07/26/20 - Philemon - Reconciliation and Forgiveness

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." Our current time reminds me of this opening line to Dicken's classic work. Admittedly, it feels more like the worst of times as we look into the future. But we must not forget that the God of history, the present and the future sits on the throne. The question has been asked - What will the future of the church look like? Church online is a blessing for many during this season and yet I wonder if it isn't adding to what many have already viewed as a convenience rather than a necessity. What will be the trajectory of relationships if the body does not habitually come together? The results are predictable because the fact is, we were not created to do life this way. (Remember the first "not good" of creation was that man was alone.) We cannot lose our dependance on one another because this will lead to a loss of relationship. I have seen lifelong friendships come to an end over one social media post. The devil horns we see above each other's heads tend to grow when we lose face to face interaction.

Tucked away in the New Testament is a short and intensely personal letter. It's not packed with theology and you won't find it at the top of most preaching lists. It is however, one of my favorites - Philemon. It reminds us that life is about relationships. First and foremost there is your relationship with God. If you get this right then all other relationships can be made right. Made right doesn't mean made easy but when Jesus enters our lives everything about us is radically changed. Philemon's story tells us how to restore and maintain what we were created for - relationship.