Philemon

Men's Workout #5 - June 3rd

Pastor Dan kicked off our fifth workout session with a devotional through the book of Philemon.

  • A clear theme in this letter as explained by Paul is that Christians forgive. Even though Philemon was betrayed by Onesimus, his slave who left him at some point in the past, Paul appeals to him to forgive him – not by compulsion, but by his own free free will.
  • As Christians, we forgive because:
    • We want to forgive;
    • We are commanded to forgive;
    • God forgave us;
    • Forgiveness is a demonstration of basic Christian love.
  • The letter to Philemon reminds us always to have a heart of forgiveness, despite whatever offenses we may consider to have been committed against us.
  • Brotherhood is not just an idea; it is a reality

MEMORY VERSES

This week we recited Matthew 5:21-26 together and went into an extended time of discussing the passage and asking questions.

  • In verse 25, who is the opponent at law?
    • Jesus explains His point with an example of litigation. The opponent at law can be a believer or a non believer.
    • Jesus’ exhortation is to resolve disputes and make peace with your “opponent” without relying or going to the court systems. The emphasis is that Christians are to be peacemakers.
    • Go above and beyond and out of your way to make peace with others — be the initiator of peacemaking!
  • How far should we take an application of verses 23-24? How do we carry out the principles of peacemaking? For example, should we avoid attending corporate gatherings until we make peace with our brother?
    • The main point of application is to deal with your anger, take initiative, and resolve conflicts and issues with others quickly.
    • Sometimes we can forgive by just letting the issue go. Love covers a multitude of sins. Whether we are the offender or the offended, as Christians we are to be people who seek and make peace with others.
  • Another example: what if we have an argument with our wives before Sunday worship? Should we deal with it right then and there, even if it means we miss part of or the entire worship service?
    • The best thing to do with brethren is to establish a relationship where you can say to each other, “we have to sort things out, but let’s just start with forgiving each other, and we can carry on with what we need to do. We can have a conversation about this later. If there is a need for forgiveness, we are already in a place in our relationship where we will forgive each other. I will always forgive you; there’s nothing you can do to me that is so grave that I cannot cover it with love and not forgive you.”
      • Having this attitude prevents the temptation to have to put on a fake smile in front of others, as if everything were perfectly fine and you didn’t just have a heated argument with your spouse!
      • Of course, we should actually follow with with the promise of resolving the issue later!
  • What if we don’t remember our conflicts with other brethren before presenting our offering to God?
    • Our offerings and worship to God will always be substandard and imperfect. Despite this, God accepts our worship with mercy and grace. It doesn’t make it okay if we don’t remember to confess our sins and make peace with others, but we should do as much as we can to make amends with our brethren, inasmuch as it depends on us and if it is possible (Romans 12:18).

Next week’s passage for memorization is Matthew 5:27-32. The theme here is that “Christians are pure.”

  • The Lord has a high standard of righteousness.
  • The context of the passage is that Jewish men would freely divorce their wives in order to marry other women they desired, thus avoiding public labels as adulterers. But Jesus says that “everyone who looks at a women with lust for her  has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28).
  • We need to put a hedge against physical and emotional temptations.
    • “Tearing out the right eye and cutting off the right hand”
      • The right eye and hand were considered as the more dominant of the matching parts of the body
      • These are extreme examples that tell us to take extreme measures to deal with temptations and lusts
      • Romans 13:14 tells us to “make no provisions for the flesh in regards to its lusts”
      • The way to battle struggles in the mind is to replace those struggles with the right things (like the truths and commands of Scripture!)

LEADING DEVOTIONS

Daniel Khuc led the devotion for this week.

  • Hymn #129 – “Crown Him With Many Crowns”
  • Daniel led us in a devotion through Revelation 1:7-11.
    • Verse 8 – God describes Himself as the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, who was, is, and is to come.
      • From this we know that God is eternal; God is the source of all things.
        • Often we are concerned with ourselves, our own existence, and our own thoughts. But we are part of God’s plan, which has existed before us, and will be completed by Him.
        • This reminds us that we are to be humble, and not inflate our own self-importance.
        • Like we sang in the hymn, we ought to attribute honor and authority unto God. He has the ultimate authority.
        • All will see Him when He returns, even those who pierced Him! The reality is that the Lord IS returning one day. This helps us put all of life and the way we ought to live it in the proper perspective.