Restoring a Servant

Introduction

Today we continue looking a the epistles that Paul wrote while he was in prison in Rome.

This morning we are going to begin looking at the little book of Philiemon. I’ve entitled this sermon, The Restoration of a Servant.

Paul was in prison when he met someone that he had known from Colossae showed up. It was a servant owned by a man named Philemon. And Paul is writing the letter with Timothy—who they no doubt knew.

Paul is writing Philemon on this man’s behalf. So what do we know about Philemon?

Philemon

Philemon 1–3 NIV84

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

Philemon

We learn everything we know from this book, because it is the only place in scripture where he is mentioned.

So, what do we know about him? Well we know three things:

First, Paul considered him a dear friend. This is not simply a title given in a letter. We are going to see that Philemon truly was a dear friend of Paul.

Second, Paul calls Philemon a “fellow worker.” Paul believed that Philemon was working to advance the Kingdom of God just like Paul was.

Finally, the way the passage is written, it seems as though the church at Colossae met in Philemon’s home.

Apphia

Once again, this is the only place that she is mentioned. There are several possibilities.

Many believe she was the wife of Philemon. She was the woman of the house, and if that were so, she would have been over Onesimus in his day-to-day activities.

Finally, many scholars believe she was either Archippus’ mother or sister.

Archippus

As mentioned a minute ago, some scholars believe he may have been the son of Philemon and Apphia, or perhaps he was the brother of Apphia. Some scholars believe he may have been Philemon’s brother.

He is mentioned in two places in Scripture. First, he’s mentioned here, and in .

Colossians 4:17 NIV84

Tell Archippus: “See to it that you complete the work you have received in the Lord.”

It appears that he was definitely old enough to be involved in some kind of ministry.

Many scholars believe he was the shepherd (or pastor) of the church that met in the home of Philemon.

To the Church

Paul also includes the church that met in the home of Philemon as part of the intended audience. This may have been to help the church understand the situation, and thus encourage Philemon in his obedience.

The Greeting

Paul gives his typical greeting. “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,” is almost the exact wording used in the greeting of six of Paul’s other letters (Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, and Philippians).

I love the word order. The only way to have peace is to be in a right relationship with both God and man, and I can only be in a right relationship with God when I receive God’s grace!

Philemon 4–7 NIV84

I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.

Philemon 4-

Paul often begins his letters with some kind of thanks for the people to whom he is writing. In this case he there are two reasons he is thankful for Philemon.

First, Paul is thankful for Philemon’s faith in the Lord Jesus. This faith showed his love for all the saints.

Secondly, Paul is thankful for Philemon’s love for all the saints.

Next Paul says, he thanks God for them as he remembers them in his prayers

Paul’s Prayer

Philemon 6 NIV84

I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.

Philimon 6

The way the NIV phrases this verse, it sounds like the more Philemon shares his faith, the more he will understand the good things we have in Christ. The problem is understanding how to translate the connective phrase.

I believe a better understanding of this verse is actually the opposite cause and effect. So it would go, “I pray that the more you have a full understanding of every good thing you have in Christ, you will be more active in sharing your faith.”

You see, the more we understand all that Jesus has done for us, the more we should want others to experience what we have experienced.

QUESTION: This morning I want to encourage you to stop and think for a minute about all that Jesus has done for you. Don’t forget to think about those things that you have yet to experience—like heaven.

Yet Paul already knows about Philemon’s love, because in verse 7, Paul says, “Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.”

What a great complement for Paul to give Philemon. You know, I wonder what Paul would write about our love. Would he say that our love for those around us has given him great joy, and/or encouragement?

So What?

There are two key points that we need to take away from this passage.

The first point is this: The more we understand all that Jesus has done for us, the more we should want to share with others.

And the second point is: Our love for others should be an encouragement to those around us and give them great joy!