An Ordinary Christian
I want to walk you through the short book of Philemon in the next few weeks. It’s a gem of a letter written by Paul, which has all of 25 verses in total. I pray that God will reveal himself to us, and His will for our lives to us, as we look into these passages.
Let me give you some background to begin. Paul is an old man by now, and a prisoner in Rome. He is writing a letter to a man whom he seems to have led to Christ, Philemon, who was part of the Colossian community of Christians.
One of Philemon’s slaves – Onesimus – has run away. Onesimus somehow crosses paths with Paul, is led to Christ by Paul, and Paul is now writing to his friend Philemon, asking him to take Onesimus back.
Being Like Philemon
Paul describes Philemon as a dear friend and a fellow worker, as the letter opens. And we begin to see, as the letter unfolds, that Philemon was really a committed Christian.
Who comes to your mind, I wonder, if I ask you to name the most committed Christian you know? Somebody who lives the Christian life with the utmost faithfulness?
There were many people in the early church who did great work for God and were absolutely committed to the cause – but were unknown or unrecognized. One of those was Philemon. What a committed Christian he obviously was, if Paul’s words in this letter are true!
Maybe you feel like being a Peter or a Paul or a Mary is out of your reach. But here’s a thought – what about becoming a Philemon? What about being a committed Christian in the ways that he was?
He didn’t travel around as a missionary like Paul, he wasn’t a pastor like Epaphras. But we read here that the church people met in his home! He was an ordinary working person, but his commitment to his faith and his church was great.
Everyday Christian Commitment
The truth is, being a committed Christian is not out of our reach at all friends. When we have come to know God, when He has saved us and given us His Spirit, then it’s actually the most natural thing in the world, to commit to following the God who loved you.
You don’t have to be a pastor, a missionary, a televangelist to be committed to God. You just need to wake up in the morning and do whatever you do with the love of Christ in your eyes and the worship of God in your heart.
Be a Philemon today – an ordinary person, with extraordinary commitment to God.
