Above All: Colossians 3:22-4:1
Pastor Jefferson M. Williams
Chenoa Baptist Church
08-07-2022
Got it Wrong?
Recently, a former student of mine posted on Facebook a question that caught my attention. This is what he wrote:
“If the Bible got it wrong on slavery, can we really trust anything the Bible says?”
Does the Bible, “get it wrong” on the the issue of slavery? Can we trust the Word of God on all the other hot-button issues?
My challenge to us today is that the Word of God can be trusted and that if we study what the Bible says about slavery closely, we will discover Paul’s revolutionary approach to dismantling the institution from the inside out.
Review
In chapter three, Paul has been making the case that believers in Jesus have taking off the old nature and have put on the new nature and that changes how we do relationships in the church and in the home.
Last week we learned that wives should submit voluntarily to their husbands and trust their leadership.
Husbands should love their wives well avoid being harsh with them.
Children should obey their parents because it pleases the Lord and it teaches them to come under authority.
Parents, in particular, fathers, are not to exasperate their children and cause them to lose heart.
That Paul included these “household codes” is not strange but his focus on the Lordship of Christ in these relationships was revolutionary.
The third pair that Paul gives instruction to are slaves and masters.
We are going to look at the difference between slavery in Paul’s time and our idea of slavery.
We will look at the directions he gives to both slaves and masters.
We will learn about a runaway slave named Onesimus.
We will apply these principles to our work life as well.
Turn with me to Col 3:22.
Prayer.
Words to Slaves
“Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism. (Col 3:22-25)
This was not the type of slavery that we think about in the history of our country. I think the first time I learned about slavery was watching the Roots miniseries when I was a kid. It was brutal bondage that defied human decency. More recently, “Twelve Years a Slave” or “Django Unchained” highlighted the evil of what southerners called the “peculiar institution.”
It’s been estimated that at that time, one third of every person were slaves and that there were over 50 million slaves in the Roman Empire.
Slaves were of all races and ages. You could become a slave by being captured in war, by being in debt, or by choice. Slaves were manual laborers but also were high ranking government officials (Joseph, Daniel) They ran business and households. They were educated, something more highly educated than their master. Some slaves even had their own servants. And slavery was temporary, not life-long bondage.
But it was still sin for one human being to own another like an animal. So why didn’t Paul simply say that Christians were going to abolish slavery?
Because complete emancipation would have caused the breakdown of the society. The Bible doesn’t condone slavery it regulates it much like the Bible doesn’t condone divorce but it gave rules to do when divorce happened.
Instead Paul sets in motion Biblical decrees that undermined the very nature of slavery and ultimately led to its death and it was Christians like William Penn and William Wilberforce that helped bring that about in our country and England.
Paul addresses the slaves in the church at Colossae showing that there were both slaves and masters that had become new creations through the Gospel.
Paul considers slaves morally responsible human beings that have responsibilities when it came to living out their faith.
I can image the look of wonder on their faces when they were included in these household instructions.
“Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.” (Col 3:22)
Paul addressed the slaves in the church in Ephesus was well:
“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.” (Eph 6:5-6)
What are slaves to do?
Paul wrote to Titus to “teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything…” (Titus 2:9)
Paul expects the slaves in that congregation to be obedient to their “earthly masters.” Did you catch that? This will come up again in just a minute.
They are to obey “in everything,” again, like last week, there are exceptions. If a master were to command the slave to do something illegal, immoral, dishonest, or wrong, they must obey God, their heavenly master, above their earthly masters.
Take the Hebrew midwives who were commanded to kill male Hebrew children but refused.
Or three Hebrew teenagers that we know as Shadach, Meshach, and Abednego who refused to bow down to a 90 foot statue of King Nebuchadnezzar.
How are they to do this?
In both passages, Paul cautions them not to only do their best when the master’s eye is on them to win their favor.
Brian Bill tells this story:
Years ago, a missionary was responsible for getting the nationals to do certain jobs. He was frustrated because they were lazy and only worked when he was actually watching them. When he left they would stop their jobs and just sit around. This man had a glass eye and one day when it was irritating him, he took it out and put it on a stump.
When he returned, everybody was still working because his “eye” was watching the workers. The missionary was thrilled until one day he came back to find a hat over his eye and all the workers lounging around. That’s what Paul is warning against here. We should work hard even when the boss is not around.
They are to obey sincerely, with respect and fear, doing the will of God from their hearts.
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men…” (Col 3:23)
Why do this and what will be the result?
Because, ultimately, they are not working for men but they are slaves of Christ.
Paul tells the slaves that they can actually show their masters the Gospel
“Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.” (Titus 2:9-10)
A pastor was on an American Airlines flight and notices that the flight attendant was absolutely amazing at her job. She served with a smile and her attitude was contagious.
As the pastor left the plane, he said American Airlines is lucky to have you as an employee. She leaned in and said, “Thank you, but I don’t work for American Airlines. I work for Jesus Christ.”
What’s in it for the slave?
“…since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.” (Col 3:24)
This must have been amazing to hear! Slaves were considered property and anything they “owned” was legally their master’s possession.
What was this inheritance? Paul spelled it out for them in chapter one:
“…who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Col 1:12-14)
In Ephesians, Paul calls it this “incomparable riches of His grace.” (Eph 2:7)
In the church, there is neither slave or free. Both share equally in the salvation that Christ secured on the cross.
Here’s an interesting thought I came across this week. In 2 Corinthians 13:12, Paul tells the believers in Corinth to greet another with a holy kiss.
In that culture, you would kiss as a greeting, much the same as now in Middle Eastern cultures. But you would only kiss someone of your social status or your own family.
But in this new thing called the church, Gentiles kissed Jewish people and masters kissed slaves! It was so radical that the Romans accused them of being incestuous - they call each other brother and sister and they are kissing each other!
Paul then adds a command. In the English, it reads, “It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” But in the Greek, it is an imperative - Serve the Lord! Do your best work, with a grateful heart, as a act of worship to your Savior.
Paul ends his words to slaves reminding them that just as there are rewards for doing right, God will punish those who do wrong.
“Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism.” (v. 25)
The word favoritism is an interesting word picture. It means, “To lift up the face to see who someone is before deciding how to treat them.”
In Ephesians,
“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.” (Eph 6:7)
A Word to the Masters
“Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.” (Col 4:1)
In Ephesians, Paul has the same directives for the masters:
“And 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.” (Eph 6:9)
There is a new dynamic in this relationship. The master has responsibilities to his slaves. He is to provide what is right and fair and not threaten them.
Why? Because they are both slaves to Christ. The earthly master answers to the heavenly master concerning the way he treats his slaves.
One commentator wrote:
“That masters are to treat their slaves “in the same way” is cryptic but still shocking. For them to follow this instruction, they would have to treat their slaves with respect and fear and with sincerity of heart as to Christ. That alone should have abolished slavery for Christians! The ethics move beyond the Golden Rule…to treating others as we would treat our Lord.”
And God shows no favoritism - there is no Greek or Jew, uncircumcised or circumcised, barbarian or Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
A Case Study
Does it seem strange to you that Paul devotes one verse to wives, one verse to husbands, one verse to children, and one verse to parents, but four verses to slaves?
Maybe there were a lot of slaves in Colossae? Or maybe something, or someone, was on Paul’s mind when he wrote this letter?
He did and his name was Onesimus, a runaway slave from Colossae that Paul had met and led to Christ in prison. He calls Onesimus his “son” who became his son “while I was in chains.”
Paul wrote a small letter to Onesimus master Philemon that is part of the Bible, right after the letter to Colossae.
Philemon was a Christian and a church met in his house in Colossae. Paul had lead him to faith and had a close relationship with him.
When Paul encountered Onesimus, he had run away from Colossae and may have stolen from Philemon. Both of these actions would have warranted severe punishment.
Paul writes a letter to Philemon to be carried back to Colossae by none other than Onesimus! This letter is a master class in using influence to bring about the result you want but it also had far reaching effects.
Onesimus name means “useful.” Paul uses a play on words and tells Philemon:
"Formerly he was useless to you [as a runway slave], but now he has become useful both to you and to me.” (v.11)
Onesimus had become an assistant to Paul and he was so good that Paul wanted to keep him there. But he also knew that these two believers needed to be reconciled.
Paul told Philemon that God’s hand was in the whole event:
“Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever— no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a fellow man and as a brother in the Lord.” (v. 15-16)
This is where we get the verse in O Holy Night:
“Chains shall break, for the slave is now our brother…”
Paul doesn’t command Philemon, though he could have, to take Onesimus back but sees it as an act of gospel partnership:
“So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me. I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. I will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your very self.” (17-19)
Paul plays the part of Christ, taking on the burden of any wrongs Onesimus may have committed.
This is just one example but think through the ramifications of this happening again and again.
Paul didn’t call for outright rebellion but as slaves and masters started treating each other as brothers and sisters in Christ and sitting by each other in worship each week, the institution of slavery lost its grip in the Roman Empire.
While it is true that many Christians and churches use the Bible wrongly to justify slavery in our nation’s history, it was the Scriptures that lead men like William Wilberforce to spend sixty years of his life fighting slavery and the slave trade.
How does this apply to us?
While the analogy isn’t perfect, these verses can give us some insight into how we are to conduct ourselves as Christians in the workplace.
The other day, my son’s boss asked him where he learned to work the way he does. He told him what I taught him. Most people do their jobs at about 75% effort. If you simply do the job and do it well with 100% effort, you will stand out. If you take the time to go above and beyond, even a little bit you will be a rockstar.
When I was working at the hotel, the first morning we were opened, we didn’t have a certain kind of coffee. A man came down to breakfast and asked for the coffee and had to tell him we didn’t have any that day.
I had seen the family come in - a mom and dad and two toddlers.
I got in my car and drove less than a 1/3 of mile to Duncan donuts and paid $2.78 for a coffee. I came back and knocked on the door the their room and presented it to the mom who was incredibly thankful.
I thought nothing of it until a week later, our boss called everyone together for a meeting and presented me with a fifty dollar gift card for going above and beyond.
I was actually embarrassed. I didn’t feel like I had done anything special. I’ve just learned that Maxine needs her coffee and that mom needed prayer and coffee as well.
We can go out of our way to please our bosses. Andy Stanley has said that the best question that you can ask your supervisor every day is, “What can I do for you today that would make your job easier?”
On the flip side of this, don’t expect rewards for being lazy or sloppy at your work.
Don’t talk back or talk about your boss. Don’t steal from your boss. Work in such a way that your boss trusts you.
What if your boss is a jerk? We are not responsible for the way your boss responds to you but we are responsible to be compassionate, kind, gentle, humble, patient, and loving toward them.
Peter says this in his letter:
“Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your Masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.” (I Peter 2:18)
I watched with pride as Maxine lived out this verse with a terrible boss that didn’t deserve her level of effort or care.
If you are the boss, treat your employees with kindness, dignity, fairness, and take the opportunity to minister to them and their families.
Your attitude can make all the difference. Terry Crews was working as a security guard on the set of a movie. It was a boring job and long hours. He decided that the only thing he could control about the job was his attitude.
He started greeting everyone and learning every person on set names. Every hour he would jump down and do push ups or would start dancing. He smiled and fist bumped everyone.
One day, one of the people on set told him that everyone had noticed his attitude and asked if he would be interested in being in a tv show and that began his showbiz career. Who would have blamed him for being frustrated at being a security guard after playing in the NFL? But he looked at that job as an opportunity to bring value to others.
Your work can be an act of worship to Jesus.
At the hospital I worked at in Mississippi, the CEO’s name was Earl and he had no interest in Jesus. His secretary was a Jesus follower and came in every morning and anointed his desk with oil and prayed for his salvation. She didn’t bash him over the head with a Bible. She lived out her faith in front of him and, although it took over a decade, Earl is a born again Christian today.
In fact, that is who you are actually working for. Your supervisor may sign your paycheck, but Jesus is your real boss. Remember
“…whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” (Col 3:17)
What is the result of Christian slaves in Crete or Christian employees in America live out this faith?
Paul told Titus that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior “attractive.”
The word used here is where we get our word “cosmetics.” Your translation may use the word adorn. Its means to beautify.
In Crete, they would have understood this to mean arranging jewels in a necklace to show off its brilliance.
As we live out our faith in the workplace our conduct will make the Gospel beautiful to non-christians.
During seminary, I waited tables at Red Lobster and did my best to see every day as a mission field. I prayed for the people I worked with and tried to share the Gospel with my words and deeds.
One afternoon, I came back in to work a dinner shift. I had worked the lunch shift but had forgotten to clock out. I took my time card to my manager and asked her to change it for me. The waitress sitting with her looked at me like I was an alien.
She said, “Who cares? It’s less than five dollars and no one would have known?” I told them, “I would have known and my integrity is worth a lot more than five dollars.” My manager changed it for me with a smile.
Later than night, during a slow time, she asked to talk with me. She began to cry and told me that she didn’t understand me and why I cared so much about doing the right thing. Although she didn’t understand, she said she wanted to know what made me tick.
Because she saw faith in action, I got the opportunity to share the Gospel with her and give her a Bible.
Video: Raja’s Story [GLS 4:00-8:11]
Communion
In Romans, Paul makes it clear that we will be slaves - either to sin or to our Savior:
“Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?” (Rom 6:16)
Many of us are slaves to fear, anxiety, addiction, power, sex, and other other sins that keep us shackled. But Jesus has come to set us free…to be slaves to Him - the only Master who knows everything about you and still loves you.
After they had been set free from bondage to sin, Paul, Peter, Jude, Epaphras, all described themselves as slaves to Jesus.
You cannot serve two masters. Are you a slave to sin or do you serve at the pleasure of your King Jesus?
Ending Song: This we Know
