Last week we looked at an extreme, but typical, example of the DEPRAVITY of man. I tried to use Judas Iscariot to show the depths and length to which sin has corrupted the children of Adam. That man, who facilitated the crucifixion of Christ, was a Satanically-directed sinner of the worst kind. And as one of the most hated people in the Bible, most people wouldn’t mind describing him as “depraved.” But my message was that – although he was an extreme example, he was no more evil than each of us. The Bible teaches the “total depravity” and spiritual deadness of every human being. The Bible declares the “total depravity” of the “totality of humanity.”
Judas, an extreme example of us all, was a sinner, but he was NOT as sinful as humanly POSSIBLE. That is not what “total depravity” means. Judas could have been worse, committing many additional sins. But they never crossed his wicked heart. And if they had, he probably would have been repulsed by the very thought of them. Despite his depraved condition, Judas was not completely DEVOID of any GOODNESS. He had a form of godliness, and he served the Lord with the rest of the Christ’s first disciples. Outspoken Peter and insightful John never thought there could be such evil in Judas. It was well hidden. And despite his depravity, he still had a CONSCIENCE which eventually broke his heart and sent him toward a suicidal death.
Last week we looked at an extreme, but typical, example of human sinfulness. But to following up that message – this morning I’d like you to consider an ordinary and typical example of reconciliation. Judas’ first and highest need was to be brought back to a full and gracious fellowship with Jehovah. The breach which he created by his betrayal needed to be repaired. He needed to be reconciled to God through reconciliation to the Saviour – the very one he betrayed. But Judas was NOT reunited to Christ, and accordingly, he is in hell at this very moment. And unless YOU are reconciled to Christ, YOU will spend eternity in the Lake of Fire, along with the very worst examples of human depravity – Hitler, Ted Bundy, Nero and Judas Iscariot.
In another Bible character, we have an example and illustration of the reconciliation and restoration sinners need. This little book of Philemon is unique in the midst of the sixty-six books of the Bible. It is not only a letter from Paul to an individual, of which there are a few, this is ENTIRELY personal. There is no theology here; there is no prophesy; there is no explanation of Old Testament history. But like the personal life of any Christian, Bible truth is there – if not exposed, it is laying just under the skin. This one-page book was a letter written in the context of that day and time, and yet its message is eternal. It is instructional, while at the same time heartwarming. It was given by the inspiration of God and is therefore “profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, (and) for instruction in righteousness.”
Before getting into today’s application, let me summarize what we have here. Philemon was member of the church in Colosse, in Asia Minor – today we call it it “Turkey.” Every one of the people named in this letter are also mentioned in Paul’s letter to the Colossians. Philemon was a personal friend of the Apostle. And he was one of those rare individuals who was wealthy on earth while still a humble servant of God. He apparently was brought to Christ through Paul’s ministry, but we don’t know the circumstances. Paul may have also lead Philemon’s wife, Apphia, and their son Archippus, o the Lord. Furthermore it appears that Archippus may have been the pastor of the church which was meeting in their large, accommodating house. In his letter to the church, Paul encouraged Archippus to “take heed to the ministry which (he had) received in the Lord.”
At some point, one of Philemon’s servants, Onesimus, had stolen something from his master and used it to finance his escape and eventual flight to the big city of Rome. This might have been before Philemon’s conversion, when he was a despicable tyrant. But for the sake of argument, let’s say that Onesimus fled from the presence of a child of God. But that prodigal son of the family could not escape “the hound of heaven” – the Holy Spirit. Somehow, he came before Paul, a prisoner in Rome, who was privileged to lead him to the Saviour. This letter is a request of Paul to Philemon to accept Onesimus back into the warm love of the family fold. It was carried to Colosse by the hand of Onesimus, along with Paul’s other letter to the church.
Let’s begin by comparing TYPICAL JUDAS ISCARIOT with TYPICAL ONESIMUS.
Onesimus was a great-grandson of Adam, the first of all human sinners. As such, both he and Judas carried the same depraved heart. For a time, he was a part of a Christian family in a way that paralleled Judas among the disciples of Christ. It might be argued that he was only “a servant” in the family. But remember that even though Judas may have been a disciple, he was not a child of God. He was not a true friend of Jesus, and yet he still did the Lord’s bidding. Judas was a servant as well. Perhaps Onesimus had the opportunity to serve God the way Judas did by preparing for the worship and preaching services of the apostle and the church. Philemon’s house was used for this purpose as we see in verse 2. Onesimus had the opportunity to be friends with and co-workers with several believers in Christ.
Judas, of course, heard the Word from the greatest evangelist the world has ever known. Similarly, I believe it is very likely Onesimus had heard the gospel from Paul, or at least from Philemon and Archippus. Yet, like Judas, and like so many young people, Onesimus rejected it, and in the process he fell deeper and deeper into the sins of his depraved heart.
Brother Fulton and I were talking about this on Thursday: The vast majority of people who trust Christ are saved before they turn twenty years of age. The longer anyone puts off repentance and faith, the more solidified their depravity becomes within them. We praise God for saving people in their 50s, 60s and 70s, but they are few and far between. As wise Solomon said in Eccl. 12:1 – “Remember now thy Creator (and Saviour) in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them.” And as Paul said elsewhere, “Behold, NOW is the accepted time; behold, NOW is the day of salvation.”
Despite his opportunities, Onesimus sinned against his master by stealing some of his property. Like Judas’ and his kiss, he may have said, “Good night,” to Philemon before slipping some of his master’s property into a bag and running off into the darkness. Both Judas and Onesimus betrayed the confidence and love of the most important men in their lives.
And again, I point out that both men are quite typical of billions of others – perhaps even YOU. For years and even decades you have been feasting on God’s general grace, but you have done so as a rebel against His authority. In the case of Judas and Onesimus, the end of their lives were quite different – Judas is in hell, while Onesimus is now in glory. But before we get to that…
Consider Paul the EVANGELIST/SAVIOUR.
Paul reminds Philemon in this epistle that he owed to Paul “even thine own self.” It can’t be proved that Paul was the first to bring the gospel to Colosse, but he certainly ministered in area. And I have no doubt that he was involved in the evangelism and salvation of Philemon and his family. As a result, I think Onesimus most likely heard the wonderful truth about the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus for sin from the lips of Paul and others. However, while Philemon, Apphia and Archippus were born again much earlier, their servant was not.
What is the explanation for Onesimus delay or rejection? Maybe he pointed to his youth, saying to himself that he had a life to live before he ruined it with Christianity. Maybe he already had plans to break the law, steal from his employer and flee the country. He didn’t need the righteousness of Christ and the godly living of Christian upsetting his intentions. Perhaps part of his rejection of the gospel was the natural resentment that he had against people better off than he was. “If Philemon is going to believe this stuff about the Jewish Messiah, I am not going to consider it, because I hate that man.” Whatever arguments he had against the eternal and glorious blessings of Christ, they were all foolish.
What is keeping you from turning to God from your idols to serve the living and true God? Please, please, please – don’t let anyone or any thing stand between you and Christ the Saviour. Don’t let the light of a righteous man, or the shadow of a hypocrite come between you and salvation. Because remember, when you stand before God’s judgment throne, it is going to be no one but you and the Judge.
Eventually Paul was sent to Rome, as a prisoner, to stand trial before Caesar. Paul was there because it was God’s will. He says of himself that he was “a prisoner of Jesus Christ.” And then – through divine providence – and yet in his mind, under his own free will – Onesimus tried to hide himself from justice, from Philemon and perhaps from God Himself in the largest city in the western world. What a fascinating story it would be if we had the details of God’s hidden hand in these people’s lives. Somehow, Onesimus was eventually brought to his knees before the Lord, where his heart had been sufficiently prepared to receive the gospel. What had he suffered in that preparation? Did he have to endure great pain before he was ready? Were there friends and loved one lost to disease and death before he really considered eternity? What a testimony that young man might have later shared about the way the Lord brought him to the cross.
Somehow the Lord pummeled the escaped servant and brought him to his knees and his senses. The Lord showed to him that sin must be punished, and there was no escape. And Onesimus “accidently” or perhaps deliberately met the Apostle he knew from the old days in Asia. Paul, once again, had the opportunity to share with that sinner the details of the gospel of God’s grace. And the Lord gave the young man the blessings of faith and repentance. In whatever the manner was, Paul could tell his old friend Philemon, “I beseech thee for MY SON Onesimus, whom I have begotten (while) in my bonds,” as a prisoner of Jesus Christ. Without a doubt Paul was God’s soul-winning evangelist in regard to Onesimus’ salvation.
Now with the Lord’s permission, I’d like to use Paul to illustrate Someone even higher than an evangelist. Paul is a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ himself. The apostle pleads with Philemon to receive his unprofitable prodigal in the same way that the Lord Jesus might plead with God the Father to receive us. “I beseech thee for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten (while) in my bonds, Which in time past was to thee unprofitable… Whom I have sent again: thou therefore receive him, that is, my own bowels.” “Perhaps he… departed for a season, that thou should receive him for ever…” “If thou count me therefore a partner, receive him as myself.”
I know that I’m putting words into Jesus’ mouth, and I’m using logic which is not really necessary within the God-head. But IF it WAS necessary, Christ could display the wounds in his hands and side, saying “Father, I gave my life to save the depraved soul of Onesimus. Therefore I ask you to receive him – as I have done.” Christ could say to God the Father, or to Satan, or to Onesimus himself: “I gave my life on Calvary in order to give eternal life to this sinner.” To the Father Christ could say, “I shed my blood on your altar as the perfect Lamb, and then I took that blood and sprinkled it on your Mercy Seat in the name of Onesimus, and David Oldfield, and a million other specific souls.” “Perhaps he departed for a season – or even most of his life – but it was that thou should receive him forever. Father, if you count me as a partner in this work of salvation, receive him as myself – in my place.”
Paul did not do it here in this letter to Philemon, but he could have referred to his earlier epistle to the Romans. The Apostle wrote in Romans 5 – “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” Having been justified, or declared righteous in His sight, we who are sinners beyond all measure, now have peace with God through the death of Christ. With the wrath and justice of God having been satisfied on the cross, we have been reconciled to God. “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were RECONCILED to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.” This had been Philemon’s experience earlier, and now Onesimus had received the same blessing.
In the other letter that Onesimus was carrying back to Philemon and the Colossian church, Paul said – It “pleased the Father that in (Christ) should all fulness dwell; And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to RECONCILE all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight.”
Through grace, Philemon, the Master of the family, had been reconciled to God. And now the wayward servant had been reconciled as well. The prodigal son was returning humbly, with his hat in his hand. He wasn’t being forced to return except by the push of the Holy Spirit. And he had no guarantee that he wouldn’t be severely punished, if not executed, but that was something he was willing to bear, because he possessed a new heart. “If any man be in Christ he is a new Creature; old things are passed away behold, all things are become new.” Onesimus, knew what he was doing, but the question was, could he and his master be reconciled?
GRACE is the GREATEST NEED of the totally depraved sinner.
We might say it was obvious that JUDAS Iscariot deserved to die for his sins against God and Christ Jesus. And he DID die – at his own hand – and now he is in hell awaiting his part in the second death. Onesimus, as a run-away servant and a thief, could have been executed by the officials in Rome. And Philemon had the right to put him to death without due process under Roman law. But Paul was pleading with his older friend to show some mercy and grace toward his younger friend.
Did Philemon do as Paul was urging? Did Philemon show mercy toward his sinful servant? I have every confidence that Philemon behaved exactly as any saved sinner should behave. There should be no question that Christians will be merciful, because every true Christian has himself received infinite mercy. There should be reconciliation between saved sinners, because there is reconciliation between the saved sinner and God. And besides, who was more offended – Philemon at the sins of Onesimus or the thrice holy God toward Philemon?
As I said earlier in this message: reconciliation is the need of us all. Isaiah 59:2 – “Your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you…” And Paul reminds us, “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” That means there is a great gulf fixed between every one of us and the holy God we have offended. “And the wages of sin is death” – eternal death.
If we are not reconciled to the Lord today – at least – in this life – there is no hope for us. There is no purgatory designed to purge away our offenses. There is no safety net or escape clause in the sinner’s contract with his depraved heart. The only thing the unreconciled soul can expect is death and hell. If we don’t seek reconciliation with the Lord before we die we become just like Judas. It is eternal suicide to die without being restored to God.
Please, don’t put it off. Don’t delay your humble repentance before the Lord. You need the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Won’t you kneel before the cross this morning?