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Paul’s letter to Philemon has great practical value for us today. It teaches us about giving others second chances, the equality that believers have in Christ, and the power of the Gospel to transcend cultural and socioeconomic boundaries. In short, Paul’s postcard to Philemon reminds us about grace.

At a time when we have every reason to pull together and work in harmony to get the job done, it seems as though some would much rather weaken the ranks and hinder our effectiveness. Today, let’s go back to some of the basics that our indulged era seems to have forgotten.

In this section of Matthew’s gospel, Jesus is with His disciples on the Mount of Olives, just east of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley. They are full of questions, and He graciously responds to their concerns.

The parable we are considering today appears on the surface to be to be about a man and his slaves, but it actuality symbolizes the Saviour and His followers. Read it closely. Think it through. See if you don’t agree that it has a great deal to say about how we are to respond to the blessings of God.

We are the recipients of so much from God’s gracious hand. Why? Why all these tremendous blessings? These Psalms 67 and 103 answer that question.

God cares about good leadership—the kind mentioned in Scripture, modelled by men and women who served their generations with integrity and refused to lag behind because of pressure, demands, or ingratitude. Strong and determined yet gracious and godly are the qualities we witness in those we will study in this lesson.