Another great lesson that we learned from studying Paul's letter to Philemon, was about sharing forgiveness. It was a lesson Jesus taught many times. Most pointedly with the parable of the unmerciful servant. Forgiveness is a wonderful thing when you are on the receiving end of things, giving well that is a different story.
The really clever thing that Paul did
was send this little letter along with a bigger letter to the entire church and
so it would have been read in front of the whole church. That means everyone would have been watching
to see how Philemon responded. You’ll probably never be put on the spot
in front of the whole church, but people are watching to see how you respond to
the grace that was shown to you as a follower of Christ.
Francis Chan said, “Do you know that nothing you do in this
life will ever matter, unless it is about loving God and loving the people he
has made?” When you forgive someone, you bring
healing to both you and them. When you hold a grudge, you bring harm only to
yourself. Christianity is nothing if it doesn’t
show itself in terms of relationships.
Christianity is really just one beggar showing another beggar
where to find bread. The great news is
we can be showing others the bread of life – Jesus!
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