Of Your Own Free Will

by Chris Simmons

When Paul wrote his letter to Philemon, he certainly had an agenda. He wanted Philemon to allow a gentlemen named Onesimus, who was a slave, who had been “parted from you (Philemon) for a while” (verse 15), to remain with Paul to “minister” to him in his imprisonment (verse 13). Evidently when Onesimus had last been with Philemon, he was not a child of God. But now, having met Paul while imprisoned in Rome, he had become “a beloved brother” (verse 16) who was “useful” to Paul and could be to Philemon as well (verse 11). Paul tells Philemon that, although he has the boldness “in Christ” to “order you to do that which is proper” (verse 8), he chose to “appeal” to him (verses 9-10) instead. Paul told Philemon that he would not keep Onesimus “without your consent” and added that his “goodness” be “of your own free will.”

It’s important to note that the word “order” in verse 8 means to “command (or) charge: absolutely” (Thayer). It’s interesting that this same Greek word is used in Luke 4:36 to describe what Jesus did to the “unclean spirits” in compelling them to come out against their will. Jesus had the divine authority to make the unclean spirits come out and Paul had the apostolic authority to order, or compel, Philemon to do what needed to be done. But that isn’t what Paul did. He appealed, beseeched, and persuaded Philemon to choose the right path to follow and do the right thing of his own free will.

Certainly Paul’s letter to Philemon teaches us of the need to be tactful and persuasive in our communications with one another and have speech “seasoned, as it were, with salt” (Colossians 4:6). Beyond that, it also should remind us of God’s approach with each one of us in His efforts to have us obey and do what’s right. We must recognize that God has all authority (Romans 13:1) and it is His right alone to determine and define what is right and what is sinful. But we need to recognize and appreciate that, as with Philemon, God will never force man against his will to do what he ought to do. Jesus said in John 7:17, “If any man is willing to do His will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or whether I speak from Myself.” The question is, who’s willing to do God’s will? Who has been persuaded of the need to follow God? The word of God has been designed to appeal to the will of man to choose whether to submit his will to God’s.

God (through His holy apostles and prophets) will beg, plead, urge, appeal, invite, and beseech us to submit our will to His and to choose to follow His paths. He will never make or force man, against his will, to obey Him. Paul wrote in II Corinthians 5:20-21, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” Peter wrote in I Peter 2:11-12, “Beloved, I urge (“beseech,” ASV; “beg,” NKJV) you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts, which wage war against the soul.” Once again, we read of Paul’s urging, beseeching, and appealing in Romans 12:1-2, “I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

It’s critical when we preach and teach the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, that we do so on the basis of reason, persuasion, and evidence. How Paul treated Philemon is how Paul treated every audience he had while he preached the gospel. While in Thessalonica, we read in Acts 17:2 that, “according to Paul’s custom, he …reasoned with them from the scriptures.” While in Corinth, it is said of Paul in Acts 18:4 that, “he was reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath and trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.” This was not human reason or persuasion that Paul employed but rather through reliance on the power of the gospel in God’s revealed will (I Corinthians 2:4-5; Romans 1:16).

We need to teach and preach so that at every age of life, from our youth to our older years, we’re able to, as we read in I Peter 3:15, “sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.” Do we know why we believe what we do and can we communicate to others our reasons and our persuasions? According to scripture there is no such thing as a blind faith. We need to remember that “faith is the assurance (“substance,” NKJV) of things hoped for, the conviction (“evidence,” NKJV) of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Have we examined the evidence and the reasons for believing in God and having faith in the inspiration of the scriptures? God will never force us to examine our faith; we must do so of our own free will.

We will all choose how we will exercise our own free will. We will do what we want (choose) to do. Joshua told the Israelites after they came into the promised land that their service to the Lord was a choice they were going to have to make for themselves – God wouldn’t make the choice for them. Joshua 24:15, “If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” In like manner, He won’t choose for us today either. God had plans to bless the Israelites (Jeremiah 29:11) and He has plans to bless us today (I Peter 3:9) if we will humbly serve Him of our own free will. God wants us to “choose life,” the blessing and not the curse (Deuteronomy 30:19-20). To inherit life, we must exercise our will. Each one of us is invited to, “take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me” (Matthew 11:29) for God will never force the yoke of Christ on anyone against his will.