Onesimus was a runaway slave. He was a slave to Philemon, a rich man who was a member of the church at Colossae.
We have to ask ourselves – are we trophies of grace? Have we been changed? There are some people who say they have come to the Lord but you couldn’t say they are trophies of grace, they are not much different to how they have always been. They don’t seem to have a new spirit, a new heart, 100% for the Lord and his worship. They are still feathering their nests in this world, still getting their pleasures from earthly things. Well, Onesimus could be sent back as a totally changed young man and that is what we long for in each one of us. If we have really repented of sin, sought the Lord, trusted in Jesus Christ and his sacrificial death on Calvary, come to him as Saviour, yielded our lives to him, we too will be trophies of grace, changed, trustworthy, different motives and desires.