Tim Maas Supporter Retired Quality Assurance Specialist with the U.S. Army

My understanding is that Onesimus is regarded as having run away because of allegations of theft from his master (Philemon). (Paul referred to this in his epistle to Philemon when he said (in verse 18 and 19), "If he [Onesimus] 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."

Paul converted Onesimus to Christianity, and persuaded him to return to Philemon, along with the letter that Paul had written to Philemon, in which (in addition to the passage quoted above) Paul asked Philemon to receive Onesimus not as a runaway slave (with the punishment that that act would normally involve), but as a brother in Christ.

As a means of persuasion, Paul also reminded Philemon that Philemon himself owed his own salvation to Paul, since (as noted above) it was Paul's preaching that had converted Philemon to Christianity. This has led one commentator to humorously characterize Paul's epistle to Philemon as "the friendliest blackmail letter in history".

June 07 2020 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Danny Hickman Supporter Believer in The Gospel Of Jesus Christ

Sometimes it's true that the smaller the book the harder it is to deconstruct. The book of Philemon is one such book of the Bible. (Philemon 1)

A slave by the name of Onesimus ran away from his master, met a man of God, the greatest Christian of all time, was preached to by that Christian (the Apostle Paul), who then wrote a letter to the slave's master telling him that his slave would be returning to him of his own accord. 

What's this about?

There's a theory that presupposes that Onesimus had stolen from Philemon when he fled. I've read it over and over and I don't see it written anywhere that he'd stolen anything. Paul says to Philemon, "If he owes you anything, charge it to my account" (vs 18). It doesn't say anything about a theft. I guess that says to some of us that Onesimus stole something before he left. It's my belief that he was in bondage because of a debt he owed to Philemon that he got tired of trying to repay. That's very different from him being an out-and-out thief, although it was wrong for him to leave. There's a moral picture being drawn here, I do surmise: that we cannot repay our way out of the bondage to sin; we need to be freed by the One to which we are indebted. That is, in my opinion, the book of Philemon in a nutshell.

Paul preached the gospel of the forgiveness of sin to Onesimus and Onesimus believed it. Paul talked him into returning to his master. WHY? To put this new gospel theory to the test! Onesimus was getting ready to become an ambassador for the true Master. He would need to have a testimony that there is forgiveness in Christ.

Returning to Philemon would give Onesimus an opportunity to experience practical forgiveness. That's probably why Paul set it up like that. (He's mentioned by Paul in his letter to the church at Colossae as being out on the gospel campaign trail (Colossians 4).

Onesimus was a slave, but he wasn't in what we call "slavery." His story is a theological picture of a man being in bondage to sin. He meets a man of God. The man of God has some good news for him. He has been freed from his bondage to sin. But here's the thing: the man of God has plans of a new kind of service for this convert. He wants the man who was once a slave to sin to get involved with the gospel commission; he wants Onesimus to go back and begin his new life where he left his old life. Paul is going to use Onesimus in the ministry and Philemon is going to help Onesimus to get started.

There are questions on this site about conventional slavery. This letter is not about God's view of that kind of slavery, which we find so horrible and offensive. It isn't even God's view of what this seems to be to me: indentured servitude. This letter from Paul, who is Jesus' prisoner (vss 1,9,13), (he wanted to stress that point), is about the gospel. 

We are all slaves to sin who want and need to get free. Paul reminded Philemon that he too had been a slave (to sin), and "You owe yourself to me" (vs 19). Paul had preached the gospel to the church to which Philemon belonged that met in Philemon's home. Paul was presuming on Philemon's good nature to do him a solid and accept this new convert "as a brother in the Lord" (vs 16). 

Paul is killing a few birds with just a single stone. That stone is a runaway slave.

There are no free men in the Lord who ran away and got free from that which had us bound. If we're free we were set free. Onesimus has to be set free by his master. If the Son sets you free, then you will be really free (John 8:36). 

In summary: the main idea here is the fact that we can't get free from sin on our own accord. That's the idea Onesimus had (theologically) when he ran away from his master. Little did he know, he would be forever in debt to Philemon if he ran away in debt. 

We don't want to die in debt to our Master... The man of God said he would take care of ANY debt that Onesimus owed.

July 30 2024 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report