He also was a slaveholder whose slave Onesimus had escaped, had later encountered the Apostle Paul, and had responded to the gospel message about Jesus.
If this letter was written around 60 A.D., then Colossae was in the midst of economic woes, due to the success of its neighboring cities. This debate has a negligible effect on understanding the letter’s application to the workplace.Cities grow as they develop commercial centers that provide jobs for their residents. Get this from a library! Colossians is one of the shortest of Paul's letters. Written to : Philemon, a wealthy Christian at Colossae, and all future readers of … Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord and not for your masters, since you know that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you serve the Lord Christ. ("So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. our dearly beloved, and fellowlabourer, So, Paul and Timothy are writing to a man named Philemon. Bible Commentary The Epistle of Paul to Philemon, known simply as Philemon, is one of the books of the Christian New Testament.It is a prison letter, co-authored by Paul the Apostle with Timothy, to Philemon, a leader in the Colossian church. The short personal letter to Philemon extends our understanding of Paul’s command in Colossians 4:1. Colossians was probably written about the same time as Ephesians and Philemon when Paul was first imprisoned in Rome. [David E Garland] -- Most Bible commentaries take us on a one-way trip from the twentieth century to the first century. If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me. I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. Paul cared deeply that all of his readers (today as well as the Colossians two thousand years ago) understood the context of their lives within God’s story, and what that looks like in their relationships on the job.Every resource on our site was made possible through the financial support of people like you. Philemon 1:1 continues and tells us the recipient of this letter and what Paul and Timothy consider him to be to them. Specifically, he writes about how slaves are to do their work for their masters and how masters are to treat their slaves. It is likely that Epaphras founded the Colossian church (Col. 1:7), and from 1:21 we assume that the church was composed mainly of Gentiles.Philemon was a citizen of Colossae and an upright leader in that church. With your gift of any size, you’ll enable us to continue equipping Christians with high-quality biblically-based content. When Paul returned to Jerusalem after his third missionary journey, some of the Jews made false charges against him (Acts 21:27-40).They stirred up the people against him.
"They were written by the apostle Paul during his first imprisonment in Rome. He is the author "Hope for Hurting Singles: A Christian Guide to Overcoming Life's Challenges."
Once the occasion for the writing of Colossians/ Philemon is established, it can be reasonably supposed that all three letters were written sometime during the middle of Paul’s imprisonment—hence, c. 60 CE. Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. In the letter to the Colossians, Paul addresses how our relationship to God through Jesus Christ affects us in the workplace.