Philemon 1:25 – Verse of the Day 11/13/14

Who is the person in your life who is hardest to love? What makes this so hard? Does that person do something that really bothers you?

The Bible is fully of stories and teachings about how to treat people and why. This verse is the concluding statement of the book of Philemon, a book where Paul tells Philemon to treat his slave Onesimus like a brother in Christ. Paul wants Philemon to remember that before God we are all equal and there is no difference between us. We all naturally deserve the judgment of God for our sin and yet God has chosen to love us in spite of our sin because of the life and death of Jesus. Just as God loves us in spite of what we deserve, he calls us to remember what He has done for us and to do the same.

As you pray, thank the Lord for His remarkable grace. We do not deserve to be forgiven, and yet God forgives us anyway. Thank God and pray that you would be willing to share the same grace towards others that God has lavished upon us.