60IN60 Day 39 - Thurs Feb 10

It's Day 39 and we're in Philemon 1.

Philemon is a book about a situation where Paul had seen a run-away slave come to Christ. Paul desires for that slave (Onesimus) to continue to help him in his ministry, but he sends Onesimus back to his owner to get permission for that to happen. Slavery in Paul's day was not quite the same as what we saw in the South in early American history, but was more of an indentured servitude. Still, Paul here calls Philemon (the owner) to treat as Onesimus as a brother in Christ rather than a slave and that's was a radical thing for that culture (and one that more Christians in early American history should have heeded).

Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 19 - I find it amusing how Paul twists the screws a little in this verse.

Help:
- Verse 10 - "son" - That means Onesimus was his spiritual child, meaning that Paul had been the one to lead him to faith.
- Verse 16 - This is a radical verse. Can you imagine how much different the first 100 years of American history would have been in the Christians of that era had heeded its words?

If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.

If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.