Paul is going to ask Philemon not to punish his runaway slave Onesimus, even though the Roman law certainly encourages that to happen. Instead, Philemon should show love to his servant because of the love that he himself has received from God - every Christian should think that way. Every Christian looks to the cross of the Lord Jesus and we see God's love making propitiation for all of our sins. And on that basis we are to live with love and forgiveness towards others. Why? Because of the love and forgiveness God has given to us when we deserved the opposite. And this appeal—for love's sake—applies to every Christian’s situation. This principle should shape, for instance, the way that Christian parents raise their children; we should remember God's loving care, his Fatherly tenderness towards us, and we should mirror that in our treatment of our children. Love should govern the manner we interact with one another in the church. Every believer here today, all those new members, all the old members, all who are not here, all of them are so loved by God that he sent his own Son to die on the cross. Often, when I pray for fellow ministers, I pray,
Richard D. PhillipsGive us a sense of your love for the people to whom we are ministering; help us to remember how dear they are, how precious they are to you, for ou sent your Son to die for them.We should all be thinking that way about every believer. It will never be possible for us to show more love to others than God has shown to us personally. It will never be possible for us to forgive sins greater than those we have committed against God, and yet he forgave our sins.1
9 c'est de préférence au nom de l'amour que je t'adresse une prière, étant ce que je suis, Paul, un vieillard, et de plus maintenant prisonnier de Jésus-Christ.