Our Beloved Sister Apphia

The book of Philemon is a one page book, which is not at all memorable in sermons or serious bible study sessions. You would likewise be forgiven if you have in fact up until this point, never heard of it or if you have to turn to the contents page of your Bible in order to find it.  The book of Philemon is in fact, a one page letter written from Rabbi Paul, while Paul himself was bound in shackles. What could have “shaken and stirred” Paul to such an extent that he writes this letter from a prison cell, during a time of trial and pain? The answer was simple – he needed to save a man’s life. But one woman was called upon to help make this decision, a decision for death or life, her name was Apphia. This teaching forms part of the Female Leadership in the New Testament series.