4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord.
5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with deep respect and fear. Serve them sincerely as you would serve Christ. 6 Try to please them all the time, not just when they are watching you. As slaves of Christ, do the will of God with all your heart. 7 Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. 8 Remember that the Lord will reward each one of us for the good we do, whether we are slaves or free.
9 Masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Don’t threaten them; remember, you both have the same Master in heaven, and he has no favorites."
Every time I read Paul's recollection of the commandment for children to honor their parents I'm always reminded that it really was the first command that was accompanied by a promise. How crazy is that?!?! I wonder if this shows that God knows how children think and until they develop to a certain level of maturity spiritually, it helps them to to follow through with what's expected of them when they are given more of a glimpse of the bigger picture. Then again, we are all children of our parents, no matter what age. This is just one of those passages that I like to sit and think about, trying to figure out various implications of it whenever I have time. =) In my opinion, verse 4 is one of the most widely neglected verses across the world by Christian and non-Christian alike! I'm finishing up a book right now by John Bishop called "God Distorted" where he's talking about just how much of an impact a father can have on his son/daughter. Did you realize that the way a father interacts and treats his kids, has the power to change a child's perception of God? That's scary and humbling all at the same time! The truth is, I think Paul is giving a general suggestion, but applying it even more within the context of a father and his children because of the consequences that might follow. (What I mean by that, is I'm sure Paul would agree that we shouldn't provoke anyone to anger by the way we treat them, because that's not loving. But fathers ESPECIALLY shouldn't provoke their children to anger because drastic consequences could follow. Verses 5-9, Paul moves on from the nuclear family relationships to relationships between slaves and their masters. While this section was obviously written to people in the type of 'slavery' that existed in Ephesus (I'm sure Paul wouldn't say these words to those within the sex/slave trade today), He has a golden gem sandwiched right in the middle in verse 7. I absolutely LOVE this verse! I didn't always however, because it convicted me to start doing the best I could on EVERY assignment in school and every thing that I did in life. It got pretty tiring, but the more I did it, the more I felt like I was really worshiping God through my actions and giving Him my best! =) What are your thoughts about this section? =)
"Father thank You for loving us! I pray that all of our relationships with people would be grounded in You and love. I pray that we would become more like Jesus, showing love to those who don't receive it from anyone else, presenting the Gospel to them in a way like they've never seen before! I ask for Your blessing on today and the rest of this week. Guide us and protect us. It's in Jesus' name that I pray, amen!"
I would say I agree. Verse 7 is the verse that really pops though. In the midst of all these things, it seems you could truley some up this portion of the chapter by stating, do your work in a manner most pleasing to God, not the individuals who are actually involved. Sometimes when I deal with people on a daily basis I sit back and say God, why would you do this to me? Today I found myself trying to get back to work and I was stuck behind a guy doing 50 in a 55 for 5 miles. That's a lot of 5's but it's the truth. Anyways, I started to get mad, but then said, "God, thank you for the test." And this is just one of the many accounts I have gone through since going back to work. But I like verse 7, if so many people weren't so willing to abuse the word of God, I would say that it would be a good company verse to use as a mission statement.
ReplyDeleteThat's pretty cool that you are able to see growth and tests when they come your way! =) I agree with what you said about verse 7 being a good mission's statement. If a business used it and took it seriously, I'm sure their products/services would be some of the best out there! =)
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