Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 221, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 September 1918 — Christ’s Method of Reform [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Christ’s Method of Reform

By REV. L. W. GOSNELL

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TEXT—I beseech thee for my son OnoImypzm 10. The epistle of Philemon was writtea under most Interesting circumstances.

Its recipient, a gentleman living in Colease, was master of a slave named Onesimus, which means Profitable. But the slave In question had been far from profitable. Indeed It seems he had stolen money and run off to Borne, the haunt of thieves and criminals of all sorts. Here he came into contact with Paul, who

was Imprisoned, and was led to faith in Christ. He endeared himself to the apostle by ministering to him in his bonds, a service for which his training as a slave peculiarly fitted him. Yet the time came when Paul felt he should send him back to his owner, the Christian Philemon. But he places ilk his hands the letter with which all the world has become familiar, In order to Insure him a kindly reception as a Christian brother, in spite of his past defections. Erasmus said of this letter, “Cicero never wrote with greater eloquence,” and Kenan declared that it is “a small but true masterpiece of the art of letter writing.” We will not deal atthls time with the marvelous tact exhibited by Paul in appealing to Philemon on behalf of Onesimus, but confine ourselves to the terms used by the apostle in speaking of the slave whom he Is sending home.

It will help us to appreciate these terms if we remind ourselves that, in Paul’s day, slaves were looked on ss “things” rather than men. Wealthy men sometimes owned as many as 10,000 or 20,000, and a couple of hundred In a family was common. In the time of Augustus 400 slaves were put to death because their master had been murdered, presumably by one of them. How remarkable, then, the expression Paul uses, “My son Onesimus whom I have begotten In my bonds.” He calls the thief his son! Again he refers to him as “my very heart" (v. 12 R. V.) and says, “If thou count me therefore a partner, receive him as myself’ (v. 17). Anything which could make a Pharisee talk so about a slave is certainly worthy of consideration and the wonder of It is Increased as we recall that Paul was a Roman citizen also. Again, as if punning on Onesimus*’ name, he says that he was in time past “to thee unprofitable, but now profitable to thee and to me.” What was this power that had taken Onesimus out of the refuse heap of society and made him useful to all to whom he was related? Voltaire said, “Philosophy does not concern itself with common minds. We have never undertaken to enlighten cobblers and maidservants. We leave that to apostles.” Turning Point for John B. Gough. Well, fortunately, the apostles knew a power, even the gospel which is unto salvation to every one who believes. We wonder what Voltaire could have* done for Onesimus, or to come to modern times, for John B. Gough? Gough once lay in the gutter, drunk, with the noonday sun pouring down on bls face. A good woman passed by and In compassion threw her handkerchief over his bloated face to protect it. When he awoke he found the dainty handkerchief and was greatly moved. Bald he, “I am deep enough down, God knows, but some one has thought me worth pitying, and if I am worth pitying, I .am worth saving.” It was the turning point In his life, and that he became “profitable” needs no demonstration. Finally Paul blds Philemon receive this man, “not now as a servant, but above a servant, a brother belayed, specially to me, but how much more unto thee, both in the flesh and to the Lord.” As one has put it, “In the flesh Philemon had the brother for his slave; in the Lord Philemon had the slave for his brother.” We need not urge that a gospel which made master slave brethren sounded the death knell of slavery. First Christianize—Then Civilize. We hear much today of social reform, but forget sometimes that “the soul of Improvement is the improvement of the soul.” Would that we might learn from the story of Onesimus this truth, which all the Christian centuries illustrate. The history of missions In Greenland Is a typical one. Hans Egede went out first and labored faithfully on the theory that we should first civilize, then Christianize. But he finally gave up his task as hopeless. He was followed by John Back, who reversed the process and found the secret of success. From his lips a savage named Ka jarnak heard the story of Christ’s agony in the garden. It melted his heart and be went out with sowing eyes and irresistible pathos to tell his countrymen the story of the Cross. He does most for social reform who plants most deeply the Spirit« Christ.