In our previous post we overviewed the mention of Roman slavery in the New Testament and how Paul applies the gospel to that unbiblical social structure.
We noted that what Scripture records is not necessarily what God endorses. The Bible is an accurate record of truth—indeed, it is God’s very Word—but this does not mean that God condones all that is reported in Scripture. This certainly includes the unbiblical practice of institutional slavery.
Remembering that the Great Commission is not a call for revolution, but a call to “make disciples” (Matthew 28:19) helps the contemporary reader understand why the apostles did not demand an immediate end to slavery.
Preachers and teachers of the Word must take care to treat passages of Scripture not only in their biblical context, but also in their historical and cultural contexts. As such, a sermon from Colossians 3:22-4:1 should explain the historical situation of Colossae, including the pervasive practice of Roman slavery and how new followers of Christ were expected to live within the reality of that fallen framework.
Teaching the passage will include a condemnation of the practice of slavery and perhaps an education of how Christians of previous generations wrongly used Scripture to continue the unjust subjugation of man for personal gain.
But application does not end there. If Paul’s purpose at the end of Colossians 3 is to address Christians “where they are”—whether husbands, wives, children, bondservants, or masters—and encourage them to live for Christ, then there are abiding principles that surface from this passage that apply in a number of different relational structures.
With that in mind, let’s look at these verses now through the lens of the gospel, remembering that Jesus Himself came not to be served (as though He were a Roman master) but to serve (as though He were a Roman bondservant), and gave His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).
Christ gave His life to purchase our freedom.
As Paul says in Philippians 2:7-8: “He made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.”
Jesus Christ was the perfect bondservant so that you could be free to serve Him as your Master.
** Because Christ gave His all for you, you can give your all for Him.**
Cheerfully Obey those in Authority Over You (Colossians 3:22-23)
22 Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh (that is, according to this present, earthly, world structure), not with eye-service, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God.
23 And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men,
Specifically, there are three ways to obey those in authority over us:
1) Consistently
Obey in “all things.” Christian workers, for example, will obey their superiors in “all things.” They will obey consistently.
Of course if our supervisor asks us to do something illegal, immoral, or unethical, then that is something we will not do and will humbly say with Peter in Acts 5:29: “We must obey God rather than man.” Otherwise, we will obey in “all things” consistently.
I like that phrase in verse 22: “not with eye-service, as men-pleasers.” Eye-service may be translated, “Only while the supervisor is looking.” There are some who seem to work hard only when the manager is nearby.
The late Ray Stedman, former pastor of Peninsula Bible Church in California, tells about a missionary to Africa who had shared with him about his being responsible for getting local nationals to do certain Jobs. Stedman recounted the missionary’s experience:
[He] discovered that [the workers] were all rather lazy and would only perform while he was actually watching them. When he left they would stop work and do nothing until he returned. This man had a glass eye, and one day when his eye was irritating him he took it out and put it on a stump. When he returned he found that everybody was still working because the “eye,” as they thought, was watching them all the while he was away…this man thought he had found a great way to free himself, until one day he returned to discover that one of the workers had sneaked around from behind and put his hat over the eye, and everyone was lounging around, enjoying themselves. That is eye-service!Ray Stedman, “Living Christianly“
Cheerfully obey those in authority over you. Obey consistently and respectfully.
2) Respectfully
“in sincerity of heart, fearing God.” (verse 22)
Do you respect your supervisor so that you work hard whether or not he or she is watching you? That’s why Paul mentions, “fearing God.” The implication is that Christians will work harder than non-Christians because Christians fear God, serve God, and know that God is watching them!
And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, (verse 23)
Cheerfully obey those in authority over you. Obey consistently, respectfully, and whole-heartedly.
3) Whole-Heartedly
Christians are to work harder on the job than anyone else because they love God, fear God, and serve God. They understand that their Christian influence and Christian witness is on display before others.
Christians use their jobs or positions as missional platforms from which to share the gospel and glorify Christ.
To that end, here’s a helpful note from evangelical scholar FF Bruce:
The slave-and-master relationship might persist in the home and business life; within the church it was swallowed up in the new relationship. Thus, a Christian slave might be recognized as an elder in the church by reason of his spiritual stature, and receive due deference from his Christian master. But the Christian slave would not presume on this new relationship or make it an excuse for serving his master less assiduously; on the contrary, he would serve him the more faithfully because of this new relationship. And if a Christian slave had an unbelieving master, he would serve him the more faithfully now because the reputation of Christ and Christianity was bound up with the quality of his service.
FF Bruce, The Epistle to the Colossians
Christians ought to be the hardest workers on the job because they love God, fear God, and serve God. This takes us to the second main application:
Remember Who is Your True “Supervisor” (verses 23-4:1)
Who is your true employer? It’s not the one who signs your paycheck. Your true employer, your true boss, is the Lord Jesus Christ:
And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, (verse 23)
See that phrase? It says “as to the Lord.” Your true supervisor is the Lord. Paul continues this emphasis in the last part of verse 24:
knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.
There it is: “you serve the Lord Christ.” It’s the same teaching at the end of verse 1 in chapter 4:
Masters, give your bondservants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven. (Colossians 4:1)
Your ultimate boss, your ultimate Master, is in heaven. His eye is always on you. He sees everything you do. That’s a warning and an encouragement to both those in authority and under authority.
To those in authority (those who have authority over others), Paul says in verse 1 of chapter 4, “Give what is just and fair, knowing that you have a Master in heaven.” He is watching you.
And it’s also an encouragement to those under authority. Remember that you are ultimately serving under the authority of your “Heavenly Master” who sees everything you do and will reward you accordingly.
Work For Your Ultimate “Payday” (verses 24-25)
24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.
25 But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality.
Note again those two statements about your ultimate “Payday” on the Day of Judgment:
“you will receive the reward of the inheritance”
“but he who does wrong will be repaid”
God sees all. So if you are a Christian and you are not doing as you should, while your salvation is not at risk (and thank God for that!), your reward is at risk.
Some will enter into final state with regret for loss of reward; things that could have been had they obeyed.
But if we cheerfully obey those in authority over us and we remember that the Lord is our ultimate “Supervisor,” and we serve Him, we will—verse 24— “receive the reward of the inheritance.”
Imagine a Roman slave hearing that verse. Under Roman Law a slave inherited nothing. There was no inheritance for a Roman slave. But those Roman slaves who were Christians had an inheritance!
And so do we if we are “in Christ.” Christians have an inheritance in heaven as Peter says in 1 Peter 1:4, “an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.”
So Jesus is your true supervisor who He sees your work and will reward you accordingly.
By the way, how would Jesus do your job?
How would Jesus manage employees? How would He work in the warehouse? How would he pump gas or take a food order? How would He talk to the other employees? How would He talk during breaks?
Think about how Jesus would do your job and you’ll be more likely to work in a way that brings glory to Him—and more likely to enjoy the work you are doing.
Remember that your job has dignity—no matter what you do—because you are working ultimately for Him.
You job has dignity whether you are a sanitation worker, a wood worker, a farmer, a plumber, a banker, or a telemarketer. Whether you’re in computers, technical services, or sales; whether you’re a coal miner, a machinist, or a school teacher; whether you’re a full-time soccer mom and diaper-changer, or whatever your job (remember Jesus was a carpenter), your work is valuable to the Lord and that you work ultimately for Him.
The wonderful thing about being a slave of Christ, is that we are actually free. In this specific context, we are reminded that our identity is not bound up in our job, but in Christ. Remember Colossians 3:4, “Christ…our life!” Lasting peace, joy, purpose, and meaning are found exclusively in Him. In a word, we are “complete in Him” (Colossians 2:10).
When we come to Christ, we lose our independence to gain new freedom. With Christ as our Master, we lose our self-serving striving which had made us slaves to so many other things.
What wonderful irony! When we come to Christ we lose our independence to gain new freedom.
As slaves, we are now free over the things that once held us captive. Because we are now identified in Christ, we are freed from our identity crisis.
Because we are secure as His child, we are free from insecure thoughts; truly free from insecurity.
Because we are now accepted by Christ and approved by Christ, we are free from trying to gain the approval and acceptance of so many others; free from trying to gain the acceptance or approval of a friend, or a parent, or even an employer.
Regrettably, many Christians may fail to see such liberating truth in this passage.
What with so much craziness even in popular evangelicalism with respect to so-called “prosperity preaching” and much of the “if you can dream it, you can do it” nonsense. Teaching like that makes little sense to the majority of Christians living outside of America.
Our Christian brothers and sisters living in the small fishing villages of Brazil or Christians huddled secretly in impoverished house churches in Laos can only shake their heads in wonder at the empty concept of “Name it, claim it, dream it, be prosperous.” Their dreams for the kinds of things many of us enjoy in our country are only dreams; “pipe dreams” we might say.
I mean look: Here is a passage where Paul is writing to Roman slaves. Think about that for a moment. The likelihood of their ever becoming a non-slave in their lifetime was slim to none. If they could look into the future, and there were a TV around somehow where they could watch and listen to a modern-day smiling televangelist tell them about “pursuing their dreams,” they’d be like, “What planet is that guy living on?!”
The reality is that these Christian slaves were likely going to be Christian slaves all their lifetime. Paul doesn’t say to them, “Just have faith and send in your money and I’ll give you a prayer cloth and you’ll get out of this situation.” No.
Paul is teaching that there is something far greater than getting out of earthly servitude. He doesn’t locate their identity in escape from slavery. He doesn’t even attempt to locate their identity in some faraway dream of a better day or a better life where they can have all kinds of money and the best of material goods. Why? Because there is something of far greater value than all of that.
If you are a Christian, your greatest dream is already realized in Jesus Christ. You are forgiven of all sin. You have life—eternal life—so that when your body stops, your soul does not go to hell, but to heaven; forever.
You want acceptance, approval, identity, value, purpose, meaning? Your greatest dream is already realized in Christ.
It’s not what we do that gives us a sense of value. We may have very important jobs, but those jobs do not define us. It’s not what we do that gives us our value. It’s who we are. We are Christians. We belong to Christ.
Rest in your identity in Christ. Rest in your identity as God’s child. You have value, purpose, meaning, identity, salvation, forgiveness, security, and an inheritance!
What About You?
- If you are a Christian, do you agree that “your greatest dream is already realized in Jesus Christ?” Why or why not?
- “Jesus Christ was the perfect bondservant so that you could be free to serve Him as your Master.” Do you know this freedom?
- How can you use this passage to encourage a fellow Christian worker? To share the gospel with a non-Christian worker?
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