A Lesson on Forgiving

It goes without saying that the first thing to do is to read the New Testament book of Philemon. It is probably better to think of this not as a "book" of the Bible, but a letter from one friend to another. This shouldn't be to hard or take to much time. The book has no chapters and only 25 verses. The lesson to be learned is one that is hard for most people. The ability to forgive.

The Apostle Paul is in prison in Rome and is writing to his friend Philemon concerning a man named Onesimus who was Philemon's runaway slave. He had not only ran away to Rome but had stolen Philemon's money as well. When Onesimus had run out of money and had no one to turn to, he met Paul and became a Christian.

The lesson should begin with you putting yourselves in Paul's shoes. You're in prison for sharing the good news about Jesus and you're writing a letter to an old friend. What are you feeling and what are you trying to get across? Paul is praying that his friend will be active in sharing his faith and that in doing so he will have a full understanding of everything good he has in Christ. He is saying that by understanding this good, he also understands he has the capacity for love and forgiveness too.

When we, as Christians, believe that Christ died so that our sins could be forgiven we also believe we must forgive those who have wronged us. We don't know if Philemon forgave Onesimus and welcomed him back or not. Whether he did or didn't, the message from Paul is there for all of us to learn from.