Look at the Book

What do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke have to do with Philemon and his runaway slave? Paul shows Philemon what gospel-shaped friendships look like.

Alongside all the other ways Paul encourages Philemon to love, he also adds greetings from Epaphras, a man Philemon would have deeply respected.

In seeking a welcome for the runaway slave, Onesimus, Paul banks on his history with Philemon, and risks his own resources, modeling radical Christian love.

Reading God’s providence rightly takes great faith in the power and wisdom of God, and communicating it kindly takes great humility. Paul displays both.

While the New Testament never explicitly abolishes slavery, it is full of teachings and commands that revolutionized the master-slave relationship.

Paul wanted Philemon to welcome Onesimus back — but did it matter how? Paul’s radical reasoning has big implications for Onesimus’s status as a slave.

Although Paul refuses to command Philemon, he strengthens his appeal with seven personal reasons why his dear friend should receive Onesimus like a brother.

Jesus commanded us to love one another, but Paul seems to imply that commanding diminishes love. So, which does love prefer — commands or appeals?

Paul knows what he wants Philemon to do, but he chooses not to command it. Why? He wants something deeper than rote obedience: genuine love.

Paul could have commanded Philemon, with all the force of an apostle, to treat his runaway slave with love. So, why does Paul prefer to appeal to Philemon’s faith?

How does Christian love touch and refresh all our relationships? Springing up from personal delight in Jesus, love overflows to do good to others for his sake.

Why does Paul think of Philemon as the sort of man who would welcome back a runaway slave? Because he has heard of Philemon’s refreshing faith.

When Paul wrote to Philemon on a personal matter, he intended the entire church — including us — to receive grace and peace through his words.

Paul is an apostle of Jesus Christ, with all the authority that commission entails. But as he writes to Philemon, he approaches as a friend.

Why did Paul write his letter to Philemon? A delicate matter between a master and his slave becomes teaching that nourishes the worldwide church.

A strong message rings through Paul’s letter to Titus like the toll of a great bell: Let Christians devote themselves to good works in the grace of God.

When good doctrine produces good works, the church flourishes — but dissent and controversies cause division. That worthlessness needs to be stopped.

God’s message of salvation is utterly trustworthy. But what should his promises produce in those who have received them by faith?

By justifying us through Christ’s blood, God has made us heirs of eternal life. But what is that life, and why does it matter?

When we think of God’s grace in salvation, how does justification by faith lead to our adoption as children of God and the gift of eternal life?

When the Bible tells us to be renewed, how is that supposed to happen? The Holy Spirit works in us to make us taste and enjoy God’s great love for us.

Does regeneration come from washing, or does washing come from regeneration? When God gives us new life, he also makes us clean by his power.

Why do our good works in Christ please God when even our best works outside Christ added to our guilt? John Piper explores the insufficiency of works to save.

Mercy, regeneration, justification, grace, inheritance, hope, eternal life — salvation is full of wonders for us to study and enjoy.

For Christians, the word “saved” is so common that we might easily overlook its sobering implications. From what danger did God rescue us?

The God who devised the plan of salvation through Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection must be a certain kind of God. Come and see his kindness.

God’s mercy shines all the brighter against the darkness of our sinful past, when our rebellious desires drove us into every kind of malice and envy.

A Christian’s meekness comes not from a certain disposition but from the Holy Spirit — the same Spirit who sometimes moves us to rebuke.

Because of the redemption Christ has accomplished, we are free to submit without fear to human rulers as we pursue the good works God has given us.

The church needs pastors through whom the word of God overflows in everyday speech, including in words of exhortation and authoritative rebuke.

When Christ gave himself for our sake, what did he accomplish? His redeeming work breaks the power of sin and purifies us so that we belong to him.

Jesus’s second coming is supposed to be our greatest hope. But what is it about that hope that should make us wait so eagerly?

How do we know the difference between a godly desire and a worldly desire? A godly desire will only grow sweeter as our desire for God grows.

The training regimen of grace goes deeper than moral imperatives — “Do this” and “Do that.” God’s grace trains us to start and end at the cross of Christ.

Where does grace start, and where does it go? Before all ages, God planned to save us by his grace and to make us holy through that same power.

In the most vulnerable places in society, God has called believers who will make his salvation beautiful through their submission, diligence, and joy.

What could be more important for young men than self-control? Paul finishes his instructions to various generations with a word to young men and Titus.

What does love for the word of God look like for women in various stages of life? By God’s design, older women can guide younger women in Christ’s ways.

Sound doctrine — God’s revelation in Christ — has the power to guard us from silliness and immaturity and frivolity, and to make us healthy in every way.

Any good deed could be an act of hypocrisy if it denies the promises of God. So, what kind of heart makes good deeds actually good?

Why would Paul quote — and agree with — someone who seems to insult everyone in his mission field? Paul is aiming for rebuke that leads to restoration.

In a world full of evil, an elder’s job is not to fight an impossible battle against outside influences but to silence error within the church.

What enables elders to rebuke and exhort with all authority? Only their tight grip on the healthy doctrine given to them in the word of God.

What do the various elder qualifications mean, and where can we go to learn more about them? Each is rooted to Scripture and crucial for pastors.

In Paul’s list of elder qualifications, does “husband of one wife” mean “never remarried” — and does “his children are faithful” mean they must be Christians?

An elder’s ability to lead his family reflects more than his ability to lead the church — it reflects how outsiders will view the church itself.

What task could be so important that an apostle would leave behind a trusted friend to see it accomplished? For Paul, it was establishing leaders in the churches.

Paul had a trusted messenger all over the Roman Empire, grounded in the same faith and so dear to him that he called him his child. Who was this Titus?

When Paul talks about the hope of eternal life, he considers the word a crucial ingredient — but does he mean the word he preached or the Word who became flesh?

Before the beginning of time, God promised eternal life — and not only that, but he planned everything it would take to bring about his purposes.