Colossians 4: 7 - 9 and Philemon
Paul closes this letter with his usual commendations and encouragement to certain individuals. I used to skip verses such as these, thinking that they were just a list of names and no longer relevant to me. How wrong I was! There are riches to mine in verses "such as these".
Consider Tychicus. We don't know much about this man. We have snapshots of him - similar to photos with a name but very little detail - certainly not a life story. You can find his name in Acts 20: 4 - 5; Ephesians 6: 21 - 22; 2 Timothy 4:12; and Titus 3:12 as well as our current Colossians passage. What we learn is that Tychicus was trusted by Paul and worked closely with him. So what is relevant to me? To you? Notice the descriptors that Paul used for Tychicus: dear brother, faithful minister, fellow servant. I have a friend in Houston who commented in a class about "deciding to live her life so that she could be described in ways she wanted to be described at her funeral. " How do you want to be described? Are you living in such a way that your "loved ones" will be able to say such things honestly? These three brief descriptors of Tychicus are beautiful!
dear - something or someone precious
brother - close, blood related
faithful - one that can be trusted
minister - one who works to meet the needs of others
fellow - connected to
servant - one who has responded to the call of God
Let's choose to live today so that these words can be descriptors of us ...
We get to have a bit more of the life story of Onesimus. I find myself with more questions than answers about this man! Why did he run away from his master? Philemon was a believer so I do not think it was an issue of mistreatment. Or was it? Had he heard the Apostle before ... is that why he ran to him for asylum? Why did he not turn to the robber bands which most runaway slaves managed to join? We just don't know. However, what we do know about this man is: 1) he went to Paul; 2) he became a believer in Christ; 3) he had the courage to return to his master, Philemon; 4) he became a vital help to Paul and the church; 5) Paul describes him as faithful and dear, as a brother (not a slave). So what do I take from this? One thing I gain is the knowledge that a person's past does not have to define their future. Do you need to hear that? Are you stuck with knowledge from your past that you assume defines you? Listen to Paul's words from Galatians 5:1 "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." If you carry something from your past that keeps you enslaved ... claim the courage of Onesimus and make whatever amends possible ... and let Christ set you free!
And Philemon? Did he forgive? Did he give freedom to Onesimus? Those are questions for another day!
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