Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do, yet I prefer to appeal to you on the basis of love. It is as none other than Paul—an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus— that I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains. Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me. When I come to take a picture of a flower I must decide where and how much of the flower to put in focus. I can choose to keep the whole image sharp and clear or I can choose to keep only a small part of the flower in focus with a smooth out of focus background. Where I put the focus changes the image and message I convey with my photograph. We also make decisions about where to put our focus in our everyday lives. Will we focus on what is ours or will we focus on serving others?
In his letter to Philemon, Paul was asking Philemon to make a choice about where he would put his focus. Paul is writing not only to seek to reconcile two dear friends who are at odds with one another but also teach a Christian community how to live a life of reconciliation; to learn where to put their focus. You see, Philemon was a wealthy man, wealthy enough to provide a place for the church of Colosse to meet in his home. He was known for his love and faithfulness to Christ. Now Paul was asking him where to focus. Was he going to focus on what was due him by Onesimus, his slave who had not only run away from him but had probably stolen from him as well? Or was he going to focus on Onesimus and forgive him; not only to forgive him but to accept him back as more than his slave but his brother? We don’t know what choice Philemon made. We only know that the choice wasn’t easy. I think that Christ also asks us to make this choice each day. Where will you focus? The place you choose will change the whole picture you make with your life. Prayer Christ Jesus, Show us where to put our focus this day so that we can reflect your love to all around us. And if there is someone we need to forgive and accept back as our brother or sister in Christ, give us the courage to do so. Amen
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Soli Deo Gloria,
1 Corinthians 10:31
© 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Karen Milligan
1 Corinthians 10:31
© 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Karen Milligan