WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:17.179 Thank you guys. A beautiful song. It's a more beautiful hope, isn't it? 00:00:17.699 --> 00:00:23.320 The promises of God to be able to trust Him in the midst of whatever life brings. 00:00:23.320 --> 00:00:30.100 This morning we're back in Ephesians at Ephesians chapter 6. If you want to turn there with me. 00:00:31.859 --> 00:00:37.560 It's been a while since we've been in Ephesians. Glad to get back. Before we jump into our passage 00:00:37.560 --> 00:00:42.679 this morning, I think we may need a little bit of an extended review to get reoriented to where 00:00:42.679 --> 00:00:47.900 we are in Ephesians. I forgot, so I certainly think some of y'all are entitled to forget. 00:00:47.899 --> 00:00:54.719 But so Ephesians started, it's a letter Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus, right? In the first three 00:00:54.719 --> 00:01:03.640 chapters, Paul unfolds the glorious good news of the grace of God to us in Jesus Christ. What he has 00:01:03.640 --> 00:01:09.879 done to rescue us from our sin, to unite us then to Christ and because of that to each other. 00:01:09.879 --> 00:01:17.799 He talks about the dimensions of God's love, that it's so wide and long and high and deep that it 00:01:17.799 --> 00:01:24.219 reaches to the most undeserving of us. Those who couldn't do anything to earn His favor and it 00:01:24.219 --> 00:01:32.259 invites them to His family to sit at His table because of His grace and nothing else. And in doing 00:01:32.260 --> 00:01:41.080 that, God creates a people, a family, a community of people who didn't deserve to be together and 00:01:41.080 --> 00:01:46.480 didn't even want to be together where natural enemies like Jews and Gentiles who hated each other 00:01:46.480 --> 00:01:53.660 are now a part of this family. Because of their connection to Jesus, they're united together to 00:01:53.660 --> 00:02:01.320 each other. That's the first three chapters. And then in chapter four, Paul shifts. There's a word at 00:02:01.319 --> 00:02:08.799 the beginning of chapter four, therefore. Therefore, Paul says, in light of all of these glorious things 00:02:08.799 --> 00:02:13.400 that are true, in light of what I've told you about who God is and what He's done, this changes 00:02:13.400 --> 00:02:21.379 everything. All of life is different now. The good news of Jesus changes everything. And so he starts to 00:02:21.379 --> 00:02:28.479 flesh that reality out in a number of areas. He talks about unity in the church first. He moves to 00:02:28.479 --> 00:02:35.639 personal morality. He addresses how we engage with those outside the church. Then he speaks to husbands 00:02:35.639 --> 00:02:42.159 and wives, to parents and children about their relationships. We spent a few weeks talking about 00:02:42.159 --> 00:02:49.120 those relationships. And in every arena, every time Paul brings up one of these subjects, he walks into 00:02:49.120 --> 00:02:57.879 that arena and says, Jesus changes this. The gospel makes all the difference in how you view this portion 00:02:57.879 --> 00:03:03.879 of your life. It's the glory of the gospel, isn't it? That it cannot be contained in a box. It's not 00:03:03.879 --> 00:03:11.640 something that you can control or contain. It changes everything. Our theology must be practical. 00:03:12.219 --> 00:03:19.099 It must change how we live. Remember just a few weeks ago how the gospel, the story of all of 00:03:19.099 --> 00:03:24.259 scripture reorients, the scripture reorients our approach to our marriage relationships. It says we 00:03:24.259 --> 00:03:31.680 think about them entirely differently because of what's true in the gospel. Jesus is not merely a 00:03:31.680 --> 00:03:39.120 Sunday morning event. He doesn't just impact the way you relate to your church friends, but no one else. 00:03:40.219 --> 00:03:46.659 He's not just a box to check every morning before you start your day, right? He's not contained 00:03:46.659 --> 00:03:53.060 in a box. He touches everything and gives it purpose and significance and eternal perspective. 00:03:54.840 --> 00:04:01.300 And so this morning, he reaches to the workplace, to difficult situations and relationships. And 00:04:01.300 --> 00:04:06.800 Paul helps us understand how the glory of the grace of God changes these arenas of life 00:04:06.800 --> 00:04:14.579 too. And listen, I know this is a little bit uncomfortable. I feel it. It's difficult to think 00:04:14.580 --> 00:04:21.680 about Jesus touching every area of my life, my marriage, my money, my job. Jesus is going to 00:04:21.680 --> 00:04:27.439 change all of this. It's upsetting. It's disturbing in some ways. It doesn't feel safe and controlled, 00:04:27.439 --> 00:04:34.160 does it? Probably because it's not. It's not safe and I'm not in control of it. 00:04:35.319 --> 00:04:41.199 It can feel exhausting to think about what Jesus is going to have to say about all of those areas of 00:04:41.199 --> 00:04:50.099 life. I just, I can't get my hands around all of them. But remember, it's for our good that he does 00:04:50.099 --> 00:04:58.240 this. Jesus won't share his glory with my idols. He won't allow me to talk like a Christian and play 00:04:58.240 --> 00:05:07.000 church on Sunday and then ignore what he loves on Monday to chase my idols. He loves me too much to let 00:05:07.000 --> 00:05:14.680 me ruin my life and destroy myself by leaving him out of it altogether. He doesn't want me to miss what 00:05:14.680 --> 00:05:21.699 he's created and redeemed me for. He wants to see me flourish and honor him in all of life for his glory 00:05:21.699 --> 00:05:28.459 and for my good, right? That's what he's about. That's why we need to hear this. Ephesians chapter 6 00:05:28.459 --> 00:05:33.279 at verse 5. Hear God's holy word. 00:05:33.279 --> 00:05:42.579 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart as you would Christ, 00:05:42.899 --> 00:05:49.759 not by the way of eye service as people pleasers, but as servants of Christ doing the will of God from 00:05:49.759 --> 00:05:56.579 the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good 00:05:56.579 --> 00:06:03.719 anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. Masters, do the 00:06:03.719 --> 00:06:10.519 same to them and stop your threatening, knowing that he who is both their master and yours is in heaven 00:06:10.519 --> 00:06:20.120 and that there is no partiality with him. The grass withers, the flowers fade, but these words of our God 00:06:20.120 --> 00:06:32.000 will stand forever. Join me as we ask for his help. Thank you, Father, for your word. Thank you that it 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:39.959 does indeed stand forever. Thank you that because of that it speaks today. It speaks to our lives and to 00:06:39.959 --> 00:06:48.699 every area of them and it speaks with power always because of your spirit. Father, would we know that? 00:06:48.699 --> 00:06:58.719 Would we experience that this morning? Holy Spirit, come and speak to us through the word and change us 00:06:58.719 --> 00:07:09.800 forever. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen. I hope you noticed as I read this passage and I've been talking 00:07:09.800 --> 00:07:18.379 about the gospel for the workplace that the words employer and employee and boss are not in the passage. 00:07:18.699 --> 00:07:26.399 Instead, we read about slaves and masters and it raises for us a very important issue to address 00:07:26.399 --> 00:07:34.139 as we begin this morning. One that I think is a question we have to ask. Why did Paul address 00:07:34.139 --> 00:07:40.480 slaves and masters rather than just declaring that slavery should not exist at all? Do you feel that 00:07:40.480 --> 00:07:47.039 tension in your own heart? It's a fair question. A lot of people ask it. Why didn't Paul just say, 00:07:47.040 --> 00:07:52.260 I can cut five verses out of my letter? Masters don't have slaves. Slaves be free. 00:07:53.819 --> 00:08:01.360 Feels right. Might have been what we think we would have written. Historians estimate that when 00:08:01.360 --> 00:08:07.540 Paul wrote this letter to the city of Ephesus, a third of the city would have been slaves. We may 00:08:07.540 --> 00:08:14.000 have one idea of slavery in our minds when we hear that word used, but it meant a range of things in the 00:08:14.000 --> 00:08:21.220 Roman world. Slaves were a part of the household under the rule of the powerful father. Some of them did 00:08:21.220 --> 00:08:28.819 manual labor. Others were tradesmen, city treasurers, many other occupations. As you would expect, some were 00:08:28.819 --> 00:08:38.480 treated well, others cruelly. So there were differences from slavery in this country, but let me be very clear. 00:08:38.480 --> 00:08:49.460 Any man owning another is evil. Being treated as property rather than a person is evil because, 00:08:49.700 --> 00:08:57.600 among other things, it disgraces the image of God in every man. It denies one the freedom that he has as 00:08:57.600 --> 00:09:06.139 one created by dignity, for dignity, by the king of all. And it's important for us to say that this morning 00:09:06.139 --> 00:09:15.980 because we need to remember that in many of our lifetimes, in this state, in churches like this one, 00:09:17.340 --> 00:09:26.580 pastors like me speaking to congregations like you have misused the Bible, have misused God's word 00:09:26.580 --> 00:09:38.759 to justify or defend segregation, racial injustice, and disgraceful hatred of those made in God's image. 00:09:39.420 --> 00:09:44.320 And that should break our hearts. It must break our hearts. Amen? 00:09:44.320 --> 00:09:55.420 Amen? That's happened. It's part of our history as God's people. And we need to grieve that. We need to 00:09:55.420 --> 00:10:01.840 repent of that. And the question in light of that stands all the more. Why didn't God just speak 00:10:01.840 --> 00:10:09.840 unequivocally through Paul that all types of slavery should be done away with? Without claiming to know the 00:10:09.840 --> 00:10:19.220 whole mind of God on this or any issue, let me make a couple observations. First, in this passage and in others, 00:10:19.379 --> 00:10:26.920 we see God's word clearly undermines the culture and the institution of slavery, in this case in the Roman 00:10:26.920 --> 00:10:34.720 Empire. We'll see how some of this plays out in the passage later. But in Galatians and Colossians, Paul writes 00:10:34.720 --> 00:10:41.460 that in Christ there's no Jew or Greek, no slave or free, that we're equally valuable because our value 00:10:41.460 --> 00:10:47.300 is in the image of God we were created in and are being redeemed and renewed in Christ for. 00:10:48.840 --> 00:10:55.080 In fact, in Paul's short letter to Philemon, he tells him because of the gospel he should have an 00:10:55.080 --> 00:11:02.180 entirely new relationship with Onesimus. That's Philemon's runaway slave who has found Paul. 00:11:02.179 --> 00:11:10.459 And Paul sends Onesimus back to Philemon how? You remember Philemon verse 15, Paul writes to the 00:11:10.459 --> 00:11:17.539 slave owner, Philemon, this perhaps is why Onesimus was parted from you for a while, that you might have 00:11:17.539 --> 00:11:26.799 him back forever, no longer as a slave, but more than a slave, as a beloved brother to me and to you. 00:11:26.799 --> 00:11:33.639 No longer as a slave, Philemon, but more than that, as a beloved brother. 00:11:35.120 --> 00:11:40.539 Pastor and theologian John Stott writes that in the first century, sweeping humanitarian 00:11:40.539 --> 00:11:47.740 change was improving the status of slaves in the Roman Empire. And then the growing impact of the 00:11:47.740 --> 00:11:55.719 gospel of Jesus Christ, and I'll quote Stott, lit a fuse which at long last led to the explosion that 00:11:55.720 --> 00:12:05.680 destroyed it. While Christians in many cultures since then have likewise worked against slavery 00:12:05.680 --> 00:12:13.759 with great success, once again we must acknowledge that some Christians since then have to our shame 00:12:13.759 --> 00:12:21.680 misused these same biblical principles to support various forms of slavery and racism. But the gospel 00:12:21.679 --> 00:12:30.120 clearly stands against this and so must we. It's vital for us to understand that. But secondly, 00:12:31.000 --> 00:12:37.339 why would this passage sound the way it does? The reality of a passage like this reminds us that this 00:12:37.339 --> 00:12:44.139 is true too. That while the gospel does change systems and structures as its truths are applied in 00:12:44.139 --> 00:12:50.980 spheres of societies. The gospel brings hope and purpose even before change in circumstances. 00:12:52.879 --> 00:13:01.379 It does change structures. It does change systems and how governments operate and how systems function, 00:13:01.620 --> 00:13:08.080 but typically, typically what it does first is bring hope and purpose even before there's change. 00:13:08.080 --> 00:13:15.780 Paul urges slaves to seek freedom in several places. But writing to slaves, obviously here in the Christian 00:13:15.780 --> 00:13:24.780 community in Ephesus, he focuses instead on how to honor Christ where they are. Slavery in Ephesus was a 00:13:24.780 --> 00:13:33.300 functional part of the culture of the present evil age, we might say. And even though it was unequivocally a 00:13:33.299 --> 00:13:39.659 sinful manifestation of the fall, it didn't prevent Christ from being at work and Christians from being 00:13:39.659 --> 00:13:46.099 faithful to him, it didn't prevent them from living with hope and purpose in the midst of unspeakable 00:13:46.099 --> 00:13:54.279 mistreatment. Hasn't that very principle been modeled so well by so many slaves in this country? 00:13:55.159 --> 00:14:02.799 Haven't they endured mistreatment at the hands of men while singing of and longing for a heavenly home? 00:14:03.299 --> 00:14:11.099 While laboring day after day in a system that disgraced their dignity? Did many of them long for 00:14:11.099 --> 00:14:17.740 freedom? Absolutely. Did many honor the name of Christ even before obtaining their freedom? 00:14:19.199 --> 00:14:26.299 Absolutely. So the most heinous sinfulness of mankind has never been a match for the purposes 00:14:26.299 --> 00:14:35.039 and power of God working in and through his people. The gospel is so big and so not able to be contained 00:14:35.039 --> 00:14:43.379 in a box that it enters even into the worst situations, into our worst sin, and says there's hope 00:14:43.379 --> 00:14:49.639 and there's purpose there. It matters and transforms things even in the evil of slavery. 00:14:49.639 --> 00:14:55.819 These Ephesian believers have already been told, think of them, the slaves hearing this letter, 00:14:56.120 --> 00:15:01.639 they've already been told that they're indwelt by God's Spirit. They're connected to Christ and have 00:15:01.639 --> 00:15:09.379 a power in them greater than every rule or power or dominion or authority. They know God is powerful 00:15:09.379 --> 00:15:16.500 to work in the midst of sin and brokenness. They know he can work in their situation. So there's hope 00:15:16.500 --> 00:15:23.580 and purpose already. And that's where Paul focuses in writing to God's people. That's what he wants 00:15:23.580 --> 00:15:30.779 them to hear loud and clear, that things may change, but in the meantime there's hope and purpose where you 00:15:30.779 --> 00:15:38.860 are. And if that's true, that God works in the midst of sin and brokenness like that, I think a fair 00:15:38.860 --> 00:15:46.279 question for us this morning is how much more can he work in our employer-employee situations? Even the 00:15:46.279 --> 00:15:54.419 worst ones, the most frustrating situations we have. But listen, there are still men and especially 00:15:54.419 --> 00:16:01.980 women and children enslaved in our world today. And we should take this as a reminder that the gospel 00:16:01.980 --> 00:16:07.639 calls us to speak up for them and fight for their dignity and deliverance wherever we can. 00:16:07.639 --> 00:16:15.699 We also live with systems that virtually enslave people generation after generation, 00:16:16.299 --> 00:16:21.439 keeping them from realizing the dignity they have as image bearers of God. We have a group here at 00:16:21.439 --> 00:16:29.019 Southwood investigating alternatives to the predatory payday lending system that is all through our 00:16:29.019 --> 00:16:37.559 culture to say, how would the gospel change this? Jobs for Life is a great opportunity for us to 00:16:37.559 --> 00:16:45.759 engage and serve and helping people get free from generational cycles of not just poverty, but not 00:16:45.759 --> 00:16:51.639 knowing the dignity of work and the power of a God who loves them and who cares for their plight, who 00:16:51.639 --> 00:16:59.299 meets them where they are. So don't skip over the slavery part of this passage straight to the workplace 00:16:59.299 --> 00:17:07.299 and miss God's heart for those enslaved and for our responsibility to them. God's heart is for the 00:17:07.299 --> 00:17:13.700 downtrodden and the oppressed and His Word speaks in no uncertain terms about their value and their 00:17:13.700 --> 00:17:23.759 dignity. So with what I hope are some very clear distinctions, I do think it's valuable for us to 00:17:23.759 --> 00:17:31.700 consider as well how this passage addresses the settings we walk into Monday to Friday. That in some ways 00:17:31.700 --> 00:17:39.319 is a huge beginning to a sermon. But I don't want it to let us forget where we're going to show up tomorrow 00:17:39.319 --> 00:17:48.660 morning. We might show up and have opportunities to encounter slavery, literal, virtual slavery. We may 00:17:48.660 --> 00:17:55.620 show up in situations that we find unfair or that seem less than ideal to us and we too have the promise 00:17:55.619 --> 00:18:01.479 of the Holy Spirit that the Ephesians had, right? The promise of the Holy Spirit and His power working 00:18:01.479 --> 00:18:08.899 in the midst of our broken relationships and broken work situations. I don't know what every one of you 00:18:08.899 --> 00:18:17.079 spends much of your time doing during the week. I'm hazarding a guess we have an engineer or two 00:18:17.079 --> 00:18:27.539 perhaps in the room. Some of you feel like professional chauffeurs for good reason. It's just where am I 00:18:27.539 --> 00:18:32.679 driving today and who will be with me when we get there and will I remember to pick them all up? 00:18:33.740 --> 00:18:41.679 Some of us work by ourselves. Others work for massive companies. But whatever it is, many of us have said 00:18:41.680 --> 00:18:50.320 things like these. Have you ever asked yourself, why am I doing this? What's the point? This is not what I 00:18:50.320 --> 00:18:58.600 dreamed of doing, what I thought life would be like. Have you ever said to a friend, well, I mean, it's a job. 00:18:59.680 --> 00:19:05.279 It pays the bills after all. I mean, you've got to pay the bills. So, I mean, yeah, I mean, I don't love it, 00:19:05.320 --> 00:19:10.420 but I mean, it pays the bills. That's good, right? I mean, that's all it does, but it does that. 00:19:10.420 --> 00:19:16.380 Or my boss is so unreasonable. He doesn't even understand. He's out of touch. Why should I even 00:19:16.380 --> 00:19:23.440 care anymore working for him? Most of us have said or thought things like that at some point. 00:19:23.620 --> 00:19:28.039 I was going to ask for a show of hands, but in case your boss is in the room, that's awkward. 00:19:31.320 --> 00:19:37.840 We've felt those things. We've felt the apathy, right? Building up inside of us feelings of 00:19:37.839 --> 00:19:43.439 insignificance. How could this possibly matter in the grand scheme of things? Shouldn't I be doing 00:19:43.439 --> 00:19:51.419 something more important, you know, more spiritual? Someone said to me recently, I'm currently working 00:19:51.419 --> 00:19:56.559 on a project the government has already cut the funding for and decided we'll never use. 00:19:58.779 --> 00:20:06.199 Seems pointless, huh? I thought recently, I'm currently working on saying to my toddler the same thing she 00:20:06.200 --> 00:20:12.740 has already ignored a dozen times and has apparently decided she'll never use. And it seems pointless. 00:20:13.279 --> 00:20:18.559 It's funny, you can laugh, but it seems pointless. It hurts. It's real frustration. 00:20:20.220 --> 00:20:25.259 Look back at what God has to say about our work and our attitude towards it. Verse 5, 00:20:25.259 --> 00:20:31.900 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart as you would Christ, 00:20:32.160 --> 00:20:38.160 not by the way of eye service as people pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God 00:20:38.160 --> 00:20:44.220 from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever 00:20:44.220 --> 00:20:50.220 good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he's a slave or free. 00:20:50.220 --> 00:20:58.680 First, he says, who you work for is more important than what you do. And that's not original with me, 00:20:58.779 --> 00:21:04.360 but so many people have said it, I don't know who gets credit for it. It doesn't just mean who you 00:21:04.360 --> 00:21:11.140 work for, who your boss is, is more important than what line of work you're in. It's not just that. 00:21:11.579 --> 00:21:17.240 In this context, who you work for is more important than what you do means that bumper sticker you've 00:21:17.240 --> 00:21:25.099 rolled your eyes at a hundred times. My boss is what? A Jewish carpenter, right? You've seen that one 00:21:25.099 --> 00:21:34.559 before? Oh man, seriously? Yes, seriously. Look at every directive God gives in this passage. 00:21:35.700 --> 00:21:41.880 Each time he says something, why are you going to obey with a sincere heart? It's as you would Christ. 00:21:41.880 --> 00:21:48.180 Not for them who are watching you to please them, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God. 00:21:48.920 --> 00:21:54.960 And then verse 7, render service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man. What does Paul say 00:21:54.960 --> 00:22:00.440 is most important about what you do? What's he hitting from different angles? He's coming back 00:22:00.440 --> 00:22:05.780 at the same point, who you work for? You work for the Lord. Paul says it elsewhere too, right? 00:22:06.440 --> 00:22:11.860 Colossians 3.23, one of my favorite verses, whatever you do, work heartily as for the Lord and not 00:22:11.859 --> 00:22:18.059 for men. 1 Corinthians 10, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, it's for the glory of God. 00:22:19.879 --> 00:22:26.740 Paul is saying over and over and over, it's who you work for. Remember who you work for. Be mindful 00:22:26.740 --> 00:22:31.359 of the fact that the things you do are done unto Christ, even when you don't work at a church. 00:22:32.679 --> 00:22:37.399 It should change our attitude, according to this passage, toward our work and our bosses. 00:22:37.400 --> 00:22:45.560 We're now to respond even to unreasonable bosses with the respect due to Christ. We're now to do 00:22:45.560 --> 00:22:51.440 our jobs as though we are building a house or cleaning a room, designing a spacecraft for the 00:22:51.440 --> 00:22:58.519 very one who laid down his life for us, to whom we owe everything, right? Work that way like he's the 00:22:58.519 --> 00:23:04.799 one you're working for. Have you told yourself it's okay to cut corners when the boss is out of the 00:23:04.799 --> 00:23:10.099 office? Have you told yourself you only need to do excellent work when someone will notice? 00:23:12.180 --> 00:23:16.980 You mow the grass better for the woman always working in her garden than you do for the elderly 00:23:16.980 --> 00:23:21.859 man who never gets out of his house to see his yard. I used to do that when I was in high school. 00:23:21.859 --> 00:23:29.639 Man, I cut that grass real carefully when she was standing out there. God says you've forgotten who 00:23:29.639 --> 00:23:36.519 your boss is. Christians don't work to please people who happen to be watching, but to honor Christ who 00:23:36.519 --> 00:23:44.299 sees even the heart. I love this passage in Titus where Paul says he's talking about the same things 00:23:44.299 --> 00:23:50.919 and the attitudes that are going on as we work. And he talks about how we're to work so that in 00:23:50.920 --> 00:23:57.640 everything we may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior. I love that image. That we would make the 00:23:57.640 --> 00:24:05.000 gospel beautiful. That the way we work, the attitude with which we approach everything we do would make 00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:12.420 the gospel beautiful, would adorn the doctrine of God and that he's our Savior. That's the beauty and 00:24:12.420 --> 00:24:18.900 the value of our attitude towards our work that's described in this passage. It really matters. 00:24:18.900 --> 00:24:29.660 And that leads us to the second principle. Last one. Because of who you work for, what you do counts 00:24:29.660 --> 00:24:38.220 forever. Look at verse 8. Knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the 00:24:38.220 --> 00:24:46.100 Lord, whether he is a slave or free. Whatever situation you find yourself in, Paul says, however pointless 00:24:46.099 --> 00:24:56.839 it feels. It's valuable. It counts forever because of who you work for. This is true in at least a couple 00:24:56.839 --> 00:25:04.679 of ways. You may think what you do is merely temporal, menial, insignificant. Martin Luther said, think of it 00:25:04.679 --> 00:25:12.480 this way. He said, the Bible tells us that the hand of God feeds his people. And so what does that mean? 00:25:12.480 --> 00:25:19.860 How does God do that? If it's true that the hand of God is responsible for feeding his people, then he does that 00:25:19.860 --> 00:25:28.180 through the milkmaid, the farmhand, the truck driver, the guy flipping burgers. These are not at this point 00:25:28.180 --> 00:25:38.599 Luther's exact words, but it's in our context. All of them then are God's fingers. If it's God's hand feeding his people, 00:25:38.599 --> 00:25:45.179 those people then are the very fingers of God. So are mom and dad making grilled cheese. 00:25:46.319 --> 00:25:52.199 They may be doing things our society doesn't value highly, but they are the very fingers of God 00:25:52.199 --> 00:26:00.240 through which he cares for his people. The Bible says God makes our cities secure, and he does that through 00:26:00.240 --> 00:26:09.819 those working in defense, in health care, in city planning, in lavatory cleaning. The fingers of God 00:26:09.819 --> 00:26:15.339 through which he cares for his creation, doing something significant for his purposes in the world. 00:26:15.539 --> 00:26:21.599 Do you think of your Tuesday afternoon schedule that way? Is it that important to you? It is to him. 00:26:21.740 --> 00:26:29.000 It is important to the king of heaven. He's at work. So the eternal significance of everything you do 00:26:29.000 --> 00:26:35.160 is true not only in those places where you feel insignificant, but in those places where you think 00:26:35.160 --> 00:26:46.640 no one notices, where you feel invisible. Verse 8 says, God sees. He values the single mom who's tender 00:26:46.640 --> 00:26:57.599 and patient with her infant at three in the morning. He sees and values the guy in cubicle 323 who's diligent 00:26:57.599 --> 00:27:06.980 and ethical when no one would know any better. He was lazy. He was dishonest. He'd get away with it. 00:27:07.319 --> 00:27:14.019 God says there's an eternal weight and value that we could never calculate, but that God assures us 00:27:14.019 --> 00:27:20.619 he has well in hand. What we do and how we act towards those with whom we interact counts forever. 00:27:20.619 --> 00:27:29.359 Why? Because our boss is at work. Because we work for him and he's at work in ways we don't even know. 00:27:29.639 --> 00:27:33.879 Everything we do matters because of who we work for. 00:27:37.379 --> 00:27:45.579 Lastly, God has words to masters. If that's what he says to those who are working, there are also those of us 00:27:45.579 --> 00:27:52.059 who may not think of frustrating bosses and difficult work environments, disappointing employees, 00:27:52.699 --> 00:27:58.839 disgruntled subcontractors or disobedient people who are under our charge. And here's where the 00:27:58.839 --> 00:28:02.039 countercultural language really develops, isn't it? Look at verse 9. 00:28:03.199 --> 00:28:10.539 Masters, do the same to them. Stop your threatening knowing that he who is both their master and yours 00:28:10.539 --> 00:28:16.519 is in heaven that there's no partiality with him. You may have seen this coming already at the end of 00:28:16.519 --> 00:28:23.619 verse 8 where God rewards slave or free the same, but verse 9 is unequivocal. God says, 00:28:23.619 --> 00:28:28.759 Masters, the way your slaves are to treat you, treat them the same way. 00:28:30.659 --> 00:28:39.139 What? That may not be shocking to you in this culture. That's radical. Stop threatening to use 00:28:39.140 --> 00:28:44.440 your position or power to hurt them. Stop thinking you're more valuable than they are because of 00:28:44.440 --> 00:28:52.200 your salary or rank. Just using the word same in this context is radically subversive of the whole 00:28:52.200 --> 00:28:59.080 social system, but it's radically consistent with the gospel, isn't it? Isn't it exactly what we've 00:28:59.080 --> 00:29:05.640 learned all the way through Ephesians is the result of all sorts of people being identified and valued by 00:29:05.640 --> 00:29:11.780 their connection to Jesus? They're united to each other, equally valuable, equally significant because 00:29:11.780 --> 00:29:18.000 their value and their significance comes from their relationship with him, from being made and being 00:29:18.000 --> 00:29:25.759 remade in his image. Remember what Jesus did to the distinctions between Jews and Gentiles back in 00:29:25.759 --> 00:29:32.480 chapter 2? Because Jesus is our peace. He made them one, broke down the dividing wall of hostility. 00:29:32.480 --> 00:29:40.420 He made one new man in place of the two. There was peace there. He reconciled Jews and Gentiles both to God 00:29:40.420 --> 00:29:48.799 in one body. Killed the hostility through his cross. He preached peace to those far off and those near. How? 00:29:49.240 --> 00:29:58.200 Because through him we both have access in one spirit to the Father. He destroyed the differences by giving them 00:29:58.200 --> 00:30:06.019 one spirit and the same Father. They're now brothers, like Paul wrote to Philemon. They're fundamentally 00:30:06.019 --> 00:30:11.360 equals despite all their differences, despite all of the things that could distinguish you from each 00:30:11.360 --> 00:30:17.900 other. Paul says the one that matters most is you're now brothers in Christ. And we see the outworking of 00:30:17.900 --> 00:30:24.420 that gospel truth here with slaves and masters, bosses and workers. You have the same master who is no 00:30:24.420 --> 00:30:31.480 respecter of persons, who's not impressed by how much you make or how big your office is. You're valuable to him. 00:30:32.259 --> 00:30:39.160 But so is the lowest ranking person in your office. Do you value those under you as people? 00:30:40.900 --> 00:30:44.340 Are they means to an end for you or do you care about them personally? 00:30:45.039 --> 00:30:49.640 Do you see both them and their work as meaningful? Because God does, right? 00:30:49.640 --> 00:30:57.700 We just saw that. And again, the reason that this is so important is that God sees and cares. 00:30:58.160 --> 00:31:06.100 He's in heaven and he's ruling impartially. Because he sees, because he's at work, this matters. 00:31:06.540 --> 00:31:12.560 The great encouragement for all of us is that Christ, who is to be the focus of all of our work, 00:31:12.620 --> 00:31:18.820 is already at work even when we don't see him. There's no boss, no employee, 00:31:18.819 --> 00:31:25.619 no work environment, no life situation that is out of sight from him or beyond the reach of his 00:31:25.619 --> 00:31:31.059 redemption. That's our great hope. There's no situation such that the hope of the gospel is 00:31:31.059 --> 00:31:37.579 extinguished entirely or that the eternal value of our engagement in it is neglected completely. 00:31:38.439 --> 00:31:46.259 The God of the gospel reaches through your heart, beyond your family, past the walls of this church, 00:31:46.259 --> 00:31:49.859 into the mundane, frustrating, 00:31:50.339 --> 00:31:54.879 exhausting, unfair world of everyday life. 00:31:55.779 --> 00:31:57.680 He loves you too much 00:31:57.680 --> 00:31:59.619 to leave you alone in it. 00:31:59.940 --> 00:32:02.379 That God reaches in and says, 00:32:02.879 --> 00:32:03.980 this matters. 00:32:05.079 --> 00:32:06.640 I won't leave you alone there. 00:32:06.920 --> 00:32:07.759 I'm at work. 00:32:08.059 --> 00:32:10.460 May that give us hope and encouragement 00:32:10.460 --> 00:32:12.640 to live with purpose every day 00:32:12.640 --> 00:32:14.240 to his glory. 00:32:14.240 --> 00:32:14.800 Let's pray. 00:32:18.980 --> 00:32:21.259 Father, your word is good. 00:32:23.640 --> 00:32:26.060 It's good to remind us 00:32:26.060 --> 00:32:30.700 that this is not the only important hour of the week. 00:32:31.920 --> 00:32:36.400 That we don't have to walk into this building to be before your face. 00:32:36.400 --> 00:32:37.759 Father, 00:32:37.759 --> 00:32:39.600 that your presence goes with us. 00:32:39.700 --> 00:32:44.040 That your work is happening out there even while we are in here. 00:32:45.720 --> 00:32:51.560 That you send us forward to be your people in a culture that is not always easy, 00:32:51.880 --> 00:32:55.080 in situations that are often challenging. 00:32:56.160 --> 00:32:57.880 But you don't send us alone. 00:32:58.280 --> 00:33:00.500 You are with us and you are at work. 00:33:00.920 --> 00:33:02.180 We thank you for that. 00:33:02.500 --> 00:33:02.740 Father, 00:33:02.940 --> 00:33:03.920 open our eyes. 00:33:03.920 --> 00:33:06.160 For those of us who are discouraged, 00:33:06.480 --> 00:33:07.860 show us where you're working. 00:33:08.320 --> 00:33:10.220 Show us how you're using us. 00:33:10.340 --> 00:33:14.860 And give us hearts that desire to work for Christ. 00:33:15.920 --> 00:33:17.100 And not for man. 00:33:17.960 --> 00:33:22.120 May we do everything that we do for your glory. 00:33:23.380 --> 00:33:26.640 You alone deserve all the praise. 00:33:27.200 --> 00:33:28.880 Would every moment of every day, 00:33:28.940 --> 00:33:32.880 not just when we sing songs and pray and read your word, 00:33:32.880 --> 00:33:37.320 would every moment we live be for the glory of Jesus. 00:33:37.740 --> 00:33:39.000 We ask it in his name. 00:33:39.620 --> 00:33:39.860 Amen. 00:33:43.940 --> 00:33:45.160 For more information, 00:33:45.540 --> 00:33:47.760 visit us online at southwood.org.