Spirit-Filled Work Relationships

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This passage teaches us that Spirit-filled slaves and masters will submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in their roles. For slaves, this meant obedience to their masters as to the Lord. For masters, this meant treating their slaves with dignity and respect. For both, it meant they are ultimately accountable to God for how they act, and they must remember that God is the ultimate, eternal Lord and He shows no partiality.

Outline

1. Spirit-filled Cultural Considerations

2. Spirit-filled Employees

3. Spirit-Filled Employers

Study Questions

1. According to 5:22-6:10, there are four roles within God’s new society Paul gives instructions for.

   1. What are those 4 roles?

   2. On what command in 5:18 does our obedience in these roles depend?

   3. Our obedience to those commands is ultimately our obedience to which over-arching command? (see 5:15-17)

2. In 6:5-9, Paul addresses slaves and masters, but he does not speak out rightly against the institution of slavery.

   1. What is Paul’s primary concern in 6:5-9?

   2. How is Paul’s primary concern separate from abolishing an immoral institution?

   3. How can knowledge of 1st century Roman slavery inform our understanding of this text?

3. The responsibility of slaves to masters is clear: Obey as you would obey Christ.

   1. How would you explain obedience “with fear and trembling” and “a sincere heart?”

   2. What is the difference between an individual who aims to please someone and a “people-pleaser”?

   3. What does 6:8 promise to those who obey what God commands here?

4. In 6:9, masters are required to “do the same to them” and “stop your threatening.”

   1. What did Paul mean when he said, “do the same to them.”?

   2. What reason does Paul give for them to stop their threatening?

   3. How does the equal treatment and consideration of slaves and masters (Gal 3:28) ultimately undermine slavery as an institution?

5. Application: Obviously, slavery is not something that exists any more in our society, but considering what more mild forms of slavery were in the first century, there is a sense in which employees, for a certain amount of time and in a certain way are “enslaved” to their employers.

   1. Why is it important for Christians to view even the mundane things they do, not as a means to an end, but as an opportunity to glorify God?

   2. What principles can employees glean from this text regarding how they are to approach their work?

   3. What principles can employees and managers glean from this text that will enable them to faithfully exercise their responsibilities?

   4. What over-arching principle does Paul appeal to in this text regarding both employee and employer relationships?