Gracious!

The small letter to Philemon from the Apostle Paul contains quite a bit of action.  The action is not fist fights and explosions.  The action is of a spiritual direction. The Apostle Paul knew very well the grace of God, at salvation and in his day to day ministry and trials.

Onesimus has maybe stolen from Philemon and runs away.  (He was Philemon's slave).  Philemon had been led to Christ in Ephesus by Paul and transformed returned to Collosee and started a church.
Onesimus had ripped off Philemon and runs to where he can blend in.  Rome.

How many of you know you can run but you cannot hide.  God providently leads him to the Apostle Paul, who is in jail.  Onesimus might have been incarcerated there himself. Maybe from stealing. Paul for merely preaching the Gospel of Christ.

Paul shares the gospel to Onesimus and he is saved and transformed into useful from useless! He becomes strongly involved in Paul's ministry. "What's your story Onesimus?"  He shares his story of how he had stolen from Philemon...  "Philemon?"


"Philemon accepted the gospel when I shared it with him as you did."  Paul sent him back to Philemon with an explanation of how Onesimus  heard by grace and trusted by faith the work of Jesus on the cross.

Read the letter and using your imagination, see also the illustration:

Philemon is God
Onesimus is sinner
Paul is Jesus speaking on our behalf and saying to put the sinners sin to His account.

We know that Jesus paid the price and all to Him we owe.

Oh the Amazing Grace of God!