Philemon 1-3 our common bond

"But the letter says even more: Paul, a Hebrew of the Hebrews, and Timothy, half-Greek and half-Jew, are writing to Gentiles, Greeks and Romans - Philemon, Apphia, Archippus, and the church in their house - about a slave: Onesimus. Paul and Timothy are dealing with people of diverse races, backgrounds, and economic status on the basis of their common ideas: the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Their community is one based on shared propositions, not shared family or national histories. Their fellowship is in the truth (which is only and always propositional), not in blood. Timothy and Paul address or call each other and all these people 'beloved' and 'brothers.' What makes them beloved brothers is not a common bloodline or ethnicity or nation, but their common faith, their common doctrine, the Gospel of Jesus Christ." - John Robbins, Slavery and Christianity

1Paul, a prisoner of Jesus Christ, and Timothy our brother, unto Philemon our dearly beloved, and fellowlabourer, 2And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellowsoldier, and to the church in thy house: 3Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Philemon 8-16 - Philemon's love for the truth

"Paul says that he is appealing to Philemon 'for love's sake,' rather than boldly commanding him. Some commentators understand this phrase to refer to Paul's love for Philemon, but it is Philemon's love for Christ Jesus and for all the saints that is mentioned most prominently in the preceding verse: Paul has already mentioned them twice. Paul wants Philemon to do something out of love, not from a sense of duty, even though Paul has the authority to command him to do his Christian duty. If Philemon does this thing voluntarily, willingly, intelligently, and cheerfully, rather than grudgingly and without understanding, then he too will have grown in Christ, that is, in his understanding and love for Christ and all believers." - John Robbins, Slavery and Christianity

8Wherefore, though I might be much bold in Christ to enjoin thee that which is proper, 9Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ.

10I beseech thee for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my bonds: 11Which in time past was to thee unprofitable, but now profitable to thee and to me: 12Whom I have sent again: thou therefore receive him, that is, mine own bowels: 13Whom I would have retained with me, that in thy stead he might have ministered unto me in the bonds of the gospel: 14But without thy mind would I do nothing; that thy benefit should not be as it were of necessity, but willingly. 15For perhaps he therefore departed for a season, that thou shouldest receive him for ever; 16Not now as a servant, but above a servant, a brother beloved, specially to me, but how much more unto thee, both in the flesh, and in the Lord?

Matthew 18 - tell it to the Church

"Paul's final greeting is to 'the church in your house.' In the New Testament, the word church is never used of a building. We have drifted so far from the teaching of the New Testament that some Christians now think they are not in a church unless they are in a church building, or at least affiliated with an organization that owns such a building. But in the New Testament, the church is a society that meets for the purpose of publicly worshiping God. All Christians, as members of Christ's body, which is the invisible church, are members of Christ's church. When some of them gather together for public worship in a particular place, they are called a particular church: in this case, 'the church in your house.' Just as the New Testament never uses the word church to refer to a building, so it never uses the word church to refer only to church officers. It does not even mention such officers or offices as popes, cardinals, episcopal bishops, archbishops, trustees, superintendents, assistant pastors, associate pastors, music ministers, or youth pastors. All those offices have been invented by men. The church in Philemon's house is the entire group of Christians that meets there for worship. They are all part of the ekklesia." - John Robbins, Slavery and Christianity

Sovereignty of God

God is soveriegn means that God is the ultimate power behind our "power". He alone powers all things including our will, and our actions. Nothing stands outside his soveriegn will and purpose.

Perseverance of the Saints and its meaning

"Of course, the perseverance of the saints does not mean sinless perfection or a life free from struggle and temptation. Eradication of our corrupt nature is a long and difficult process and will not be completed until we are glorified. As long as the present life continues, we may become careless of the means of grace, our hearts may be temporarily hardened, we may fall into grievous sins. Thus we may harm others and bring temporal punishment upon ourselves. God does not promise to carry us to the skies on flowery beds of ease. But praise his name, he promises to carry, drag, or push us there. So, and only so, we arrive." - Gordon H. Clark, What Do Presbyterians Believe?

To know God is to have life eternal

"The body of Scripture is a doctrine sufficient to live well. It comprehendeth many holy sciences, whereof one is principal, others are handmaids or retainers.
The principal science is Theology.
Theology is the science of living blessedly forever. Blessed life consisteth in the knowledge of God. (John 17:3) 'And this is life eternal that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.' (Isaiah 53:11) . . .'by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many.' And therefore it consisteth likewise in the knowledge of ourselves, because we know God by looking into ourselves.
Theology hath two parts: the first of God, the second of His works."

- William Perkins, A Golden Chain, or The Description of Theology

The Arminian does not believe the Gospel

The Arminian/General Baptist gospel make the Cross work of Christ a mere by product of what they think really saves. For them it is not Christ's death imputed to His people that saves and results in regeneration. For them it is really one's faith that results of the imputation of Christ's death. This tramples on the good news of Christ atoning sacrifice for His elect and cheapens as all forms of conditionalism does the Grace of God. The good news is that Christ died on behalf of His people by taking their sins upon Himself appeasing God's wrath on behalf them so that as a result they are imputed His righteousness. In this is God's sovereignty and justice seen. Only those who have been elected before the foundation of the world before the foundation of the world not because of any work found in them will in fact be saved by the shed blood of Christ and no one whom Christ died for will perish. It is Christ work on the Cross that limits the atonement to them only. There is no condition by which a sinner is to be saved but that the shed blood of Christ would save them. Those who were/not saved are because Christ did/not atone for their sins.

Where do you start your doctrine?

As far as I can say it as a Calvinistic believer I do not start my doctrine with the condition of man, nor with the unconditional election of certain sinners - though I would not disagree with either of those points and would say that where I do start those two points are in fact presupposed along with irresistible grace and also the preservation of the saints. Where I start the doctrine is where I think as a Christian every true believer should start - at the effectual work of Christ limited to only His people alone which is the gospel as opposed to the law of God. Both of these (Law and Gospel) the conditionalist confused. They say things that yes one may be saved by obedience of the law and yet the gospel makes it easier or they say that yes we are saved by the gospel however after the gospel we must look at our good works to assure the Christian's salvation. These if I may say are in fact damnable heresies.

It is not by our works but by Christ's accomplished works

The law (which ever law you want to talk about) demanded death to all who disobeyed it's commands. Romans 5 says death came through Adam and life through Christ. All men by nature are disobedient unrighteous people by birth. What did Christ do? Christ, of course, was not just a sinless Saviour but he died in accordance to the Scriptures. It is Christ death that frees us from the law of sin and death so that we live in Him as the result of His sinless sacrifice. - Romans 8

The Law demands perfect righteousness or beacons us to Faith in Christ

"The law, then, as a covenant of works, demands in the most authoritative manner, from every descendant of Adam who is under it, perfect holiness of nature, perfect righteousness of life, and complete satisfaction for sin. And none of the race of fallen Adam can ever enter heaven unless he either answers these three demands perfectly in his own person, or accepts by faith the consummate righteousness of the second Adam, who 'is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth' (Romans 10:4)." - John Colquhoun, A Treatise On The Law and The Gospel

The Law of God and His sovereignty

"The law of God strictly taken in the aspects which it bears on mankind is to be considered in  a threefold point of view: first, as written on the heart of man in his creation; second, as given under the form of a covenant of works to him; and third as a rule of life in the hand of Christ the Mediator to all true believers." - John Colquhoun, A Treatise on the Law and Gospel

"The law, as written on the heart of the first man, is often called the law of creation, because it was the will of the sovereign Creator, revealed to the reasonable creature, by impressing or engraving it on his mind and heart. To this law, so inlaid in the mind and heart in creation, as to the natural instinct and moral rectitude of the rational creature, every person, as a reasonable creature, is indispensably bound. It obliges to perfect and perpetual obedience in all possible states of the creature, whether he be on earth, in heaven, or even in hell. Since man is the creature of God, and since, in his creation he was made in the image of God, he owes all possible subjection and obedience to God, considered as his benign Creator." - John Colquhoun

"God is sovereign. Whatever he does is just, for this very reason: Because he does it. If he punishes a man, the man is justly punished; and hence the man is responsible. This answers the form of argument which runs: Whatever God does is just; eternal punishment is not just; therefore, God does not so punish. If the one who argues thus means that he has received a special revelation that there is no eternal punishment, we cannot deal with him here. If, however he is not laying claim to a special revelation of future history but to some philosophic principle which is intended to show that eternal punishment is unjust, the distinction between our positions become immediately obvious. Calvin has rejected the view of the universe which makes a law, whether of justice or of evolution, instead of the Lawgiver, supreme. Such a view is similar to Platonic dualism which posited a world of Ideas superior to the divine Artificer. God in such a system is finite or limited, bound to follow or obey the independent patter. But those who hold to the sovereignty of God determine what justice is by observing what God actually does. Whatever God does is just. What he commands men to do or not to do is similarly just or unjust." - Gordon H. Clark, God and evil

Hearing is not the same as actually hearing someone

"What did the Apostle John mean when he spoke of seeing with the eyes and handling with the hands? Did he mean aisthesis, proper sensibles, common sensibles, sensation per accidens, or what?
In greek the first word of 1 John designates the Word of Life, who in verse 4 is identified as Jesus Christ. Since the Epistle and the Gospel have the same author, it is permissible to connect this Word of Life with the Word of John 1:1. And no one should object if we equate this Word wit...h him whom Paul calls 'the Power of God' and 'the Wisdom of God.' This second person of the Trinity is the subject of John's declaration. Can this eternal Wisdom be heard with the ears, seen with the eyes, and handled with the hands? Is the second person of the Trinity an object of sense? The word hearing comes first; seeing comes second. This discussion will take them in turn.
As for hearing, one should note that no one can ever hear a piece of music or a line of poetry. Our opponents, who insist on sensation as the origin of knowledge, cannot well object to an instance taken from experience. St. Augustine pointed out that to 'hear' music or poetry, one must at least 'perceive' the rhythm. But there is no rhythm in a single sensation. Even beyond perception it is necessary to have memory before a line of poetry can be recognized as poetry. A single sound has no rhythm or meter. The first sounds of a line must be remembered until the last sound occurs; note also that the first sound no longer exists when the last sound sounds. Therefore no one ever senses music or poetry. This Augustinian remark should satisfy any empiricist; but, of course, it is not exegesis.
As the noun aesthesis in Scripture does not mean sensation, so, too, the verb to hear does not do so, either. Exodus 15:14 'The people shall hear and be afraid.' The meaning is that the enemies of Israel will understand the danger of being defeated in battle." - John Robbins (?), Clark Speaks From The Grave