SERVING A MASTER

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

All who are under the yoke of slavery should consider their masters worthy of full respect, so that God’s name and our teaching may not be slandered. Those who have believing masters should not show them disrespect just because they are fellow believers. Instead, they should serve them even better because their masters are dear to them as fellow believers and are devoted to the welfare of their slaves.

1 Timothy 6:1-2

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

The Bible can clash with present day mores. There’s little question in that but we always need to remember that many scriptural passages were written within the context of certain cultural norms of the time and in New Testament days as Paul wrote his epistles, slavery was prevalent and permissible.

Now, in saying this, we should never think that verses like the opening two from 1 Timothy 6 hold no message or meaning for today. For you may be surprised to know that slavery is still legal and allowed in at least ten nations of the world which include very large countries like China, Russia, and India, the largest purveyor of slavery with approximately 8 million people enslaved.

What’s this mean?

It means that the literal application of these verses is still applicable more than 2,000 years after they were written. For here in the 21st century, there are still slaves and masters in the world, no matter how inappropriate and unacceptable we might consider slavery to be.  

So in places where slavery is allowed, Christian slaves are obligated to honor God by respecting their masters, whether they are believers or not. In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, we glean this additional guidance on this matter:

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free. Vv. 5-8

Did you catch the main point in these verses?

Take the fact that the targeted audience was slaves here and you get the core exhortation to obey with respect and fear while serving wholeheartedly, just as one would serve the Lord. In other words, all Christians, whether slave or free, are to put the Lord first in everything. We seek to honor and glorify Him first while following His will, no matter what we are doing.

And that brings me to the spiritual application of this passage that applies to every single person on earth, no matter the place or the time.

For ever since Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ushered sin into what was a perfect creation, every person has been a slave, a slave to sin. All people are in a bondage they can’t break free from on their own and while under this bondage, they are to serve their Master God with the fullest effort, devotion, respect, and honor.

Of interest, there is a Greek word found throughout the New Testament, doulos, which unfortunately gets misrepresented in many Bible translations which render it as meaning “servant”. The actual meaning of doulos though is “slave” which carries with it a completely different connotation and associated application.

I say this because someone who serves has rights and freedoms. They can choose to serve, where they serve, and how they would like to serve. They also have the option to not serve if they don’t wish to.

Slaves have no such liberty. They are to carry out the will of their master, period.

This is why we need to understand where we are as people. For no one is unslaved and without a Master, whether they recognize it or not. All are under the oppression and repression of sin and all fall under the sovereign authority of the Lord God Almighty. Those who acknowledge this serve and submit to their Master, knowing they are in the best place possible under His care which is not just for today but for all eternity.

One more point of interest in this message. For we see that there were Gospel-believing masters in Ephesus and in our passage today, we see the slave called to serve their Christ-believing master even better than a non-believing one because the master who believed in Jesus would be more devoted to the welfare of the slaves they owned, just as God, the Master of all, cares for all His people under the slavery of sin.   

Going back to Ephesus, chapter 6, we find these words that were applicable to slave masters of the time:

Masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in Heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him. v. 9

Here we find the scriptures ensuring that masters are instructed to honor the Lord in the way they treat the slaves just as the slaves are expected to treat their masters. In both instances, God is the supreme Master of all people, a God who will show preference neither to the master or slave. All are expected to submit fully their Master God, giving up their own personal desires in order to fulfill His.

In sum, all people are slaves, slaves to sin, and all are subject to a superior, divine Master who not only cares well for the sin slaves but provides a way out of bondage through His Son Jesus, the only One who can save and bring someone to life eternal with their Master God.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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