That your goodness would not be by compulsion but of your own free will.

Philemon 14

Paul’s letter to Philemon tells us of a runaway slave, Onesimus, who ended up with Paul in Rome. How he made it to Rome without being caught is unknown. Neither do we know how he came to be with Paul.

What is clear from the letter is that he became a Christian. Still, he was guilty of a capital crime. According to Roman law, a master had total power over a slave, including the power of death.

We do know that Philemon helped Paul establish the church in Colossae where he lived. It seems possible that Onesimus and Paul had met there. His conversion, along with Paul’s mentoring, evidently led him to realize that if he was committed to God, he could not live as a fugitive.

Paul’s letter was to be carried to Colossae by Onesimus in hopes Philemon would take him back. Paul wanted Philemon to understand that in this they were now brothers in Christ, not Master and slave. Still, we can be sure that for Onesimus it must have been frightening to think about returning to Colossae to face his master.

Paul used this little letter to challenge both these men to live God’s way rather than the world’s. For Onesimus, it was a critical test of his commitment to a new life in Christ. In taking this letter to his master, facing possible death, he became a witness to the boldness that is ours by faith that trusts all to God.

For Philemon, it became a matter of right choice. Paul never challenges his rights as Master of a runaway slave. Instead, he says that though his authority as an apostle and their friendship might give him the right to tell him what to do, such was not his intention. Rather, he wanted the new life Philemon had found in Christ to guide his choice as a witness to living God’s way, not the world’s.

How do you choose whom you accept?