Please turn with me in your Bibles to Colossians chapter three. Colossians chapter three, we find ourselves in a brief study in the apostles letter to the Colossians, primarily focusing on the relationships that flow out of this gospel of conquering grace. Remember that the apostle Paul tells his readers that they are to look to those things above. They are to set their minds on Christ.
And as they do so, as they imbibe that gospel ethic, it should affect their lives horizontally. In other words, when we look and when we focus upon our Redeemer, it should have a positive effect in our church, in our home, and even in our workplace. So that's the larger context. I will read the chapter, so we'll have cause to refer to several sections.
So beginning in Colossians chapter 3, beginning in verse 1. If, then, you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ, who is our life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Therefore, put to death your members which are on the earth. Fornication. uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things, the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them.
But now you yourselves are to put off all these—anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds. and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge, according to the image of him who created him, whether he is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long-suffering, bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, If anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection, and let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body, and be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them.
Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh. Not with eye service, as men pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God.
And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance, for you serve the Lord Christ. But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality. Masters, give your bondservants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a master in heaven. Amen.
Well, let us pray. Father, we thank you for this, your holy word. We pray for the ministry of your spirit now. We pray that we would learn well the lessons of Colossians chapter three.
She would give us the grace, Lord God, to truly focus upon Jesus, to dwell upon him, to think his thoughts after him and to glorify him. We ask now that you would forgive us of all of our sins and all those things that darken our mind and our understanding. We pray that you would wash us, that you would purify us, that you would make us receptive to the Holy Scripture. And God, for any and all who have come here this morning that do not know the Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior, we pray that by your spirit and by your word that they would be brought forth today, that they would confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father, that they would know the joy of being found in him, not having a righteousness of their own, which is from the law. but having that righteousness which is from you through faith in the risen Savior.
How we thank you, God, for gospel of mercy. How we thank you for saving grace. And how we pray that today a great multitude would taste and see that the Lord is good. And we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Introduction: Christ as Lord of All Relations
Well, as we have had cause to reflect on this particular chapter, the main imperative, the main idea, the main focus of the apostle is found in verses one and two. If then you were raised with Christ. In other words, you have, by the grace of God, believed the gospel of Jesus Christ. You've been raised from the dead.
You are now positioned in Him. You have that righteousness which is not your own, but you have the righteousness which is from God through faith. If that is the case, if then you were raised with Christ, Seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.
In other words, as believers in Christ, as those who are saved, our minds ought to go Christ's word. We ought to focus upon Him. Arguably, when we trace through this chapter and we see the various sins condemned, we must admit that if these things are true of us, then we're not focusing upon Jesus. I mean, take the first instance in verses 5 and following.
He says you're to put to death the deeds of the flesh. You're to put to death specifically sexual sin. So we might argue, conversely, if you are engaged in sexual sin, if your mind is filled with uncleanness and evil desire, and you have given yourself over to idolatry, then you're not focusing on Jesus. Your mind isn't where it ought to be.
Believers in Christ have their minds focused on Christ, and then that fleshes itself out in the way that they live. Paul then goes on to condemn the sins of the tongue. If you are filled with all malice, if you are a slanderer, if you are a gossip, if you engage in all manner of wickedness with your tongue, then we have to conclude your mind isn't where it ought to be. It is inevitable, now not perfectly, but it is an inevitability that when the Christian is focusing upon Jesus, that is the impetus, that is the power, that is the gracious disposition wherein he is able to resist the deeds of the body and to resist the deeds of the tongue.
He puts those things to death by virtue of the reality that he is in Jesus Christ. moving through the chapter. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, bearing with one another and forgiving one another. If anyone has a complaint against another, if your relationships aren't marked by these realities, if these things are absent from your conduct, if you know nothing of a forbearing spirit, you know nothing of a forgiving heart, then your mind isn't Where it ought to be your corporate relations, your church life will be severely affected. Notice how Paul goes on to say that above all, we are to put on love, which is the bond of perfection.
He says within the context of the local church, we are to let the peace of God rule in our hearts. Verse 15, to which also you were called in one body. And we are to be thankful. We're to let the word of Christ flow richly in us.
We're to admonish and teach one another. We're to sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. All as a result of where our mind is focused. And then moving on to the family.
If wives are not submissive to their own husbands, ask unto the Lord, because their mind isn't focused on Jesus. If husbands are embittered against their wives and filled with all sort of malice and angst towards them, because their minds aren't focused on Christ. You see how the gospel, the things that we believe, affect how we live. This is why Paul elsewhere can say, we are to let our conduct be worthy of the gospel.
I am not suggesting we live the gospel. The gospel is strictly defined as those events connected with Christ. His life, His death, His resurrection. But when men, by the grace of God, believe that gospel, they inevitably enter into the life of sanctification.
And because they're focused on Christ, their relationships are intact. Douglas Moos says that this section of the epistle deals with the Lordship of Christ in earthly relationships. Please don't miss that. We're not simply to pick up in the section on personal ethics, wives this, husbands this, children this, fathers this, slaves this, masters this, masters this, in some humanistic, moralistic sense.
No, the Lordship of Christ is to govern the way that His people live in their earthly relationships. If we lose sight of that, then we are going to blunder and have many issues in our Christian life. I think what I'm trying to say was best summarized by John Owen in volume one. He says, the most of our spiritual decays and barrenness arise from an inordinate admission of other things into our minds.
Let me just sort of parse that for our 21st century mind. He says, the most of our spiritual decays and barrenness arise from an inordinate admission of other things. Anything other than Christ, we admit that into the seat of our affections. Anything other than Christ, we dwell upon and we focus upon.
Anything other than Christ, whether it be ourselves, which is genuinely chief among most of us, or it might be our jobs, or it might be our wives, or it might be our children, or whatever it is. If it takes us from doing what Paul says in verses 1 and 2, that will be the ground upon which we suffer decay and barrenness. He says, these are they that weaken grace in all its operations. He says, but when the mind is filled with thoughts of Christ and His glory, when the soul thereon cleaves unto Him with intense affections, they will cast out or not give admittance unto those causes of spiritual weakness and indisposition.
In other words, when we have our minds where they ought to be on Jesus Christ, then everything else falls into place. That's the essence of the apostles' It is a summary or rather an amplification or an exposition of that statement of our Lord in Matthew chapter 6 and verse 33. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and then these things will be added to you. You want to be a good churchman?
You want to be a good husband? You want to be a good wife? You want to be a good father? You want to be a good child?
You want to be a good slave or a master? Put your mind on Christ. Meditate upon Him. Contemplate on Him.
Think in terms of His gospel. Think in terms of His glory. Think in terms of His absolute sovereignty and Lordship. Think of His coming again in glory to judge the living and the dead.
All these things ought to play in the minds of the believers so that we live in the manner that is consistent with new men. and with new women in Christ Jesus the Lord. We've looked at the corporate responsibilities, life in the church. We've looked at the domestic sphere in terms of life and the family, husbands, wives, children, fathers, all those sorts of relationships.
Duty of Slaves and Masters
Now we come to slaves and masters, verses 22 to chapter 4, verse 1. We'll take up, first of all, the duty of slaves, and second of all, we'll take up the duty of masters. Now, I realize that that word slave causes some of our feathers to ruffle. That word slave causes a bit of discomfort.
We automatically think of shadow slavery practiced in the United States of America. It was based on racial concern. That's not the sort of slavery that is in view here. We've looked at slavery with reference to the old covenant people of Israel in our studies in Deuteronomy.
There were times and instances where a man, because of his debt and his inability to pay back that debt, would sell himself into slavery to a family where he would work and then pay that debt he owed. We might call it indentured servitude. Well, there was a similar sort of thing in the early Roman Empire. I just want to give us some thoughts that will help us not to be feeling like, you know, Paul's just this wretched man that's dealing with a wretched institution.
We need to get our minds thinking biblically. This is from Douglas Moe, a bit of an adaptation from his commentary. He says that slavery was an integral part of the social and economic world of the first century. He suggests that perhaps as many as one third of people in Colossae were slaves.
In fact, there were so many slaves in the Roman Empire, it was suggested at one point that they wear a uniform. Beware. Hopefully this isn't coming to us. We'll all be wearing uniforms here in North America as North American citizens.
But they discouraged it. They voted against that idea because they didn't want the slaves to know how numerous they really were. It was very common and very rampant in Paul's Rome. Freedom and liberation was not the obvious good in the first century that it is in the 21st century.
And it was not racially motivated. It might be a man who had less than stellar skills, and this was a position for him, wherein he could operate, where he could live, and where he could support a family. So we saw in that passage in Deuteronomy 15, dealing with the Hebrew slaves. At the end of the sabbatic year, you were to release the slaves.
And when you were to release the slaves, you were to bless them with lots of good gifts. You were to give them money. You were to give them possessions. You were to give them from each area of your produce so that they could go out and start their own life.
But there was an instance wherein the slave might say, I don't want to be free. Because he loved the family, and he realized that he prospered in the family. It was an incidence where the slave became endeared to the family, the family to the slave, and so they kept the arrangement going. As well, the first century Christians were a small group living within an all-powerful, authoritarian empire.
They didn't have the same category of social action that so many of us traffic in today. Oftentimes, the church is all about ameliorating the downtrodden poor and lifting everybody up to a good social status. Well, it's interesting. The church in the first century, plagued with slavery, The church in the first century plagued with homosexuality.
The church in the first century plagued with the same sorts of sins that plague us emphasize the preaching of the gospel of free and sovereign grace. What are we supposed to extrapolate? The answer for man in any situation is Christ and Him crucified. That never changes.
And that's what the church engaged in. And then the early Christians ultimately rejoiced in their identity as the people of God, no matter what their specific station in life. Now to be sure, Paul in 1 Corinthians 7 says that if you can secure your freedom, go ahead. It's not consigning you to ever live as a slave.
Paul is simply speaking to classes of men in the first century and telling them how they are to function as believers in those stations. The first of all, the duty of slaves.
The Action: Obey in All Lawful Things
Notice their action. Bondservants obey in all things your masters according to the flesh. Just as the child is to obey his parent, just as the wife is to be submissive to her own husband, as is fitting to the Lord, so must the slave obey his master in all things according to the flesh. Of course we make the necessary qualification.
It's not in all sinful things. Your master tells you to sin. Your master tells you to engage in those things which are rebellious against God and His law. You must obey God rather than men.
That is a necessary qualification built into every sphere of our submission to a higher authority. If the government mandates sin, if they tell us to disobey God, we must obey God rather than men. That comes from Acts chapter 5, verse 29. It comes from the prophet Daniel.
When instructed not to pray, did Daniel say, OK, I'm going to submit to this ungodly magistrate? No, he prayed. He served the Lord. He feared the Lord.
No man can tell you that you can't serve the Lord. You must obey God rather than men. But notice, the bond servants obey in all things, all lawful things. You're a slave, just like we saw with the children.
When did we ever allow it to be the case where children say, you know, I like these five requirements, but these other five, you know, I just don't like. Well, when the master tells the slave to do something, he does it in all things. The master is, get this, He's the master. If he's functioning lawfully, he's functioning according not even to God's law or biblical law, but he's not telling you to sin.
You need to obey him in all things. This was absolutely crucial, because remember, go back to verse 11 for just a moment. What could a Christian be tempted to think in light of verse 11, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all? What could a Christian take from that statement?
Well, if there's no more Jew or Greek, there's no more circumcised or uncircumcised, there's no more master or slave. When the slave comes to work on Monday morning, the master says, I want you to make the pot of coffee. But you can't command me that, because now we're one in Jesus. No, there's still real relationships.
Husbands are still husbands and wives are still wives. The point of verse 11 is that there's redemptive solidarity. There is redemptive unity. There is a new humanity, but it doesn't get rid of distinctions like Jew and Gentile.
It doesn't get rid of distinctions like male and female. You can't just reverse your roles because you're one in Jesus. You men can't be the wife and you wives can't be the men because you're one in Jesus. It doesn't work that way.
And so Paul puts these things into place so that the slave doesn't come to work and say, you make your own coffee because I'm saved. Jesus has liberated me from bondage to sin and the curse of making coffee. I use that because when I first joined the United States Air Force, military police, carried a gun, thinking you're the hottest thing that ever set foot on an Air Force installation. Butler returned to station and made coffee.
Wait a minute, that's below my dignity. Do it. You're a slave. Engage in the task that the Lord God has given to you.
I think if we understand Paul's logic in this passage, It dignifies every aspect of lawful employment. You see, Paul's going to go on and say, we do our service as unto the Lord. So when we make coffee, Or when we as ladies change diapers or wipe noses or do those things that appear to be less than stellar in the world's estimation. Here is a dignity given to those aspects of service because it's for Jesus Christ.
If you have a lawful job, You're not out selling drugs, you're not out running prostitution rings, you're not engaged in some manner of wickedness. If you have a lawful calling under God, no matter how medial the world may treat it, in this context, the very slave they were doing these pieces of service has unto the Lord. This brings dignity to your job. Go tomorrow with joy.
Do your task as unto the Lord. Serve the Lord Christ in your work and see if that doesn't invigorate and refresh and revive you. It doesn't matter what the task is. You might say, oh, but it's such a small thing.
It's such a little thing. I'm not splitting the atom out there. I'm not a nuclear physicist. I'm not a rocket scientist.
I'm not a surgeon. I'm not dealing with intricacies with reference to the human heart. This is all I do, but it's on to the Lord. It ignobles it.
It dignifies it. It empowers it. The new man in Christ Jesus serves his Redeemer. The Apostle Paul tells them, in terms of action, that they were to obey in all things their masters.
Notice it's according to the flesh. Your earthly masters. The guy who signs your check. The guy who gives you your task for the day.
There is a parallel or a contrast. You've got a heavenly master and you've got an earthly master. The heavenly master doesn't obliterate those distinctions. The heavenly master sustains them and tells you how you are to function accordingly.
It's really beautiful. Hope you appreciate how the gospel speaks to every area, to every inch of our lives, to every square inch. There is nothing done neutrally.
The Attitude: Not Eye-Service but Sincerity
Notice the attitude that the bond servant is to imbibe. The bondservant is not to do this with eye service as men pleasers. That means just what it says. Look busy.
The boss is coming. Hand me the broom. The boss is coming. Let me carry these papers.
The boss is coming. Not with eye service as men pleasers. The idea condemned here is that the slave only functions and operates when the master's watching. You see, the whole emphasis in the section is that you've got a greater master.
You've got your earthly master, but you've got a heavenly master. And he's sovereign. He's omnipotent. He's always on the throne.
He's always stationed at the right hand of his father. And he always sees and knows precisely what is going on. It is applicable, what Solomon says in Proverbs 15, the eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the good and the evil. So that when you're making that coffee, Jesus is watching.
Not like, make it right, sort of a thing. Don't mess it up. He's watching. He's sovereign.
He's over all. Remember, your mind is to be rooted upon Him. It is to be focused on those things which are above. Realizing that Christ is where He is.
Realizing that what Christ has done for you is true. You do your task, not just in eye service. Not just because the Master is watching me. The idea here is that the slave works only to please men.
I'm not saying work so you don't please your master. Certainly please your master. Most of us are employees. Work hard to please your master.
That's legit. But that's not the primary focus. The primary focus is the master in heaven. See, when we please the master in heaven, the master on earth will be pleased.
The employee that is a Christian ought to be the best, not to be the whiniest, not to be the biggest sniveler, not to be the biggest complainer, not to be the one who people can't count on, but rather he is the slave that serves the Lord Christ. So there is a negative attitude condemned, not with eye service as men pleasers, but a positive attitude, but in sincerity of heart. The slave is to be obedient, focused, industrious and diligent in his obedience to earthly masters. You see, that's something I think as Christians, sometimes we forget.
You know, I've met people, Christians in the past, they've come, they've said, oh man, I had a great time at work today. I got to spend Three hours sharing the gospel. And my first thought is, are they paying you to share the gospel? You say, but we should always share the gospel.
Absolutely. And our conduct and our ethic ought to be consistent with the gospel. Now, you may have a job where you can do the job and share the gospel for three hours. Praise the Lord for that benefit.
That gift of beneficence, that ability wherein you can do your task and share the truth with an unbeliever. But never forget your primary responsibility at work. Get this. It's to work.
It's to serve. It's to do it in sincerity of heart. I love a parallel passage to this in Titus 2. Exhort bond servants to be obedient to their own masters, to be well-pleasing in all things, not answering back, not pilfering, but showing all good fidelity.
That is a purpose clause for their conduct. When you see that in a specific text, pay attention. So, here's the duty. Exhort bond servants to be obedient to their own masters, to be well-pleasing in all things, not answering back, not pilfering, but showing all good fidelity that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.
So when you're there on time, you do your work heartily as unto the Lord. You do it with sincerity. You're not a grumbler. You're not a whiner.
You're not a complainer. You're not a pilferer. That means a thief. You're not stealing money for work done when you haven't done it, but rather you're doing all these things as unto the Lord.
The purpose clause again here is high and noble, that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things. There ought to be something different about those who have their minds focused on Jesus. They ought not to be perpetually late. They ought not to be the ones that whine, and every time they're given a task.
They ought to be the kinds of people you can count on so that they may adorn the doctrine of our God and Savior. You see Paul's emphasis here. Focus on Jesus to function better as a slave. And then he highlights there is to be a Godward attitude.
So there's a negative attitude, a positive attitude and a Godward attitude.
The Godward Attitude: Fear of God
Notice in verse 22, not with eye services, men pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. Why do you work so well at your job? Because I fear God. Just so you can get plaques and coffee cups and Employee of the Month parking spots.
I mean, those are nice benefits. I'm not suggesting any of you say, well, I don't want that. I'm just serving the Lord. Yeah, and when you serve the Lord, you'll stand before kings.
That's what Solomon says. You see a man who excels in his work, he shall stand before kings. So don't resist all that and some higher and nobler thought that, oh, I'm just doing this for God. You're doing it for God.
If they give you a parking spot for the month, Great. They give the McDonald's coupons? Great. No, no, I'm just a Christian.
That's fake. That's a piety that isn't biblical. But the primary emphasis, the stress of the passage lies on fearing God. So you don't do your work this way simply for the McDonald's certificate.
You do it because you fear God. Now, if you happen to get a McDonald's certificate as a corollary, go ahead and use it. But if pressed and if that asked, the man who's got his mind focused on Christ has a higher and nobler end. It is the glory of God Most High.
When he's doing a job that no one sees, that no one praises him for, that no one applauds him for when he does it as unto the Lord. That's when satisfaction comes to the mind of the heart and the mind of the heart of the man who fears the Lord. Hill says it this way, fearing God, who sees and knows all things, what servants do when their masters are absent from them and to whom they are accountable. and a servant that fears God will make conscience of discharging his service faithfully, will not misspend his master's time, nor embezzle his goods or waste his substance, but from a principle of reverential affection for God and fear of him, with a concern for his name and a view to his glory, will with all diligence, uprightness, faithfulness, and sincerity do his duty, seek his master's good and interest, and cheerfully obey all his lawful commands." How many of us would never allow our children to get away with what we try to get away with with our masters? Kid, I want you to take that sock and put it in that basket.
OK, I'll do it, but I'm not happy. How many times do Christians in the workplace function like that kid? We would smack him, biblically speaking, of course. At ministry, the right ratio of rod and reproof with love and with affection and with prayer, but nevertheless realizing the mandate of our God.
The blueness of the wound does scour away evil, and we are wicked to resist that when God's ordained it. But we would never allow that sort of thing from our children. And yet we hear the command to make a pot of coffee. I suppose there's people all over the world that would give their right arm to make a pot of coffee in North America for the kinds of wages that we get, the kinds of stuff that we have.
We think about it. Think of the alternative. Think about where you could be and what you could be doing. We have it pretty good.
And this text admonishes us that as we're looking to Christ, as our minds are rooted upon him, as they're focused upon him, when the master tells us to do something, we do it first out of fear to God. And then we conduct ourselves in a manner that is consistent with a biblical and a decent work ethic.
The Evangelistic Impact of Faithful Work
Consider as well the evangelistic effort or the evangelistic impact of such a mindset. That guy never complains. Everybody else in the shop complains, always. That one guy doesn't complain.
That one guy doesn't need penal retribution poured out on him so he'll work. Someday that master is going to say, why do you work this way? Well, do you have three hours, sir? Let me tell you why.
Because I have a heavenly master. I have a Lord who came into this world, who didn't come to be served, but He came to serve and to give His life a ransom for many. In His grace, in His mercy, in His love, in His kindness, He chose me. He bled for me.
He rose for me. And then He has called me to glorify Him in my body. He has called me to glorify Him in my work. He has called me to glorify Him in my relationships.
Sir, if you come to this heavenly Master, you will have benefit and blessing and joy unspeakable and full of glory. That actually doesn't take three hours, does it? F.F. Bruce says, if a Christian slave had an unbelieving master, he would serve him more faithfully now because the reputation of Christ and Christianity was bound up with the quality of his service.
It's a great statement. Why was there a change in the view of the empire toward Christianity? Why was there, over a period of time, a change with reference to how the Christians were viewed? Because they started to realize these Christians aren't as bad as we were told.
They actually work hard. They actually pay their taxes. They don't have domestic disputes. They're decent and upright people.
You see, initially the Roman Empire was antagonistic against the church. But as time progressed, prior to the fall of the Roman Empire, I'm not saying everybody became a Christian. I'm not saying that everybody looked at Christians favorably. The antithesis was gone.
The enmity, I'm not suggesting that at all. But over a period of time, there was a change in perception. And I believe the same is true with a Christian man in his workplace. He ought to be different.
She ought to stand out. Not because she's always pumping Bible verses into the employer, you know, wearing, you know, with all the gear and the accouterments. But it's by virtue of the conduct of the servant in the workplace that there is an apologetic effort that is launched and oftentimes engaged in successfully.
The Incentive: An Eternal Inheritance
And notice the incentive here for the slave. Verse 23. And whatever you do, do it heartily as to the Lord and not to men. knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance, for you serve the Lord Christ. Whatever you do, do it heartily.
He is summarizing it. He's adding this blessed incentive of an inheritance that is to be gained ultimately, not the parking spot, not the ink pen, not the gift certificate, but the inheritance which abides forever and ever, world without end. You see, Paul can take the most mundane tasks and under His hand can bring dignity, because it is about the gospel ultimately, and it's about the glory of the triune God. Whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance, for you serve the Lord Christ.
This is most blessed and most wonderful. I suspect if I ask some of the men in this church, or I ask men in general, that we're Christians, what is it that you desire from time to time? I'm not talking about the parking spot, I'm talking about the income, I'm talking about that dignity that comes from a job. Well done.
Wives, you can go a long way in helping your men in this area. Probably your husband doesn't hear from his employer. I'm proud of you. You're doing a good job.
Most of the time, you might be sitting there saying, I've got a great employer. Most men don't. goes a long way for a woman to say, thanks be to God that you serve our family in the manner that you do. You're a hard worker. You're on time.
I'm proud of you. That's a blessing. That's a good thing. I rejoice in that.
But even if no women ever do that for their husbands, look what the Christian slave has here in this passage. Your boss may not care. Your wife may not care. Your children may not care.
But Jesus sees. Jesus is glorious. There is nothing insignificant in terms of His comprehensive rule and lordship. Whatever you do, remember we're dealing with the class of slaves.
These aren't the splitters of Adams in the first century. These aren't the senators. These aren't the congressmen. These aren't the doctors.
These aren't the lawyers. They're the slaves. What do slaves do when it says, whatever you do? Very often, it's menial.
Most people just take it for granted that these things get done. Christ sees. Christ views. Knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance For you serve the Lord Christ.
Again, Gil says, this is said for the encouragement of Christian servants who, though they may receive little or nothing from their earthly and carnal masters, yet they shall be used and treated as children by the Lord and by whom they will be possessed of an eternal inheritance after their work and labor is over. By the reward of the inheritance is meant the heavenly glory, called a reward because the apostle is speaking to servants and therefore uses language agreeable to them. And who though they may have no reward in this world, yet as there is a God that judges in the earth, there is verily one for them in the world to come. Eschatology matters.
The present conduct in the workplace. That occurred to me. Somebody might be thinking, Butler's wife needs to encourage him. That was not some sort of backhand approach to try to get my wife to say, add a boy.
It's just as I've lived and moved and had my being over these 15 years in pastoral ministry and a bit longer as a Christian, I have seen that what Paul says in terms of husbands and wives relating to one another is absolutely what we need. It's interesting. In the parallel passage to Colossians 3 and Ephesians 5, You can summarize the husband's role as loving leadership. You can summarize the wife's as honorable submission.
She is to honor her man. When your man is out there for 80 hours a week, working hard, bringing home money, you won't kill him for his wife to say thank you. You're doing a good job. There's biblical warrant for this mindset as well.
See, we get this idea because we read Puritans, oh, we'll just puff them up with pride. That's probably not our tendency. Proverbs 31. Many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all.
The godly man tells his wife that from time to time. She shouldn't fall unconscious because you say a good word to her. It shouldn't be that outlandish. paramedics, because you spoke a kind word. But you know, conversely, let the wife see that she fear the husband.
It's a word that we don't like, but it's the word that Paul chooses. It means to revere. Sarah's paraded as a model. What does she call Abraham?
Lord! There's nothing wrong with that sort of behavior among Christian people. I think it was Susie Spurgeon. Mrs.
Spurgeon called Spurgeon Tershatha. Hope you know what that means. It means governor. Tershatha is the Persian word, the Persian officer's station.
I doubt that means because he sat in his big chair and pounded his fist and told Susie what was what. No, it was a sign of respect, of love. But all that to say, When it seems like your boss never notices, when your master never says, good job, when you don't get the certificates and you don't get the parking spots, if you're doing your service as unto the Lord, rest assured, there is a future inheritance coming. This is what Paul says, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance, for you serve the Lord Christ.
Let that put a spring in your work step. Let that put joy in your heart tomorrow morning when the alarm clock goes off. Let that be that which carries you, that gospel ethic, the realization that Christ is on high, that he's coming again to judge the living and the dead, that he's included me in his blessed purposes. Certainly I'll go make coffee fearing him.
No Partiality: Warning and Transition
Paul now, verse 25, seems to be indicating slaves, but transitioning into masters. Verse 25 is a bit of a difficult verse. It could go with the slaves, could go with the masters, could have a little bit of both. Notice in verse 25, but he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done.
And there is no partiality. I think Calvin gets this one right. Think what Calvin highlights here is something to this effect. He who does wrong, you have an earthly master that's a wretch.
Yes, he's not telling you to sin, but he's certainly not a pleasant man to be around. He's harsh, he's vindictive, he's wicked, he's cruel, he's unkind, he's ungodly. But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done. And there is no partiality.
There's a bit of an encouragement there for the slave. That if you are mistreated in this lower world, if you are treated like garbage, if you are marginalized, realize that that day of judgment, when Christ comes, it will be to vindicate his righteous, but it will also be to visit with judgment those who resist him and those who treat his people poorly. That's Paul's idea in 2 Thessalonians 1. He says it is right with God to afflict those who afflict you.
So verse 25, still telling the slave, stay in the game. Do not get discouraged. Do not grow weary. Jesus is coming.
He will not only vindicate you and bring you into your future inheritance, but there will be punishment. There will be repayment for a godless master who treated you poorly. And then in the end of verse 25, it probably points to the Master. And there is no partiality.
Realize, Christ does not judge on a curve. Christ doesn't say, well, that's how you were operating. I'll just go a little. It's not arbitrary.
It's not willy-nilly. He is the righteous one. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. And he will most certainly carry out his task of judgment in a manner consistent to his moral universe and to his moral rule.
God will vindicate his servants. God cares for them. God calls them to wait patiently and not to take vengeance into their own hands. You see, that could happen in the first century.
It could happen in any situation. When I was growing up, there was a whole movement called, take this job and get rid of it. I don't want to be too vulgar here, offensive. This whole idea that the slave could just go to the master, I'm tired of working for you, just take this job and throw it away.
The slave is treated poorly in front of others. The slave is looked down upon and treated badly by the master. What could be the tendency or temptation, even for a Christian man? I've got to get that guy.
Don't get that guy. The Lord is righteous. There's no partiality with him. You leave it to the Lord God most high.
Duty of Masters: Justice and Fairness
And then he has direct application to the master in verse one, chapter four. He's speaking to Christian masters, to be sure. We're not supposed to think that non-Christian masters were reading Colossians 3 and say, oh, is this how I treat the believers? God saves slaves, God saves masters.
Many of you will know that one of my favorite biographies is John Jasper. John Jasper was a black slave under a more oppressive regime than what we find here. It was during the 1800s in America. He worked in a tobacco factory.
As he was doing whatever he could do with the tobacco that was being grown in that field, the word of God was heavy on his mind and heart and God saved him right there at that tobacco table. What did he do? He started preaching the gospel to everybody around him. The pastor, he said, that wasn't legit.
I imagine when you're shucking tobacco or doing whatever you can, you can talk. Well, the master got wind of it and called Jasper into his office. Says, what happened, Jasper? He says, the Lord, Lord saved my soul.
It's written that way, too. Sprinkle publication, loaned out. I don't know. Maybe, maybe it'll show up again someday.
The Lord God saved my soul and I want to preach His gospel. So the master extends his hand and says, welcome to the fold, something like that, brother. If God has put it in you to preach His gospel, go and don't stop preaching His gospel. Jasper relates this in a sermon.
He says, for these 40 years I've been preaching this gospel. And I'm going to keep preaching this gospel until my breath expires and I enter into glory." You see, sometimes masters get saved. And so Paul directly focuses on them in verse 1. Masters, give your bondservants what is just and fair.
The master was to give his slave what is just and fair. Remember what Paul is doing here in terms of the Roman Empire. Do you think masters had training camps in the empire on how to treat their slaves? They're slaves.
Do you think there were workshops in the empire for how non-Christian men could be better husbands? Paul takes the gospel and the cross of the Lord Jesus and he plants it firmly in the midst of every social relationship. He says, if you're a master and you have slaves under you, you give them what is just and fair. You don't exploit them.
You don't treat them harshly. There may have been a time as an unconverted man, you pressed and you made them agonize and you cheated and you distorted and you twisted. No more. Calvin says, though no royal edict had ever been issued for the protection of slaves, God allows masters no power over them beyond what is consistent with the law of love.
Masters, Christian masters, love those men. They're image bearers of God. Another man said, if a Christian owned a slave, the highest duty to which that master could be called was not to set the other free, but to love the slave with the self-giving love of Christ. You see, masters are addressed very specifically.
Give your bond servants what is just and fair. And again, the same sort of a mindset, knowing that you also have a master in heaven. Do not treat poorly those for whom Jesus died. Do not treat poorly even the non-Christian.
A Christian master ought to treat non-Christian slaves with dignity because man has dignity. He bears the image of God. He is created in His image. You see, Paul leaves no stone unturned.
What happens when we focus on Christ? Hopefully our churches are happier, healthier, and more loving. Hopefully our homes are happier, healthier, and more loving. And hopefully our workplaces are happier, healthier, and more loving.
You see, the cross is planted in every stage of your life. You need to reflect upon Jesus. You need to seek those things which are above where Christ is. You need to set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.
So the Apostle Paul, in this chapter, addresses slaves. He addresses them, again, not as property, not as chattel, not as a tool. Aristotle, the philosopher, referred to the slave as a living tool. He's a piece of property.
Just like your hammer in your toolbox, so is your slave. Not so with Paul. He treats them as having dignity. He treats them as inheritors of a future kingdom.
He treats them as people in Jesus Christ. The apostle relativizes masters. What do I mean by that? He calls attention to both slave and master that there's a heavenly master.
This earthly master isn't it. This earthly master isn't comprehensive. This earthly master isn't all this world has. There is a heavenly master.
And that puts slave and master in a better perspective, in a better spot. The apostle does not endorse slavery, but rather he calls for the regulation of an existent practice to be carried out in a distinctly Christian manner. Again, I've already alluded to 1 Corinthians 7. Paul does not object to a slave wanting to pursue his freedom.
That is legit. That is okay. 1 Corinthians 7.21, were you called while a slave? Do not be concerned about it, but if you can be made free, rather use it. Don't let that puzzle you.
Don't let it perplex you. If you're content in that situation, if it's legit for you to provide for your family, there's no shame in it. There's only shame in lawlessness. There's only shame in criminal activity or in sinful things.
But if we have a task under God, again, no matter how menial the world may treat it, it has dignity. It has status before the Lord God Most High. This deals with slaves and masters. We've already sort of extrapolated along the way.
We're bringing this to a close. The employer-employee relationship.
Application to Employer and Employee
Most of us don't find ourselves as slaves and masters in the Roman Empire. It's not like one-third of the people living in Chilliwack are slaves. There's no threat of putting us in uniforms because we'll band together and revolt against the man. Most of us are employees or we're employers.
Can we see some parallels? Can we extrapolate from this passage some legitimate application for us in these various stations of our lives? If a first century slave was called to such action and such attitude, do you think it's any less for a 21st century employee? Do you think it's okay that you don't render service? as unto the Lord?
That you go ahead and go to work tomorrow with insincerity in your heart? That you go to work tomorrow and pilfer? That you go to work tomorrow and lie? That you go to work tomorrow and you badmouth your employer?
Do you think that's legit and acceptable? It's not. If your job is that bad, find another one. A lot of times people complain about their employer.
They complain about their churches. I'm always a bit wary when somebody comes to our church complaining about their old church, because I'm thinking they're going to probably be complaining about us not too long from now, right? It's just sort of a circle of life. You meet that with some employees.
Man, my boss is terrible. He's Hitler. He's, you know, whatever. Then find another job or ask God to give you a heart to submit and do what you do, fearing God as unto the Lord in sincerity of heart.
You're probably not going to get employers that just give you things and ask very little. You're probably not going to get employers who just benefit you without wanting you to produce. For the most part, you're not going to get a 25 hour a week job where you get to just sit. That's not typically the way it goes.
So if the first century slaves was mandated to obey in all things your masters, according to the flesh, not with eye service, as men pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God, then certainly 21st century employees must do likewise. As well, the Christian employee ought to be marked by the virtues set forth in all of Colossians 3. You see, what we find fleshed out in the slave-master relationship is simply what we've already seen in verse 12. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long-suffering, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, you also must do, but above all these things, put on love, which is the bond of perfection.
You see, that is the ethic fleshed out in the home. That is the ethic fleshed out in the workplace. That is Christian conduct. It really is that simple.
You don't need a big, fat book on how to be a better employer or employee. Put your mind on Jesus. Same with the masters. In a first century setting, a master was told to be just and fair, knowing that you also have a master in heaven, and you're going to be an employer and be a slave driver, and you're going to be unkind and untoward and unjust and unfair.
That's ungodly. The same principles outlined, the same virtues fleshed out in verses 12 and following are to be employed by the Christian master. So the employee, employer situation certainly finds a parallel. It certainly finds some legitimate application from this section in Colossians chapter 3 verses 22 to chapter 4 verse 1.
Now, we've used the slave word a lot and I know it's offensive today. I'm not here endorsing slavery. I'm not here endorsing the practice. I'm not here endorsing what they practiced in the Roman Empire, not endorsing necessarily what they practiced in Old Covenant Israel.
I'm not here to say that the South was right in the whole issue concerning slaves. I think rights and freedoms and other things certainly need to be taken in. But my position here is today not to endorse the practice, but rather to preach what Paul says concerning it.
Slavery Is an Inescapable Concept
But may I just close by reminding each and every one of us that slavery is an inescapable concept. It is inescapable. You may not be a slave economically. You may not be a slave in terms of the Roman Empire.
You may not be a slave like the Hebrews and the old covenant Israel. But rest assured, every single person in this room is. Jesus said that whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. You see, the Bible sets forth two sorts of slavery.
You're either a slave to Christ or you're a slave to the devil. Whoever commits sin is a slave to sin. Don't scratch your head here this morning saying, well, the very concept and idea of slavery, it's just barbaric and it's antiquated. It has no place in civil discussion.
It certainly ought not to be a subject of treatment from a Christian pulpit. You're a slave. You're outside of Christ. If you're inside of Christ, you're a slave too.
Right? We're not to think ourselves free men if we believe the gospel. We are bought and paid for with a price. Therefore, we're to glorify God with our body and soul.
But if you are outside of Christ this morning, you are every bit as much a slave as those one third of people in Colossae were. Only they were economic, social slaves. You are a spiritual slave. And there's only one way of escape from that slavery.
You know what that escape is? That escape is not your good behavior. You see, a slave, humanly speaking, might reckon this way. If I do enough good, my master will see what benefit I can produce and he'll let me go.
No, when you're a slave of sin, you can't do good. You have no heart for good. You don't desire good. You don't desire those things which God defines as good.
There is one hope for escape from the slavery of sin, and Jesus in the same passage where he says, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin, makes this glorious and wonderful declaration that I hope and I pray that you'll take heed to today. He says that whoever, whoever believes the sign, Whoever comes to the Son shall be set free. There is freedom, emancipation, spiritual joy to be had, not in your works, not in your moral reform, not in your ability, but in the person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Come to Him and whoever comes to the Son shall be free indeed." He frees you, and then he puts his yoke upon you, and then you become his slave.
It's a blessed, beautiful arrangement. So never make the idea of the thought here that slavery doesn't affect me. It affects you. You maybe just haven't given enough thought.
There's either slavery to sin, slavery to Christ. Christ says, believe the gospel and you shall be saved. You'll be set free and you'll be free to serve him and to glorify him.
Closing Prayer
Well, let us pray. Our Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you for its clarity. And God, I pray that we would all focus on those things which are above, that we would set our minds on Christ, that we would seek those things at the right hand of the Father. that God in heaven, these things would be the ground upon which we live in this world, that our thoughts of Christ would affect the way that we conduct ourselves in our church and in our family. and in our workplace.
We thank you that your word speaks to every area of life, to all matters of faith and practice. We pray that you would just make us willing recipients, those who desire the truth and those who live by your grace according to it. And we ask your blessing now to be upon us. And we pray through Jesus Christ, our Lord.