button-pause
triangle-right
Philemon
New Testament Overviews
6:40
When Paul asks Philemon to forgive his runaway slave Onesimus, this is the Gospel in action. All people are equal partners in the new humanity.
Paul helps his friend Philemon reconcile with his escaped former slave Onesimus.

Paul urges Philemon to forgive Onesimus and accept him back as an equal. Because they are both followers of Jesus, God's grace has made them partners under the new humanity that Jesus has established.

While Paul doesn't mention Jesus' death and resurrection directly in this letter, he offers to take on any punishment Onesimus deserves, a demonstration of what Jesus did on the cross. He encourages Philemon to do the same as he reconciles to Onesimus before God.

Living Out the Gospel's Message

One of Paul's shortest and the most explosive letters, the book of Philemon demonstrates the Gospel through action. It's written to Philemon whose slave Onesimus ran away and became a believer under Paul's teaching.

To download videos:
Login  or  Join

Dive Deeper and Explore More

Featured
For advanced bible reading tools:
Login  or  Join
Which language would you like?