(Part
3)
“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 like slaves
of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as is
you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward
everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.”
Ephesians
6:5-84
Sometimes
our biggest challenge in the workplace isn’t the job, but rather the people in
authority over us. However, before you get too excited about that statement I
challenge you re-read the above passage.
In
this passage, Paul uses the absolute worse working relationship he could imagine,
to drive home truths that are important for us to remember in our own work
environments. The relationship between a slave and master was not a pleasant,
fair, or desirable relationship. As bad as you may perceive your working
relationship with your boss to be; slavery is worse! So if Paul expected slaves
to apply these truths to their lives, how much more should we?
Paul
gave them four primary applications in passage to put into practice. The first
is to obey their masters with respect, fear, and sincerity of heart as they
would obey Christ. This isn’t always easy, especially if your boss does not
exemplify Christ in their words, deeds, and attitudes. However, the
demonstration of proper respect for the position they hold, coupled with godly
fear and proper motivation, are the hallmarks of maturity.
Our
response and actions in the workplace are not dependent upon the uprightness of
our bosses, but they ought to be directed out of our relationship with Jesus
Christ.
Secondly,
Paul encouraged them to work hard in order to please God, not to win the favor
of their bosses. This is very much a
selfish pursuit, for the favor they seek is typically an attempt to make their
own lives more manageable; not to communicate the character of God.
Thirdly,
Paul cautioned them to avoid duplicity. Don’t work hard only when the boss is
watching, and then pursue your own self-interests when they are not around.
Finally,
Paul concludes with this “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the
Lord, not men.” Whatever we do, we ought to work at it with all of our hearts!
We should consider what we are doing as being a reflection of God, Himself! How
would people describe God, based on your work ethic?
Pastor
Scott Burr
http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com/
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