1 I, Paul, am writing this letter. I am a prisoner because of Christ Jesus. Our brother Timothy joins me in writing.
Philemon, we are sending you this letter. You are our dear friend. You work together with us. 2 We are also sending it to our sister Apphia and to Archippus. He is a soldier of Christ together with us. And we are sending it to the church that meets in your home. 3 May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
Paul Prays and Gives Thanks 4 I always thank my God when I remember you in my prayers. 5 That’s because I hear about your love for all God’s people. I also hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus. 6 I pray that what we share by believing will help you understand even more. Then you will completely understand every good thing we share by believing in Christ. 7 Your love has given me great joy. It has encouraged me. My brother, you have renewed the hearts of the Lord’s people.
Philemon Paul often wrote about slaves and slave owners. He explained how Christian slaves and their owners had to behave towards each other. Slaves had to work as if they were working for Jesus. Owners had to remember that their slaves were their brothers and treat them with respect. Many centuries later, Christians realised that slavery was wrong and put a stop to it. Today there are still many countries where slavery exists. Children are bought and sold! They are forced to work as slaves. We must do what we can to stop this!
Paul Makes an Appeal for Onesimus 8 Because of the authority Christ has given me, I could be bold. I could order you to do what you should do anyway. 9 But we love each other. And I would rather appeal to you on the basis of that love. I, Paul, am an old man. I am now also a prisoner because of Christ Jesus. 10 I am an old man, and I’m in prison. This is how I make my appeal to you for my son Onesimus. He became a son to me while I was being held in chains. 11 Before that, he was useless to you. But now he has become useful to you and to me. 12 I’m sending Onesimus back to you. All my love for him goes with him. 13 I’m being held in chains because of the good news. So I would have liked to keep Onesimus with me. And he could take your place in helping me. 14 But I didn’t want to do anything unless you agreed. Any favour you do must be done because you want to do it, not because
Philemon 4–5 The good things Paul had heard about Philemon made him very happy. Inny wonders how you feel when you hear good news. What kind of news makes you happy? Think about good news you heard this past week that made you happy. Maybe someone said they loved you. Write that news down and keep it in a safe place. Then look at it on days when things aren’t going well. 1722 | PHILEMON 1