Philemon
Reconcile and Restore the Saints
Philemon 8-25

POINTS AND QUOTES FROM THE SERMON

• The focus of Philemon is on how the gospel impacts damaged, even broken, relationships between Christians.

• Forgiveness is possible through grace-enabled relationships, in which the saints are refreshed, reconciled, and restored.

Refresh the Saints (1-7)

• 1-3: Be with the Saints

• 4-7: Love the Saints

Reconcile with the Saints (8-16)

• 8-10: Prefer appealing over commanding

• 11-14: Prefer consent over compulsion

• 15-16: Presume God is working on eternal and relational levels

Restore the Saints (17-25)

• 17: Partnership is to be your new relational reality

• 18-20: Payment in addition to repentance is not required

• 21-25: Prayerfully prepare your heart for ministry

QUOTES FROM THE SERMON (EXTENDED)

Readers of the letter since at least Chrysostom in the fourth century AD have been struck by the parallel with Joseph’s gracious handling of his brothers in Egypt: ‘you intended to harm me, but God intended it for good’ (Gen. 50:20). Joseph, like Paul, held a steady belief in God’s providential overruling of human sin and folly. Patience and forgiveness grow well in soil like that.1

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1 N. T. Wright, Colossians and Philemon: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 12, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1986), 191.

HOME GROUP QUESTIONS

1. Read Philemon 1-25.

a. Have you given much thought to Philemon this week? If so, in what ways?

b. Have you had the opportunity this week to “refresh the saints,” choosing a ministry mindset over a “me” mindset? If so, in what ways?

2. Read verses 8-10.

a. Share a time when you would have most identified with Onesimus (needing to seek forgiveness).

b. Share a time when you would have most identified with Philemon (needing to extend forgiveness).

c. Share a time when you would have most identified with Paul (needing to mediate forgiveness).

3. Read verses 11-14.

a. Have you ever tried to force forgiveness or been forced to try to forgive? How did that process work out?

b. Is there a relationship in your life where someone who once was “useless” has become “useful” after coming to faith in Christ?

4. Read verses 15-16.

a. Considering all of Scripture, how might we be comforted when the word “perhaps” best describes our understanding of a complex relational situation of which we are a part?

b. How have you experienced God working on a deeper level, eternally and/or relationally, than you were aware?

5. Read verse 17.

a. Onesimus was a slave, but Paul tells Philemon to treat him as a beloved brother. How have you experienced a relationship where an eternal partnership in the gospel took priority over temporal relational structures in which you must operate?

b. Operating like this can be difficult. How have you worked it out? Share successes and failures.

6. Read verses 18-20.

a. Share a time someone has forgiven you without requiring payment (figuratively or literally).

b. In what way does Paul model for us in these verses the gospel of Christ he preaches?

7. Read verses 21-25.

a. Do you have a “John Mark” story (Acts 13:13)? If so, share.

b. Do you have a “Demas” story (2 Tim. 4:10)? If so, share.

c. End your time praying for the Lord to prepare your heart for ministry so that you are ready and eager to refresh the saints, reconcile with the saints, and restore the saints.