The Cost of Discipleship Message Delivered Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost, September 8, 2013 Philemon 1-21 and Luke 14. 25-33 All scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) As you already observed, the letter to Philemon is a short one, so there are no chapter numbers, only numbers for the verses. In this brief epistle, for the first time in his career of writing letters to the churches and to the saints, the Apostle Paul comes right to the point. Paul addresses this letter to his friend, a fellow Christian named Philemon. Philemon is apparently a man of some means who owns some slaves, or at least owns one slave named Onesimus. At some time, both Philemon and Onesimus have come to know Paul in his travels as he establishes Christian churches and leads folks who become believers in the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal savior, and seek to follow Jesus as their Master for the rest of their days. Both slave and owner become new Christians, quite possibly at the same time. Onesimus decides he no longer wants to be under the yoke of ownership of Philemon, so he escapes and joins up with Paul in his ongoing evangelistic journey. We don’t know how long Onesimus is with Paul, but we do know that Paul has been arrested and is being detained. This might have been an arrest earlier in his travels, one that lasted a short time, or this might be the period of his last years of service to the Lord when he was under arrest first in Jerusalem and then in Caesarea and finally in Rome until the day of his execution. I’m sure that Paul found Onesimus to be a great comfort and a very important helper when he was in jail. And as much as he would like to have kept Onesimus for his own assistant, there remains a much more important issue that must be addressed. Paul wants to see Onesimus and Philemon reconciled as fellow brothers of Christ Jesus. To do so, Paul is bold enough to ask two very great things of both men. To Onesimus, he asks for his friend to return to his former owner. To do so involves a very great risk for Onesimus. Philemon has no obligation to do as Paul requests in his letter. As the owner of a runaway slave, he can incarcerate him, beat him and treat him miserably. If Philemon brings him back into his home to serve as a slave, he may never truly trust Onesimus again, putting an additional strain on a relationship defined by slavery and ownership. For Onesimus to return to Philemon, he accepts the possibility that this may be the outcome awaiting him. Paul asks a great deal of Philemon, too. He asks that he forgo his rights as a slave owner to have his errant slave returned to him. He asks that he accept Onesimus as a brother in Christ, just as if he were receiving Paul himself. Philemon 8-11: 8 “For this reason, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do your duty, 9 yet I would rather appeal to you on the basis of love—and I, Paul, do this as an old man, and now also as a prisoner of Christ Jesus. 10 I am appealing to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I have become during my imprisonment. 11 Formerly, he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful both to you and to me.” Paul makes the point that Onesimus was formerly useless to Philemon, because he obviously was not a slave who was devoted to his master, but one who desired release. He was certainly of no value to Philemon while he was on the run. Here, Paul argues that Onesimus is of greater worth to both Paul and Philemon if he is no longer kept in the bondage of slavery, but if he is restrained only by the bonds of love. Philemon 12-16: 12 “I am sending him, that is, my own heart, back to you. 13 I wanted to keep him with me, so that he might be of service to me in your place during my imprisonment for the gospel; 14 but I preferred to do nothing without your consent, in order that your good deed might be voluntary and not something forced. 15 Perhaps this is the reason he was separated from you for a while, so that you might have him back forever, 16 no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother—especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the LORD.” Paul might have thought through this situation and argued with himself, coming up with excuses and rationale, saying, “Well, Philemon won’t mind Onesimus being with me, being of service to me, so is it really necessary to tell him?” But it bothers Paul’s conscience enough that he knows no amount of rationale will make the situation right as it stands, forcing Philemon to accept a situation without his knowledge or consent. So he offers Philemon the opportunity to welcome Onesimus, no longer as a runaway slave, but as a brother in the Lord Jesus Christ. The relationship between Christians does not end when the terms of slavery are accomplished, but brothers and sisters in the Lord are united in the heart and in the soul forever. Paul dares hope that in the end, Philemon might consent to have Onesimus return to be with Paul in his hour of need. We owe Paul a debt of gratitude here for writing this letter. None of us will ever face the dilemma of what to do with our runaway slave. But we have all been faced with the problem of having a friend in the Lord, or an enemy, do us wrong and owe us a debt of apology or more. Philemon 17-20: 17 “So if you consider me your partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. 18 If he has wronged you in any way, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. 19 I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand: I will repay it. I say nothing about your owing me even your own self. 20 Yes, brother, let me have this benefit from you in the LORD!” Paul gets clever here, although if you noticed, Paul has been pretty clever throughout this letter. I will pay you any debt that Onesimus owes you, but I’m not going to mention that you owe me the debt of your eternal life because I am the one who brought you to know your Lord Jesus Christ. No, I’m not going to mention that fact, but in the course of not mentioning it, I truly did mention it, actually. But hey, no pressure here, right? Paul is asking Philemon to forgive Onesimus and set him free. When someone has wronged us, that is precisely what the Lord God wants us to consider as well. Will we forgive our friend or enemy, and set them free from the debt they owe us for having done the wrong (and also, by the way, set ourselves free from the burden of hatred, holding a desire for revenge, and nursing a smoldering grudge)? Or by our act of unforgiveness, will we continue to hold the other in our debt? Let’s remember this is a debt we cannot cash in on without causing some further harm to the one we now have come to hate. Can we afford situations in our lives where we cause an on-going, escalating feud fueled by our lust to cause them harm in return? This brings us to the passage in Luke. Jesus says it costs a great deal to be a disciple of his. To truly follow Jesus Christ, the answer to all the above questions are quickly discerned. If we will be a disciple of Jesus Christ, yes, we must learn to dismiss the debt of revenge and forgive the other who has harmed us. As we set the other free, we find that God is letting us go free from a lifetime of holding bitterness and anger in our heart. What seems like a sacrifice in the beginning of offering another forgiveness becomes a gift that God gives us. He repays us for our faithfulness many times over. Let’s consider what it is that Jesus is saying to us here. Luke 14. 25-26: 25 “Now large crowds were traveling with Him [Jesus]; and He turned and said to them, 26 ‘Who- ever comes to Me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be My disciple.’” So, what does this mean for us? At first glance, these words seem pretty harsh. What is Jesus point when he says that his followers must “hate” the most significant others in their lives: mother and father, wife or husband, children and grandchildren, sisters and brothers, “and even life itself?” It is my understanding that here Jesus uses the power of hyperbole to underscore the utmost importance of his central point. Hyperbole is a method of communication that uses language and illustration that is intentionally stronger that the point you are trying to make. I believe what Jesus is saying here is truly, we are not to “hate” others in the sense of despising them or mistreating them, but what the Lord is saying here is, “love me more than these.” It seems clear that Jesus is telling us that our relationship with him, and with God above, is absolutely to be more important than any other loving relationship we have here on earth. There is no love without the Lord Jesus Christ placing it in our hearts, and there is no eternity without our coming to Jesus and asking him to be our savior. We ask this of no one else here on earth. Only Jesus is the Son of God and only Jesus can bring us to the arms of our heavenly Father. So he is to be the first and foremost of the loves of our life, and the first and only one to whom we are to be ultimately obedient. Luke 14. 27: 27 “[Jesus said,] ‘Whoever does not carry the cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple.’” Now these words are more straightforward. How do we carry the cross and follow Jesus? Utilizing the power and assistance of the Holy Spirit, we are obedient to God’s commandments and the instruction of our Lord Jesus. We do as Jesus directs us in each of our daily opportunities to follow his will. In the following verses 28-32, Jesus places the matter of counting the cost in very clear and understandable terms with two brief illustrations. Are you going to build a tower? Count the cost and see if you can finish the project? Going to war? Do you have the resources to obtain a victory? If not, negotiate the peace. If you are considering being a disciple of Jesus Christ, remember that this is a decision that may one day cost us dearly in terms of what we prize the most today. Will you be willing to pay it when the time has come? Let us remember that in serving the Lord, the things that we value today may be of less interest in the days yet to come. Jesus has a way of rearranging those things that we deem to be of great importance. Now this sermon is not a sermon for the new believer. Those sermons nearly always tell you what a terrific deal you are about to get from the Lord Jesus Christ. Step right up. Ask him to be your savior, and he will take away your debt of sin, save your soul from eternal hell and damnation, give you a life of peace on earth and a life of eternal serenity in heaven. What a deal! What could be better? Today, Jesus reminds us that one day he will knock on our door and say, “I have a job for you to do. Come, follow me.” And in saying yes to the Lord, in one way or another, will involve a sacrifice of service or privilege. Luke 14. 33: 33 So therefore, none of you can become My disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.’” I have a cousin who is about my age. When we were in our late twenties, both of us had just started our families, and I liked to go visit Gary and his wife, Valerie. Gary was and is one of the most profound and dedicated Christian men I have ever had the privilege of knowing. In those days, though, this passage of scripture was troubling him a great deal. What if the Lord truly required him to give up all his possessions? At this point, Valerie would kindly point out to him that he now had obligations to carry out with regard to providing for his wife and his children. “Please, Gary,” Valerie would ask him, “don’t give up all your possessions until we no longer have a need for them.” Even monks who have taken a vow of poverty still have needs for the clothing on their backs, a bed to sleep in, a roof over their heads, food to eat, tools to use to make a productive life, a Bible to read and a place to worship. Valerie makes a valid point. But Jesus’ point here is also a very important one. Our allegiance is to Jesus, and not to our possessions or our relationships. So we use our homes, our cars and trucks and the other things we own in the service of the Lord. Father God owns the cattle on a thousand hills, so the scripture says in Psalm 50. 10, and all our possessions came from his hand. It is up to us to dedicate their use to his glory and remember that we are stewards of his things not the owner of an increasing pile of goods for our own pleasure. Paul’s intention in writing to Philemon is the same point that Jesus makes to his disciples: You may have a right to desire revenge and to make things even, you have a right to your property and you have a right to have loving relationships with others. But there may come a time when the life of a Christian demands a sacrifice of those rights, or those possessions, or even those relationships, so we can set ourselves free to follow the calling of Jesus. Are we willing today to forgive the other? Are we willing today to go forth in loving service as Jesus sends us? Are we willing today and tomorrow to pay the cost of being a disciple?
Posted on: Mon, 09 Sep 2013 01:44:00 +0000
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