(Series) Philemon – Reconciliation

Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part 5 (New Possibilites!)

July 19, 2010 By Kurt Willems Leave a Comment

What follows is a manuscript from a sermon I have preached on a few occasions. I walk through the whole book of Philemon. Love to have you follow along in this series. My prayer is that it will inspire you to “forgive as you have been forgiven…” The rest of the 5 part series is here.

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20I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ. 21Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I ask.

Not only is Paul confident that Philemon will “refresh” him I the Lord, but he is confident that his request will be followed through. And here is the key line in regards to slavery in this letter: “…knowing that you will do even more than I ask.” What Paul seems to be hinting at is that: If you will receive Onesimus as if he were me… If you are a “partner” in the business of the gospel… If you believe that as Christians we are called to a ministry of reconciliation… If you believe that all Christians should be in fellowship with one another and therefore are called to sit at the same table… Then you will “do even more than I ask…” You will give this slave his freedom! [Read more...]

Filed Under: (Series) Philemon - Reconciliation, Interpretation, Open Theism, Philemon, Reconciliation, Sermon Leave a Comment

Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part 4 (Radical Reconciliation)

July 8, 2010 By Kurt Willems 6 Comments

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At the core of the message of Jesus is one of reconciliation: he put back together our broken relationship with God through his death and resurrection. Not only so, but this is the model that we are told to imitate in our relationships with each other. The New Testament constantly reminds us that nothing should divide us… we are all called to sit at the same table. In the letter that was sent along with this one, “Colossians,” Paul reminds them of the reality of reconciliation…

19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Colossians 1.19

God is in the business of reconciliation. This passage demonstrates the largeness of Gods reconciliation, [Read more...]

Filed Under: (Series) Philemon - Reconciliation, Interpretation, Open Theism, Philemon, Reconciliation 6 Comments

Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part 3 (A Slave, a Master, and Forgiveness)

July 5, 2010 By Kurt Willems 2 Comments

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12I am sending him—who is my very heart—back to you. 13I would have liked to keep him with me so that he could take your place in helping me while I am in chains for the gospel. 14But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do will be spontaneous and not forced. 15Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back for good— 16no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a man and as a brother in the Lord.

At this point in the letter, we now see what Paul is trying to accomplish. He is trying to convince Philemon that he ought to forgive this runaway slave. Now in our day we hear that this “partner” in the gospel had slaves and we want to be mad. How could a Christian own slaves? Doesn’t slavery contradict everything that we know about the nature of the Gospel of Jesus? [Read more...]

Filed Under: (Series) Philemon - Reconciliation, Interpretation, Open Theism, Philemon, Reconciliation, Sermon Tagged With: Kurt Willems, Masters, Open Theism, Philemon sermon, reconciliation, Slavery 2 Comments

Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part 2 (Business / Partnership Metaphors)

June 23, 2010 By Kurt Willems 3 Comments

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Paul wrote this letter as a personal note to a dear friend named Philemon who was the leader of a house church in Colossae. This letter was sent with the letter to the Colossians. This evening, lets journey back to the first century and see if we can imagine being the recipients of this letter.

1Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker, 2to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier and to the church that meets in your home: 3Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Notice that this is a letter that is sent to one person: Philemon (who is a “fellow worker” and more literally a “partner”). Paul then goes on to acknowledge some other key people and the church as a whole. The point being that although this is a letter that was sent primarily to one person, it is addressing a matter that the whole church must wrestle with. Lets continue with verse four…

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 your partnership with us in the 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.

You may know that Paul usually has some sort of prayer that is directed at the recipients of his letters. One of the key things that Paul is communicating to Philemon is that he sees him as a “partner” in the faith. Throughout the rest of the letter, the idea of “partnership” is going to be a main focus. [Read more...]