Ephesians 6:5-9
Verse 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people,
Today’s passage is another one of those which can cause some friction and have people writing off the Bible and Christianity and sadly this is because of viewing these verse through the lens of modern society. Over the last few centuries things have taken place which cause a distorted view of biblical understanding. To grasp Paul’s meaning to this passage we need to allow ourselves to think of it outside the current understanding of the word.
The fact that slaves are being addressed in this letter written to the Church in Ephesus shows us they were not viewed as second class citizens. The slaves weren’t given a postscript at the end of the letter or a separate letter of all their own, no, Paul understood they were part of the Church and the Church is a unified body. There is no hierarchy, just different ministry positions. In life we’re not all going to be CEOs, some of us will even have roles others couldn’t imagine doing, but we each have a role to play.
Paul wanted to make sure the Christian slaves understood how obeying their masters helped them live out the Christian life. It was important for them to remember not only how they should view their responsibilities but even more important they needed to understand what their relationship with their master should look like. As Christians were to be counter cultural – and that wasn’t just a mandate for those in higher positions – it was just as or maybe even more important for those in the roles thought less of, to live a different way than their peers.
Paul was telling them they needed to obey with respect, healthy fear – like you would have for a serpent which could kill you but you needed to live around – and with sincerity of heart. Just like the children had been instructed not to obey because they had to but because they wanted to show love to their parents, slaves were being told obey not because they had to but because they wanted to out of respect for their masters and their love of God.
Paul wanted them to know the same truth we need to remember, when we are doing what we were created to do, we aren’t really doing it for our boss but our Master. Seeing our work as being something we do for the glory of God, should bring new and deeper meaning even to the most menial tasks. Then we will learn it isn’t what we do that gives us identity, that comes from knowing Whose we are.
Making It Personal
Why do you do what you do? How does your attitude about your work reflect on your relationship with God? How can you do your job in a way which brings glory to Him?
Making It Personal Kids
Do you do your chores because you want to or because you have to? How could a better attitude about doing your work show you love Jesus? What can you do for Jesus today?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for giving us work to do. Help us appreciate our work and see it as a gift from You so we can learn to do all we are asked with sincerity, all for Your glory. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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