We read Paul’s instructions to husbands and wives, and perhaps wonder how that fits into our contemporary culture. Similarly, God’s Word in Ephesians 6:5–9 to slaves and masters may seem out of place today. Yet this is God’s Word—for us as well as first century Ephesus.
Serve the Lord, not men. God turns the expectations of the world upside down. Don’t use this passage as a justification for the institution of slavery. Old Testament law regulated the practice. For fellow Israelites it amounted to temporary servitude. It was allowed in the case of foreigners captured in war. Kidnaping was a capital offense. Exodus 21:16; Deuteronomy 24:7. The practice of slavery was pervasive in the Roman world, and while slave revolts were not unheard of, that is not the direction Paul moves. Not only are there practical reasons (replacing evil without dealing with root causes tends to result in different evils [all animals are equal, bt some are more equal than others]), but Paul deals with the heart issues, and the practice works itself out (as seemed to happen in a relatively short period of time). Keep the context in view. Paul is elaborating on what it means to submit to one another in the Lord. He has applied that to husbands and wives, to parents and children, and now to slaves and masters (or today, employers and employees). We tend to think in terms of opposites — do o you favor labor or management? Pick one side or the other. But the Bible looks at authority very differently than the world does. We tend to ask, who is in charge of whom? Who has to submit to whom? But in Matthew 20 Jesus describes that attitude as pagan. He, the Son of Man, the one with ultimate authority, came, not to be served but to serve. Your standing before God depends on what Christ has done and is doing on your behalf. That is the model for the husband’s loving authority in Ephesians 5. Parents have real authority, but you spend your time, not directing your children, but with 2:00 a.m. feedings, etc. The Beatitudes turn the standards and expectations of the world upside down. The ethics and attitude of the kingdom of God turn upside down the antagonism and abuses between employers and employees. Where the attitude of the kingdom of God prevails, the contradictory character of owning someone who is made in God’s image becomes evident.
Obey with respect and fear. Apparently many in the early church were slaves–and some were masters. Your situation in Christ is more important than any other issue, 1 Corinthians 7:22. Paul gives a surprisingly sweeping command to slaves — to obey with respect and fear (honor). If the principle applied within the institution of slavery, it’s not too hard to see that Paul would call us to guard our attitudes towards those for whom we work for 40 hours a week.
Paul underlines what he said: Live as a slave of Christ. Obey as you would obey Christ. In fact, render your service to your Lord, and not just to an earthly master. A boss may not see you, but the Lord does. A boss may not read your attitude, but Christ does. In fact you are serving Christ. Notice how Paul appropriates the title slave for himself, Philippians 1:1. Obey wholeheartedly. Imagine the impact on a master, particularly a harsh one, to suddenly find his slaves working willingly and cheerfully. Imagine the impact on a business and those running it to find Christians suddenly working hard and cheerfully. Entrust yourself to God’s hands, knowing that he rewards his people regardless of their social and economic standing. Your service as a slave, as an employee, is part of what it means to walk in love, Ephesians 5:1,2.
“The New Testament lays peculiar stress on the God-oriented motivation and direction of all our toil…. When labour involves drudgery, when the hardship is oppressive, when the conditions imposed upon us are not those which mercy and justice would dictate, when we are tempted to individual or organized revolt, when we are ready to recompense evil on the part of our master with the evil of careless work on our part, it is just then that we need to be reminded, ‘whatsoever ye do, do it heartily as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord ye shall receive the recompense of the inheritance. Ye serve the Lord Christ’ (Colossians 3:23, 24).”
John Murray, Principles of Conduct, p. 87)
Paul speaks to masters as well. Serve your Master in heaven. Be just. If Paul’s command to slaves is sweeping, his instructions to masters are not less so. “All of the above” applies to them as well. Remember that God’s eye is on you. Do the will of God from the heart. Avoid threatening. If Paul’s words to slaves speak to us as employees, his words to masters speak to those of us who oversee, administer, and benefit from the work of others. Paul’s command undercuts the way that much contemporary business (shortsightedly) treats workers as merely another production cost, as an asset whose productivity is to be increased as much as possible as cheaply as possible. You may not think of yourself as a manager. But don’t you have people working for you, at least for short periods of time, checking out your groceries, filling your car with gas, seeping the floor across which you walk. How do you treat these people? Or are they “invisible”? Avoid threatening, be equitable. What impact should this have on the life of the church? Martyn Lloyd Jones has remarked that coal mining regions have rejected the gospel — because of the conduct of employer/managers in church life.
“This is a unique view of life. One lesson it teaches us is how muddleheaded it is to regard work and witness as two different realities for the Christian. We witness in the work we do, by the way we do it – as if we were doing it to the Lord Christ. If we are his, we are.”
Sinclair B. Ferguson, Let’s Study Ephesians, pp. 170–1
Live in the presence of your Master in heaven. No less than the Christian slave, you are serving the Master in heaven. This Master is the one whose life and death were the ultimate in humble, servant leadership. As you look at both slaves and masters, recognize that the power of the gospel works anywhere: on your job, in your school, among your neighbors.
The question is not whether the gospel fits into your work situation. Rather, the question is, how can you live–in that area of your life–to the glory and honor of God?