Christ was no thief, but He allowed Himself to be crucified with and for thieves. Why did He allow this? Love compelled Him to bear the sins of many.
Christians will, at times, desire to hide from the ones to whom they have been called to minister. Even Christ had times when He desired seclusion.
An assault upon the conscience of man is indicative of the “latter times.” As men depart from the faith and give heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils, their consciences become so weak that they show very little sign of life. The Bible describes it as a searing of their consciences with a hot iron. Initially, there is great pain in the sin and the conscience feels the pain. Yet, eventually, the conscience becomes so seared that it is numb. At that point, the conscience loses its ability to warn the believer of sin. It further loses the ability to get the believer’s attention when he is on the verge of danger. Eventually, men speak lies in hypocrisy and do not care or feel any remorse for their wickedness.
No doubt Paul spoke to the Lord about Hymenaeus and Alexander and their wickedness (1 Timothy 1:20; 2 Timothy 4:14), but he most likely expended his strength thanking God for believers like those in Rome (Romans 1:8). All believers should thank God for those whose reputations have been carefully maintained. Throughout the world, people spoke of the faith of those in Rome. The Bible tells us that news of their obedience spread abroad unto all men (Romans 16:19). Although Paul would commend them for their godly reputations, he knew who ultimately deserved the thanks. In like manner, believers today should put forth more strength thanking God for good reputations.
The Bible has many examples of reputations that were changed. For instance, Moses grew up in Egypt, specifically in the house of Pharaoh. One day, when he was a grown man, he witnessed an Egyptian smiting a Jew. Moses killed the Egyptian in order to protect his kinsman. Bad news travels fast and Moses immediately developed a reputation as a short-tempered killer. He learned of this when he attempted to intervene during a dispute between two Hebrews. After the Pharaoh found out Moses’ identity, Moses ran for his life and spent the next forty years in hiding. Eventually, the Lord spoke to Moses and called him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into a land of promise. Moses failed to lead the people into Canaan, but he succeeded in changing his tarnished reputation into something that God commended (Numbers 12:3).
God has called the saved to be His ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20), and as such, Christians are to take God’s truth to a lost and dying world. This message must be communicated. Due mostly to man’s ever increasing dependence upon technology, Christians have lost their effectiveness in communicating with others. This may seem insignificant, until one considers how it has weakened our ability to communicate our faith. Fewer people today will knock on a door and tell a stranger that he must be born again. Even fewer will stand upon a street corner and communicate the words of God to those who pass by. The saved must once again become willing to go forth and tell family and stranger alike that Jesus saves.
The Bible depicts the hypocrite as someone who may work hard. Yet, their efforts are directed toward the wrong things. The Lord Jesus pointed out that the hypocrites would “compass sea and land to make one proselyte.” This conveys hard work. Think about the difference that Christians could make by labouring that hard to win “one” soul to the Lord! The hypocrite promotes unholy things contrary to the will of God. Believers need to take the right lesson away from studying the hypocrite. Each of us should be working hard to lead others to Christ and then to teach sound Bible doctrine. Yet, we should spend a lot less time finding fault in others. If we did, churches would be full of converts growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Many carnal believers quoting 1 Timothy 5:23 have attempted to justify their unscriptural use of alcohol. Yet, a careful look at the scriptures proves that they wrest (or twist) the scripture to their own destruction (2 Peter 3:16). From the passage, we understand that Timothy was plagued by some chronic health problems. Paul specifically mentioned stomach problems, but there were other infirmities that beset him as well. Drinking water was not curing Timothy’s ailments, so Paul, perhaps with doctor Luke’s guidance and recommendation, suggested “a little wine” for Timothy’s often infirmities. What purpose did the wine serve? It was strictly medicinal and not social or pleasurable. In other words, Paul said that Timothy needed some medicine to facilitate his recovery. Paul was not offering Timothy or us an excuse to drink but a prescription of medicine for recovery from debilitating ailments.
We communicate those things which we think are important. If we find something that we genuinely enjoy, we want others to know about it so that they too can enjoy it. Is there anything more important or better than knowing Jesus Christ? Apparently, Philemon communicated his faith to others around him, partly through his actions, but likely through his willingness to speak of his love for the Lord and faith in the Lord. As believers, the Lord has given us a tremendous opportunity to speak to others about our wonderful salvation and the many benefits experienced daily. Paul said of the believers at Rome that their faith was spoken of throughout the whole world (Romans 1:8). It is our duty and privilege to communicate what the Lord has done for us with others.
The epistle of Paul to Philemon was written to address the return of Philemon’s unfaithful servant Onesimus to his master. Paul and Onesiumus spent time together in prison. While in bonds together, Paul was able to lead Onesimus to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. After Onesimus got saved and learned the truth, he became a profitable servant of the Lord and a tremendous help to Paul’s ministry. Paul thought it wise to send him back to his master Philemon with a personal letter. Paul asked Philemon to receive him back, not merely as a servant, but as a brother in Christ (Philemon 15-16). Paul requested that anything owed by Onesimus to Philemon should be charged to Paul’s account. This was a difficult request, yet Paul knew he could count on Philemon to do right. In fact, Paul trusted Philemon to go well beyond his requests in the letter.
