Charge it to me (Philemon)*

Charge it to me!

Philemon 1-25

Key verse – Philemon 18 “If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me.”

Introduction:

In this letter, Paul made a daring appeal to Philemon, on behalf of his former slave, Onesimus. Paul concluded his letter by expressing his willingness to pay all of the debt that Onesimus had incurred with his master Philemon. This is representative of the Spirit of Christ, who gave himself for sinners. Today, we are still in the same business as Paul, i.e. freeing people from the slavery of sin and helping them to receive freedom in Christ. Why are we not as successful as we may hope to be? It might be that we lack something in our prayers and endeavors; that is, our tepid willingness to pay for the debts of those for whom we are praying, who have incurred spiritual debts by their sinfulness.  It is a narrow way, but it is the way of life for us and for those for whom we pray. Through today’s passage, I pray that we may come to fully know the Spirit of power, living in Paul’s heart during his pursuit for a slave’s freedom.

A.    Paul’s greeting.

“Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker— also to Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier—and to the church that meets in your home: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Philemon 1-3).

This is a very personal letter from Paul to his friend, Philemon, concerning a runaway slave, Onesimus. At the time of this writing, Paul was in prison, most likely in Rome, and Philemon was in Colossae, about 1200 miles away. This letter, as well as Paul’s letter to the Colossian believers, was carried by Tychicus (Colossians 4:7) and was delivered to the church in Colossae and to Philemon, the leading pastor of the region. Tychicus was also accompanied by Onesimus, whom Paul was sending back to Philemon.

Onesimus was one of Philemon’s slaves, but some unknown reason, he ran away from his master and met Paul in Rome. Most likely, he was a prisoner like Paul. There, through Paul’s teachings, he came to know Christ and became a man of faith.

Paul addressed his relationship Philemon in this way:

“I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your love for all his holy people and your faith in the Lord Jesus. I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake of Christ. Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord’s people.” (Philemon 4-7).

Firstly, Paul prayed and thanked God as he remembered Philemon. Long before sending this letter, Paul’s mind was on how things were going for Philemon and keenly aware of his love for the believers. Prayer with a thankful heart marks the beginning of our relationship with others. To such prayer, God opens our hearts to  understand the other person and His will in that relationship. I pray that, as we have prayed for many other missionaries in the world, we may pray as the prelude for all of our relationships with others.  

Secondly, Paul offered Philemon a partnership with him in his ministry. He prayed that this partnership and ministry experience may be effective in deepening Philemon’sability to understand every good thing. In other words, Paul was saying that, if Philemon entered into a partnership with Paul and his ministry, his understanding of many godly things would be enriched in Christ. In this way, Paul offered him something good and godly that would deepen his understanding of spiritual matters.
There are many ministries with which we are partners. There are so many ministries within University Bible Fellowship, and we are all partners with them, in both small and large ways. More specifically, we pray for Washington UBF, Baltimore, and many other ministries along the East Coast. Also, we pray for Belize, India, Thailand, Latvia, Taiwan, Vietnam, as well as the ministries in Korea. In such partnerships, what can we offer for their benefit? Offering some benefit is the best way to begin co-working and establishing a strong partnership. Practically, what did Paul say about this? What could he and his ministry give while he was in prison and in great need of others’ help? Yet, in and around him, many good things were happening. Many lives were being changed, particularly Philemon’s, in remarkable and heartwarming ways. Such changes open our understanding of life and deepen our knowledge of God’s unlimited power, wisdom, and purpose. Paul wanted to help Philemon gain insight into that knowledge, in regards to God’s hope for slaves.

Slaves have existed throughout much of human history. Israel was under slavery at one point, and the Law of Moses neither condemned nor approved slavery. As they remembered their life in Egypt as slaves, the Israelites were to treat their slaves fairly. Paul mentioned slavery several times in his letters (Ephesians 6:5–9;1 Corinthians 7:21–23; 1 Timothy 6:1, 2; Titus 2:9, 10). Peter also addressed this subject (1 Peter 2:18–21). This means that slavery was common place in those times and was a way of life for many, either as owners or as slaves.

It is fair to say that life as a slave was the worst condition that any human being could possibly be in. By Roman law, slaves were their owner’s personal property and were handled as such. This meant that many slaves lived and were treated as if they were like any other property, though many owners treated them with kindness. Runaway slaves were common and the Roman Empire handled them very harshly; for instance, their owners could execute them if they felt like doing so.

We may also say that human selfishness or goodness is expressed best in an owner’s dealings with his slaves. Slaves suffered most from other men’s selfishness, which is rooted in sin. In such a milieu, what is God’s will or wisdom regarding slaves? For Onesimus’ sake, Philemon needed to see God’s will and purpose, which he had never heard of or even thought of doing it. Paul wanted him to go deeper into such truth by dealing with the matter of one of his slaves, Onesimus, in a godly manner.

Lastly, Paul mentioned something good about Philemon’s life. Philemon had refreshed the hearts of many believers. Here, the meaning of the word “refreshed” is often translated as “rest” in other passages, connoting the idea of the rest that God provides for man. Just as God provides rest for His people, Philemon had provided rest to many of believers so that they might be refreshed and receive vigor in their everyday lives. The world and its hostile forces encroach upon the lives of believers with all kinds of burdens of sin that we are to endure patiently. In such hardships, Philemon’s work, decision, and life gave believers many refreshing moments,  not only in physical rest and renewal, but also in spiritual refreshing. When I see or meet some particular person, I feel renewal of my spirit that unloads all of my anxiety and worldly fears.  Philemon was one such man that invigorated others by his godly spirit. Seeing such evidences of Christ’s living spirit in Philemon’s life and actions, Paul might have been fully assured that his appeal would be accepted by Philemon.

In these ways, Paul joyfully commended Philemon’s godly life. Likewise, Paul had much in common with Philemon, being united and of one spirit in Christ.

What aspect of his character rings in my heart? Though we live in different parts of the world, with totally different situations, yet we find the same spirit of Christ flowing in many of our fellow believers around the world. We are to note this and begin by commending such work in the lives of others.

B.    Paul’s appeal to Philemon

What Paul was about to ask Philemon was an extraordinary thing. It was totally opposite to the norm of the society, even among believers. By this time Paul was an old man, far older than Philemon, and a very seasoned servant of God. Even now, he was in prison for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. Philemon came to know Christ through him, back when Paul was younger and pastoring in the region of the Lycus Valley (Colossae, Hierapolis, etc.). So in all aspects, Paul had the authority to order Philemon to do what was right in God’s eyes, but instead of ordering him to do it, he decided to appeal to him. In this way, Paul did three things: he trusted and honored Philemon, honored God’s influence in Philemon’s life as he searched for God’s will, and wanted all things to be done in accordance with the spirit of Christ, i.e. in love.

More often than not, we older leaders tend to order our juniors to do things we want done. We tend to do this by habit, but also we like to do this in order to make sure that things are being done the right way or to assure ourselves that our spiritual authority is still in position. One of the dangers of this practice is to insist on what we want as beng God’s will. Sometimes what we want to accomplish is in line with God’s will, yet how that should come about may not be according to what we want to do. God is the God of unlimited wisdom. When we appeal to the godly love that resides in the depths of someone else’s heart, it is the best way to do what God wants to achieve through us. Paul knew this and wanted all of this to come about by the love of Christ, especially for Philemon’s benefit. He was Onesimus’ owner and it had to be his decision, his discretion, and his favor to receive Onesimus, not Paul’s authority or love. This is an illustration of Paul’s true humility, upholding God as the true authority in believers’ lives.

“that I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains.” (Philemon 10).

Now he gets to the point: his letter was about Onesimus. He did not need to explain much about Onesimus, because Philemon knew him so well. Onesimus had caused a lot of trouble for his master, mentally as well as financially. Some slaves were valued more and cost a large sum of money; Onesimus could have been one of them. He was Philemon’s household slave and did many things, yet he ran away and caused so much trouble.

Now Paul introduced Onesimus as his son. He did not go into any details of how he became his son. The word, ‘became’ is the same word ‘begot’, used in the genealogy recorded in Matthew 1. It seems like he used the word, ‘begot’ in order to highlight the birthing process, such as hard labor and efforts. This word also alluded to all that had happened to Onesimus so far, from him being a runaway slave to becoming Paul’s beloved son. While in prison, Paul served Onesimus with the love of Christ and watched him change so much that Paul loved and accepted him as his son. But to Philemon, who did not know all that had happened, it was too much for him to take Onesimus back as Paul had presented him. What was the change? In order to fill the vacuum in Philemon’s mind, Paul began to address the changes that had occurred in Onesimus’ life.

“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.” (Philemon 11-13).

“He was useless to you” - this sums up Onesimus’ life before he became saved. “He has become useful both to you and to me” - this is Paul’s assessment regarding Onesimus’ change in attitude. . His attitude toward his master, other people, his work, and his life had all been changed. In all, Onesimus’ sphere of understanding, and his life and world perspectives were completely transformed; they were now positive and good, along with his attitude toward his work. What was the reason for this? For slaves, present suffering and pain are urgent issues and avoiding such discomfort provided the most compelling reason for doing what they were told to do. In Onesimus’ mind, running away was the best choice for him at that time. Life as a slave under Philemon was not worth living and had no meaning.

Unless one’s perspective changes, and unless that changed perspective includes eternal hope and utmost blessing in Christ, all men are forced to work strenuously to escape their present sufferings. A slave’s life is the best example of this. What’s meaning does life hold for a slave? It was not just Onesimus who thought this way; we all think that way when we are enslaved by the world and have no freedom, meaning, or purpose.

There are so many that are living lives that are useless, both to themselves as well as society. This is not because they are functionally incapable but because they are under the psychology of ‘slaves’, like the runaway Onesimus. The best, or possibly the only way to bring about change is to see and believe the hope found in Christ. This will enable them to see things from a totally different perspective, one that will radically change their attitude toward other people and the life they should live on the earth.

The change in Onesimus’ life was so good that he became very dear to Paul’s heart. Paul was the greatest servant of God; his heart was filled with God’s love, and he worked so hard for the Lord’s sake, even when he was in prison. Philemon’s heart was conformed to this spirit and to the works he saw Paul accomplish. So, he was engaging in the same business as Paul, and Paul now wanted him to become his partner. Paul’s life was an amazing one in Philemon’s eyes. Now Paul was saying that Onesimus was his heart; he loved Onesimus so much that he wished to keep him with him for good. Simply, Paul’s spirit was running in Onesimus’ heart. Thus, Philemon could count on the changed, renewed Onesimus!

Nevertheless, Paul acknowledged that Onesimus was not his, but Philemon’s.

“But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do would not seem forced but would be voluntary.” (Philemon 14).

Paul recognized the fact that no matter how much effort he made in changing Onesimus’ life or even how much Onesimus had changed, that did not waive Onesimus of his position and duty as Philemon’s slave. He was still a slave owned by Philemon and Paul’s authority did not give him the right to relieve him of that responsibility. Yet Onesimus had a compelling desire to seek God’s will and purpose in this, which would hopefully free him from all the wrongs he had done to his master Philemon and from slavery itself. Paul felt so strongly about this as the way of the Lord that he did not want this to come about by obligation or duty, but that Philemon’s decision be driven by or based on the love that Christ had shown to him.

Along with the thought of being right, just, obligated, and duty-bound are the words to denounce as antithetical what is wrong, unjust, and evil. The foundation of these is the Law. Humanly speaking, whenever we bring up something that is right or just, it is always thought of through its worthiness, but when God sent His son Jesus to redeem us, He valued the life of man over anything else in the world. God did this in love, without any conditions or prerequisites. So love goes beyond the value that we can put on anything.

Willingness to do good for others must be out of love from beginning to end. When Paul asked Philemon to do what was good for Onesimus, he did not want him to do it out of obligation for what was good and right; instead, Paul wanted him to do it out of love, the kind of love that Jesus had shown to him. Only by that love, could such an extraordinary thing be possible. So this was to be the practice of a life of faith for the believers. The love that Philemon knew so well, the love that he practiced among believers, and the love that refreshed the hearts of many including Paul, would make this restoration possible. This was Paul’s appeal to Philemon.

But how could Philemon do such a thing, unless he also changed his perspective of a slave?

In those days, there were many slaves, several of whom ran away. In handling runaway slaves, there was nothing unusual about it. They were captured, punished, and put to harsh labor until they had paid back fully what they had cost their masters by leaving. It was even possible for owners to execute runaway slaves if he wanted to, without violating the Law of the nation. This was the societal norm and there was nothing wrong in following it. This was what Onesimus was facing. Simply, Philemon had his life in his hands; he had to do what was good and right in his own eyes.

So Paul’s appeal was extraordinary and shocking. Though Philemon believed in the Gospel, handling slaves was as usual as any other part of life in the Roman world. Freely accepting a runaway slave back was rare and freeing such a slave was unthinkable; particularly, when Onesimus had caused him such great trouble and substantial loss. That loss and pain was still vivid in Philemon’s mind. It was more than possible that he had spent many nights worrying about the loss and pain Onesimus had caused. How could he forget all of this in order to entertain what the great spiritual leader, Paul, was asking?

“Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever--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 fellow man and as a brother in the Lord.” (Philemon 15-16).

Here is a hint as to how Paul saw how this entire series of events in Onesimus’ life might have been God’s will to restore him to Philemon for good, no longer in a slave-master relationship but as dear brothers.

We know what happens around us so well, but even with all wisdom and intuitive insight, we can only know very little about what happens in the lives of those around us. But God knows and guides His people, according to His wisdom to save the lives of many. Only when He reveals this to us, can we truly be amazed by His grand purpose and utmost wisdom, even in the midst of human treachery and vileness.

Paul saw this and wanted Philemon to see it as well. Philemon’s perspective about slaves had been set by the norms of his society, but now his eyes were opened to see this situation from God’s perspective. He might have harbored all kinds of bitterness, unhappiness, anger, or loss against Onesimus, but all of these were born out of the world’s perspective and standards. His perspective had to move to see how God viewed things. That included accepting Onesimus back as his dear brother! Paul had expressed his love for Onesimus, saying that Onesimus was his heart. Now a sense of indebtedness was running in Onesimus’ heart, along with great honor, respect, and love for his master. So Paul said that Onesimus was dearer to Philemon than to him.

This is a great insight and a wonderful perspective, but there was still a great sense of loss and pain. How could that feeling be mitigated? Paul knew this and appealed to Philemon again:

“So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me...I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ.” (Philemon 17, 20).

Paul hung his request on Onesimus’ behalf on his partnership with Philemon. He could have said, ‘if you consider me a teacher’, but instead he used the word ‘partner’, referencing their common work of preaching the Gospel. So when Paul said for Philemon to consider him a partner, he was including Philemon in the work God had given him to do – the work of pastoring.

We are all partners in God’s business; that is, preaching the good news of God to all the people of the world. We are partners not only because we are doing similar or the same work and cooperating with each other to accomplish it better, but also because we are under the same management, i.e. Jesus Christ our Lord. So Paul’s implication is that “I do the work of God in order to do what pleases our Lord Jesus. So you doing the same. I would like you to consider doing what I did, i.e. accepting Onesimus as my brother.”

“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.” (Philemon 18-19).

Though Paul appealed to Philemon on the basis of how good Onesimus had become, there remained a great sense of loss, even if he wanted to welcome Onesimus back. This was a value that would not simply go away with sound reasoning! Finally, in regards to the loss that Onesimus had caused, Paul was willing to pay for it, whatever it might be. It is hard to guess how much loss Philemon had incurred because of Onesimus. By addressing this issue specifically, Paul gives us the impression that Philemon’s loss was substantial; nevertheless, Paul was willing to pay for it, not even counting what Philemon owed him. In order to restore Onesimus to Philemon and the world, Paul was willing to do everything possible. Though he was in prison and  dependent on others’ help, yet, in order to restore Onesimus’ life, he was ready to pay any amount! How could Paul do such a thing while in prison? But, in order to assure Philemon of full payment, Paul said that he was writing this letter by his own hand, that what he was saying was genuine, and that he really meant to pay him back, no matter the cost! What he was saying is what he meant to do! Literally, Paul meant to pay Philemon thousands or tens of thousands dollars, if need be!

This was the exact expression of the love that Jesus showed for sinners. This was the spirit of Christ, living in Paul’s heart. In prison, he was most likely living in poverty and yet he had the desire to give and serve. Truly, he was a rich man! He had very little in life, but was rich in his spirit. Out of such a spirit come love, compassion, and the will to support and free Onesimus.

Once I lived in poverty and it stripped me of all my hopes and dreams; I was so depressed by this poverty. This is a life-view that is dependent on worldly riches, but Paul was filled with the Spirit of Christ and was rich even in such extreme poverty. He could even dare to give and pay for whatever loss that Onesimus had caused Philemon. Saving works is not of the world’s riches, but of the riches found in the spirit of Christ. In Paul, that spirit was active, and Philemon was to see and feel that spirit. Only in such richness of spirit can we help those people who linger between God’s will and emotional dissent incurred by the debts of the world. The spirit that gives life is the final push that brings out the powerful outcome of bringing people out of slavery and into freedom in Christ. I pray that the spirit that came out of Paul’s mouth, saying ‘charge it to me!’, may live in all of us.

According to tradition, Onesimus became the bishop of Ephesus. Paul’s loving appeal to Philemon worked. In this way, the spirit of Christ, living in Paul’s heart, brought about a remarkable outcome, which set off a new beginning for all humanity, among whom are so many slave drivers and slaves.

May God richly bless you with the spirit that says ‘Charge it to me!’