“Slavery – Good and Bad”

Scripture: 1 Timothy 6:1-10

Is slavery a good thing or a bad thing? The answer isn’t quite as simple as we might think! The answer lies, not only in the attitude and actions of the slave owner, but even more so in the perspective of the slave. Certainly, the way the master treats the slave is important, but even more important, is how the slave views the slavery!
The slave trade in the 18th century was hateful. People were torn out of the lives that they had always known, and carried thousands of miles, against their will, to a land that wasn’t theirs, to work without compensation, and to live in constant agony. The traders, as well as the owners, saw little wrong with this system, but the African people saw nothing that could even approach being “good”. Do I need to say that this form of slavery is a bad thing?
However, scripture is full of references to our voluntary servitude to both Christ and the world. In Matthew 20:26-28, Jesus calls us to be a servant if we want to be great, to be a slave (the last and least in society) if we want to be first. This is not a commandment of the world by any way, shape or form, but it is certainly our foremost call from God! Putting, not only our Lord first, but also those who would do us harm, those who would lie to us, those who take a stand that is totally opposed to everything we know to be true. This is a holy and honorable slavery.

Read 1 Timothy 6:1-2

And when a disciple of Christ finds themselves as a slave to the world, how are we to show honor to our master, regardless of their attitude toward us? We must “consider our masters worthy of full respect.” Why? So that God’s name will not be vilified.
Have you ever had a boss who you had absolutely no respect for? Did you talk about him or her behind their back? Did you join in with the demeaning conversations of others during coffee breaks, and even add a negative thought or two of your own? Paul would have us know that this detracts from our Christian walk!

Have you ever had a Christian boss, who you treated more as a buddy than one who had authority over you? Did you treat the relationship more as friendship than as requiring obedience? Did you take advantage of the relationship to gain an advantage over your co-workers? Paul would have us know that this, too, detracts from our faith expression.

Respect must flow in both directions – up as well as down.

In the book “Imperfect Control“, a hugely successful owner of several companies talks about how he runs his organization. “You can insist on having control over everything,” he says, “but the people who'll stand for that will be second-rate. To keep the best people, you have to give them the freedom to make decisions and run their own show. To be the top dog of a first-rate organization, you need to be willing to give up some of your power.”
-Judith Viorst, Imperfect Control (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1998), 201.
In order to be first, you need to allow others to have responsibility for some of your authority. If you want to be great, you need to allow others the opportunity to not only be great, but to be greater than you!

But slavery isn’t always imposed upon us – sometimes we intentionally embrace it.

Read 1 Timothy 6:3-5

If we teach something as being God’s will, when it isn’t, Paul proclaims that we are conceited and without understanding. James 3:1 says that “we who teach will be judged more strictly.” That should give us all pause! Whether we are teachers, leaders, preachers, or anyone who has authority and responsibility for others, we must be very intentional in what we say. Otherwise, we will be slaves to a lie, and that is not “good slavery”.
If we relish those conversations that run another person down, or cause agitation in a relationship, or bring about distrust or hatred for another, or complain that someone has more than they deserve, we have enslaved ourselves in selfish desires. Let’s go back to that coffee break for a moment. I remember a number of conversations when I was working at NYSEG that started out fine, but quickly sank deep into a gutter that was filled with corporate slim. I had forgotten my mother’s adage from many years ago – “If you can’t say something nice about someone, don’t say anything!” I had become a slave to gossip and slander, and never thought twice about being a part of it.

Paul even tells us that this is an “unhealthy” attitude and practice, and leads us into nothing good.

Read 1 Timothy 6:6-10

But our willingness to be a slave for Christ, to allow Him to use us as He will, to be content to be His slave, will bring us a great gain! It isn’t the things of this world that condemn us, it's how we use them and how we see them.
Food is very beneficial to our bodies, but when we start bragging about the caviar and steak and lobster that we had for dinner last night, we have turned the good gift of God into a prideful idol.
A nice, reliable car is a good thing to have. It gets us to work on time, it allows us to give a ride to others who don’t have the means to get around, it gives us an opportunity to share our good fortune with others.
You may have noticed my truck out in the parking lot – I don’t brag about it very much, except to say that it is still running after 250,000 miles. But it does give me the opportunity to serve others – I’m willing to haul practically anything, anywhere, for anyone, and not worry about getting a scratch on the body! But if I had a brand new truck, I might not be quite as willing to haul a load of fertilizer for you.
Money is the thing that makes the world go round. We need it to buy the necessities of life – food, clothing, shelter, and so on. We need it to pay college bills for our children, to buy gasoline for our cars, to even take a vacation to rest up. But when we begin to focus on the accumulation of wealth, to consider building bigger and bigger barns, we have, once again, become slaves to the treasures that will only rust and mildew. I have quoted John D. Rockefeller a number of times – when asked how much is enough, Rockefeller replied “Just a little more!” We have to know when enough is enough, and what we need to do with the excess that life brings us. Will we surrender ourselves to the slavery of money, or to the glory that it can bring to the Lord?

Slavery to the things and standards of this world will destroy our lives if we don’t turn them over to the One who can raise us up above it.

African-American slaves were not allowed to have their own worship and were rarely allowed access to the Bible, so they held clandestine religious gatherings at night, a practice that continued after emancipation. The slaves saw in Nicodemus' night visit proof that it was possible to come to Jesus even when those in power forbade it. Nicodemus was a model, someone who was willing to act on his own against the will of the authorities. The slaves' faith surpassed that of Nicodemus. Nicodemus' night visit was only exploratory, and in this story in John 3, he does not understand the invitation Jesus extends to him. The slaves, by contrast, understood and embraced what Jesus had to offer. They were willing to risk their safety and their very lives to come to Jesus. The slaves are a powerful example of those who come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God (3:21). Of course, as John’s gospel proceeds, Nicodemus’ faith grows stronger and stronger, until we find him coming out of the shadows and into the Light of day at Calvary.

—Gail R. O'Day, The Gospel of John, The New Interpreter's Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1995), 555.

Slavery in the world does not have to be the end. When we surrender our lives and situations to God, our slavery – whether in the world or in faith – takes on a whole new meaning. We can never let slavery be a burden – instead, let it be the means to glorifying the Lord, who Himself, chose to submit, to become the least, that we might become greater than we ever could on our own.