Introduction

When our children were small ... they were so cute Not that they lost their cuteness when they have grown older ... but I specifically remember how they have played with their toys. The boys had a small plastic push motorbike and the girls normally played with their dolls. Now that was absolutely normal for them to do that. And we as Parents looked at them and were often so proud of them when they played like that.

BUT ... what if they turn 18 or 20 ... and they still play with a plastic motorbike and dolls etc.?

Would that not be a little concerning to you?

At the age of 20, they are grown up in their bodies; ... and it would be a great concern for any of us if they would still play like little children.

I think we would realize that something really went wrong - they may have grown up bodies but are still immature in their their mental, emotional and spiritual development.

And everyone with a sound mind, will recognize this.

I don't know if you know it, but it works much the same in our relationship with Christ as born again believers.

When we got saved ... we were like babies.

We had to be fed with milk and so to speak - soft spiritual foods, because we did not understand the deeper and mature teachings of the Word.

We had to grow in our relationship with Christ.

The sad thing is this: There are many believers who claim to be Christians for years and years, and yet theu are still children in Christ ...

*Why is this so?

*How can we know if we had grown or not?

Paul, at one stage wrote to the believers in Php 1:9-11 *And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all discernment; (10) so that ye may approve the things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and void of offence unto the day of Christ; (11) being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are through Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.*

• [emphasize ... abound in more and more knowledge gives you the idea of growing or moving ahead or becoming more and more mature]

Philemon was a very special friend of Paul, and the original purpose of Paul's letter was to send Philemon's slave, Onesimus, who ran away from him and got saved in Rome while he was there, back to Philemon and he is emphasizing the right Christian conduct that should permeate their relationship.

But in doing this, Paul calls upon Philemon to act according to his mature Christian character.

And what we see here ... is a great guideline of what mature Christians should be.

...and I would like to show you some great qualities which I believe we as Born Again Christians should grow in ... BUT: these qualities are the sole work of Christ through His Spirit ... what you and I should do is become faithful and obedient and put our trust in Him to conform us into the same things that we see in the life of Philemon.

THUS I am not preaching a rule or a law or a command ... but that you and I submit to the the will of God and allow Him to change us that we will grow to become the mature believers in Christ that God can use to glorify Himself in this world. OK ...

• So WHAT are these gaulities?

A. COMMITMENT TO CHRIST (v.1-2)

And I wish for you te note a few important matters here. Philemon's commitment can be see in the way by which Paul is describing him.

• Paul calls him a dealy beloved brother - which of course speak of the close and open relationship between them.

This is part of the reason why God joined us together in a congregation and He has placed us into relationships with one another.

Our growth in our relationships is determined by our commitment to Christ because commitment to Christ also means commitment to one another where we love, forgive, bear one anther's burden, pray for each other and share our lives and belongings and give support etc.

The Bible is filled with references where we are urged to love and take care and accept responsibility for each other.

Think about John 13:34-35 a new command I give you. Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one anther. And many other Scriptures urge as to love and take care of each other. This is one of those clear distinctive qualities that mature believers have, because they are committed to Christ.

• Paul also calls him a fellow laborer and Philemon could not be called that if he was just a passive believer who confesses with his mouth to believe but he is not involved in some way to labour and spread the Gospel of our Lord Jesus.

You see: This is also one of those outstanding qualities of commitment to Jesus;

You care enough for people to build up the faith of those who believe and to share the Gospel with those who do not believe.

We see this clearly in the names that are mentioned here. It is believed that Apphia was Philemon's wife and Archippus was his son and both of them are also recommended for their partnership in the Ministry of Christ and then we also see that Philemon opened up his house for the church to gather there.

They did not have church buildings like we have, but what we do know ... is that wherever they gathered, they brought the unbelievers with them in order for them to hear the Goodnews of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. NOW that was true through all the ages of all mature believers and it should also be true of us because of our commitment to Christ.

Ask yourself this:

*How much do you care about others?

Jesus cared so much - in fact He loved us so much that He gave His life for us!

And while He was here on earth, He touched the lives of 1000's of people in different ways ... and the point is ...

Those that are commited to HIM, does the same ... but if their faith do not grow, they would only care a great deal about themselves and may be a little about their loved ones. But nothing for the rest, or very rarely for the rest.

Someone once said - we cannot take any possession with us to heaven, but we can take people with us.

And how great the reward would be to stand before the Lord and He shows you the different and the multitude of people who came to know Him because you were committed to Chist.

BUT ... how poor we will be if we stand with empty hands before Him, and we are saved but all we have to present is burned ash.

The Bibles declares to us in ...

1Cor 3:12-15 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; (13) Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. (14) If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. (15) If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

And it all boils down to the level of commitment we have towards Christ.

But there is also a second quality we find in Philemon.

B. THE BASIC NEED OF GRACE ... AND PEACE (v.3)

It takes a mature relationship with God to realize ... my most basic need is NOT my everyday care and protection, health and all the miracles I need in my life ... of course we are constantly in need for protection, provision and health etc ...but the mature Believer realizes it is all about the GRACE (Unmerited Favour) of God in which you realize ... everything, from all the physical, emotional and spiritual blessings and circumstances is administered by God en He will according to His promise: make sure that all things will work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Rom.8:28 PLUS ...

Also God promises us ... / that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Php.1:6 PLUS ...

We have all the other promises concerning our daily bread and health and protection and overcoming the evil powers of the Devil and of course the Return of our Lord and a new earth and heaven and Jerusalem ... 100' and 100's of promises in Christ and each and everyone of them is connected to the unmerited favor of God to those in Christ Jesus and NOT to our performance.

When you grasp this Basic truth ... then you will experience what Paul writes about to Timithy in 1 Tim. 6:6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.

The truth is ... those who grasp the truth of GRACE, will always show it in their daily lives and work. Just think about this ... Eph.2 8-10 teaches us this.

But with GRACE ... comes the PEACE of God and the Bible explains to us, this peace is not the kind of peace of this world which to them means ... the absence of wars and disasters and sickness and persecution and poverty ... NO NO!

It is all about the peace that comes with the redemption we have received in Christ, together with the divine Godly work of the Spirit within us to realize - God is in control and we belong to Him and as Jesus has promised us in Joh 10:28-29 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. (29) My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.

It is the truth of the infallible Word of God that brings the PEACE of God and what a great comfort.

• Oh my dear br & sr; How much you and I need this peace today - in a shuttering world of insecurities - the complete opposite of our God and Saviour??

The 3rd quality Philemon possessed that lead to his maturity in Christ was;

C. HIS LOVE ... AND FAITH ... (v.5)

What I would like for you and me to notice here is the connection between Love and faith. When you study this verse, you will find that the love part refers to his love for the saints - and important to notice ... ALL the saints and ...

The Faith part refers to his faith in or toward the Lord Jesus Christ.

NOW ... I don't want to spend too much time on this, but the Bible teaches us in the letters that John wrote (in the back of the Bible - chapter 3 and 4)) the interesting connection between having faith in Christ which means that you love God and because of that, you love your fellow believers and your neighbour. The two concepts are inseperable.

If you and I seperate them by deciding we can put our faith in Christ but we cannot love all the saints ... we either are:

• Bluffing ourselves because we are busy with a different gospel or a false belief , OR
• we still have to grow up a lot in Christ.

And the latter may be true for more Christians than we think.

In 1 Cor. 3:1-3 Paul wrote to the believers in that church about their strife and envy etc and he called them children and carnal believers whom he had to fed with milk because they could not digest the deeper truths of the Gospel ... WHY?

Because of strife and envy and divisions. That is NOT love and that is not a mature faith in Christ.

And THAT will cause indescribable harm to the Gospel of Christ.

You and I need to examine ourselves before God in this matter ...

• we may confess our faith in Christ but does it show in the love we have for all believers?

The final quality of maturity in Christ that we see in the life of Philemon is;

D. HIS WITNESS (v.6)

I wish we had the time to pull this verse apart to explain to you the full meaning of it ... BUT, the one thing I want you to notice about Philemon was, that he was known because of his communication of thy faith.

Some of the other translations say: the participation in and sharing of your faith (Ampf) ... and fellowship of thy faith (ASV).

This verse is in the form of a prayer where Paul is asking God to help Philemon in the sharing of his faith that it will bear the fruit where others will worship Jesus our Lord.

But the main point I wish to make is that a mature believer shares his faith - he can share it because he does not have to keep quiet because of his behaviour.

Jesus said in Matt 5:14 Ye are the light of the world. and verse 16; Even so let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Philemon's was not considered te be a fake or a hypocrate, because the story of

his life is one of Commitment to Christ, of Grace and Peace, and love and faith in Christ and for all the saints and when he spoke, his audience could listen because they saw the results of the changing power of Christ in his life.

That is the result of a work of Christ in us ... and THAT is the result Christ wants to produce in everyone of us ... BUT the question is:

• Are you willing to allow God to take you to this level of maturity or not?

AMEN