A Fugitive's Journey Home Revival Church
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A Fugitives Journey Home
Some of us are old enough to remember the 1960’s TV series The Fugitive, starring David Janssen as Richard Kimble, a physician wrongfully convicted of his wife’s murder and sentenced to receive the death penalty. En route to death row, Kimble’s train derailed over a switch, which allowed him to escape and begin a cross country search for the real killer, a one armed man he saw leave the scene of the crime, while under the relentless pursuit of a police lieutenant obsessed with his capture. Kimble, that is David Janssen died of a major heart attack, when he was just 48 years old.
The book of Philemon is a book of 25 verses, 335 words in the Greek tucked between the book of Titus and the Book of Hebrews. The book was written about 60AD (during Paul’s first imprisonment in Rome) and introduces us to a real- life fugitive by the name of Onesimus who, in the providence of God encountered Paul, believed on Christ and returned home to be reconciled with his Master. Themes in this book include: hope, grace God’s providence, redemption, forgiveness and reconciliation.
PPT READ 1-25 FROM BIBLE
PPT- The book of Philemon has 3 main characters. Paul, Philemon and Onesimus
Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our beloved fellow worker
Philemon 9 (ESV) PPT
yet for love’s sake I prefer to appeal to you—I, Paul, an old man and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus—
Paul did not see himself as a prisoner of Rome, and at the mercy of the Senate or the Emperor for that matter, but a prisoner for Christ Jesus.
It is the opinion of most bible Scholars that the imprisonment Paul is referring to is the one we read about in Acts 28 where Paul’s in Rome. He’s been delivered as a prisoner into the hands of the Romans under false charges, as we know, and would have set him free after they had examined him, but he made an appeal to stand before Caeser, and so he’s being detained in Rome as the book of Acts comes to close.
Acts 28:30–31 (ESV)PPT
He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.
To be under house arrest meant that he had a soldier with him around the clock. Today he might have an ankle bracelet that gives GPS coordinates which tell of his whereabouts.
This isn’t Paul’s first stint in jail. If he was in the ECCJ, some of the jailers might refer to him as a repeat customer, we certainly have our share of repeat customers, but for Paul, his crime, if we were to call it that, is one of preaching the gospel, the person of Jesus, he death, his burial and his resurrection, which the religious rulers of his day, would simply not accept..
Philemon is he second main character. The letter is addressed to him, at least he is its primary recipient.
The He lived in the ancient city of Colossae, which was in modern day Turkey. I once asked an inmate he had ever heard of Colossae. He thought for a moment, then sincerely said I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Colossae, but I have heard of a colonoscopy.
Philemon lived in Colossae. It is seems likely that Paul had been instrumental in his salvation. We don’t read anywhere in the books of Acts that Paul ever visited Colossae, but he did have a 2 ½ year ministry in the neighboring city of Ephesus (Acts 19) Paul had started in the synagogue before moving into the lecture Hall of Tyrannus… and in Acts 19:10
Acts 19:10 (ESV)PPT
This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
its very possible, that Paul and Philemon met there, maybe Philemon was on a business trip to Ephesus, he came into contact with Paul, heard the gospel and became a believer in Jesus. He returned to his hometown and began to share the gospel with others.
Philemon 1–3 (ESV)PPT
Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our beloved fellow worker and Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier, and the church in your house: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Verse 2 tells us that a church was started up in his house. A fellow worker, he was actively engaged in ministry. He was loved by Paul and by others, which is why Paul refers to him as our beloved fellow worker Apphia may have been his wife, he mentions Archippus…
NO PPT In Colossians 4:17 “And say to Archippus, See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord”. Which leads me to believe that Archippus was one of the leaders of the early churches in Colossae, one of which had been meeting in the house of Philemon”
Philemon’s house had become a gathering place for believers to worship, fellowship and study God’s Word together, much like James has done by opening up his house, the church in his house is receiving this letter right along with Philemon what Paul will be asking Philemon was to be public knowledge and instruction for the entire church, which is the nature of the church, what one does affects the other, we are to benefit from one another as a community of believers, who are to be living in fellowship with one another.
Quickly note the commendable qualities which were evident in Philemon.
Philemon 4–7 (ESV) PPT
I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, because I hear of your love and of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints, and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ. For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you.
Paul is not flattering Philemon. But he is about to ask something of Him, that he feel s he can ask him, because of the relationship that He has with Philemon as his brother in the Lord, and based upon what he knows and others know about Him, the hearts of the saints (believers) have been refreshed and encouraged by him, he was that kind of a person.
Pause and ask ourselves if we are that kind of a person. Are others encouraged by us, refreshed, word is also used in verse 20 “Refresh my heart in Christ”.
There are some people who just have a way of doing that. They are refreshing to be around. They uplift your spirit. That’s Philemon.
One other thing I should point out about Philemon is that he was a slave owner. Slavery back in the days of the Romans empire was common place. It wasn’t racially motivated as was true in our country. Many slaves were indentured or worked under contract and eventually attained their freedom. Some had good masters, others were not so good.
PPT
Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly.
From what Paul says about Philemon in this letter, he was a man of faith, he had a good reputation and no doubt treated those of his household well, which would have included his slaves, Onesimus being one of them.
Onesimus, The Third Main Character
The letter is mostly about him. And Paul appealing to Philemon on behalf of him, not as an apostle, which Paul was. In most of his letters, Paul refers to himself as apostle, which gives him authority, as one who has been commissioned by God and with a message from God. But when it comes to this letter and the appeal that Paul is about to make to Philemon on behalf of Onesimus, he doesn’t push his weight around, or dictate commands…
PPT
Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required, yet for love’s sake I prefer to appeal to you—I, Paul, an old man and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus— I appeal to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I became in my imprisonment.
Which brings us back to Onesimus, a slave within the household of Philemon, who apparently decided he didn’t want to work for Philemon anymore and so he up and left, and it seems from the way the letter is worded by Paul, that Onesimus had taken some of Philemon’s things on his way out.
We don’t know if they had pawn shops in that day, or a black market where they could get cash in their stolen goods, but the letter infers that Onesimus had taken took some of Philemon’s things and landed in the far-off city of Rome, which in that day was a city of close to a million people, where perhaps he thought he could blend in and start a new life for himself as a fugitive slave in the big city.
Colossae was about 900 miles from Rome as the crow flies. We don’t know how long Onesimus was there, but in the providence of God the day came when Onesimus came in contact with the Apostle Paul. We don’t have the details. We don’t know how it happened, other than the Lord somehow Onesimus came in contact with the Apostle Paul who was in Rome under house arrest. Paul had a small group of Christians who had followed him to Rome. How the connection was made, is left to our imagination.
and what Paul does Paul do, he does what he always does… He tells him about Jesus. The gospel does its work in this fugitive’s life, and he believes on Jesus and is saved.
V 10…whose father (spiritual father) I became (i birthed) in my imprisonment.
We might assume Philemon had prayed for the salvation of those in his household including his slaves. Maybe there were some who were saying… Onesimus will never come to faith in Christ. If he didn’t come to faith in Him while he was living in Philemon’s home and under his influence, what are the chances of him becoming a Christian when he’s living on the streets in Rome, with everything Rome has to offer him?
Pause to say… Maybe there’s someone you’ve been praying for, and you’ve lost contact with that person, you’ve all but given up hope of that person ever coming to faith in Christ.
We should never count God out. I have to believe that Philemon had tried to witnessed to Onesimus but Onesimus wasn’t ready for the gospel then, Some things had to happen first, and for some, it could mean some really hard times, even being put into jail with serious charges hanging over their head and the possibility of spending the rest of their life behind bars.
All we know is that the day came when the Spirit of God brought Onesimus to the place where he was ready to trust Christ. And he did. And from that point on his life began to change. And we shouldn’t be surprised by that, should we. Christ save us as we are, but he never leaves us as are. He begins to change us, and to grow us, to make us more like and more like Him. And so we can expect there to be evidences of a changed life in those whom Jesus saves.
PPT
(Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.) I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart. I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel, but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own accord. For this perhaps is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back forever, no longer as a bondservant but more than a bondservant, as a beloved brother—especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.
How was this true of Onesimus? Well… for one he began ministering to the apostle Paul during his imprisonment, making regular visits on him, bringing food and other supplies that he needed.
Today a person might put money on someone’s account in the jail. But back in that day, you depended on that, they didn’t take care of you like they do in our jails today. In Paul’s day if you didn’t have someone on the outside helping you out with food, clothing and hygiene supplies you were in a hard place. Paul is honest with Philemon when he says in verse
I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart. I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel, but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own accord. For this perhaps is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back forever,
That what happened was part of God’s providential working. Paul doesn’t justify any wrong doing on the part of Onesimus. He simply says, perhaps, ( in all of this, the reason behind him leaving you, unbeknownst to Onesimus or Philemon for that matter, was that God might reach him and then give him back to Philemon forever as a beloved brother in the Lord. You just never know what God might be up to in a person’s life.
And is strikes me that Onesimus was willing to go back, acknowledge his wrong and seek to be reconciled with Philemon. There were severe penalties for run away slaves. Slave owners could pretty much do as they good and well pleased. Now granted, Philemon had a godly reputation, but there were still some risks involved. Onesimus may have wondered how he would be treated; would he be welcomed back within the church. Would people snub him or turn their noses when they saw him. It would have been easy for him in the flesh to say, just forget it. I’ve messed up too bad. I can’t go back there now. What will people say.
But he pushed all of those carnal reasoning to the side. And was willing to go back with this personal letter from Paul that we have in our hands.
PPT
So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me. If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. I, Paul, write this with my own hand: I will repay it—to say nothing of your owing me even your own self. Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ.
He says in verse 17… So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me”. Treat him with the same love and courtesy that you would give to me.
Verse 18, If he has wronged you, which he had, if he owes you anything, which he did, Put it on my Mastercard… charge that to my account.
With those words, we hear the words of another One, a much greater One who saw us running from Him and would have run right into hell itself were it nor for God coming after us in our far away places to save us. And we hear Jesus Himself saying, to the Father, ‘Father, they have rebelled against you, but I will pay for their sins… charge them to my account.
It is well with my soul… my sin is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more, prayer the Lord, praise the Lord on my soul.
PPT
Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. At the same time, prepare a guest room for me, for I am hoping that through your prayers I will be graciously given to you. Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you, and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
We can only imagine what it must have been like for Onesimus to show up at the door of Philemon with this letter in hand.
5. Spiritual Realities:
1) God changes those whom He saves, even those with a criminal history.
It was true of the Apostle Paul. It was true of Onesimus. God changes those whom He saves, even those with a criminal history. for some it is a more difficult road than others. For some its two steps forward, one step back; then two steps forward and one step back until they are able to grasp the freedom that is theirs in Christ and how to live differently. Reality is, some may live the rest of their lives behind bars, but it may be God’s will to use them in that place to reach some that only they can reach, which is what happened with Paul .
I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.
2) We should marvel at what God has done for us in our salvation
He has taken us from being useless to being useful; from being a runaway slave to become one of God’ beloved children.
Speaking of Onesimus, Paul says…don’t take him back to the servant’s quarters…receive him as you would receive me, no longer as a bondservant, but more than a bondservant, as a beloved brother. As an equal with you, Philemon in the faith. Paul is saying, the ground that surrounds the cross is level. There are no second-class citizens in the Kingdom of God. No one is more deserving than anyone else or above anyone else.
PPT
Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.
PPT Galatians 3:25-28
But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
PPT Galatians 4:4–7 (ESV)
But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
ADD PPT
3) Forgiveness and reconciliation with others should be pursued, especially among believers.
Philemon and Onesimus would be given the opportunity to model forgiveness and reconciliation before the entire church.
PPT
Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
This is a big deal with God. God wants us to clear things up with other believers and to forgive others even as we have been forgiven by Him.
Illus Luke Shilts- young man in our jail who recently came to faith in Christ. His drug addiction and reckless living had resulted in his being alienated from his family and he began to work towards being reconciled with them. He acknowledged his wrong, he shared what Jesus had done in his life. He said he was blessed being in the jail where he now had time to grow in his faith. His mother shared this with her neighbor who was a believer and has started taking her to church, and I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that she to had trusted Christ.
4. You don't always know how a persons life story will end.
Were never told how the story ended. Onesimus went back, carried the letter with him along with Tychicus who was a member of the church in Colossae; he might assume he was welcomed back with open arms. We are left to wonder. Legend has it that Philemon, Aphia his wife and Archippus were martyred. There is an Onesimus who became a pastor in Ephesus. There are men all over the world who were once imprisoned but who are now trophies of his grace. Recently took on the support of Jacob and Rebekah Ketchens and their family. Jacob came to faith in Christ while he was in jail and is now going to Viet Nam to tell others about Jesus.
4. We see the Importance of Doing the Next Right Thing.
It was right for Paul to send Onesimus back to Philemon. It was right for Onesimus to go back and make things right with Philemon. It was right for Philemon to welcome his returning slave back into his household.
As Paul writes to the church at Colossae a letter which was also written to the church in Philemon’s home, the church is encouraged to continue in the faith and do the next right thing.
Application: What is your next right thing. To share your faith with your neighbor; or to be reconciled with someone you have wronged; maybe the next right thing for you is to start praying again because you stopped praying a while back, when you got discouraged or angry with God. Maybe the next right thing for you is to put some sin to death in your life and to not put if off.
Why do I say While there is time? History records that in 64 AD, a well known earthquake occurred in the area of Colossae, Laodicea and Herapolis. These three cities formed a crude triangle, called the tri- city area.
These cities were the targets of a devastating earthquake in which all there cities were destroyed, no bout claimed the lives of our Christian brothers and sisters in those areas. The fact that Paul does not refer to the event, leads most scholars to believe these letters predated the quake.
Don’t presume upon tomorrow step out in faith and do God’s will today.