enacted were largely drawn from the Bible. The fundamental idea that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator…” derives from Genesis, chapter one. There are countries throughout history, as well as today, that do not believe in such a fundamental premise. Rome, during Paul’s day was one such country.
For years, our struggle as a country was getting this equality fully enacted. Today the challenge is understanding where and how to draw the lines regards personal freedoms.
People today lament the ways of life that are being endorsed by our government. The Light of Christ is getting dimmer in our world. Imagine how dim the Light was in Paul’s world. We should take note of the Letter to Philemon.
Whether we live in the United States of America, or Paul’s Rome, we are living in an evil world! (I know that is not terribly cheery news, but it is true).
As followers of Jesus we are called to witness to the Light, to at times be peacemakers. We are to do this in our family’s, villages, towns, states, countries, and in our world.
Be not confused, human tyranny will not cease until Christ returns. People will continue to oppress and exploit others.
To live in this evil world Christians cannot avoid living within social structures that are unjust and unequal, though their presence within it as salt and light should help to change structures.
Which makes the narrowness of Paul’s aim fascinating!
“A burning appeal to an unknown house-church in Phrygia is his way to begin to change the world! It is decidedly less impressive than a grand pronouncement of an ideal to a wider audience. But long after such rhetoric would be forgotten (and its life is conspicuously short), the influence of a letter like this would spread from life to life and from group to group, in the Lycus valley, and wherever its inhabitants journeyed.” (from Lucas)
Philemon was in a position to right a wrong; to practice GRACE.