Confessional Lutheran Ministerium

Hebrews 4:1-16 NKJV

4 Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. ² For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. ³ For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said:

“So I swore in My wrath,
‘They shall not enter My rest,’ ”

although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. ⁴ For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”; ⁵ and again in this place: “They shall not enter My rest.”

⁶ Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience, ⁷ again He designates a certain day, saying in David, “Today,” after such a long time, as it has been said:

“Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”

⁸ For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day. ⁹ There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. ¹⁰ For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.

¹¹ Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. ¹² For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. ¹³ And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

¹⁴ Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. ¹⁵ For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. ¹⁶ Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 4:9 declares, “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God.”  Earlier in the reading the original Sabbath Day, Day 7 of creation, was mentioned.  That day was set aside by God in order to do two things. One, to designate a day of rest not for God but for man to rejuvenate and re-fuel after a week of labor. But the second thing was to point forward to the eternal Seventh Day, the Day when Christ will return at the end of the world as we know it and receive His bride to Himself in heaven forever where there will be no more sin, sorrow, crying, sickness, or mourning. That Day is certainly on God’s calendar, and it is known only to Him; but Christ promises to return and usher in that final Day where all believers will spend eternity in the glories of heaven and rest from all their labors.

We are also reminded that “the Word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword…” (v. 12). God’s Word always has an effect; it is a blessing to those who, by faith, believe it, and a curse to those who deny its truth and power.

Finally, we are comforted with the fact that we have Jesus, our great High Priest, who, as priest sacrificed Himself for our sins and Who also constantly prays for us. We can confidently go to Him in our prayers and in our need because we know that He most certainly can sympathize with our weaknesses as He was in all ways tempted as we are, yet without sin. Therefore, we know that Christ, who took on our human flesh, successfully endured all temptation in our place so that we can turn to Him when we ourselves are tempted and know that He can give us His strength to endure. Then we may rejoice in the final words of today’s reading: “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Let us pray: Lord Jesus, thank You for being our faithful High Priest. Help us always to come to You for needed rest and strength. Amen.

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Hebrews 3:12-19 NKJV

¹² Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; ¹³ but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. ¹⁴ For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end, ¹⁵ while it is said:

“Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

¹⁶ For who, having heard, rebelled? Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt, led by Moses? ¹⁷ Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? ¹⁸ And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? ¹⁹ So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

Unbelief. What a horrible thing. We are surrounded in our  world by unbelievers and too many lukewarm “Christians.” And to us it seems unfathomable that anyone would not want to know in no uncertain terms that their sins have been paid for and that they may with confidence look forward to an existence in heaven where no sin, sorrow, or pain can ever again affect them.

And yet again in today’s reading there is a warning not to harden our hearts. These words are spoken to the Hebrew Christians and to us as well. And, as in yesterday’s reading and devotion, it is a reminder of how the Israelites were warned not to take God lightly or to turn their hearts against Him no matter how desperate their situation may have seemed. Many of them should have trusted God, for they certainly had every reason to do so.  But the sobering words in v. 19 are indeed upsetting: “…they could not enter in because of unbelief.”  Those unbelievers did not enter the Promised Land; their lack of faith and trust in the same God who had delivered them from bondage and slavery caused them to be left out of eternal life.

The same goes for our day. The huge majority of people who are alive and who ever lived will not see eternal life precisely because they did not take to heart God’s promise of forgiveness in His Son Jesus Christ whose suffering and death on the cross atoned for the sins of all. God’s offer extends to all, but many refuse to admit their need for God’s love and forgiveness and so go their own way; they will not enter eternal life because of unbelief.

May our good and gracious God move us always to pray for those unbelievers, for we know that there is nothing more horrible than an eternal existence outside the presence of God; and we know there is nothing more wonderful than eternal life with God in heaven. Let us pray: Lord Jesus, thank You for paying for my sins. In Your mercy, bring more people into Your eternal kingdom. Amen.

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Hebrews 3:1-11 NKJV

3 Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, ² who was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house. ³ For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house. ⁴ For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God. ⁵ And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, ⁶ but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.

⁷ Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:

“Today, if you will hear His voice,
⁸ Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,
In the day of trial in the wilderness,
⁹ Where your fathers tested Me, tried Me,
And saw My works forty years.
¹⁰ Therefore I was angry with that generation,
And said, ‘They always go astray in their heart,
And they have not known My ways.’
¹¹ So I swore in My wrath,
‘They shall not enter My rest.’ ”

The first thing to notice in today’s reading is the clear testimony that Christ, our High Priest, was faithful to His heavenly Father in all things. In fact, Christ was the only completely and perfectly faithful person ever to exist as He is both fully God and fully man. His faithfulness to His Father meant that He suffered horrendous physical torture, ridicule, abandonment, and ultimately the cruelest death known to man by being crucified for us.  His perfectly obedient and faith life, suffering, and death paid for the sins of everyone. Christ was appointed to this from before the foundation of the world in order to offer His payment for our sins to all, and that they might, by faith, believe in Him and be saved.

There is also a warning in today’s reading: “If you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion…” (vv. 7-8). These words, first recorded in Ps. 95:8, refer to Israel’s rebellion in Ex 17 when the people complained to Moses about having no water to drink when they camped in Rephidim. The Israelites had been miraculously delivered by God’s mighty hand from their captivity and slavery in Egypt, and yet, here they complain about that same God as if God did not care about them and as if He had never done them any good and now could not be trusted to provide for them.

The Israelites’ attitude reminds us that sometimes we also do not believe that God can or will do anything about our plights. If you have ever done that, repent. Repent and trust that the same God who delivered the Israelites miraculously can certainly deliver you from whatever troubles you. He will either give you the strength to bear up, or He will remove the trouble. Either way, He will provide. Remember God’s love shown to you when He gave his only begotten Son to bear your sin and be your Savior. Trust in Him by faith, and He will see you through. Let us pray: Lord Jesus, thank You for giving Your life to pay for my sins. Strengthen my faith that I may trust You for all things. Amen.

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Hebrews 2:10-18 NKJV

¹⁰ For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. ¹¹ For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, ¹² saying:

“I will declare Your name to My brethren;
In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.”

¹³ And again:

“I will put My trust in Him.”

And again:

“Here am I and the children whom God has given Me.”

¹⁴ Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, ¹⁵ and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. ¹⁶ For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. ¹⁷ Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. ¹⁸ For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

There’s great gospel in the words of today’s reading where the writer to the Hebrews gives us great comfort. First, we are reminded that God is the one who sanctifies – makes us holy – through His holy Word and blessed Sacraments. No one can make himself holy, for “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23).

Then we are comforted by the fact that Christ Himself shared in our own flesh and blood, having taken on human flesh in His Incarnation. This is a vitally important theological teaching. Only Christianity boasts of a Savior who actually took on human flesh in order to be one of us and take our place so that His perfect life, suffering, death, and resurrection would count in our place, “that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil.”

Christ is also our “merciful and faithful High Priest.” Here we are reminded that the entire Old Testament priestly system – the rituals and sacrifices – all pointed forward in time to Jesus who fulfilled and completed all of it by the sacrifice of Himself on the cross.  He is the scapegoat, the One upon whom all of our sins were laid and then taken away by His suffering and death. He is the Paschal Lamb that was slain, whose blood was painted upon the doorposts of our hearts by faith when we believed in His work for us.  He is the Host and Main Course of the final Passover which was the first Lord’s Supper in that famous Upper Room when Christ took unleavened bread and grape wine and said of them, “This is My body and Blood,” the very same body and blood that we receive in the Holy Eucharist each and every Lord’s Day for the forgiveness of our sins and the strengthening of our faith.

And this final comfort: because “He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are being tempted.” Christ is everything for us in all of our needs.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, thank You for bearing my sins and giving me faith to believe in You and thereby receive You in all the ways You desire me to have You. Amen.

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Psalm 119:137-144 NKJV

צ TSADDE

¹³⁷ Righteous are You, O Lord,
And upright are Your judgments.
¹³⁸ Your testimonies, which You have commanded,
Are righteous and very faithful.
¹³⁹ My zeal has consumed me,
Because my enemies have forgotten Your words.
¹⁴⁰ Your word is very pure;
Therefore Your servant loves it.
¹⁴¹ I am small and despised,
Yet I do not forget Your precepts.
¹⁴² Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness,
And Your law is truth.
¹⁴³ Trouble and anguish have overtaken me,
Yet Your commandments are my delights.
¹⁴⁴ The righteousness of Your testimonies is everlasting;
Give me understanding, and I shall live.

In this section of Psalm 119, the general theme of the psalm continues. Luther says that this psalm contains “prayers, comforts, instructions, and thanks in great number… It praises God’s Word throughout and warns us against both the false teachers and against boredom and contempt for the Word. Its primary concern is that we have God’s Word in its purity and hear it gladly…” (Reading the Psalms with Luther, p. 284).

Today’s verses reveal the psalmist’s concern for his enemies. He laments that his enemies have forgotten God’s Word. That truly is something that should trouble all Christians, for anyone who has neither known nor heard God’s Word cannot be saved, for “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom 10:17). And those who have heard the Word and have rejected or forgotten it are in jeopardy of losing out on eternal life and salvation which Christ offers to all who hear and, by faith, believe in His substitutionary suffering and death for all mankind. Pray for those people that they may come to know Christ and His love for them.

The psalmist is also grateful for God’s many blessings, particularly that God’s Word is “very pure” (the Hebrew word means “refined”). There is nothing purer or more refined than God’s Word which never errs in its proclamation of man’s sinfulness and need of a Savior, and God’s goodness in sending His Son to pay for the sins of the world.

God’s Word is sure, trustworthy, and dependable because it is the Word of the same God who is all those things and more. By God-given faith we can trust His Word to lead and guide us in all truth, and always point us to the most important and certain things – eternal life and salvation in Christ’s atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Let us pray: O God, who makes the minds of the faithful to be of one will, grant that Your people may love what You have commanded and desire what You have promised, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

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Psalm 119:97-105 NKJV

מ MEM

⁹⁷ Oh, how I love Your law!
It is my meditation all the day.
⁹⁸ You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies;
For they are ever with me.
⁹⁹ I have more understanding than all my teachers,
For Your testimonies are my meditation.
¹⁰⁰ I understand more than the ancients,
Because I keep Your precepts.
¹⁰¹ I have restrained my feet from every evil way,
That I may keep Your word.
¹⁰² I have not departed from Your judgments,
For You Yourself have taught me.
¹⁰³ How sweet are Your words to my taste,
Sweeter than honey to my mouth!
¹⁰⁴ Through Your precepts I get understanding;
Therefore I hate every false way.

נ NUN

¹⁰⁵ Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.

“You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; For they areever with me” (98). The enemies that are ever with the psalmist are the same enemies that are ever with us: the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh. These three enemies work together to entice us away from God’s word so that we walk according to our own wills and desires. They are often quite subtle in how they present temptations to us and how they rationalize the sins with which they tempt us. God’s word exposes their foolishness by showing them for what they are. The devil is a liar; there is no truth in him (Jn 8:44). The world’s works are evil (Jn 7:7). “The carnal mind”—our sinful flesh—“is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be” (Rom 8:7).

Our enemies present sin as something sweet to our taste, as if selfish ambition and fulling one’s desires are true wisdom and understanding. But God’s word gives us understanding of our enemies’ false ways and teaches us to hate them so that we restrain our feet from walking their ways, remaining firmly on God’s word and judgments.

 Our enemies tell us we need no lamp, for “wide is the gate and broad is the way” (Matt 7:13). But God’s word tells us this wide gate and broad path lead to destruction, and that “a lamp is despised in the thought of one who is at ease” (Job 12:5). God’s word illumines our path so that we walk in God’s ways. Walking in His ways, our steps illumined by His commandments and promises, we avoid the wide gate and broad path that leads to destruction. Even though our enemies are ever with us—and will be until we enter everlasting bliss—God’s word makes us wiser than them, so that we are not ignorant of their devices (2 Cor. 2:11). We love God’s word and meditate on it all the day because in it God shows us Christ’s victory over our enemies, and teaches us how He is victorious over our enemies in us.

Let us pray: Make us wiser than our enemies through Your word, O God, so that each day we may be victorious over them in every temptation and evil scheme. Amen.

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Hebrews 2:1-9 NKJV

2 Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. ² For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, ³ how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him, ⁴ God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?

⁵ For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels. ⁶ But one testified in a certain place, saying:

“What is man that You are mindful of him,
Or the son of man that You take care of him?
⁷ You have made him a little lower than the angels;
You have crowned him with glory and honor,
And set him over the works of Your hands.
⁸ You have put all things in subjection under his feet.”

For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him. ⁹ But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.

God’s word, whether spoken by angels or prophets, “proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward” (2). Those who transgressed the word God spoke and disobeyed were punished, sometimes even destroyed. If the word God spoke to through prophets and angels provided steadfast, and if disobedience to it earned punishment, how much more should we listen to God’s word given to us by His Son? His word—salvation for all who repent and believe the gospel—was first spoken by Christ Himself, then confirmed by His apostles whom He had sent into the world to preach the gospel and commit it to writing. Because it offers so great a salvation, “We must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away.”

Many imagine that Christians cannot drift away and depart  from the faith, “the things we have heard.” But the author of Hebrews warns us here—and several other places—that this is a real danger. In these verses He warns against drifting away because “now we do not yet see all things put under [Christ]” (8). There is nothing that is outside of Christ’s power and authority. But it does not appear to us that this is the case. If anything, if appears to our eyes that all things are in subjection to the devil and wicked men. For now, we do not see Christ subjecting all things to Himself, but we believe this to be true because Scripture tells us (Matt. 28:19; Eph. 1:22-23).

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.” Christ’s rule is hidden under cross, suffering, and affliction. We keep our eyes on Christ’s suffering for our sins and resurrection to justify believers, trusting that all things are in subjection to Him. Because they are subject to Him, “we know that all things work together for good to those who love God” (Rom 8:28). Clinging to this, we will not drift away no matter what it looks like to the eyes of flesh. Let us pray: Keep our eyes upon Your Son, O God, and our ears fastened to His word, so that we may not depart from what we have heard, but joyfully live under Christ’s reign. Amen.

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Hebrews 1:1-14 NKJV

Throughout the Old Testament, God spoke to His people in various ways by the prophets. He told Abraham to leave his country and father’s house to go to the land He would show him. He spoke to the patriarchs in dreams, promising His presence with them in their adversity. He saved Noah and his family from the world’s destruction through the ark. He saved Isarel from Egypt with ten plagues and by parting the Red Sea. At times, angels appeared to them to give them a word from God.

But God “has in these last days spoken to us by His Son” (2). God’s Son—our Lord Jesus Christ—is God’s complete revelation of His word and will. The patriarchs and prophets were servants. God’s Son is the appointed heir of all things. The patriarchs and prophets saw glimpses of God’s glory. God’s Son is “the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person” (3). He is the brightness of God the Father’s glory, as rays of light are to the brightness of the sun in the sky. He is the image of the Father’s person, a distinct person from the Father, but of the same essence, knowledge, and will of the Father, so that He can say, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (Jn 14:9). The Son, who upholds all things by His divine power, is God’s final revelation to us. That final revelation is the purging of our sins by atoning for them by His suffering and death on cross, His resurrection and His reign at the Father’s right hand so that He might justify believers.

No longer will God speak “at various times and in various ways” (1). God no longer speaks to us by prophets, visions, dreams, and the like. In these last days of the world, He has spoken to us by His Son. His message is: “Repent of your sins; trust in the gospel—the promise of forgiveness for Jesus’ sake, live holy lives according to the gospel, and watch for Christ’s return.” That is the only message God has for us in these last days, and the only message Christians should care to hear, for God has shown its truth by giving it to us, not through a prophet or angel, but through His only begotten Son.

Let us pray: Keep our hearts attentive to the words of Your Son, O God, that we may hear Him and no other. Amen.

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Philemon 17-25 NKJV

¹⁷ If then you count me as a partner, receive him as you would me. ¹⁸ But if he has wronged you or owes anything, put that on my account. ¹⁹ I, Paul, am writing with my own hand. I will repay—not to mention to you that you owe me even your own self besides. ²⁰ Yes, brother, let me have joy from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in the Lord.

²¹ Having confidence in your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. ²² But, meanwhile, also prepare a guest room for me, for I trust that through your prayers I shall be granted to you.

²³ Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you, ²⁴ as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow laborers.

²⁵ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

Paul has interceded for Onesimus, asking Philemon to receive his slave back—not as a runaway slave worthy of punishment or an unbeliever—but as a brother in Christ whom Paul counts as a son. Paul has also hinted that he would like Onesimus sent back to him since he had proven himself useful for Paul’s ministry. In order to right every wrong of Onesimus, Paul offers, “If he has wronged you or owes anything, put that on my account” (18). Paul wants Onesimus and Philemon to be fully reconciled with each other. In this, Paul follows the example of Christ, who made full satisfaction for the sins of the world by His suffering and death on the cross. All who are in Christ by faith enjoy the forgiveness of their sins and perfect righteousness Christ earned for them.

But Paul presses his apostolic advantage just a bit when he continues, “Not to mention to you that you owe me even your own self besides” (19). Philemon owes Paul himself since it was Paul’s ministry that brought the gospel to Philemon. As “the hearts of the saints have been refreshed” by Philemon (7), he would refresh Pauls’ heart by giving him a free Onesimus to aid him in ministry. Paul is confident that the gospel will motivate Philemon to do not only what he has asked, but even more.

Paul’s intercession for Onesimus’ freedom—freedom which will be used for the sake of the gospel—is a beautiful picture of Christ’s work on our behalf. He put our wrongs on His account.  He has purchased and won us from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil, not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death. Why? So that we may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness. Like Onesimus, we are freed from our former master for the sake of being useful in God’s kingdom by loving our neighbor and offering God the sacrifice of praise.

Let us pray: We give You thanks, Lord Jesus, for paying our debt and freeing us from sin, death, and the power of the devil. Grant us the Holy Spirit that we may live, not for ourselves, but for Your glory and the good of our neighbor. Amen.

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Philemon 8-16 NKJV

⁸ Therefore, though I might be very bold in Christ to command you what is fitting, ⁹ yet for love’s sake I rather appeal to you—being such a one as Paul, the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ— ¹⁰ I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten while in my chains, ¹¹ who once was unprofitable to you, but now is profitable to you and to me.

¹² I am sending him back. You therefore receive him, that is, my own heart, ¹³ whom I wished to keep with me, that on your behalf he might minister to me in my chains for the gospel. ¹⁴ But without your consent I wanted to do nothing, that your good deed might not be by compulsion, as it were, but voluntary.

¹⁵ For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him 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 began his letter to Philemon with high praise of Christ working in him. Now the apostle presents Philemon with an opportunity for another good work which will refresh the saints. Paul could have invoked his apostolic authority and commanded Philemon to do this work, but he refrains for love’s sake (9). Paul does not want Philemon to do the work out of compulsion or coercion, but out of love. Paul appeals to Philemon’s love for the saints so that he might joyfully grant Paul’s request.

What is the good work to which the apostle encourages Philemon? He appeals to Philemon to receive his slave, Onesimus, as a brother in Christ. Onesimus—whose name means “useful”—had run away from his master—proving himself useless. He met Paul in Rome, heard the gospel from him, and believed. Paul becomes Onesimus’ spiritual father, having begotten him through the gospel (1 Cor. 4:15). Onesimus now lives up to his name by being useful to Paul, ministering to him during his imprisonment. While Paul would prefer to keep Onesimus with him—so that he might minister to Paul on Philemon’s behalf (13)—he sends the slave back to his master, demonstrating the amendment of life that faith in the gospel brings about. Although Philemon has a legal right to punish Onesimus, Paul asks that he waive his legal right for the sake of love and receive his slave as a beloved brother in Christ.

Paul invites Philemon to follow the pattern set down by the Lord Jesus, who, waived His rights as the eternal Son of God and died the death reserved for slaves so that He might set all who believe free from the slavery and punishments of sin. By accepting Onesimus back, perhaps a slave, but certainly as a brother in Christ, he would demonstrate God’s great love to him in his—and now Onesimus’—Lord.

Paul sets down this rule for us, as well, that nothing should be down out of compulsion, but out of love for Christ and our neighbor. This love is not born of our own willpower, but out of faith in Christ, who loved us and gave Himself for us.

Let us pray: Increase our faith in You, O Jesus, that we may grow in selfless love for our neighbor. Amen.

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