Ephesians 6:5-9

A1 Scripture

B1 Ephesians 6:5-9 WEL Servants be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh with deep respect and trembling in single loyalty of your heart as to Christ. 6 Not pleasing them only when they are watching, instead, be servants of Christ doing God's will from the heart, 7 With a cheerful willingness doing your work as to the Lord and not to men. 8 Knowing that whatever good thing anyone does, he will receive from the Lord, whether he is a freeman or servant. 9 Masters, you must do the same to them, stay away from threatening, knowing that your Master is also in heaven, neither is there any partiality with him.

B3 Ephesians 6:5-9 GNB Slaves, obey your human masters with fear and trembling; and do it with a sincere heart, as though you were serving Christ. (6) Do this not only when they are watching you, because you want to gain their approval; but with all your heart do what God wants, as slaves of Christ. (7) Do your work as slaves cheerfully, as though you served the Lord, and not merely human beings. (8) Remember that the Lord will reward each of us, whether slave or free, for the good work we do. (9) Masters, behave in the same way toward your slaves and stop using threats. Remember that you and your slaves belong to the same Master in heaven, who judges everyone by the same standard.

A2 Outline

B1 Servants/Slaves/Employees

C1 Obey

C2 Fear and trembling

C3 Simplicity of heart

C4 As to Christ

C5 Not with eyeservice

C6 As men pleasers

C7 But as slaves of Christ

C8 Doing the will of God wholeheartedly

C9 With good will

C10 As to the Lord

C11 Not to men

B2 God's principle

C1 Knowing that whatever good thing anyone does

C2 The same will receive back from the Lord

C3 Whether slave or free

B3 Masters/Employers

C1 Do the same towards them

C2 Do not threaten

C3 Know that your Master is in heaven

C4 Your master has no partiality

A3 Notes

B1 Slaves, Bond-servants

C1 Defined

D1 The main idea is service.

D2 This is not the cruel slavery as was practiced in the Old South. Compare: Some Initial Reflections on Slavery in the New Testament by Dr. Daniel B. Wallace.

D3 Female slaves in the Old Testament

E1 Scripture: Exodus 21:7-9 GW Whenever a man sells his daughter into slavery, she will not go free the way male slaves do. (8) If she doesn't please the master who has chosen her as a wife, he must let her be bought back by one of her close relatives. He has no right to sell her to foreigners, since he has treated her unfairly. (9) But if he has chosen her for his son, he must treat her like a daughter.

E2 Explanation

F1 Especially referring to getting a wife by slavery laws.

F2 The father owns a man money.

F3 The man who wants to marry the daughter has no money to pay a dowry.

F4 So the father sells her to the man as a slave for the purpose of being the man's wife, and the man who gets the wife doesn't have to pay a dowry.

F5 The daughter can walk free if the man who wants to marry her treats her badly.

D4 Most slaves in the Old Testament were slaves because of debt. God required them to be free from slavery after 7 years and debt free. Compare Deuteronomy 15:1-9.

D5 Slaves could be bought out of slavery by kinsman redeemer or after 7 years of service.

D6 By the Jubilee (Leviticus 25).

D7 By injury of the slave. If the slave owner injury a slave, the slave was free. Exodus 21:26-27 GW Whenever an owner hits his male or female slave in the eye and the slave is blinded, he must let the slave go free to make up for the loss of the eye. 27 If the owner knocks out the tooth of his male or female slave, he must let the slave go free to make up for the loss of the tooth.

D8 By escape. Deuteronomy 23:15 GW If a slave escapes from his master and comes to you, don't return him to his master.

D9 By the rejection of a female slave by her owner. Deuteronomy 21:14 GW But if it happens that you are no longer pleased with her, let her go wherever she wants. You must never sell her or mistreat her as if she were a slave, since you've already had sex with her.

D10 By paying off his (own) debt.

D11 By God's command. Jeremiah 34:8-10 GW The LORD spoke his word to Jeremiah after King Zedekiah and all the people in Jerusalem promised to free their slaves. (9) Everyone was supposed to free his Hebrew slaves, both male and female. No one was supposed to keep another Jew as a slave. (10) All the officials and all the people agreed and promised to free their male and female slaves and not to keep them as slaves anymore. So they set them free.

D12 New Testament laws were similar. Slaves were to obey and do their work as unto the Lord, and masters had to treat them as brothers.

D13 Slavery was taught to be wrong (1 Corinthians 7:23 GNB God bought you for a price; so do not become slaves of people), but if a person was a slave, God had strict rules to follow.

C2 The difference between God's version of a Master/servant relationship and humanity's

D1 God's version

E1 Trusts His servants. Delegates to His servants. Matthew 24:45 GNB Who, then, is a faithful and wise servant? It is the one that his master has placed in charge of the other servants to give them their food at the proper time.

E2 Rewards His servants for good work. Matthew 25:23 GNB 'Well done, you good and faithful servant!' said his master. 'You have been faithful in managing small amounts, so I will put you in charge of large amounts. Come on in and share my happiness!'

E3 Is moved by compassion. Forgives debts. Matthew 18:27 GNB The king felt sorry for him, so he forgave him the debt and let him go.

E4 Avoid being slaves of anything (sin, etc. These are addictions to any sin as addicted to lying, stealing, blaspheming God, idolatry, hate and so on. 1 Corinthians 7:23 GNB God bought you for a price; so do not become slaves of people.

E5 To be fair and just. Colossians 4:1 GNB Masters, be fair and just in the way you treat your slaves. Remember that you too have a Master in heaven.

D2 Man’s version is the opposite.

B2 Obey

C1 Defined: To do what was asked. Romans 6:16 GNB Surely you know that when you surrender yourselves as slaves to obey someone, you are in fact the slaves of the master you obey—-either of sin, which results in death, or of obedience, which results in being put right with God.

C2 Example: Hebrews 11:8 GNB It was faith that made Abraham obey when God called him to go out to a country which God had promised to give him. He left his own country without knowing where he was going.

B3 According to the flesh. This refers to fellow humans like ourselves. The other Master is God himself, and He is not flesh. While Jesus became flesh for us, He nonetheless is God who is spirit, not flesh.

B4 Simplicity of heart/singleness of heart/sincere heart. This refers to not having any ulterior motivations, making a facade to prevent loyalty and faithfulness but in heart being the very opposite. This is a type of hypocrisy, but God wants honesty or as worded here simplicity of heart. God also expects us to have this attitude towards Him, our Master. The word also signifies an attitude of freely giving without strings attached. Compare James 1:5 NRSV If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you.

B5 Eye service. This means someone works only when the boss is around and otherwise they do little.Proverbs 18:9 GNB A lazy person is as bad as someone who is destructive.

B6 Men pleasers. Sucking up to the boss, but not really doing any work.

B7 Servants of Christ. As we would serve the Lord Jesus, we need to serve our masters on earth.

B8 Doing the will of God from the heart. This means with a good attitude and motivation with honesty. A boss can trust a person like that. Matthew 25:21 NKJV His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'

B9 Good thing...Lord. God watches us and will reward us for out faithfulness in how we live our life here.

B10 Bond or free. God doesn't give a better reward to a rich than to a poor person, nor a free person more than a servant.

B11 Masters. This means that the master has to have the same good attitude and actions that his slave/servant/employee must do. There are two types of leaders. The first is the control freak bully who treats those under him with abuse. He is like Nimrod—a mighty hunter. The second type of leader is the shepherd type who is firm and monitoring but delegates duties and gives freedom to obey or disobey. He is like the Lord Jesus.

B12 Forebear threatening. As above it reflects a type of leadership. A good leader does not have to threaten, because those under him will want to obey.

B13 Master in heaven. This means that a leader/master/employer is being watched by God. God is the master's Master and will reward or punish depending how he/she leads here on earth.

A4 Applications

B1 God is our Master. We must learn His ways and live His ways.

B2 We are to treat every as God treats us.

B3 God does not play favorites.

B4 God knows what we think and do.

B5 We are bond-slaves of Jesus, who is the King of the Universe and Head of the Church.