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Introduction: \\ Colossians 3:22-4:1 \\ In the passage that was read a few moments ago from the book of Colossians, Paul’s teaching was accompanied by a great deal of tension.
It’s hard for us to even imagine today the vast extent of slavery in the first century and just how cruel it was.
Ancient historians estimate that there were about 60 million slaves in the Roman Empire, which was about one-third to one-half the population.
Because of this, work was considered beneath the dignity of the slave-owning free man.
Practically everything was done by slaves.
They worked in the household, they worked in the factories, they worked in the fields.
Some slaves were even doctors and teachers.
\\ \\ Though there was occasionally a good relationship between the master and slave, basically the life of a slave was a miserable one.
In both Greek and Roman cultures, most slaves had no legal rights and were treated as pieces of property.
A Roman by the name of Varro once wrote that a slave is no better than a beast of the field who just happens to talk.
Ancient tradition classified slaves as things, living tools.
One Roman writer said, "Old slaves should be thrown on a dump, and when a slave is ill do not feed him anything.
It is not worth your money.
Take sick slaves and throw them away because they are nothing but inefficient tools."
\\ \\ Gaius, a Roman lawyer, said, "We may note that it is universally accepted that the master possesses the power of life and death over a slave."
If a slave ran away, he was branded on the forehead with the letter F for "fugitivus" and sometimes even put to death, with no trial.
The situation of slaves in general wasn’t good, and for some of them it was terrible.
\\ \\ With that kind of attitude prevalent in the ancient world, it’s not hard to imagine how slaves felt about their masters.
It doesn’t come as a surprise that slave revolts were common, sometimes involving tens of thousands of slaves at a time.
\\ \\ So right in the midst of this tension between masters and slaves, Paul has some very clear and practical instructions for Christians on both sides of the issue.
\\ \\ Thank God, slavery is no longer a part of our own culture.
And there might be a tendency to think that Paul’s words really don’t mean much anymore.
But I would suggest to you this morning that Paul’s teaching does have an application today as we consider our relationship not as masters and slaves, but as employers and employees.
\\ \\ That’s not to say that the relationships are exactly the same, not at all.
But the application of Paul’s teaching does relate to the situations we find ourselves in.
We live in an age where there’s still a lot of struggle that goes on between labor and management, between the employer and the employees.
\\ \\ Conflicts go on all the time, with each side accusing the other of selfishness and unreasonableness.
Employees want smaller work loads, fewer hours, more vacation, and more pay and benefits.
Employers want more productivity and more profits.
What’s the solution, from God’s point of view?
How should a Christian conduct himself on the job?
How should he handle the problems that will inevitably come up?
\\ \\ I think it’s significant that we have a Christian responsibility in the workplace just as surely as we have a responsibility in our times of worship together.
Following Christ is not a part-time job.
You don’t leave your Christianity on the front doorstep of the church building when you leave.
You take it with you into your home and into your workplace.
So when problems come up at work, it’s just like when problems come up in the home -- the solution has to begin with God.
\\ \\ In every aspect of human life God’s plan is one of authority and submission, and those two pillars form the bedrock of relations, not only in the home, but at work as well.
To avoid chaos, somebody has to lead, and others have to follow.
In that regard, Paul’s instructions to masters and slaves are very similar to his instructions for husbands and wives, and parents and children.
\\ \\ It’s important from the outset to recognize that God’s plan for authority is not based on superiority.
Just because husbands have authority over their wives doesn’t mean they’re superior.
Just because parents have authority over their children doesn’t mean they’re superior.
It just means that God has a plan of authority and submission.
\\ \\ The same was true of masters and slaves in the first century, and the same is true of employers and employees today.
You may sit on the pew right next to your supervisor here on Sunday mornings and you stand before God as equals.
"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
(Galatians 3:28).
But when you go to work on Monday morning, your relationship with that man changes.
It’s all a matter of authority and submission.
\\ \\ Paul has something to say to both sides of the matter, and we’ll make application to both sides of our situation today.
First, Paul tells the slaves what their responsibility is.
\\ \\ \\ I. Responsibility of Employees \\ \\ A. Obedience \\ \\ First and foremost, there is the requirement of obedience.
"Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh."
(Colossians 3:22a).
The Greek word translated "obey" is actually a combination of the Greek words for "listen" and "under".
It means to "get under the authority of your master, and listen to what he tells you to do." Considering the working conditions of slaves in those days, that was a strong statement.
\\ \\ Hearing those words, someone might have said, "Paul, whose side are you on?"
Think how these words must have sounded to a slave who was being mistreated and abused!
"Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything."
\\ \\ I would suggest to you this morning that the first obligation a Christian has is to please his Lord and to be a faithful testimony to him.
One way to do this, Paul says, is to give willing obedience to those under whom you work, regardless of who they are or what their character is like.
\\ \\ Christians are not to obey simply when they feel like it or when their employers are fair and reasonable.
They are to obey in everything and at all times, the only exception, of course, being when they’re instructed to do something opposed to God’s word.
\\ \\ We’re not free to pick and choose only those things that please us.
We may not agree with them.
We may not always like what they ask.
We may reach a point where we think the situation is intolerable, and we need to quit and look for something else.
But as long as we’re employed, we should do what we’re told and work to the best of our ability.
\\ \\ You may say, "But you don’t know my boss!"
If you think you have problems, imagine being a slave in the first century.
Think about the cruel masters those Christian slaves had to serve.
And yet Paul still said, "Obey in everything."
No restrictions were applied to this obedience, no fine print.
He didn’t say, "Do what you have been assigned if it makes sense to you or if gives you a sense of satisfaction."
What he said was, "Do what you’re told."
\\ \\ Peter was even more straightforward about it.
He said, "Servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh."
(I Peter 2:18).
I think the application for us today is that we are to be obedient, hard-working employees, even if our employer is at times unreasonable.
\\ \\ I think it’s interesting that Paul was also concerned about the opposite situation.
What if your boss is a Christian?
Paul was afraid that Christians might reason that if they worked for a fellow Christian, then they didn’t need to be as cautious and responsible in their conduct.
Maybe they felt like they should receive preferential treatment in that situation.
But listen to what Paul says, "And those who have believing masters, let them not despise them because they are brethren, but rather serve them because those who are benefited are believers and beloved."
(I Timothy 6:2).
\\ \\ So whether his boss is kind or cruel, believing or pagan, a Christian is to be obedient to him because that’s God’s will.
An employer is an employer, no matter who he is, and he deserves the best effort in whatever work we do for him.
\\ \\ William McDonald has written that Christian slaves brought a higher price in the slave market in the first century.
I don’t know if that’s true or not, but I don’t doubt that it is.
I truly believe that being a Christian should always make a person a better, more productive worker.
\\ \\ If you’re living the Christian life, it ought to manifest itself at the job.
Your employer should be able to see in you an employee who follow instructions, a worker who does what he’s told the first time.
As Christians, we have a responsibility to obey our employers.
\\ \\ \\ B. Your attitude \\ \\ But Paul doesn’t stop with obedience.
He qualifies our obedience with a couple of regulations.
The first has to do with our attitude.
Slaves (and, by application, employees) are to serve "not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God." (Colossians 4:22b).
The idea here is that employees should do what they’re supposed to be doing all the time, not just when the boss is watching.
Neither should you attempt to get by with as little as possible on the job.
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