Reset

In the coldness of this winter, I was reading the third shortest Book in the Bible which I didn’t give much thought before. It's probably the Christmas and New Year spirit that all of a sudden made me gather my strength to overcome bumming around and start clacking this keyboard with my cold-stiffed fingers to go deep in the passage.

"Everyone has a story of failure, growth and redemption and I believe that everyone should be given a chance to reset, no matter how dark it has been."-CS

The Book of Philemon only consists of 1 chapter (with 335 words depends on the translation) but be deceived not because there are so many lessons we can glean out of it from the 3 main characters in the story.

Onesimus. A native of Colossae and a slave who had stolen from his master and fled to Rome to runaway.

Philemon. A believer who was a leader of a house Church in Colossae and the master of Onesimus.

Paul. Prior to his conversion on the way to Damascus, was a persecutor but became an "all in apostle". During his missionary journeys, Paul ministered in Asia Minor among the people of Ephesus which became successful producing many converts among both residents of Ephesus and visitors of the city, Onesimus included.

In 60 or 61 AD from a prison cell in Rome, Paul wrote a personal letter to Philemon and sent Onesimus back to Colossae.

If you are Philemon, what would you do to Onesimus? What would a Master, who had all the rights to impose punishment to his own slave who has stolen and runaway from him do? I'd say, I would give him what's due as a just Master; he would be punished for what he did.

But here comes the dilemma. In Paul's letter to Philemon, he wrote about Christian love, which involves concern, care, compassion and forgiveness for others.

Philemon 1: 16-17 "Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever— 16 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. 17 So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. 

Wait! What?! Paul was not just asking Philemon to forgive and forget what his thief slave did, he was actually asking him to treat him differently, -from a slave to a dear brother. As if it was not hard enough, he added one more request: to treat him as he would treat Paul himself when he visits. Who is Paul to him? A friend and an Apostle.

I think Major W. Ian Thomas' words echoed exactly what Philemon must have been thinking upon reading Paul's letter.

“To be in Christ -- that is redemption; but for Christ to be in you -- that is sanctification!”

Philemon is now faced with the same ordeal we all went through or are going through right now. When we have been wronged tremendously, we all understand how challenging offering forgiveness is. It's not going to be easy but for us, believers, we have to recognize that our ability and willingness to offer it is the result of how we've fully embraced Christ’s saving grace when He died on the Cross for us.

Onesimus needed Philemon's grace to be able to reset.

Reset means to start again after a period of rest or change, so that you feel better able to deal with your life or with a situation. (Dictionary.com)

Thankfully, there was Paul who was also a product of a reset when Jesus encountered him, blinded him for 3 days, sent Ananaias to pray for him and gave Barnabas a heart willing to vouch for him for the other disciples to trust him, the old Saul.

After encountering grace and mercy, Paul radically changed and verse 19 blew my mind.

V19 "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."

Charge it to me. It hit me hard. Paul didn't do anything wrong towards Philemon but he was willing to pay for anything. Isn't it exactly what Jesus intended to do when He died on the Cross for us? Our unrighteousness be charged towards Him so one day, we can face the Lord as if we never sinned.

Paul was given a chance to reset and he became the greatest apostle who wrote 13 out of the 27 Books of the New Testament.

Wondering what happened to Onesimus?

"He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here." Colossians 4:9

It was believed that the person accompanying Tychicus to visit the believers in Colossae may be the same Onesimus and the same one that was also consecrated as a bishop by the Apostles. He was imprisoned in Rome and may have been martyred by stoning or was beheaded.

In application:

1. Be like Paul, who understands that people make mistakes and they need someone to vouch for them so they can reset.

2. Forgive how Paul asked Philemon to forgive Onesimus. When we love people extravagantly, we show people a glimpse of Jesus that could potentially change the lives of the people around us like what happened to Onesimus.

3. Once we recognize that we were useless like Onesimus but was given a chance to reset, let's use the remaining time we have to do something that has a lasting impact in this lifetime and beyond.

I read something like this somewhere and it makes sense...

"You and I are Onesimus, once a useless slave. Philemon is a picture of God the Father, we sinned against Him and we runaway from Him. And Paul who served as the mediator between them, stood as a type of Jesus Christ."

Especially this New year season, I pray that we'll see more of what God has done for us, a once useless runaway slave and allow the love we experienced first hand to push us to also extend grace and mercy to those around us rather than giving the enemy the opportunity to control our ability to give people chance to reset as we choose to get bitter, resentful and hold onto our rights because we have been hurt, where there will be no room for the grace of God.

“Contrary to what we may have been taught to think, unnecessary and unchosen suffering wounds us but need not scar us for life. It does mark us. What we allow the mark of our suffering to become is in our own hands.”-Bell Hooks

Will you allow yourself and other people to reset?

Your choice.