Onesimus – Philemon

257 – Onesimus – Philemon

Philemon 1:1-25

Onesimus was a slave who ran away from his master Philemon. He went to Rome and eventually met Paul who led him to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Onesimus stayed with the apostle and helped him in the ministry. Eventually they knew it was time for the “runaway slave” to return to his master. Paul was a personal friend with Philemon, so he wrote a letter to help the two men reconcile their relationship. He said…

Philemon—my dear friend—greetings to you, your family, and the church that meets in your home. I pray for you on a regular basis. I thank God for the love you have for the Lord Jesus Christ and for fellow believers. Those who meet you are encouraged in their faith.

Dear brother, you know me. I don’t normally hesitate in telling you what is right and wrong. I’m usually quick in reminding you of your duties in Christ. But I’m not going to do that this time. Instead, I am going to beg.

Picture this in your mind. I’m an old man who is in prison for the cause of Jesus Christ. In my weakness, God sent me a helper, Onesimus—a man who caused you pain and grief. But God sent him to me and I was able to introduce him to Jesus. He yielded his life to Christ and then became invaluable as a helper to me.

In a way, it was like you sent him here to help me because you couldn’t come yourself. I don’t know how I can carry on without him; but he and I both know he should go back to you. He was helping me in your stead, but we didn’t have your permission.

Listen, he was a worthless slave when he ran away from you. Now he’s coming back as a valuable brother in Christ, a co-worker in the ministry and a dear friend of mine. Receive him back in love.

Oh, concerning those things he stole from you —put those on my account. Here, I will pick up the quill and write this in my own handwriting. “I, Paul, will repay it.” I won’t remind you of the fact that you actually owe me your very life.

Please receive him as if you were receiving me. You’ll bring joy to my life when I hear how you’ve accepted Onesimus back into your life and home.

But what am I talking about? I know you’ll do this and even more.

By the way, prepare your guest room for me. I know you’ve been praying that I’d be set free and come back to visit you. I think the Lord is going to answer your prayers.

Greet all my good friends who are there. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

Paul.

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The Good Samaritan

207 – Good Samaritan

Luke 10:25-42

There was a man who was an expert of the law of Moses. He asked Jesus, “How can a person earn the right to go to heaven?”

Jesus said, “Tell me what is written in the law.”

He said, “Love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself.”

“Ah,” said Jesus. “Go and do that, and you’ll live.”

The man realized how impossible that was. “Uh, well, exactly who is my neighbor?”

Jesus said…

“A man was traveling down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Robbers grabbed him and beat him until he was almost dead. They then took his money and clothes, and left him on the side of the road.

“The man desperately needed help, and soon a priest came along. He saw the man, but moved to the other side of the road and hurried on his way. After that, a Levite passed by, but he also avoided the situation and ignored the man.

“A third man traveled down the road, but unfortunately he was a Samaritan, a group of people hated by the Jews. Still, he had pity on the Jewish man. He stopped and treated his wounds. He placed him on his donkey and took him to an inn. There he made him comfortable and treated his wounds again.

“The next day, the Samaritan gave the innkeeper money and told him to take care of the wounded man. He said, ‘If it costs more, I’ll pay you when I come back.’

“So,” said Jesus, “three people saw the man lying on the side of the road. Which one was a neighbor to him?”

The answer was simple, “The one who showed mercy.”

“Yes,” said Jesus, “go and follow his example.”

After this, Jesus went to a village. He had friends that lived there, and they invited him and his disciples into their home for a meal.

While they were talking, one of the sisters named Mary sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to everything he said. Martha, her sister, was busy preparing the meal for their guest. In her frustration, she went to Jesus. “Lord, have you noticed that my sister has left all the work for me to do? Please, tell her to come help me.”

The Lord said, “Oh Martha, Martha. You have too many worries. You have forgotten there is only one thing that is absolutely necessary. Mary has chosen that one thing, and it won’t be taken away from her.”

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Lepers, Judge, & Pride

206 – Lepers, Judge, and Pride

Luke 17:11-19 18:1-14

As Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem, he went through a certain village. Ten men with leprosy walked toward him. They were required to maintain a space between themselves and other people. So they yelled to him from a distance. “Master, have mercy on us.”

Jesus turned to them and yelled back. “Go show yourselves to the priest.”

They looked at one another and decided to do as he said. Along the way, they suddenly realized they were all healed.

One of the ten men was from Samaria. He immediately turned around and ran back to Jesus. He shouted praises to God as he went. He fell down in front of the Lord and thanked him.

Jesus looked around and said, “Weren’t all ten of you healed? Where are the other nine? You’re from Samaria, yet you’re the only one to come back and thank God.”

Then Jesus helped the man get up. “Go, your faith has healed you.”

Later, Jesus was teaching the crowd about the importance of never getting discouraged when they pray. He said, “There was a judge who didn’t fear God, and was totally unconcerned about people.

“In his town, there was a widow who kept going to him saying, ‘I want the court to give me justice against the man who wronged me.’ At first the judge refused to help her. Finally he said, ‘I don’t care what happens to this woman, but I’m going to help her anyway because I’m tired of her bothering me.’ ”

The Lord said, “You should go to God with that same determination. But you have an advantage over that widow. Her judge didn’t care for her, but you have the heavenly Father who loves you and wants to help you.”

Jesus told another story to a crowd when he noticed that some thought they were better than others. He said, “Two men went to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, who was honored by everyone. The other was a tax collector, who everyone hated, thinking he was a traitor to the nation.

“The Pharisee stood in a prominent spot and prayed. ‘God, I’m glad I’m not like other people— like those who are greedy or dishonest—or like those who are unfaithful to their wives. I’m especially glad I’m not like that wretched tax collector over there. Lord, as you know, I fast twice a week and give you a tenth of everything I earn.’

“The tax collector stood off to the side, away from everyone. He didn’t even look up, but kept hitting his chest in shame. He said, ‘God, I know I’m a sinner. Please have pity on me.’

Jesus said, “Both men went home, but only one was justified before God. It was the tax collector, not the Pharisee. God will exalt those who humble themselves, but he will humble those who exalt themselves.”

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Paying Temple Tax

202 – Paying Temple Tax

Matthew 17:24-27 Mark 9:33-41 Luke 9:49-50 17:1-2

Jesus headed back to Capernaum with his disciples. Along the way he said, “They’ll give the Son of Man to people who will kill him. But in three days, he’ll rise from the dead.”

The disciples were confused about what he was talking about. Still, they didn’t ask him about it because they were in the middle of their own discussion. They were arguing about which one of them was the greatest.

When they got to the house in Capernaum, Jesus had all twelve men gather around. He then motioned for a child to come stand next to him. He said, “If you want to be the greatest of everyone, you must become the servant of everyone.”

He then put his arm around the child. “When you welcome a little child like this in my name, you are welcoming me. But it’s much more than that. You’re welcoming God.”

John spoke up. “Lord, we found a man casting out demons in your name. But he wasn’t a part of our group. So we told him to stop.”

“No, no! Don’t stop him. A man isn’t working against me if he’s doing miracles in my name. If he’s not against us, he’s for us. Listen, if a man gives even a cup of water in my name, that man will be rewarded.”

He once again put his arm around the child. “Listen very carefully to me. If one of these little ones believes in me, and someone causes him to sin, it would be better if that man were tied to a large rock and thrown into the sea.”

The next day, a man who collects temple tax walked up to Peter and said, “Does your teacher pay the temple tax?”

“Uh, yes, he does.” But Peter wasn’t sure.

Back in Capernaum, Jesus saw him deep in thought. He said, “Simon, give me your opinion. When a king issues a tax, does he make his family pay it?”

“Oh no. Others have to pay, but not his family.”

Jesus said, “That’s true. The sons of the king don’t have to pay. But we don’t want to offend others on this issue. So go to the sea and catch a fish. When you have it, open its mouth. There you’ll find a coin. It’ll be enough for you to pay the tax—for you and me.”

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Woman Caught in Immorality

204 – Caught in Immorality

John 7:1-8:12

It was time for a festival in Jerusalem. Jesus pretended he wasn’t going, but he went without anyone knowing. The religious leaders were looking for him… but couldn’t find him.

Still, everyone was talking about him. Some said Jesus was a good man, while others said he deceived people with his teaching. No one wanted to say too much because they feared the religious leaders.

Halfway through the festival, Jesus went to the temple and started teaching the crowd. Everyone was amazed at what he said.

The religious leaders sent guards to get him. They went, but they weren’t able to grab him because it wasn’t time for him to die. Soon, the guards were spellbound by his teaching. They finally returned to the religious leaders. The leaders said, “Where is he? Why didn’t you bring him?”

The guards said, “We’ve never heard anyone talk like this man.”

The next morning, Jesus was once again teaching at the temple. The religious leaders went to him with a woman they had caught in immorality. They thought they could use her to trap Jesus and get evidence against him.

They said, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of adultery. The law of Moses says we should stone her. But we want you to tell us what we should do.”

He acted like he didn’t hear them. He stooped down and used his finger to write in the dust. They didn’t allow him to ignore them. They kept asking about this situation. Finally he stood up and faced them. “Go ahead and stone her. But have the one without sin throw the first stone.” He then stooped down and started writing on the ground again.

The men stood there without saying anything. Finally they started leaving one by one, starting with the older men. Then Jesus stood up and looked around. He and the woman were the only ones standing in the middle of the crowd. He said to her, “Woman, where are those who were accusing you? Didn’t they condemn you to death?”

She said, “No, they didn’t, Lord.”

He said, “Well, I won’t condemn you to death either. Go, and don’t sin anymore.”

He then turned to the crowd and said, “I am the light of the world. Those who follow me will never walk in darkness because they’ll have the light of life.”

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Forgiven and Grateful

191 – Forgiven and Grateful

Luke 7:36-50

A Pharisee named Simon invited Jesus into his house for a meal. People ate their meals while leaning on a cushion next to the table, with their feet behind them.

While they were eating, a woman came who was known to be a great sinner. She stood behind Jesus and started to cry. She then knelt down and washed his feet with her tears. She let down her hair and used it to dry his feet. She then kissed them and anointed them with expensive oil.

Simon thought to himself, “Well, this proves that Jesus isn’t a prophet. If he were, he’d know what kind of woman this is and he wouldn’t let her touch him.”

Jesus knew what he was thinking. He said, “Simon, I have a question for you. Two men owed a debt to the same banker. One owed $2500, while the other owed $25,000. Both were unable to pay it back, which meant they would be sold into slavery. Instead, the banker decided to forgive their debts and set them free. Which of these men will be the most grateful and the loyal to the banker?”

Simon was quick to answer. “Of course, the one who owed $25,000.”

Jesus said, “You’re absolutely right. I came into your house and you didn’t provide me water to wash my feet. Look at this woman. She didn’t say a word, but simply washed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair.”

“You didn’t welcome me with a kiss. But this woman hasn’t stopped kissing my feet.”

“You didn’t offer me oil to freshen up. Look, she has anointed my feet with a generous amount of expensive oil.”

“Why is she doing this? It’s because her sins are many, and she’s grateful to be forgiven. Those who feel they’ve been good all their lives don’t experience such deep gratitude.”

He turned to the woman. “Your sins are forgiven.” This shocked those sitting around the table, but Jesus continued on. “Go in peace. Your faith has saved you.”

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Esther Saves Her People

176 – Esther Saves Her People

Esther 5:9 – 10:3

Continued from the previous story

The king and Haman attended Queen Esther’s banquet. Afterwards the king said, “Now tell me your request so I can give it to you.”

“Oh king, if it’s true you want to grant my request, please bring Haman and come to another banquet tomorrow. I’ll tell you my request at that time.”

Haman was proud as he left the court that day. He had been invited to the queen’s banquet two days in a row! Suddenly his joy turned to anger as he noticed Mordecai once again not bowing before him. He was with friends that evening and told them how this Jew had ruined his joy.

They said, “Build a 75-foot gallows. Go to the king early in the morning and ask him to order Mordecai’s death. Hang him on the gallows right away so you can enjoy the queen’s banquet.” Haman sent for a servant and ordered the gallows to be built.

The king couldn’t sleep that night. So he had someone come to his bedroom and read official records. The servant read how Mordecai had saved the king’s life by revealing a plot to kill him. The king said, “How was this man rewarded?”

The servant looked back at the records, then said, “He wasn’t, my king.”

“Nothing was done to reward this man?! Go into the court and see if anyone is there.”

The servant found Haman waiting to see the king. The king said, “Bring him in.” Before Haman could talk, the king said, “What should I do for a man I want to honor in a special way?”

Haman immediately thought of himself. He said, “Oh, my king. You should honor this man by putting your royal robe and crown on him. Place him on your horse and have your most noble official lead him through the streets yelling, ‘This is what the king does for a man he wants to honor!’”

The king was pleased. “Excellent. Go and find Mordecai and do everything you’ve said. Be careful not to leave anything out.”

Haman stood there in shock, but he had to fulfill everything he had suggested to the king. He put the royal robe and crown on Mordecai, placed him on the royal horse, and led him through the city yelling, “This is what the king does for a man he wants to honor.”

When it was all over, Haman went home in humiliation, but his summons to the queen’s banquet was waiting for him. So he had to rush to get there.

After they had eaten, the king asked Esther, “Tell me what you want so I can give it to you.”

“Oh king, if it pleases you to grant my request, spare my life and the lives of my people. A man has plotted to have my entire race destroyed.”

The king was shocked, “Who is this man and where is he?”

Esther pointed at Haman. “Our enemy is this wicked man.”

Haman was terrified. He couldn’t even speak. The king looked at him and became angry. He got up and walked into the garden so he could think.

Haman ran over and fell down next to Esther to beg for his life. The king walked back into the room and saw Haman lying next to the queen. He said, “Are you going to rape the queen with me standing right here?”

As soon as he said this, servants rushed over and put a hood over Haman’s head. One of them turned to the king. “Haman has built a gallows to hang the man who saved your life.”

This angered the king even more. He pointed to Haman, “Hang him on it!”

Haman was immediately taken out and hanged on the gallows he had built. After this, the king replaced him with Mordecai.

So the Jewish people were saved from the disaster Haman had planned for them, and Mordecai became the highest-ranking official in the government.

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Esther Becomes Queen

175 – Esther Becomes Queen

Esther 1:1 – 5:8

One day the queen of Persia embarrassed the king in front of the lords of the court. They all agreed the king should replace her. So an order went out saying all the beautiful virgins were to come to the palace. From them, the king would choose a new queen.

Esther was a beautiful young woman who had been raised by her older cousin Mordecai. She went to the palace because of her beauty and virtue. But … her cousin told her not to tell anyone that she was Jewish.

In the course of time, she was selected to be the new queen. Soon after this, two events happened about the same time. The first was that Mordecai heard a plot to kill the king. He reported it, and the plot was stopped. His good deed was recorded in the official records.

The second event was that a man named Haman was made the highest-ranking official in the government. From then on, people bowed when he walked by—everyone except Mordecai.

When Haman saw this, he became angry and wanted Mordecai killed. But he wanted more than that—he wanted to totally destroy the Jews.

So he went to the king and said, “There are people in the empire who are different than everyone else. They don’t obey your laws because they have their own. It’s not good to let them live. Allow me to serve you by organizing their destruction. It would be my honor to personally pay for the cost of doing this.”

The king was pleased at Haman’s willingness to serve the kingdom, so he gave him the authority to destroy the Jewish people. Haman set a date and then sent out a proclamation.

It said all the Jews were to be killed on that date. This would include the men, women and children. Their possessions were to be given to those who did the killing.

Once the proclamation was translated into many languages, it was sent out to all the nations in the empire. Fear and panic gripped all the Jews of the land.

Esther was in the palace and didn’t know about this decree. Soon she heard that Mordecai was mourning in a public place. She sent a servant to ask him what was wrong. Mordecai told the servant everything and gave him a copy of the decree. He said, “Tell the queen she must talk to the king and beg him to have mercy upon her people.”

She sent a message back to him. “No one is allowed to go before the king without an invitation. Those who do are put to death unless he points the golden scepter toward them. It’s been 30 days since he has last sent for me.

Mordecai sent a message back to her. “Don’t assume you’ll escape, just because you live in the palace. Listen, if you don’t help, your people will be delivered by some other means. Still, you will die! I believe you were brought to the kingdom for such a time as this.”

She sent back a note. “Tell our people to fast for three days. They’re not to eat or drink anything. My servants and I will do the same. Then I’ll go and stand before the king, even though it is against the law. If I die, I die.”

After three days, Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court so the king could see her from his throne. When he looked up, he was pleased to see her and immediately pointed the golden scepter towards her. She walked up and touched the top of it.

He said, “Tell me what you want and I’ll give it to you.”

She said, “If it pleases you, I want you and Haman to come to a banquet I have prepared.”

“Done!” said the king. “Guard, run get Haman and bring him here. We’re going to Queen Esther’s banquet.”

Continued in the next story

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Well of Mud

163 – Well of Mud

2 Chronicles 36:15-21 2 Kings 25:3-21 Jeremiah 32:1-33:26 38:1-40:6 52:1-34

Stories 159 – 164 happened during the life and ministry of Jeremiah, the prophet.

The Lord gave Jeremiah a message for the people. He said, “The choice is yours. You can have life or death. If you stay in Jerusalem, you’ll suffer hunger, disease, and death. If you surrender to the Babylonian army, you’ll live. I’ve given this city to them, and they’ll totally destroy it.”

When the officials of Judah heard this, they went to the king and said, “This man must die. He’s a traitor. He’s telling people to abandon us.”

So Zedekiah allowed them to do what they wanted with Jeremiah. They put ropes around him and let him down into an empty well. It didn’t have water in it, but instead the bottom was nothing but mud. Soon the prophet had sunk down into the mud.

Another official ran to the king and said, “This is wrong! The prophet will die in that well. He has no food or water.”

The king gave permission for the man to pull Jeremiah out of the well. So he got 30 other men to help him. They threw old rags down the well and told the prophet to put these under his arms to protect him from the ropes. They then pulled him out of the well and took him back to the palace prison.

The Babylonians kept the city under siege for two and a half years. Finally they broke through the walls and took the city. When Zedekiah heard this, he got out of Jerusalem during the night and tried to escape.

The Babylonians chased after the king and soon caught him. They brought him back to Nebuchadnezzar. He took Zedekiah and made him watch as they killed his sons in front of him. They then gouged out his eyes, put him in chains, and led him away to Babylon.

The Babylonians totally destroyed the city so it could never again resist them. They destroyed the Temple, burned all the houses, and broke down the walls. The city was totally demolished. The Babylon army took the rest of the people away to Babylon, leaving only a few to tend the land.

Nebuchadnezzar heard about Jeremiah, so he told his captain, “Find this man, and make sure he isn’t hurt. He’s to be cared for and given whatever he wants.”

The captain went and found the prophet. He was in chains along with the others who were being sent into exile. The captain took the chains off Jeremiah and said, “You’re free to go. If you come to Babylon with us, we’ll take care of you and meet your needs for the rest of your life. But if you want, you can stay here in Judah. The choice is yours.”

Jeremiah said he would stay in Judah, so they allowed him and Baruch to go back to their homes. The Lord also protected the official that had helped the prophet get out of the well.

The Lord said to Jeremiah, “The day will come when I’ll raise up a righteous Branch from the line of David, and He’ll bring justice and righteousness to the land. He’ll be called, ‘The Lord our Righteousness.’ ”

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Jerusalem Under Siege

162 – Jerusalem Under Siege

2 Chronicles 36:10-16 2 Kings 24:18 – 25:2 Jeremiah 37:1-21

Stories 159 – 164 happened during the life and ministry of Jeremiah, the prophet.

Nebuchadnezzar had made Zedekiah king of Judah. After he had been king for nine years, he rebelled against Babylon. He thought Egypt would help him. Jeremiah said, “If you do this, the king of Babylon will totally destroy Jerusalem.”

Zedekiah didn’t listen to the prophet, so Nebuchadnezzar brought his army and circled the city, not letting anyone in or out. Zedekiah asked Jeremiah to pray and ask God for help. Suddenly the Egyptian army came up from the south. With that, the Babylon army moved away from Jerusalem.

The Lord sent a message to Zedekiah. “Here’s what I am going to do. Pharaoh’s army will return to Egypt. Babylon will come back and burn this city to the ground. You can’t stop them. Even if your army went out and defeated them, leaving only a few wounded men alive, those few men would get up, come into the city, and burn it to the ground.”

Jeremiah decided to go outside the city walls and look at some property he owned. A guard saw him walking out of the city gate. He said, “You’re going to the Babylonian army.”

The prophet said, “No, I’d never do that.” But the guard didn’t believe him, and took him to the city officials. They were furious with him and had him beaten and put in a dungeon. He stayed there a long time.

Soon the Babylonians came back and once again encircled the city. Zedekiah secretly sent for Jeremiah, and brought him to the palace. The king said, “Do you have a message from the Lord?”

Jeremiah said, “Yes I do. He says, ‘You’ll be defeated by the Babylonians.’ ”

Then the prophet said to the king, “Don’t send me back to that dungeon. I’ll die if you do. What have I done? Everything I’ve said has come true. Where are the prophets who said Babylon wouldn’t return? I beg you. Don’t send me back.”

So King Zedekiah gave the command that Jeremiah wasn’t to go back to the dungeon. He was kept in the palace prison, where he received better care.

Soon there was no food in the city because the Babylonians had stopped everything from going in or out. The rulers of Jerusalem sent a message to Jeremiah. “Please, pray and ask God to deliver us! Perhaps he will give us a miracle like he’s done in the past.”

The Lord sent a message back to them, “No! I won’t deliver you. I’m the one fighting against you. I’ve given you to the king of Babylon. You’ll suffer hunger, disease and plagues. People and animals will die. Those who live through this will be given to the Babylonians.”