Onesimus the Servant
No Longer a Slave
Philemon 1:1-21about 2 minutes to read aloud
Onesimus was a servant in the house of a kind man named Philemon. Onesimus ran away, all the way to Rome. He had done wrong, and he was afraid to go back.
In Rome, he met the apostle Paul, who was in prison. Paul told him about Jesus. Onesimus believed. His heart was changed.
The name Onesimus means "useful" — and that is what he became, to Paul and to the Lord.
Paul wrote a letter. He wrote it to Philemon, the master Onesimus had run from. "I am sending him back to you. He left you for a little while, but now he is a brother. Welcome him as you would welcome me."
"Charge to me anything he has taken or owes. I, Paul, write this with my own hand. I will pay it back."
Paul paid for Onesimus. And the Lord paid for us. No one who is in Christ is a slave anymore. In Him, we are brothers and sisters, loved and free.
Questions to talk about
Where did Onesimus go when he ran away?
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Onesimus ran all the way to Rome, where he met the apostle Paul.
What did Paul say he would do about anything Onesimus owed?
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Paul wrote, 'Charge it to me. I, Paul, will pay it back.'
What does the story teach about Jesus?
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Paul paid for Onesimus, and the Lord paid for us. No one in Christ is a slave anymore.
The lesson
In Christ, we are brothers and sisters. He paid our debt and gave us back to one another, made new.
