“…No Longer As A Slave…”
“no longer as a slave, but [as someone] more than a slave, as a brother [in Christ], especially dear to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh [as a servant] and in the Lord [as a fellow believer].”
Philemon 1:16 (Amp)
Today we experience a personal private letter from Apostle Paul in the book of Philemon about Onesimus a slave. It is said that Philemon is a wealthy Christian in the Colossian church and that Onesimus his slave stole from Philemon and ran away to Rome, where her met Apostle Paul and was saved and converted into Christianity. Apostle Paul speaks highly of Onesimus and he identifies him as his child because he fathered him in the faith, he vouches for Philemon and offers a plea on behalf of Onesimus to Philemon, scripture says no longer as a slave, but [as someone] more than a slave, as a brother [in Christ], especially dear to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh [as a servant] and in the Lord [as a fellow believer].
Today as we go into prayer, this personal private letter from Apostle Paul to Philemon regarding Onesimus speaks volumes about who we are in Christ and about how we handle relations with others. Onesimus is a slave who stole from his master Philemon, but Apostle Paul seeks forgiveness and restoration for Onesimus. As we prepare to pray today, by grace we are fully aware that without salvation because of Christ’s shed blood on the cross, we would be enslaved to sin and condemnation. Let’s be quick to offer forgiveness and restoration, let’s be quick to recognize that in Christ Jesus we are one family and God sees us all the same, covered in the precious blood of Jesus!
Let our prayers be for those who have not yet given their lives to Jesus, let our prayers be for those who are recognized no longer as a slave!
Recent Comments