“And I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.” — Philemon 1:6
Recently, I had a chance to experience this verse firsthand. I was invited by a friend to speak to his class on the topic of Christianity. There were a number of unbelievers there, including an atheist and Buddhist. We spent the next two hours discussing their questions (related to the reliability of the Bible, science, the problem of evil, Jesus, questions about the character and nature of God and the Gospel). In fact, I was able to share the Gospel multiple times and invite the group to church!
When I got home, I excitedly told my wife and kids about the class. My wife commented that I was very encouraged and it reminded her of this verse in Philemon. Christian, read the verse again. In Paul’s letter, he is reminding Philemon (and us) of an important truth. This sharing of our faith, which includes outreach, service, and our very lives, leads to us being effective (literally powerful) in the knowledge of every good thing that we have in Jesus! So, sharing your faith, your love and life with others, directly blesses you, too!
Are you feeling dissatisfied or disgruntled with your life? Does discontentment mark many of your attitudes toward your work, family or friends? Philemon 1:6 teaches us that if we get our eyes off of ourselves (and our problems) and start focusing on sharing our faith (and our service), we will experience the very real blessing of knowing all the good things we have in this life and the life to come — through Jesus Christ!
Praying and looking for opportunities to share my faith,
Posted in A Word from the Pastor