Onesimus means profitable! He truly proved profitable for Paul’s ministry. Two of his epistles were written through him; that is Colossians and Philemon. Before this height of profitability, however, a lot of patient grooming had taken place. To begin with, Onesimus was a slave serving under a Christian boss, Philemon. He ran away from his master and fortuitously ran into the hand of another, this time Jesus. Through the ministry of Paul, Onesimus met the Lord. Paul sent him back to his master to tidy up things. Either in conforming us to the image of His Son or preparing us for our life’s assignment, God will leave no stone unturned. It doesn’t matter even if that would mean putting us in difficult situations and under seemingly impossible masters.
“He wants us to learn obedience. In most cases this comes with suffering. Rather than looking for a way out of tough situations, perhaps we would be better off asking what lessons are to learned.”
There was a similar case in the Old Testament. We find Hagar in the wilderness where she had fled for refuge because her Mistress Sarai dealt harshly with her. It is therefore curious that the Angel of the Lord commanded her to return to the same place “and submit thyself under her hands”. Is God in favour of slavery and oppression? It will be out of sync with Divine nature. There must be something God was aiming at in giving such directive. Before now we have read that the moment Hagar conceived she began to look down on her boss. Apparently, there was pride and arrogance in the life of Hagar which God must chisel away, and that could only be done in the harsh environment she found herself in. We are always seeking for the easy way out of every difficulty; but God has something deeper in mind for allowing those tough situations. He wants us to learn obedience. In most cases this comes with suffering. Rather than looking for a way out of tough situations, perhaps we would be better off asking what lessons are to learned.