Agapetos

This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Sometimes I read epistles for little nuggets of Truth to carry around in my head. There was a day in a Bible study that stands out to me. I was reading 1 Timothy from that point of view. Grasping at the truth expressed in little paragraphs, and My friend Matthew went on to describe what he was seeing as he read. And he went on to describe a picture that come right from the text, but considered the audience, and the message. The time and place of the message communicated not only the specific teaching itself, but also created a picture of this group of Christians, acting the way the invisible church looks when it starts to become visible. The body of Christ re-manifested.

Philemon doesn't get much play probably because of its lack of truth teaching.

But when read for a picture of Godlove or Christfamily in human form, it is profound. True brothersisterhood is dripping from the words.

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.

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.

Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do, yet I appeal to you on the basis of love. I then, as Paul—an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus—I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains. Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.

I am sending him—who is my very heart—back to you. I would have liked to keep him with me so that he could take your place in helping me while I am in chains for the gospel. But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do will be spontaneous and not forced. Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back for good—no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a man and as a brother in the Lord.

So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me. I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. I will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your very self. I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ. Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I ask.

And one thing more: Prepare a guest room for me, because I hope to be restored to you in answer to your prayers.

Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends you greetings. And so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas and Luke, my fellow workers.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.

-the book of Philemon

I wanted to go through and highlight the words and phrases that communicate the deep love of these brothers and sisters in Christ. This simple truth is that to dissect in this case might be to kill. Just consider the love between all the parties concerned. Paul claims to have spiritually given birth to Onesimus. He calls both Philemon and Onesimus "agapetos," meaning beloved (note the root=agape). I don't even feel the need to continue to describe the unity in faith and service that all who are involved in this church meeting in Philemon's home.

What I do want to say, is how excellent. How delightful is it to know that God does these things. He somehow shines light in a dirty, broken world. Through dirty broken individual he builds his Body, and lets his spirit and love inhabit us when we are joined together in his name.


Thank you Jesus Agapetos.


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