What if you could transform your relationships through the power of reconciliation and true forgiveness? Join us on this eye-opening episode of The Lion Within Us as we unpack the profound message in the Apostle Paul's letter to Philemon. Discover how Paul's urging Philemon to see his former slave Onesimus as a brother in Christ instead of a servant challenges the very foundation of societal norms. We highlight the shift from ownership to equality, emphasizing the radical nature of Christian relationships built on dignity, respect, and grace. You'll gain insights into handling the inevitable challenges and conflicts in friendships and learn the critical role of genuine forgiveness and reconciliation in forging enduring bonds anchored in faith.
As men, we navigate different seasons, seeking guidance to conquer obstacles while remaining steadfast. Discipleship Masterminds is the environment where you not only receive invaluable insights to overcome challenges but also gain profound guidance on the path to becoming the leader God uniquely designed you to be.
What if you could transform your relationships through the power of reconciliation and true forgiveness? Join us on this eye-opening episode of The Lion Within Us as we unpack the profound message in the Apostle Paul's letter to Philemon. Discover how Paul's urging Philemon to see his former slave Onesimus as a brother in Christ instead of a servant challenges the very foundation of societal norms. We highlight the shift from ownership to equality, emphasizing the radical nature of Christian relationships built on dignity, respect, and grace. You'll gain insights into handling the inevitable challenges and conflicts in friendships and learn the critical role of genuine forgiveness and reconciliation in forging enduring bonds anchored in faith.
As men, we navigate different seasons, seeking guidance to conquer obstacles while remaining steadfast. Discipleship Masterminds is the environment where you not only receive invaluable insights to overcome challenges but also gain profound guidance on the path to becoming the leader God uniquely designed you to be.
Welcome to the Lion Within Us, a podcast serving Christian men who are hungry to be a leader God intends you to be. I'm your host, chris Granger, let's jump in. All right, fellas, it's your SKO, your spiritual kickoff. Let's go, all right. So now I guess I'm in a good mood. There you go.
Chris Grainger:
So, anyway, we're in the book of Philemon. Okay, philemon, we're going to be looking at verses 15 through 17. I didn't say chapter because it doesn't have a chapter of Philemon, it's just one book. So now the verses 15 and 17 say this Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever, no longer as a slave, but better than a slave as a dear brother. He is very dear to me, but even dearer to you, both as a fellow man and as a brother in. So, guys, let's unpack this. Let's think how we can simplify and apply this to our life as Christian men, as the leaders that God has called us to be.
Chris Grainger:
Okay, so, first things first. Where's the book of Philemon? We need to know this stuff. This is one-on-one stuff, but this can be a tricky one to find. I'm not even going to lie. This is New Testament. Need to make sure we're clear here. New Testament Apostle Paul wrote this one Okay, and it's the easiest way to find this is just go to the some. Okay, so that's it. That's how you find it.
Chris Grainger:
So now, what you're seeing here is a letter from the apostle Paul to Philemon. Now, it's a letter encouraging him to take back his slave. That's who he's Paul's referring to right here Onesimus. Okay, so he's left, he's going out. He found the Apostle Paul. Apostle Paul is basically going to him on his behalf as an advocate to encourage Philemon to forgive the debt, to have that forgiveness and to take him back.
Chris Grainger:
Very much like Barnabas was the go-to in between for Apostle Paul and the disciples at the very beginning, right? So we're going to see right here, you guys, a lot of things talking about with slaves and owners and friendships. And this passage is really, if we think about it, it provides profound insight for us to the nature of an enduring friendship, of an enduring friendship, one that lasts a test of time and, from the Christian context, one that helps us all grow as fellow brothers in Christ. And we're going to see right here, this scripture really emphasizes reconciliation. We see the transformation that occurs when we truly embrace, repent, love, show grace to others, and we see the deep bonds that can be forced through that faith and through that mutual respect that we have for each other. Okay, so let's kind of get right into it, because his letter to Philemon, it talks about how we can be transformed, the power of a Christian friendship, now that Onesimus again he was once a slave and now he is Paul is calling Philemon to receive him as a brother.
Chris Grainger:
Okay, because this is a shift here. This is a shift from you know, you work, not only do you work for me, but as a slave, you know, I'm over. I essentially I own everything that you do to one of what Equality? So it goes from ownership to equality. This is a radical nature, this is radical for this time and this is extremely radical in Christian friendships today. It's a call to see and treat each other with the dignity and respect inherent that we all deserve, and it really should be grounded in our faith. So what Paul is doing is he's urging Philemon hey, brother, I want you to welcome Onesimus, welcome him Just like it would be if I was coming to your house. I want you to be to welcome Onesimus, welcome him Just like it would be if I was coming to your house. I want you to welcome him in the same manner.
Chris Grainger:
And this is really gets to the core of reconciliation and forgiveness. But if you don't have any friendship out there whatsoever, it is worth a hill of beans. You're going to have to have that. You don't have to have some reconciliation because you guys are going to screw up at some point. You're going to have to have some reconciliation because you guys are going to screw up at some point. You're going to be mad at each other. You're going to piss each other off. Let's just be real. Then you've got to be able to forgive, and not just forgive just for the moment. I'm talking about truly forgive, and not be historian either, where you bring up stuff because you never really did forgive. No, extend true forgiveness. That's just what it's all about. And then it's enduring friendship that we're seeing.
Chris Grainger:
A couple of other principles are about grace and mutual respect. Okay, grace and mutual respect, because the relationship between Philemon and Onesias right here illustrates to us how grace can redefine relationships. It's so true. Our guest on Wednesday, you're going to see talks about this at length. But in many friendships there are going to be moments of conflict and betrayal. Let's just be real. We're going to have that conflict because we have the sin nature in this world. When you have the sin nature and you have two imperfect people coming together, there's going to be division, it just is.
Chris Grainger:
But it's through the process of forgiveness and reconciliation that these relationships can not only survive but they move to a state of thriving. This is very evident in the culture we look at today, where it's so easy, it's just so doggone easy just to sever ties or to ghost people than to work through difficulties. It happens all the time. Happened to me recently with a very close, dear friend. All of a sudden, text messages just stop returning them, stop answering, stop wanting to work out. You just have to recognize, you know what. It's, just the way it is.
Chris Grainger:
Some people choose to act that way, but Scripture is challenging us to embrace the hard work of mending those relationships, reflecting on God's grace in our interactions. I'm telling you, once you start thinking this way, it's going to change how you interact, how you view others, the grace that you extend them as well, because enduring for friendship, the friendships that really matter, require a commitment to seeing the other person as God sees them and that is worthy of love and respect. Just like you want God, he sees all the goodness in you. You need to be trying to see all the goodness in others. Paul is telling Philemon say, look, I need you to receive him as a brother, because if you receive him as a brother in the Lord, this is going to change everything about your relationship. It's going to elevate now your friendship to a whole new level.
Chris Grainger:
So, instead of focusing on the past stuff because he did leave, to a whole new level, so instead of focusing on the past stuff because he did leave and, quite frankly, paul, philemon could have been upset, but at the same time, onesimus left because Philemon was most likely I mean, he was a slave. Let's just face it, there's some culpability in both parties right here. He did leave, but instead of focusing on those past wrongs or the current shortcomings, the things that are happening right now that we just can't get past, we're called to recognize the potential for growth and transformation, and this goes much deeper, much deeper than any surface level friendship you're going to have, and this supports a supportive, encouraging, nurturing environment, and all these things are essential for enduring friendships, because I want you guys to be thinking about the friendships that are going to stand the test, because you're going to go through the test, you need those boys that are beside you all the way. So, again, they're not just beneficial but they're essential. They're essential If you want accountability, if you want support, if you want encouragement. You have to be building this stuff into your life. And what we see with Philemon and Onesimus is he is a powerful reminder for us that true friendship. Hang with me here for this one point.
Chris Grainger:
True friendship often involves sacrifice and a willingness to embrace uncomfortable conversations and if you do that, growth, reconciliation is possible. But you have to be willing to endure the suck if you will and have that very carefrontational interaction, and we use this in one of the groups I'm a part of. You care enough about the person that you can interaction, and we use this in one of the groups I'm a part of. You care enough about the person that you can confront them and you're not confronting them with like, hey, moron, we need to talk. No, that's not how it's done. You know you may be joking that way to get their attention, but you need to actually come through.
Chris Grainger:
Come across with some grace right out the gate. Mutual respect. All these things, all these things is really what it's about, because if you come about that way and you're trying to really lean into the idea of community the way God intended, I'm telling you, you're going to have a whole lot of love, a whole lot of grace and a whole lot of mutual respect. That's going to be pouring out of who you are and it's going to just take your, your relationships, and catapult them to a whole new level. So now, as you start thinking about the, what we see here is really a compelling vision of what enduring friendship looks like within Christian brotherhood.
Chris Grainger:
Ok, it's a call right here. Guys, you got to move beyond superficial connections and invest in these relationships, and you do that by extending grace, respect and reconciliation yourself. So you have to be the one that's doing it first. Don't be looking for mooch mooch, mooch, mooch, mooch. What are you going to do for me, me, me, no, you do it first. You be the friend that you desire to have to others, let them see it. And you're not doing this for trying to get something in return. No, you're just doing this because you're truly leading with grace, respect, reconciliation, reconciliation.
Chris Grainger:
I'll throw one more in Love If you embrace these principles and lean into it, you're going to build friendships that can withstand the test of time and the trials. And again, you're in a trial, coming out of one or getting ready to go into one. There are the three seasons, fellas. I don't know what season you're in, I just know you're in one of those three, bottom line, and you need to reflect on the transformative power of God's love in our lives. It's just incredible how much he loves us and how aggravating we are. Let's just face it, we all are aggravating. Yeah, he's not going to give up on us, so you don't give up on your friend. Love him, leave with that grace, leave with that respect, leave with that reconciliation. Reconciliation, repentance and love.
Chris Grainger:
All right, question of the week this week, fellas, is very simple is why is friendship so hard? I'm gonna tell you why it's hard? Because it takes work. It takes work, but you get insight from scripture, like the scripture that we looked at right here today how you can lean, you can learn, you can simplify, you can apply and how you can take that right here today, on how you can lean, you can learn, you can simplify, you can apply and how you can take that right here today, leaving this episode, leaving this podcast wherever you're listening, and apply it to the next engagement you have. So there's your challenge. The next person that you meet with is one of your buddies. Challenge yourself here. How can you walk out this Philemon type of mentality to extend them grace and respect?
Chris Grainger:
Maybe you need to pick up the phone and reconcile something today with one of your buddies that you've left it. It's just been floating out there, it hadn't really been addressed and you know it needs to be Doggone. It. Take the first step. Don't be a punk and be like well, he should call me first. Don't do that. Don't do that. Take the step, own it. This is part of being a man. This is part of standing firm. This is part of just walking out and being a Christian and then take that step of obedience and reconcile.
Chris Grainger:
Now for you listeners out there who have never had a relationship with Jesus Christ, and you talk about the greatest friendship of all time Jesus loves you, he calls his friend, but he is Lord. I want to encourage you. I want to just give you an opportunity today to hear something you may never heard before and to share the good news and for some reason. If you're listening to the Lion Within Us and you made it this far into a spiritual kickoff episode and you're not a believer in Christ, you are here for a reason. I know it's not because I sound that great, because I'm just a good old boy from North Carolina, but I hear while what I lack in my eloquent speech I make up for what we're going to talk about Now. I want to share with you the best news you'll ever hear in your life.
Chris Grainger:
The first thing I want you to know is man, you are made in God's image. You remain in the image of God we all are, because he spoke everything into existence until it came down to man and he formed him and he blew the breath of life, the ruah, into man's nose. And when Adam sat up for the first time, after his lungs was filled with God's spirit, he was face-to-face with his creator. And what a beautiful moment that was. And that's just who we are. We are made in his image and I just like to sit and think about that.
Chris Grainger:
I like to think about Adam sitting up and being face-to-face with the sovereign God of the universe. How cool is that? And things are real cool for about a page and a half in my Bible and then sin entered the world, and a sin is anything that separates us from God. That's all it is Okay. So you had this sin that entered and that, right there, separates us from his holiness, because God is holy and we are not. So we have this big had entered and that right there, separates us from his holiness, because God is holy and we are not.
Chris Grainger:
So we have this big sin gap and the problem is with this big sin gap for most Christians out there. We want to feel like we need to do something to fill in this gap. We need to be some ideas. We want to feel we want to do things like pray. We want to do things like read our Bible, go to church, attend small group, lead a small group, go to children's camps you get me Volunteer help with the nursery, serving with the kids All these inherently good things, which they are inherently good. The problem is, none of that is good enough to get you into heaven, because when we start thinking about I just need to be a good enough to get you into heaven, because when we start thinking about I just need to be a good person to get to heaven, the reality is, hell is full of good people, it just is so.
Chris Grainger:
It's that type of of wrong doctrine, of of of inaccurate theology that gets so many people. Unfortunately, they'll miss it because it's not about the works. The works-based righteousness is not going to ever fulfill it. There's nothing you can do to overcome the penalty. So what do we do then?
Chris Grainger:
Well, jesus came and he fulfilled it for us. He paid the penalty that we cannot pay, because he is the perfect, sinless lamb of God. He came on that rescue mission for you, for me, for the entire world. He lived the perfect life. He fulfilled all the prophecies, he did the teachings, he did the miracles, he showed us, he taught us, he loved us. He was never in a hurry. Jesus' style was incredible. Then he paid the ultimate penalty for us that we could not pay for the sin that we caused. He went to the cross. He endured the scourging, the beating, the ridicules, and they crucified him, our Messiah crucified on the cross between two robbers, and he died, and ultimately, his perfect blood ran to cover your sin, my sin and the sin of the world, and they took him down off that cross. They laid him in a tomb.
Chris Grainger:
The deal is, though this tomb. He was just written, he was just born, that tomb, he didn't need it. And the reason we don't wear black on Easter Sunday is because we're not going to a funeral. No, all the other religions of the world yeah, they're good, their leaders died. They're still going to a funeral. No, all the other religions of the world yeah, their leaders died, they're still dead. They gone.
Chris Grainger:
Not Jesus. He rose, he overcame death and he walked out of that tomb. The stone rolled away. He is risen, indeed, and that is who we serve, that is who we worship. And he went, he did some more teachings, he even had a little barbecue there by the lake, and then he ascended to heaven. He is sitting right hand of the Father right now. And there is no other name under heaven, fellows, I'm telling you, by which we must be saved.
Chris Grainger:
Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. He is it. Don't let anyone else fool you. So what do you have to do? Recognize that we're made in the image of God. Yet we had this sin nature that basically ripped everything apart. But Jesus came and he saved. So what do we have to do? Well, you have to confess him as Lord. This is the hard part. This is where it becomes okay. Am I confessing Jesus as Lord my entire life? Over certain aspects? I want you over mainly the weekend. You know. Sunday I definitely want to give you Sunday Lord. Monday through Friday, I'll be honest, I just want to do my thing and you know I'll pray before I eat or something like that, so long as nobody's around, and then after that, you know I'll see you on Sunday. We're good with that, right, we're good, right Wrong. I'll see you on Sunday. We're good with that, right, we're good, right Wrong, wrong. That's not what it's about.
Chris Grainger:
To be a disciple of Jesus Christ, to surrender your life. He requires everything your heart. He wants your heart. Because you give him your heart, everything else is going to follow Because all those works I talked about earlier reading the Bible and praying and all this stuff you're going to want to do all that stuff to come closer to him, but you're not going to want to do that stuff to uh, uh, to to build up any workspace righteousness no, it's just, it's not going to be your motivation.
Chris Grainger:
So once you recognize that, you know what I need you as Lord of my life. I need a savior. I don't need a coach. No, we don't need coaches Now. You may need a business coach Okay, you may need a coach on a ball field if you're an athlete, but for your salvation you don't need a coach.
Chris Grainger:
You need a Savior, and His name is Jesus, and I highly encourage you if you've never surrendered your life to the Lordship of Christ, invite Him in today. Give it all to Him. Give Him your finances, give Him your health, give Him your career, give Him your children, give Him your marriage, everything. Give Him all the dark areas of your life, the stuff you don't want him to touch, to know about. Give it to him, expose it to the light. Let that light shine down, no longer walking in the darkness, and take the step of obedience to follow him.
Chris Grainger:
I know it's scary. It may not make sense. I don't know why I'm even listening to this guy on this podcast talking about Christ and giving my life to him. I'm not even sure what that means. I can tell you one thing you just go to the Lord in prayer right now and you just trust. Trust and what Christ is guiding and he's nudging you towards. It's something great, because the greatest decision you'll ever make in your life is the decision to surrender and choose to be a disciple and follow Christ. So let's pray, let's invite him into your life right now. So, father, thank you so much for today, for this technology where we can just share the gospel in this format.
Chris Grainger:
There may be somebody on a treadmill right now and they're just logging miles, they're hearing me share the gospel and maybe they're having this moment of realization where they just know they've never truly surrendered their life to you. I pray they stop, so they don't fall off the treadmill but stop and just come to you in prayer right now. I pray that you hear their prayer. I pray you put some people in their life. That's going to encourage them, that's going to speak life into them, and I pray that they make the conscious decision to surrender their entire life to the Lordship of Jesus and just choose to follow him, no matter what the cost. So we love you, lord, we praise you. I just pray for the listener out there who's making this decision that you put people in their life that's going to help encourage them, that's going to guide and direct them, that's going to be a beacon for them as they embark on this incredible journey of being a Christian. We love you. We praise you in Jesus name, amen.
Chris Grainger:
So if you just surrendered your life to the Lordship of Christ, I want to hear from you Support at the line withinus. That's support at the line withinus. Hit me up. Actually, why did I give that one, chris? Hit me one directly. Chris at the line withinus, send me an email. I want to give you some free resources 10 scriptures. You need to fight like a lion. Hook you up with some of our bible study resources. Get you connected with some, some different areas, particularly what want to know where you're from so we can help you find a church if you're not a part of a local church.
Chris Grainger:
I just want to support you, want to encourage you, want to give you a virtual fist bump and a hug and just pray with you because you have entered a battlefield. So now we got to get that armor ready, got to get that helmet, that breastplate, that shield, that belt, that sword. Got to get all that stuff ready to go out and face the battle, all right. So, guys, I'm telling you this is some great stuff here. Absolutely love each and every one of you. Can't say thank you enough for just taking the time to listen to the Lion Within Us.
Chris Grainger:
Hopefully, this stuff serves you guys well. It's definitely a privilege, it's an honor, but it is a ton of work. So if you like the Lion Within Us, you like what we're doing, I'd encourage you just be a supporter. Love for you to join our community, love for you to take advantage of the resources that we're building. But if you don't want to do that right now, consider being a monthly donor, monthly supporter, just to come alongside your ministry. That's helping you help grow and helping you grow to be the leader that God calls you to be. You know, we made a commitment. We're going to put out three podcasts every week. We're going to put out videos on YouTube every week. I'm pretty much writing a devotion about every week to two weeks, trying to get that stuff out on YouVersion. We're making a commitment to do the work, need your support.
Chris Grainger:
All right, so the line withinus is how you find all those resources. We'll love to connect with you, love to hear from you, love to have a conversation with you and to see how we can serve you and help you grow in your discipleship journey. Okay, so get after it, have a great, great, great day. Come back on Wednesday. You do not want to miss this one on Wednesday. Probably one of my most excited guests I've ever had to interview Just was so pumped up to have a chance to sit down with this gentleman. I think that you will be blessed from it. I know I was blessed. A few guys who are struggling with friendships this conversation hits to the core. So, again, come back on Wednesday, looking forward to having that and sharing that with you guys. All right, so have a great day, get after it and you know what's coming now. Keep unleashing the lion within.
Chris Grainger:
If you're a man who's looking for greater spiritual guidance into how to become a better leader, finding resources that you can trust and then implement can be daunting. For me personally, I thought it was a lost cause and I decided to take the action, knowing that I wasn't alone. It was because of this wide gap that we created our line within this community, and the areas that we're helping Christian men grow are incredible. For instance, we built ways for guys to lean in and grow through fun events like our daily spiritual kickoff, where you get that much needed boost directly from God's word, our Bible studies that always focus on how to discern and apply what we learn, and even our amazing form where you can speak your mind without fear of getting shut down or judged by the extreme rules of modern day social media. On top of all that, we know that many men want help overcoming issues and becoming stronger in many different areas. That's why we created several mastermind groups where the iron truly sharpens iron.
Chris Grainger:
Our community is about having a growth mindset, accountability, intentionality and transparency. In other words, just leave fake you at home and come to community just as you are. I fully believe what we've built. I see the impact it's making on men right now and I would love to have you check it out. So start your very own 30-day free trial today to see how we can help you be a better leader. So if you're ready to take that first step, head over to thelinewithinus and get started. Your journey begins here. Visit thelinewithinus and I'll see you inside with them.
