Serving Earthly Masters

Serving Earthly Masters

Ephesians 6:5–8

Serving under the authority of others is not always an easy task.

Due to human sin, even individuals in the best situations must deal with difficult co-workers and supervisors who fail at times to notice or acknowledge a job well done.

Things were actually worse in the ancient world with the master-slave relationship. Demanding slave owners made it hard even for Christian slaves to sustain the will to serve their overseers faithfully, tempting slaves not to work to the best of their ability.

The fundamentals Paul unfolds in Ephesians 6:5–8 is that we serve our earthly supervisors with an eye to the Lord.

We are servants of Christ, and key to serving Jesus well is doing the will of those in authority over us.

 Doing so does not violate God’s law.

Our Creator rules His creation through delegated authorities (Rom. 13:1–7); consequently, to obey the directives of authorities is to obey God Himself.

Simply put, we cannot claim to be Christ’s servants if we do not heed those whom God has put over us. Such obedience must be rendered with respect, not to be resentful.

Christian leaders may warn those in their charge of the potential consequences of their actions, but leaders should also show grace to those laborers under them, encouraging their volunteers, staff members.

They have the same Lord as the Christians whom they supervise; consequently, they must lead by example, setting high but not impossible standards, and they must endeavour to make it easy for others to serve them gladly.

Let us pray:

Heavenly father, help us to understand that work and authority has been ordained according to your plan. Help us to work in the same attitude as to how we serve you. In Jesus Name. Amen. 

Blessings & Prayers 

Pastor. Bobby Leonard