Let us move to Philemon. Philemon is fascinating, both starts with Ph, doesn't it? We would need to think a good bit about what is actually transpiring with Philemon. If you use my outline of the writing of the letters, Philemon would be written from Rome at the end of Paul's ministry to a certain Philemon, a dear friend and fellow worker as Paul says in the beginning. And the entire short letter is a letter of appeal on behalf of the slave Anisimus. And this slave of Philemon ran away. And we need to work our way towards that whole issue. Obviously the issue of slavery is addressed here, but more than that the issue of how Paul conducts himself with such a social and emotionally challenging issue, what is happening here. So let's work our way towards that a little bit. I'm going to skip the flow of thought that I have announced here in the outline because it's very simple. If you look at your NIV Bible, for instance, you pretty much see that there is a positive note of connection with Philemon. And then it is followed by a plea, by an appeal to Philemon to deal with Anisimus in a certain way. Verse 8 is the important transition with a big word therefore. And then verse 17 with a conditional clause, so if you consider me a partner do this. So there's a certain flow of the thought here, but I do not need to go in details. Let me just briefly say a few words about the adversities who is being addressed here and then some words about Paul's approach. Who is addressed here? There are three recipients that are addressed in the letter to Philemon, namely it's Philemon, Apia, and Archipis. But it is quite clear that Philemon is the single out adversary if you read in verses 2 and in verses 4 you notice that while there is a broader address in the beginning there is a narrowed appeal to one of them, namely Philemon. According to Colossians 4.9, Anisimus is placed in Colossae. Colossians 4.17 mentions Archipis as a resident of Colossae and so Peter O'Brien in his commentary on Philemon says it can be assumed that Philemon from whose house the slave Anisimus fled also lived there. So it is quite likely to say Archipis, Anisimus, and Philemon all reside in Colossae, to which Paul has written a separate letter and we will look at the Colossian letter separately. What is the issue at hand here? The issue is very tender, very fine, and what how does Paul deal with that issue? How does he approach it? I believe that this is not a tongue-cheek letter, which some people say, or a ironic letter, or a letter of, well, you know what you're to do, if not, I'll come see you, type of a threat letter. I believe it is a truthfully tactful letter where there is a basic appeal to Anisimus, appeal to good rapport versus 11 to 19, and appeal to persuade Anisimus to do the right thing and appeal to the emotions at the end of the letter. Excuse me, the good rapport is 4 to 10. I gave you the wrong verses. The rapport is 4 to 10, and then the appeal to persuade Anisimus 11 to 19 and the appeal to the emotions 20 to 21. So the approach that Paul takes to the issue that we're going to work ourselves towards is that of a tactful appeal, I think that is very important. Well, what is going on here? Let's look a little bit at the content of the letter. At first glance, the question may arise with such a short letter why it even would appear in the canon of God's word. In addition, it is so highly personal, it's a personal appeal of Paul to a filiman on behalf of Anisimus. Paul praises the love of filiman. He besieges him, and he appeals on behalf of Anisimus. What is the purpose? What is the purpose of this letter being in God's word? And what is Paul approaching here with filiman on behalf of Anisimus? I believe there is a enormous profound consequence that is being drawn from this letter. Namely, the practical question of dealing with a runaway slave in 1st century Asia Minor from the all-important standpoint of life in and under the authority of Christ. How should an issue like this be handled? You imagine something impossible in your life to happen. And then you try to relate the Christian truth and faith to that. That's what Paul is facing here. Let me develop that a little bit. We need to look a little bit at slavery in the Greco-Roman world to understand the impossible situation that Paul is faced with. The situation of a runaway slave. Let's look at that a little bit. We know from records that slaves fled frequently in antiquity. And there were five ways that a slave could get away. First, he could join a gang, nothing new under the sun. He could join a group of runaway slaves. He could go undercover in a big city and kind of change his identity. He could flee abroad and perhaps he could go number four into a rural less populated area and work as a fruit picker or a delight. Or he would seek to find asylum in a temple such as the Artemis temple in Ephesus. In order to negotiate the purchase by a more loving or a kinder or a less in-humane master depending on what the circumstances are. So there were ways of getting away from this horrible system of slavery. There was only one enormously serious deterrent to this. Fugitive slaves were at times recaptured by professionals and punished by at least beating if not branding or in the worst case crucifixion. So you have a very vicious, highly-suppressive, horrible system of slavery in place. And it is said to say that system has continued for so many centuries since. So what you have here with Onesimus, you have probably one that shows option number three, free abroad. And take cover with a known apostle. So it's this knock at night at your door. And you know if you get involved with that person you can win. It's a loose, loose situation. Keep him out. You will be bothered by your conscience the rest of your life. Let him in. You're going to be a done person. And that's really what Paul faces with Onesimus, run away slave who should be returned to a horrible reception. What should Paul do? How should he respond? How should he deal with this situation? To make things worse, if you kept a run away slave, it was potentially hazardous to yourself. You may have maybe punished yourself as giving cover for a slave. It was comparable to keeping Jews in your home during Nazi Germany, such as the Corritan boom family did in Holland. So whichever way you look at it, it is a very, very difficult and a very tension-laden situation. Now what is Paul's procedure here concerning Onesimus? I believe Paul first took a step back and looked at the total situation. There is a possibility that Onesimus ran away with some money. It is certainly possible, we can't know that for sure, but there may have been some injustice done, quote-unquote, to his master. It is most likely to think that Onesimus becomes a Christian either before or during this time under the tutelage of Paul. Verse 10 makes allusion to that, where it says, I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains. So there is some connection here in terms of the gospel being preached to Onesimus and Paul. Yes. How would one become a slave? It was very much by birth, that was perhaps the most significant point, but then also the political takeovers of one country to another generated new resources, quote-unquote, for slaves. So there were various political reasons for that pattern. Now how does Paul proceed? One thing that is so amazing is, verse 12 says, Onesimus is to go back to his former master. I can't believe it. Paul does not resist. This need that he needs to be restored and reconciled with his former master. So he says, Onesimus, I'm paraphrasing, if you ran from problems before, taste them now. But you know if Paul only did that, it would be cool. Next step, Paul writes, and the company letter. It is a letter of appeal. It's not a letter of recommendation as far as I'm concerned. Some interpreters would like to see a dead way, I think it's a letter of appeal. And that says, face your problems, but you're not going to face them alone. I'll stand by you. Wonderful, second step. Face your problems, but you won't face them alone. I am going to advocate for you, and I'm going to stay there, but Paul is even pushing that up a few more steps. He appeals in the letter to file Eman, the former master of Onesimus, to receive him, verse 17. The broken relationship, whatever transpired, whatever the injustice was, needs to be restored. So go back to the problem, I'm going to advocate for you and help you. The relationship needs to be mended and restored. And then the fourth point of procedure that Paul takes is perhaps the most telling one. I will pay for any damages that this Onesimus may have incurred to you, file Eman. Perhaps while he was not working for you, maybe he misappropriated funds, see, that's not the big issue. He may have done some wrong things, that's not the issue. Paul is willing to both advocate for Onesimus and appeal to file Eman on behalf of the situation. So note again, first principle, if you ran from problems, face them in Christ. You're not alone facing them. The relationship needs to be mended and I, the apostle, am going to help with mending whatever it costs. I'm going to stake my reputation and my means to the reconciliation of this situation. I think this is absolutely formidable in what Paul is doing here at this juncture in his argument. Some people have asked then whether Paul is supporting slavery and that is a larger issue that I cannot address in terms of the entire New Testament. But here obviously he is practicing what he is preaching in Colossians. That the masters need to live knowing they have a master and those who are under authority serve their master as onto the Lord. Obviously slavery must be abolished. I do believe, however, that authority and submission in the workplace is still retained. And so I believe that if you follow Philemon to the end, you will have a reconciled relationship. You will have Philemon living as under the Lord. You will not have him do what is done in the society with a so-called runaway slave. You will have a reconciled relationship. You will have Philemon most likely saying to Paul, please no. Don't you pay anything, we're going to reconcile together and we're going to work this out together. So there's within that awful structural relationship of the time of Paul's slavery. A principle of reconciliation and overcoming that brings this to an authority and submission situation that moves out of the principles of slavery. Now obviously we would have to move much further into that. It is a very difficult area why Paul even speaks about slavery, etc. But I think there is a lot of gospel being brought into a very painful and a very destructive situation. And notice the main principle. Paul says whatever it takes to bring the gospel into this situation as much as I can, I will bring it. Isn't that an amazing principle of pastoral care that you identify Onesimus and his dealings. You identify Philemon and his dealings and his actions. Then you think what is needed and as a minister, as a messenger of reconciliation. You bring that in which is necessary for these two factions, these two representatives of the social structures of the day to be reconciled for Onesimus to be restored and hopefully for there to be a reconciled, a heartfelt relationship between Philemon and Onesimus. I very much cite with Bruce who says concerning this process that Paul is leading towards. What this letter does is to bring us into an atmosphere in which the institution could only wilt and die, namely the institution of slavery. If you have these three factors in place, that a master re-receives his slave without punishment, that a slave returns and is willing to face the music and that there is a third party of an advocate that says I am going to watch over you too. That this is done in a godly way and that especially Onesimus is not going to get the role into the stick here. I will listen, I will be there, I will pay, I will give. What do you have here? What is growing out of that? Except that the presence of God is within all those spheres and all you are left with is an authority and submission situation in which the abuse is not proper. The question of why could Paul not appeal in Philemon to free Onesimus as a slave? I believe that may have been a further step after reconciliation but first, a wrong had to be put right. I believe that is the step that Paul is taking here. That within the structure something went wrong but certainly that would not be precluded after a reconciliation, after things are right for Philemon to free Onesimus, that is within the range of what is possible. But I think his work is cut out for him first and I find that quite significant. I tend to not go this route, this painful route. I tend to say let's forget it and move on. Paul really deals with the issue of the broken relationship. I would at least say the point is that this seems to be more similar to the Old Testament servant master principle than a slavery master relationship in the Greco-Roman world. I think that is certainly there. It's not explicitly stated but that's what you're ending up with and that's why I'm siding with Bruce at this point here to say this milieu simply dissolves some of the injust and horrible elements. I do believe that authority and submission is not wrong but it was misused and abused in the form of slavery which the gospel is clearly addressing. So what are the consequences as we look at this micro example of reconciliation? I believe and this is a dangerous phrase for me to use here that the order of authority and submission is not broken but redeemed from slavery. By bringing Christ into a wrong social structure and I find that to be so mature, so incredibly able on the part of Paul that he would bring Christ into that situation and redeem it to a godly authority submission structure. And that is by appealing to Philemon to know what his responsibility is before Christ. See that is the wonderful thing that all participants of an injust system are coming under the authority of the Lord. That is the first step of hope when all participants of an injust system come under the authority of the Lord. That is why there is hope in the church while there is a lot of work to be done on exactly that whole point in our thinking and doing. Both parties, parties of an injust system come under the same authority of the Lord. And there is a little bit of a word play on Anisimus, what is useless, what has been useless is now being useful. That word play on usefulness, perhaps speaks of the fact that as things are brought under Christ, there is a usefulness. And then what is really the fruit of such a broken and then reconciled relationship is a closeness, respect, appreciation and welcome. I don't know if you have experienced a situation where there has been great strife, a great breach of trust between you and somebody else. I remember a situation in my wife's life where such a situation occurred and it was not really the fault of either side but there was a severe breach of trust between my wife and another friend. And it was so severe that the other party said there is no way we will ever be able to come back together in a reconciled way. And she was a Christian and so must my wife. But that was a statement, that was the situation, it was such a breach of trust. I think here between Faleiman and Anisimus, you could have that kind of a breach of relationship. And it was wonderful to see that in this particular situation, after months of prayer, of due respect of distance, allowing for space, there was a reproachment and then a reconciliation. And such a warm closeness thereafter that this other person said later on, you know we have never been this close ever. It was a fruit of a process of reconciliation that is being spoken of here. So the closeness, the respect, the appreciation and the welcome as a fruit of reconciliation is a wonderful, wonderful fruit. And it is something given to us as we have been reconciled with God as we have received forgiveness that we can move out like that and be used as tools of reconciliation. I think that is a wonderful testimony and a hope that is being brought to us here by just following this letter of appeal by Paul. And then one last thing, one last consequence that we see here is that Paul does not avoid the broken pieces. He picks them up, takes them seriously, looks at them and says this is what it needs to look like in Christ. Isn't that wonderful? There are broken pieces, there is a horrible system, a suppressive system. Obviously Paul could have written a pre-Marxist letter against the evils of slavery and then quite well. But here he takes these broken pieces and he applies them to Christ and sees that with these broken pieces there is something of reconciliation demonstrated. So in the very point where there is greatest pain, where there is greatest injustice, where there is greatest problem there, the reconciliation begins to be built in. And that is why I believe Paul was not so concerned about the system of slavery as about this, what is happening in Follyne, because if this happens, you don't need to rave against the system, it will be overcome from the inside out, from the church out. At least you will look at the church and say, the way Follymen and Onisimus are relating to each other does not conform to the Greco-Roman system of slavery. They have deviated, they have become untrue to the system, whatever, and praise God for that. So there is a lot in this little letter that we can transfer into our lives and repeat that again that we face the problems that we have, that we look at them and I am talking to myself more than I am talking to you, because I love to put those into the freezer or on the shelf. I just don't want to deal with those hot button issues in relationships, in problems that I anticipate, I move them to the side and I seek a place of rest. Let's see Paul is kind of a self-guided missile, that's where it needs to be, that's where we need to deal with. He has his finger on the hot spot, and then he says, okay, let's see what Christ means in this situation, what I courage, what a wonderful way to deal with this Onisimus is not a chicken out. See, this is a wonderful way out, because he does not make himself guilty by supporting a certain system or by simply giving cover to Onisimus. He moves beyond the whole mess, so he faces the issue and then he places himself alongside as an advocate, how I need to grow there to advocate for those who are in a place of weakness, who are in a place of injustice and to use whatever little weight I may have as an advocate for them. And then to actively seek a reconciled relationship, to seek that warmth that may have never existed, that is the fruit of having dealt and faced with the problems at hand. And then for me as a servant of Christ to be willing to give whatever it takes, because I'm not seeking my own, I'm seeking the gospel to be brought out, to be brought to the fore. And I can imagine with Paul that he would long for his co-laborers to be participating in it, because he sees so much need for signs and signals and deeds of reconciliation, all about him that the church would more and more reflect God's forgiveness. So there's a great need there, there's a great need to advocate and to stand in the breach to cover to bridge. When I was walking here and reflecting on Faleem and Hai would describe it, I thought of the song Bridge Over Troubled Water, what is his name? Yeah Garfunkel, I think there's a very important point here. This Bridge Over Troubled Water that Paul is willing to throw himself in in a selfless way. And if we are used as such tools of reconciliation, imagine what happens, how that snowballs, how that will soften, how that will communicate and ease misunderstanding and the sense of ups and downs. But just recently become aware that I may have a position of privilege, and I'm happy in that position of privilege, but I'm insensitive towards some who may not have that position of privilege. And I need to use that on behalf of others rather than just indulge. And we see that with Paul, he said, look here, possible. But none of that uses weight to advocate for justice, uses weight to jump into the bridge. So it's a wonderful way to encourage us in our gospel life. To imitate, as Paul says, imitate what I do, imitate how I am, how I'm conducting myself, to be those kinds of people who do this Philemon type of life and work. Because Paul is not just talking, he is certainly doing here. And I would not be astonished that there has been a wonderful conclusion here. And he concludes with that short request and short blessing, the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. You know, even that conclusion is not just the word, it is the one who has pardoned you, Philemon. The one who has given his grace to you, you were a slave, Philemon remember, he has freed you, he has brought you into the light, that grace be with you, let that sing into your life, and rejoice in the reconciliation that you can find. So I would think we should stop here and just let that sink into our hearts. There are lots of questions. Obviously, yes, still one question. This is one of the verses, verse 19, why some people would identify this letter as kind of an ironic letter or a letter of compelling Philemon. He does remind Philemon that he owes him as well, that is true, but I still believe that the total tone is that of genuine and that he means honestly that he will pay. If Philemon insists and says, I am owed, Paul will play along and give that. However, if their softness is in heart of Philemon, he will realize that he owes himself. But you know, you can turn it into a manipulative way and you could read the whole letter that way, but in balance, I think there is a very serious compelling appeal here. So I would interpret that verse to say, whichever you do, I will pay. But if there is softness, you will see that you are embedded yourself rather than to manipulate only. Yes, I think so. Yes, I think there is a serious appeal rather than a manipulative appeal. I think it would narrow the value and the tone of this letter. Thank you very much. Most of you are still awake. Very good. Have a good evening.