September 7, 2025 - Philemon - Proper 18

Richard Davenport

The book of Philemon is one that stands out from the rest in a number of ways. It’s one of the shortest books of the Bible, rivaled only by a couple of the minor prophets in the Old Testament and St. John’s 3rd letter. St. Paul is obviously more than capable of writing longer letters. Romans, Ephesians, and many of his others go on for several chapters. Most of St. Paul’s letters are written to churches. If he’s going to write a letter at all, he wants to pack in as much substance as he can. Even if he sends a letter with a friend who is going that direction, it could be months before it arrives and double that or more for any kind of news to return to him. That means he has to get everything into his letter that might be relevant, every detail that needs addressing. If there’s a debate, better weigh in. If there’s someone to be commended, he’ll do that too. If there’s some point of theology that isn’t clear, he’ll spend some time unpacking it so that they can chew on it. If there are instructions to be given or things that need doing, we’ll list all of that before he’s done.

For the most part, there’s never been much debate about the authenticity of this letter. It looks and sounds like Paul. The concern people have is that Paul isn’t addressing a church here. This isn’t even like one of his personal letters, such as the ones he writes to Timothy or Titus. Even there he gets into a fair bit of theology and deals with some pretty weighty matters, like the qualifications for pastoral ministry. As a personal letter, and a short one at that, it doesn’t seem like it rises to the level of Paul’s other letters. It just feels a little inconsequential to be included in the list of works that constitute the basis for our understanding of God, the world, sin, salvation, and all of those other important things we’re here to learn about.

Inconsequential things, life is full of them. Most of the time they’re nothing but a bother, a hassle, something that gets in the way of you doing bigger and more important things. They’re always those things that kill your groove. You’re in the zone. You’re getting things done. Everything is moving along, but then something gets in the way that derails you. It pulls your attention away. It probably isn’t something really important. Maybe you deal with it. Maybe you leave it for later. Maybe you don’t bother with it at all.

If you’re cleaning your house, do you bother with that little shelf back in the storage room that holds all of the odds and ends you never get around to finding a home for? When you eat your lunch, do you make sure to finish off every tiny little crumb on your plate? There are so many different things that just don’t make that much difference. They aren’t going to change how your day goes. They aren’t going to affect you one way or the other. You don’t really need them. You probably don’t even notice them. Even the time it would take to deal with them is probably better spent on any number of things that are more important and will have a greater impact on your day.

For thousands of years, there have been men and women who have taken a deep interest in the things of this world. Scientists and philosophers ponder the nature of the world and how it works. Astronomers look up into the sky to see millions upon millions of stars. Even here on earth, you have explorers diving deep into the ocean and seeing things that have been here since the beginning of history and yet we’re only now finding them, unmapped expanses that no one has ever looked upon before.

Lovers of art and music hear great compositions or see great works and find they can reflect on them without ceasing. They can convey emotions in ways that others cannot. They lift others out of the dust. They rally people together. They unite. They bring peace. They express depths of understanding that others search for.

Those who contemplate these things often find themselves considering their own insignificance. In the shadow of such mighty works, of such brilliance, of such glory, of such incomparable beauty, what is a single person? What is one person when weighed against the majesty of the stars in the sky, of the depths of the ocean, when balanced against the beauty of music or the wonder of art?

Our individual lives are as nothing compared to all of that. Even as the whole of humanity, we have lived on this planet for thousands of years and yet the further point our feet have touched is our own moon. Why should any of us think we matter? Why should we assume anyone should pay attention to any of us at all? God is the maker of all that is, not just here on this one little planet, but everywhere. We are less than microscopic compared to him. Even King David shares this sentiment in Psalm 8 “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” God goes into extensive detail questioning Job and the end of his story, “Have you commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place, that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth, and the wicked be shaken out of it? It is changed like clay under the seal, and its features stand out like a garment. From the wicked their light is withheld, and their uplifted arm is broken. Have you entered into the springs of the sea, or walked in the recesses of the deep? Have the gates of death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gates of deep darkness? Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth? Declare, if you know all this.” That’s just the beginning. God goes for a couple of chapters like this to illustrate his point. Compared to him, we are as nothing.

Why should such a mighty and powerful God care about your little problems? One little person in one little house on one little planet in a vast universe that stretches in all directions beyond our ability to comprehend. Your problems may seem insurmountable to you, but to him they are less than dust. They don’t inconvenience him in the slightest. What hope do you have of convincing him to help you, to involve himself in your life, of even noticing you at all?

When confronted with the grandeur and majesty of God, when we take him seriously as the one who creates the universe with nothing but words, we get a sense of where we stand. You see what little right you have to even be in his presence, much less address him. Not only are you microscopic compared to him, but you actively rebel against him. Why should he do anything with you except perhaps swat you away like a fly?

As I said, St. Paul’s letter usually address the church at large in some way. Even his letters to Timothy and Titus are oriented toward helping the church to grow in faith and to aid in spreading the Gospel. Much of our understanding of the nature and work of Christ comes from these letters. A lot of how the church operates regarding the sacraments, the ministry, and the more mundane areas of church life are from these letters.

Philemon doesn’t do any of that. Instead, Philemon is aimed at the wellbeing of one particular person. It sounds like he might be a runaway slave who has, perhaps. done other malicious things as well. In the eyes of Roman law, this is who he is. St. Paul sees him as a newborn Christian. He maybe immature and learning, but he is faithful. St. Paul is concerned about and important issues, widespread problems in the church and the pressing need to share the Gospel with the vast multitude of Gentile humanity that has never even been exposed to God in any way. Yet, he takes the time to deal with the situation of one poor slave who might be facing some rather severe punishment if he were to be found out.

All of the things we say about God here are true. God is far beyond anything we can comprehend. The entire universe cannot contain his power and majesty. So why would he bother taking care of your problems? Because he chooses to. Because he promises to. Satan would love to convince you that you are entirely on your own. You’ve caused all sorts of problems in God’s creation and now he scowls down at you from on high. Like a fly on a birthday cake, you’re ruining things and God will deal with you. Don’t bother coming to him for anything like mercy. Like a fly, you’re just a troublemaker and all you can hope to do by pestering him is attract his attention and his judgment that much quicker.

Satan tries to get you to think that way, but God says otherwise. He wants to hear from you. He wants to know everything that’s going on, good or bad, big or small. He wants to help you. You may be tiny and insignificant next to him, but he stoops down to help you anyway. It is his delight to do so. The almighty Creator of the universe even joins us in creation, becoming at the same time the almighty Creator and a tiny, insignificant human. He comes down to us, where we are, where our problems are. The problems of sin and death are insurmountable to us, but not to him and so he comes down here to deal with them personally.

Rising from the dead is far beyond any ability we have, but God makes it happen for us. He forgives the sins of the whole church, the whole world, but also of you personally. You are not just one ant in the anthill. You are a unique and specially made creation, made with love by God. He never loses track of you and you are never out of his sight. You need never fear to come to him with your problems, your concerns, your joys, your sorrows. He is happy to listen and happy to help.

What St. Paul does for Onesimus is just a continuation of what God did for him. He was just a man on the road and God came to him specifically and called him to be an apostle. The church, God’s people, carry on the same work. We look for the big needs, the places where we can share God’s love with many. But we also look for the small needs, and the places we can share God’s love with just one.

God died and rose again for you. He forgives you and watches over you. You may be tiny compared to the universe, and even smaller compared to God, but he loves you all the same.