A Plea to Love
On Friday evening of the Stornoway communion (25th August), Rev. David Miller preached on Paul’s letter to Philemon, a sermon entitled, ‘A Plea to Love’.
Mr Miller began by saying that people are swift to comment upon what the Bible says, or doesn’t say on any given topic. One frequently hears phrases such as, ‘the Bible doesn’t say anything about that’, or, ‘the Bible is ambiguous on this’. Slavery is one such topic – mentioned frequently and in several of Paul’s letters, there are claims made that the Bible contradicts itself on the slavery issue. There is a tendency, therefore, to see Philemon as the best of Paul because it rejects slavery.
However, Mr Miller added that taking a moral stance on slavery is not the main thrust of Paul’s letter.
Essentially, the letter is a request to Philemon, the slave-owner, to receive back his one-time slave, Onesimus, but with a changed relationship. This he does effectively in verses 8 – 10; why, then, would those few lines not have sufficed? It is evident that Paul has much more to say.
His primary concern is to minister a true reconciliation, not to force Philemon’s hand. Paul writes that he could have commanded this, but chooses instead to attempt persuasion. In doing so, he raises several matters which were of benefit to the church then and now.
Paul is really writing of what Christian love looks like – the love that Christians have for one another, which is easier when everyone is the same. He begins by addressing Philemon’s love for the saints, which is self-evident. The text shows us, for example, that he is host to the church meetings and through his wealth is able to minister to those in need in very practical ways. Clearly, the apostle views this as an encouraging beginning and is attempting to demonstrate to Philemon that this is a foundation for the more challenging task of loving those who are not like us, who are not, perhaps, so immediately loveable to our natural selves.
Mr Miller commented on how it is not quite the done thing to really look around at one another in church, but encouraged the congregation to make it their habit, thinking all the time of what a blessing each person is to the rest. He urged those listening to take away from the sermon the idea of ministering to one another as Philemon did to the saints – though he did it in practical ways, supplying their needs, there are other ways too: a word in season, a word of encouragement, or comfort.
Paul is glad to hear of people participating in Christian fellowship and encouragement, and his reaction is not to simply be satisfied with that, but to ask whether this doesn’t demonstrate potential for even more spiritual growth. He takes Philemon’s good works as evidence of his capacity for development in the faith, and as encouragement to believe that he may also be capable of reaching out to more difficult cases, like Onesimus.
Love for the familiar, the people who are like you is not always plain sailing, but it is infinitely easier than ministering to those who are so different or, as in the case of Philemon and Onesimus, who may actually have wronged you.
Paul, as he showed in Philippians 2:5-11, is aware that Christ humbled himself in order to love mankind. Indeed, this text could be proffered as a pattern for Christian love. That is why he appeals, rather than commands.
Here, the apostle is more interested in building the Christian spirit than doing Christian work. If the right spirit is cultivated, then the good work will surely follow. This is why the letter is more than just the appeal contained in verses 8 – 10; he is systematically removing any excuses Philemon might have used not to respond to Onesimus in Christian love and brotherhood. Paul is building an irrefutable case, based on what Philemon has shown himself capable of in Christ already, and on what he owes to the brethren because of Christ’s ministry to him through Paul himself.
As Christ did, Paul places himself in the firing line, offering to stand for Onesimus. This is a great act of love and humility on Paul’s part, acknowledging that Philemon is in a position to bless him.
This, Mr Miller said, is a lesson to live by; it is 1 Corinthians: 13 in action. The book is about slavery, but Paul is not talking about freedom from bondage in the worldly sense. He is speaking of the escape from the slavery of pride for the freedom of love in Jesus Christ. We know we have, Mr Miller concluded, passed from death to life because we love the brothers – the Pauls, the Philemons and the Onesimuses.
We love because He first loved us.
