Theme
“Paul,
a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon
our beloved friend and fellow laborer, 2 to the beloved
Apphia, Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house: 3 Grace
to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” – Philemon
1:1-3
Notice
in the scripture at the top? Philemon was recognized by the Apostle Paul as a
man who was able to refresh the BOWELS of the saints! This is not necessarily a
common expression nor desire for our ‘visual’ minds to ponder. So, what did
Paul mean about Philemon refreshing the ‘bowels’ of the saints.
Obviously,
when one looks over ancient literary writings the ‘King’s’ English bears a different
feel -- sort of indelicate, sometimes it appears to lack ‘nuance’ or ‘tact’. Yet,
isn’t it better to strip away the desire to speak in ‘politically correct’ or
‘sensitive’ manner when a deeper point or tidbit of knowledge is important?
There is always a ‘season’ or ‘time to break down and a time to build up’. So,
how is speaking forthrightly about refreshing one’s bowels a building up or
tearing down?
While
there is a bit of discussion we can get into, the bottom line this portion of
the Bible is written in Greek. The
writer, Paul, who was multilingual; was first and foremost a natural Jew from
the tribe of Benjamin; a scholar, a former Pharisee and later in life a born-again
Christian. His own personal encounter with the ascended Jesus fueled his
immediate and absolute conversion to ‘The Way’ later called ‘Christian’ by
divine providence. He is a multifaceted man with finely honed speaking and
writing skills ranging from outspoken to extolling. If you read his letters,
especially the two to the Corinthian congregation, you will note that he
exhorted, he admonished, he edified, he commended, and he was tender depending
on the topical focus of his letters to them. But, throughout his many letters
he was always ‘direct’ in his speech/writings. If you look at the words of
Jesus during HIS earthly life, HE too was forthright when necessary and most
assuredly tender in affections. Which brings us back to ‘bowels.’ Apparently,
in the King’s English, at least the King James, for whom an entire translation
of the Holy Bible into English was named, the word for ‘tender affections’ was
‘bowels.’ We consider the way Paul would have understood the ‘Hebrew’ word for
tender affections which was translated into Greek and then into English as
bowels. Or, more specifically, bowels were the ‘seat of tender affections’, among
other literal and figurative applications. I won’t become tedious with the
explanation here but for your own reference see Strong’s Lexicon G4698 for more
defined applications of the word.
As
Christians, and even some non-Christians, the quintessential exemplar of tender
affections is Jesus, the Christ, our Lord, our Savior, our High Priest. Is it
any wonder those HE directly interacted with on routine basis would have witnessed
and integrated as much of the same tender affections as their Rabbi, Jesus?
John, the Apostle of love, must surely have exampled it but as we read the writings
of Peter, Paul, and others, that ‘tender affection’ is evident.
If
you are not familiar with tender affections or perhaps do not identify with the
concept here are some words you may be more familiar with: Compassion and/or
pity. Most people are familiar with the human experience of pity and
compassion. We see abuse of children, animals, or the profound loss of someone’s
family member, the absolute destruction of their home, the natural disaster
that devastates an entire community, floods of mud that may bury whole
communities or fires that burn turning all life, including animals, to ash. If any
of those things moves your heart to ‘feel’ for another especially perhaps
inducing a strong desire to somehow do something to alleviate what you can then
you're familiar with tender affections.
Back
to the book of Philemon, to the man the Apostle Paul commended acknowledging
Philemon’s tender affections, he was attributed with ‘refreshing’ the saints. He
apparently opened his home for Christian fellowship stimulating their ‘bowels’ to
exude loving affection.
Here
are a series of questions you may feel comfortable asking yourself and/or
praying about and truly pondering.
1.
Are
you known for showing ‘tender affections’?
2.
Are
you known for ‘refreshing’ others by your sense of compassion or pity?
3.
Do
you have family or friends who you believe to be ‘refreshing’ in nature?
4.
Do
you see Jesus’ bowels move for those HE walked among in HIS day? – Please read
John 11:1-44 -- Would you not want to do the very same for anyone
if you could?
5.
Is
there someone, somewhere or something you can do today to be like Jesus or Philemon.
6.
Can
you encourage someone who is like Jesus or Philemon by acknowledging their qualities?
There
is none who cannot improve their personal level of tender affections in all
circumstances. For some, it is so very natural and when coupled with the Holy
Spirit within it is utterly supernatural. For the rest of us we must pray, we
must meditate on the examples we have, we must work at being tender in our
affections. It is not a work in vain. We have eternity before us, and this very
kind of compassionate love will be needed through some of that time.
The answer to the question as to whether we are tearing down or building up is YES! For some of us we are tearing down old inhibitions, beliefs, attitudes and learning Christian affection "Tender Affections" and for others we seek to demonstrate that Christian affection by encouraging those who especially demonstrate this quality of love because they too need building up.
May
you be blessed in trying on this deeply seated affection and may it become a
constant companion. May your bowels flare up often -- figuratively speaking --
in tender affections!
Please
take time to read the Letter to Philemon. It is a single chapter and is truly about
a small group of Christians and their relationships and level of forgiving love. †
©Lightwritingmatters
2015
Bibles Designations
ASV
-- American Standard Version
KJV
– King James Version
NIV
– New International Version
NWT
– New World Translation
YLT
– Young’s Literal Translation
DISCLAIMER:
The thoughts published on this blog, in total, are the opinions, thoughts and
considerations of the writer/author of every post published. It is assumed that
research by the reader will lead the reader to their own conclusions. It is not
the writer’s intent to make a judgment of anyone but to allow GOD’s Word to do
what it does. “For the word of GOD is alive and active. Sharper
than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and
spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the
heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from GOD’s
sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to
whom we must give account.” – Hebrews 4:12 [NIV]
©Lightwritingmatters
2015
