Paul, a prisoner (Philemon 1b)

“a prisoner of Jesus Christ” - desmios Xristou Iesou 

Sometimes Paul refers to himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ, stressing his calling and mission from God.  Often Paul refers to himself as a slave of Jesus Christ, a menial servant who does whatever his master demands.  But in this personal letter, Paul uses a different noun to describe himself: “prisoner”.

We can learn much from this description.  First, we may take the declaration naturally.  Paul is truly a prisoner at this moment.  He is under arrest in Rome, chained to a Roman guard every hour of every day.  As a prisoner for two years in the Middle East, Paul exercised his right as a Roman citizen and appealed his case to Caesar.  Now, for almost two years, Paul has been waiting in Rome for an audience with Nero.  As he pens this letter to a friend, he notes his physical position.  He is indeed a prisoner. However, he does not consider himself a prisoner of Rome or of Nero.

No, the description Paul primarily had on his mind when he penned the word “prisoner” was not about his physical imprisonment. Paul views himself as a spiritual prisoner.  He is “chained” to Jesus every hour of every day.  He goes where Jesus goes.  He does what Jesus does.  He says what Jesus says.  And his “imprisonment” is something he gladly accepts!

The phrase “a prisoner of Jesus Christ” may be interpreted in more than one way even when describing his “spiritual bondage”.  He is a prisoner “belonging to” Christ.  He is Jesus’ “peculiar possession”.  He is also a prisoner “for” Christ.  His devotion is not to himself, his family, his friends, or even his emperor.  No, Christ has made him His prisoner and all that entails (travels, words, actions) is in service to and for Jesus.

This one who, like each of us, was in bondage to sin has been set free from that sin.  He is now happily in bondage to Christ, gladly doing his bidding, whatever it may be.

May you and I view ourselves as prisoners of Christ.  May we see ourselves chained to our Lord, saying and doing (and thinking) only what our dear Savior says and does (and thinks!).

"5 Cities that Ruled the World": A Book Review

“5 Cities that Ruled the World: How Jerusalem, Athens, Rome, London, and New York shaped Global History” by Douglas Wilson briefly examines the history of these cities. Mr. Wilson presents the significance of each city on world history in general and the city’s impact on the West in particular.  Mr. Wilson approaches the history from the perspective of a Christian, noting the hand of God in the rise (and fall) of these metropolitan areas.

At the outset I must confess I struggled reading this book. The Introduction grabbed my attention and I was ready to charge into the meat of the work. But something happened when I entered the first chapter on the city of Jerusalem. I felt like I was trying to walk from one side of a swimming pool to another in four feet of water. It was a very, very, slow read.

As a result, I put the book aside not for a few hours or a few days but for several months. Something inside of me did not want to pick it back up and read another word. But, I finally did and I am grateful I pressed forward. After a few more difficult pages in the Jerusalem chapter, suddenly the book seemed to open up and my reading pace picked up speed. The more I read, the more I wanted to read. I completed the book in only a matter of days.

I’m not sure why I struggled with the early part of the work but overall I found Mr. Wilson’s book enjoyable, informative, and even inspirational. The book contains 236 pages and 14 of them are footnotes. When you read the book, do not skip the footnotes. They contain wealth of information as well.


“5 Cities that Ruled the World” is an interesting work and I encourage you to pick it up and press on when you feel as though you cannot read another word. Your diligence will be well rewarded.

I want to thank Thomas Nelson for providing a copy of this book for review. No other compensation was provided.