Good Things for the Sake of Christ - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him today and what came to my heart and mind in Philemon 6,

"I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in
deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake
of Christ."

This very crafty letter by Paul to Philemon, a slave owner, concerned
the run-away slave, Onesimus. Paul had a relationship with Philemon,
as he had apparently led him to the Lord, see verse 19. Somehow,
during Paul's imprisonment, Onesimus came into contact with Paul,
responded to his gospel message, and now Paul wanted to send Onesimus,
the new believer, back to Philemon.

What Paul asks of Philemon is that he receive back Onesimus, not as a
slave, but as a brother, forgiven by him. Paul asks Philemon to charge
anything Onesimus might owe to him, or if Onesimus had wronged him in
any way, to charge that to him. "If he has done you any wrong or owes
you anything, charge it to me." Verse 18.

What Paul is asking of Philemon is forgiveness, and beyond that, to
take a financial hit by not recouping any potential loss he took in
regard to Onesimus.

This brings me to the verse above, verse 6. In that verse, a part of
Paul's introduction in his letter, Paul makes mention of "every good
thing we share for the sake of Christ."

We often think in terms of the good things, the blessings, we share
because of our knowing Jesus Christ, as things for our own sake. We
naturally think in terms of "look how the Lord has blessed me", and
appropriately so. However, as a bit of arm-twisting, Paul points out
that our blessings are for the sake of Christ.

If the blessings we receive are for Christ's sake, then when we expend
those things for Christ, we really are not giving anything up at all.
If what we have, "every good thing" is for the sake of Jesus Christ,
then giving up something of that for him is entirely appropriate. It
really is a great nuance by Paul in reminding Philemon of it.

So, naturally, I ask myself, if my blessings are for the sake of Jesus
Christ, how should I order those things in my own life?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

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