10450 Gilespie St.
Las Vegas, NV 89183
702-693-4100

Homily – September 4

To appreciate the letter to Philemon, it is important to understand the world in which it was written.  The time is late in the first century, long after the resurrection, but before the Christian faith has been well established.  Paul is writing to Philemon, presumably a fairly wealthy man in the city of Colossae.  Paul had met Philemon, introduced him to the gospel, and baptized him.  Philemon, in turn, welcomed Paul into his home and there the two established a church that met in Philemon’s house.  Remember that church buildings were not part of the equation so house churches were where folks came to know Jesus.  We know that Philemon was likely a man of means for two reasons, first because he had a home large enough to host a church and host Paul as a long term guest, and second because he had his own slave, a man named Onesimus.

Before I go any further, let me state categorically that slavery is wrong.  Everyone in the modern world agrees with that and it is not in dispute.  But we cannot adequately understand scripture if we judge the ancient world by our modern standards, so let me say a few things about slavery in that age.  Slaves were considered the master’s property, but they were also considered to be part of the family.  They held the lowest rank in a household, but it was not uncommon for a slave to be trusted with many important tasks, among them the running of the household’s finances.  In fact some slaves traveled extensively on their master’s behalf and handled vast amounts of the family fortune.  This may have been the case with Onesimus.

We don’t not have a lot of information, so must make some assumptions about the situation.  Here is what we do know.  Onesimus was slave to Philemon, and we can presume that he became acquainted with Paul when Paul was a guest in Philemon’s home.  We know that Paul is in prison, likely for preaching the gospel and generally irritating the Romans.  We don’t know exactly where he is in prison when the letter is written, but there is evidence that it was likely either in Ephesus or in Rome.  We know that Onesimus has come to Paul, and that he has been of service to Paul during his imprisonment.  We also know that Paul has brought him to Christ and that a bond of love has developed between them.

Now for the conjecture.  We don’t know the circumstances that brought Onesimus to Paul.  One theory is that Onesimus has been acting on behalf of his master and has lost him a great deal of money.  This is underscored by Paul’s comment in the letter that says “formerly he was useless to you.”  If this was the case, Onesimus may have been afraid to return to his master, and decided instead to run away.  Knowing that Paul was a great man and held in high regard by his master, Onesimus may have gone to Paul for help.  Though he is in prison, Paul welcomes him and introduces him to the gospel.  Onesimus, now a fellow believer, serves Paul and the two become close.  But as a runaway slave, he is in constant danger.  A runaway slave can be arrested, flogged and even killed.  Both know then that Onesimus has to return to Colossae to put things right with Philemon.  In such a case, a slave would seek to have someone act as his advocate, to help the master see his plight and beg for mercy on his behalf.  Paul would have liked to do exactly that, but could not travel with him due to his imprisonment.  So he did the next best thing; he wrote this letter.

The lectionary cycle of our church has much to recommend it.  Over the course of three years we hear and learn much of the bible and have the opportunity to consider how it informs our lives.  One of the problems however is that we rarely get to hear an entire book without having it broken over several weeks.  Today though is a rare exception.  For aside from the conclusion, which is basically just a way of signing off, we hear Paul’s entire letter.  And it is just that; a letter.  Unlike many of Paul’s letters to churches he has left, this is much more of a personal letter directed to Philemon.  But though it is intended for Philemon, Paul also addresses it to Apphia, Archippus and to the church that meets in Philemon’s house.  In this, Paul is very crafty as by making it a public letter, he is making his request to Philemon public as well.  This puts pressure on Philemon in a way that a truly personal letter would not.  Paul does this because he knows that he will be asking a great deal of Philemon, and making it public will make it harder for Philemon to refuse.

Paul is appealing, in beautiful prose, on behalf of Onesimus.  He wants Philemon to refrain from punishing Onesimus for costing him money and for running away.  “I am appealing to you for my child Onesimus, whose father I have become during my imprisonment. I am sending him, that is, my own heart, back to you.”  Paul makes it clear that he has taken a paternal interest in Onesimus and in so doing, has changed his status.  For in baptizing him, Paul has made Onesimus part of the family of God.  He is letting Philemon know that his wayward slave is now his brother in Christ.

“So if you consider me your partner, welcome him as you would welcome me.  If he has wronged you in any way, or owes you anything, charge that to my account.  I, Paul am writing this with my own hand: I will repay it.”  In three sentences Paul assumes all of Onesimus’ obligations, even his very status as a slave.   Imagine how Philemon must have felt as he read these words.  He respected and almost revered Paul, and here Paul is assuming all of the debts of his slave.  How could he be angry with Onesimus once he had read Paul’s impassioned words?  But just to be on the safe side, Paul intersperses a good measure of guilt in his brief letter.  Before he even mentions Onesimus, he tells Philemon “though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do your duty, yet I would rather appeal to you on the basis of love.”  A not so gentle reminder that, while he is asking nicely, Paul has the power to compel him to do as he asks.  For good measure, Paul adds “I say nothing about you owing me even your own self.”  No pressure there.

Paul also reminds him of Onesimus’ new status as a Christian, “perhaps this is the reason he was separated from you for a while, so that you might have him back forever, no longer as a slave, but more than a slave, a beloved brother – especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.”  This beautiful phrase establishes the real basis for what Paul asks; that all of us are brothers and sisters in the Lord.

We don’t know how Philemon responded to Paul’s request.  We also don’t know why this short personal letter was included in the cannon and made part of the Bible.  But we do know that Paul saw something in Onesimus; something that perhaps would allow him to rise above his humble beginnings as a slave and serve God’s purpose here on earth.  For each of us begins somewhere; the real question is not how we start our life, but what we do with it that matters.  God gives us all gifts and talents and we are to use them to help build up the kingdom, regardless of how we start out.

You may ask, but what happened?  Was Onesimus freed?  We don’t really know.  But we do know one thing.  At the beginning of the second century, there was a wise Bishop who truly transformed the church at Ephesus and helped to compile many of Paul’s works into what we know as the Bible.  That Bishop’s name was Onesimus.

MOBILE MENU