The letter to Philemon (Part 2)

Some of the distinctive features that should be synonymous to all believers is love for God’s people, faith in the Lord Jesus, intercession for one another among many others. Believers have the perfect model when it comes to loving one another. We have freely received the love of God. Our transgressions, which were many, were all forgiven because of God’s love. Therefore, being agents of love, should be something the church encourages all believers to aspire for.  Further, you cannot claim to love the Lord Jesus if you do not have faith in Him. Thus, being a believer implies that you have placed your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This faith is visible in your way of life and extends to the people who are in your life. To add to these, because of the love we have for one another and our faith in God, it should be easy for us to pray for one another.

I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your love for all his holy people and your faith in the Lord Jesus. ‭(Philemon 1:4-5)

In Paul’s letter to Philemon, he mentioned that he always thanked  God as he remembered Philemon in his prayers. Paul does this because he heard about Philemon’s love for all God’s holy people and his faith in the Lord Jesus (Philemon 1:4-5).  Philemon seemed to be the kind of believer who was worthy to learn from. He loved the church and the people in the church. His faith in the Lord Jesus would have been so obvious as he even opened his house to host the church services. He is more likely to have contributed to both the  spiritual and logistical development of the church. His family would have been an active part of the church. Yet, in all his godliness and goodness, his slave decided to run away from him. As the letter does not indicate the time frame at which Onesimus, the slave of Philemon took off, we cannot postulate that Onesimus encountered Jesus in the house of Philemon. The departure of Onesimus might have caused Philemon pain. In those days, slaves were owned by their masters as possessions. They could only leave under certain conditions. Yet, Onesimus left without a trace.

Being a godly and kind person doesn’t mean you are free from being hurt by the people around you. There is a possibility that  those you love and care for, including family members,  friends,  employees and neighbours could hurt you when you least expect it. However, we also need to understand we do many of the things we do because we are compelled by the love of Christ. You can be a modern day Philemon who has sacrificed so much but receives no reward. Do not lose heart. God is still working for your good.

The Christian wife in Corinth: Sexual immorality and intimacy

Paul’s apostolic letter to the church in Corinth addressed several issues including marriage. The church in Corinth had written to Paul with specific questions they wanted answers to. On his part, Apostle Paul took time to explain to them the way of the Lord in relation to their questions. One thing we knew that the Corinthian church had stated in their letter to Paul is quoted in 1 Corinthians 7:1:
Now for the matters you wrote about: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.”
The church had taken a stand that “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman” and Paul began his teaching on marriage based on this question. We shall focus on what Paul expected the Christian wives in Corinth to demonstrate. This was the first part of Paul’s response to the church:

“But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife. Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. I say this as a concession, not as a command. I wish that all of you were as I am. But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.” (1 Corinthians 7:2‭-‬7).

First, Paul exhorts the Christian wives (and husbands) to engage in sexual intimacy with their own spouses. This was to ensure that sexual immorality does not thrive within the church. Paul expected the Christian wives (and husbands) to fulfill their duties to each other. In essence, the wife (and the husband) should not deprive each other of their physical or emotional needs. Through Paul, we understand that “the wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife” (1 Corinthians 7:4). The married woman (or man) who embarks on any spiritual journey including dedication to prayer and avoidance of marital intimacy must be done in mutual consent. Thus the woman (and the man) cannot take decisions such as “fasting sexual intimacy” without each other’s consent.

Paul’s letter also reveals that the Christian is not immune to sexual sins. In the previous post, we saw a brother in the church sleeping with his father’s wife. This and many other records of sexual immorality among believers hinted the apostle to teach the church that married couples should not deny each other sexual pleasure. Paul had already admonished the Corinthian believers to “Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body.” (1 Corinthians 6:18).

Unfortunately sexual immorality is still one of the “Albatross” hanging around the neck of many churches. Men and women of God have been indicted severally for engaging in extramarital affairs. Some young people have become victims of married men and women in the church. The letter to the Corinthians and the caution about sexual immorality is relevant even today.

Sex was created by God not to become a snare to marriages. Any act of sexual immorality does not just weaken the marriage bond, it also casts a stain on the body of Christ. If there is no marriage nor sex in heaven, why would you rather allow sexual immorality to lead you to hell. For the record, hell is a place of torment….not sexual pleasure. Flee sexual immorality and save your soul.