WEBVTT 00:00:01.660 --> 00:00:04.500 As Mark said, yes, we are, and as Christian said 00:00:04.500 --> 00:00:09.400 earlier, we are jumping ahead as Alex and I kind 00:00:09.400 --> 00:00:13.179 of swapped what weeks we were going to be preaching. 00:00:13.619 --> 00:00:17.660 And so he had already been working on the passage 00:00:17.660 --> 00:00:21.120 before mine. So we decided instead of trying 00:00:21.120 --> 00:00:23.579 to just make that, you know. to me to take his 00:00:23.579 --> 00:00:25.420 notes, we're just gonna confuse everybody and 00:00:25.420 --> 00:00:28.199 flip -flop it. So I'm jumping ahead from where 00:00:28.199 --> 00:00:31.219 we were at in Colossians, and next week Alex 00:00:31.219 --> 00:00:34.420 will go back in time and will preach the message 00:00:34.420 --> 00:00:36.539 that takes place before mine. So you're gonna 00:00:36.539 --> 00:00:38.140 do some time travel next week and it's gonna 00:00:38.140 --> 00:00:39.920 be really cool and everyone's gonna be excited. 00:00:42.340 --> 00:00:44.659 But yes, and then also, just to clear up any 00:00:44.659 --> 00:00:48.490 confusion, yes, I'm going through... the end 00:00:48.490 --> 00:00:50.549 of chapter three and then the first verse in 00:00:50.549 --> 00:00:53.850 chapter four which we always love to remind people 00:00:53.850 --> 00:00:56.990 the words of scripture are inspired the chapter 00:00:56.990 --> 00:01:00.009 and verse number delineations aren't inspired 00:01:00.009 --> 00:01:01.770 people came afterwards and i definitely don't 00:01:01.770 --> 00:01:05.250 understand why chapter four is just here oh in 00:01:05.250 --> 00:01:07.329 the middle of our passage but here it is and 00:01:07.329 --> 00:01:11.609 so let's talk about it here this morning i want 00:01:11.609 --> 00:01:16.120 you to imagine one of my middle school students 00:01:16.120 --> 00:01:19.180 at school. So apart from here, I teach middle 00:01:19.180 --> 00:01:21.659 school Bible at Anderson Christian School in 00:01:21.659 --> 00:01:23.579 Anderson. So I want you to imagine one of my 00:01:23.579 --> 00:01:24.959 middle school students. Now I'm not gonna use 00:01:24.959 --> 00:01:27.760 a real one. We'll use the name of someone here 00:01:27.760 --> 00:01:29.299 since I don't actually teach them. Let's just 00:01:29.299 --> 00:01:32.480 go with Rylan. I think she's in here, okay? So 00:01:32.480 --> 00:01:34.719 we'll go with Rylan since not only is she not 00:01:34.719 --> 00:01:38.900 actually one of my school students, but I know... 00:01:39.079 --> 00:01:41.560 Pretty confidently that she wouldn't be like 00:01:41.560 --> 00:01:43.799 this example. Okay, so this is not actually Ryland 00:01:43.799 --> 00:01:47.500 just using her name Okay, so Ryland is a star 00:01:47.500 --> 00:01:50.099 student in my Bible class. She comes prepared 00:01:50.099 --> 00:01:53.500 every single day to class She is always in her 00:01:53.500 --> 00:01:55.900 seat when the bell rings. She always raises her 00:01:55.900 --> 00:02:00.019 hand when she has a question She is always respectful. 00:02:00.019 --> 00:02:02.939 She does all of her assignments on time. She 00:02:02.939 --> 00:02:08.280 is just the ideal students and Ashley said She's 00:02:08.280 --> 00:02:09.919 laughing so okay. We'll take that for what it 00:02:09.919 --> 00:02:15.520 is All right So for all for all that I know as 00:02:15.520 --> 00:02:18.039 her teacher of that class she really seems like 00:02:18.039 --> 00:02:23.020 an obedient good student however outside of my 00:02:23.020 --> 00:02:26.780 class when I see her She's completely different 00:02:26.780 --> 00:02:30.039 or at church, but you know okay. You don't have 00:02:30.039 --> 00:02:33.259 to like keep nodding your head to that So when 00:02:33.259 --> 00:02:35.460 I see her outside of class, she's completely 00:02:35.460 --> 00:02:37.780 different. I ask her to help me with something 00:02:37.780 --> 00:02:41.099 in the hallway, and she just ignores me and brushes 00:02:41.099 --> 00:02:43.419 by and bumps my shoulder for some reason, because 00:02:43.419 --> 00:02:46.560 that seems like something Rylan would do. After 00:02:46.560 --> 00:02:49.060 lunch, I ask her to take out the garbage, and 00:02:49.060 --> 00:02:51.960 she says, no, I can't tell her what to do when 00:02:51.960 --> 00:02:54.960 she's not in my class. Now they're nodding still. 00:02:56.979 --> 00:03:01.759 See, at first, Rylan seemed like a really good 00:03:01.759 --> 00:03:04.879 student to me because she was really good at 00:03:04.879 --> 00:03:08.759 obeying in that classroom, right? But I think 00:03:08.759 --> 00:03:11.740 if anyone were to see that full picture of this 00:03:11.740 --> 00:03:14.780 obviously fake version of Rylan, we would be 00:03:14.780 --> 00:03:17.419 able to tell that she's obviously just faking 00:03:17.419 --> 00:03:20.000 it in that class time. because she wants to be 00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:22.080 a teacher's pet or whatever you want to call 00:03:22.080 --> 00:03:24.699 it right because outside of that outside of that 00:03:24.699 --> 00:03:28.300 one set spot and condition and situation she's 00:03:28.300 --> 00:03:33.039 a completely different person that's how a lot 00:03:33.039 --> 00:03:37.300 of people treat their Christian walk a lot of 00:03:37.300 --> 00:03:40.080 people we come to church and we're really good 00:03:40.080 --> 00:03:44.120 at being obedient on our Sundays Right? We come 00:03:44.120 --> 00:03:47.080 to church, we go to Sunday school, we do gospel 00:03:47.080 --> 00:03:49.340 groups, we know the right things to say, and 00:03:49.340 --> 00:03:51.800 even when we're around our other church people, 00:03:51.860 --> 00:03:54.060 maybe even outside of church, we're really good 00:03:54.060 --> 00:03:57.400 at saying those things. But I don't want us to 00:03:57.400 --> 00:04:00.080 be like this fake version of Rylan, where when 00:04:00.080 --> 00:04:03.879 we leave here, it's like that need to obey and 00:04:03.879 --> 00:04:07.539 that desire to be obedient to God's Word suddenly 00:04:07.539 --> 00:04:11.240 vanishes, or at least diminishes because being 00:04:11.240 --> 00:04:13.900 a Christian is much more than just going to church 00:04:13.900 --> 00:04:16.980 and being obedient on Sundays. We're called as 00:04:16.980 --> 00:04:19.160 Christians to be the light of the world every 00:04:19.160 --> 00:04:22.860 single day. I can't just say that I'm a follower 00:04:22.860 --> 00:04:27.319 of Jesus with my life looking like I'm just faking 00:04:27.319 --> 00:04:30.170 it or my life looking completely different. We've 00:04:30.170 --> 00:04:32.870 been talking about discipleship throughout this 00:04:32.870 --> 00:04:34.930 series in Colossians. We're going to be focusing 00:04:34.930 --> 00:04:37.470 on that a lot this year. And true discipleship, 00:04:37.569 --> 00:04:40.029 like Paul is describing here in Colossians, goes 00:04:40.029 --> 00:04:44.829 much deeper than one day a week. The point I 00:04:44.829 --> 00:04:47.949 want us to focus on this morning, and this week 00:04:47.949 --> 00:04:49.670 was a little crazy for the Masses, if anyone's 00:04:49.670 --> 00:04:52.389 curious, so I did not get an insert for you, 00:04:52.389 --> 00:04:54.529 but you can maybe use that blank space at the 00:04:54.529 --> 00:04:58.050 front of your bulletins or... Find notes somewhere 00:04:58.050 --> 00:05:00.050 if you want to write these notes down, but the 00:05:00.050 --> 00:05:02.350 main point I want us to focus on this morning 00:05:02.350 --> 00:05:06.769 is this true disciples are obedient in every 00:05:06.769 --> 00:05:11.170 aspect of their lives true disciples are obedient 00:05:11.170 --> 00:05:14.990 in every aspect of their lives and To help us 00:05:14.990 --> 00:05:16.930 out and help us narrow this down particularly 00:05:16.930 --> 00:05:20.470 in this passage Paul gives us three areas in 00:05:20.470 --> 00:05:24.129 which we should obediently live out our faith 00:05:24.129 --> 00:05:28.350 in marriage in parenting and the workplace. So 00:05:28.350 --> 00:05:30.149 here's the question we're gonna tackle this morning. 00:05:30.709 --> 00:05:35.370 How do we live obediently in marriage, parenting, 00:05:35.509 --> 00:05:38.269 and the workplace? How do we actually do that? 00:05:38.589 --> 00:05:42.189 And we're gonna see how Paul, through God's word, 00:05:42.449 --> 00:05:45.290 lays that out for us to be obedient in those 00:05:45.290 --> 00:05:49.550 three areas, marriage, parenting, and the workplace. 00:05:49.949 --> 00:05:52.850 And so we'll start with the very first one of 00:05:52.850 --> 00:05:55.230 marriage. So let's look at our passage again 00:05:55.230 --> 00:06:01.110 starting in verse 18. It says, wives submit to 00:06:01.110 --> 00:06:05.129 your husbands as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, 00:06:05.350 --> 00:06:09.189 love your wives and do not be harsh with them. 00:06:09.810 --> 00:06:12.209 This is not a passage that a lot of people today 00:06:12.209 --> 00:06:15.339 enjoy reading or talking about. right we can 00:06:15.339 --> 00:06:17.100 probably understand that right there's a lot 00:06:17.100 --> 00:06:19.319 of women out there that outside of the context 00:06:19.319 --> 00:06:24.220 of this would not enjoy those words right um 00:06:24.220 --> 00:06:26.139 because it seems like if you're just looking 00:06:26.139 --> 00:06:27.899 outside the context the wives kind of get the 00:06:27.899 --> 00:06:30.160 short end of the stick with that right but i 00:06:30.160 --> 00:06:31.920 want to make sure we understand why that could 00:06:31.920 --> 00:06:35.500 not be farther from the truth see during that 00:06:35.500 --> 00:06:38.620 time historians write that wives were basically 00:06:38.620 --> 00:06:42.819 treated as the property of their husbands Being 00:06:42.819 --> 00:06:45.800 a wife in that time and that Roman controlled 00:06:45.800 --> 00:06:49.540 part of the world, the wives had nothing and 00:06:49.540 --> 00:06:52.100 the husband could do whatever he wanted with 00:06:52.100 --> 00:06:54.920 them. The wives really had no rights outside 00:06:54.920 --> 00:06:57.819 of their household and the wives could only do 00:06:57.819 --> 00:07:00.279 what the husband permitted. They basically had 00:07:00.279 --> 00:07:03.220 no freedom of their own outside of their husbands. 00:07:03.699 --> 00:07:05.740 So Paul's command for wives to submit to their 00:07:05.740 --> 00:07:08.180 husbands at first glance might sound troubling 00:07:08.180 --> 00:07:10.540 to some modern readers, almost like he's playing 00:07:10.540 --> 00:07:14.139 into that. But doing so forgets the context and 00:07:14.139 --> 00:07:16.740 the crucial aspect of who Paul is actually talking 00:07:16.740 --> 00:07:20.199 to when he wrote this letter, and this frames 00:07:20.199 --> 00:07:22.920 everything that we're about to read from him. 00:07:23.139 --> 00:07:27.279 Paul is talking specifically to Christian families. 00:07:28.199 --> 00:07:31.699 Paul is writing to the church and Colossae, and 00:07:31.699 --> 00:07:34.899 he's framing all of these ideas, all of these 00:07:34.899 --> 00:07:39.220 things he's giving to Christian families, right? 00:07:39.379 --> 00:07:42.389 And that that That delineation is very important 00:07:42.389 --> 00:07:44.889 for us, especially considering the Christian 00:07:44.889 --> 00:07:49.649 family is the crux of every society, or it should 00:07:49.649 --> 00:07:53.470 be, right? Where the Christian family flourishes, 00:07:53.769 --> 00:07:56.910 a nation will flourish. I truly believe that. 00:07:57.170 --> 00:08:00.250 That marriage is the first institution that God 00:08:00.250 --> 00:08:03.310 made. When He created humans, He created Adam 00:08:03.310 --> 00:08:05.110 and Eve, and He created marriage. And for us 00:08:05.110 --> 00:08:08.110 to treat our marriage as God intended is one 00:08:08.110 --> 00:08:10.230 of the most important things that we can do. 00:08:10.269 --> 00:08:13.189 as humans, and especially as followers of God. 00:08:13.470 --> 00:08:15.430 See, as Christians, we are called to be different 00:08:15.430 --> 00:08:18.290 than the rest of the world, so every aspect of 00:08:18.290 --> 00:08:22.209 our lives, especially our marriages, should be 00:08:22.209 --> 00:08:24.709 different. And this statement does assume that 00:08:24.709 --> 00:08:27.509 the wife in mention here, in her section, is 00:08:27.509 --> 00:08:30.350 a follower of Jesus. And in that framework, the 00:08:30.350 --> 00:08:32.070 command for the wife to submit to her husband 00:08:32.070 --> 00:08:35.309 is radically transformed from that negative view 00:08:35.309 --> 00:08:38.210 that a lot of people today might think that that 00:08:38.210 --> 00:08:40.710 means. In the same way, though, husbands were 00:08:40.710 --> 00:08:42.909 called to be radically different than their current 00:08:42.909 --> 00:08:47.269 culture. Instead of lording their power over 00:08:47.269 --> 00:08:50.090 their wives, like many men would do and husbands 00:08:50.090 --> 00:08:53.269 just did all the time in that culture, the husband 00:08:53.269 --> 00:08:56.690 is called to love their wives and not be harsh 00:08:56.690 --> 00:08:59.320 with them. And that goes much deeper than just 00:08:59.320 --> 00:09:03.279 a romantic love. Yes, there should be a romantic 00:09:03.279 --> 00:09:06.759 love for your wife, husbands, and wives for your 00:09:06.759 --> 00:09:08.860 husbands, but it goes deeper than that because 00:09:08.860 --> 00:09:13.340 the word that's used here is a verb version of 00:09:13.340 --> 00:09:16.220 the word agape, which is the type of love that 00:09:16.220 --> 00:09:19.840 God has for us. And especially used here, this 00:09:19.840 --> 00:09:23.059 is what it means. It means for a husband to love 00:09:23.200 --> 00:09:27.860 wish well to, take pleasure in, long for, and 00:09:27.860 --> 00:09:32.019 esteem their wives. It's much more than just 00:09:32.019 --> 00:09:34.220 a, oh well I love her I guess because she's pretty. 00:09:34.679 --> 00:09:39.519 No, it's I love her because of who she is and 00:09:39.519 --> 00:09:42.460 I want to lift her up because she is my wife. 00:09:42.659 --> 00:09:46.159 I don't look at her as my property, I look at 00:09:46.159 --> 00:09:49.659 her as the blessing that God gave me. and we 00:09:49.659 --> 00:09:52.659 cherish her and we esteem her. In Ephesians, 00:09:52.820 --> 00:09:55.159 Paul deepens this understanding saying that husbands 00:09:55.159 --> 00:09:57.940 should love their wives as Christ loves the church 00:09:57.940 --> 00:10:01.039 and gave himself up for her. Husbands are called 00:10:01.039 --> 00:10:03.399 to cherish and esteem their wives and to love 00:10:03.399 --> 00:10:07.039 them as themselves. When God created man and 00:10:07.039 --> 00:10:08.820 wife and the institution of marriage in Genesis, 00:10:08.899 --> 00:10:12.019 he said that a man would leave his father and 00:10:12.019 --> 00:10:13.840 mother and joined with his wife and they would 00:10:13.840 --> 00:10:18.340 become, who knows the words, one flesh. They 00:10:18.340 --> 00:10:21.860 become one. And for wives, I always try to tell, 00:10:22.100 --> 00:10:24.419 I get the question a lot, especially from teenagers 00:10:24.419 --> 00:10:27.080 who I spend all of my time with. When they hear 00:10:27.080 --> 00:10:30.139 these passages, a lot of teenage girls... also 00:10:30.139 --> 00:10:32.200 struggle with that idea of wives submitting to 00:10:32.200 --> 00:10:34.899 their husbands and I get that I understand that 00:10:34.899 --> 00:10:38.240 but what I try to encourage them in is and this 00:10:38.240 --> 00:10:40.980 is a challenge both for women in here anyone 00:10:40.980 --> 00:10:44.480 especially when unmarried or Girls and for the 00:10:44.480 --> 00:10:48.379 boys. Okay, that if a wife is truly married to 00:10:48.379 --> 00:10:52.240 an obedient God -fearing Husband who is doing 00:10:52.240 --> 00:10:56.320 his best to serve God and please him with his 00:10:56.320 --> 00:10:58.740 leadership then the wife won't have a problem 00:10:58.740 --> 00:11:01.440 submitting to that leadership. Or at least she 00:11:01.440 --> 00:11:03.700 shouldn't, right? Obviously there's going to 00:11:03.700 --> 00:11:05.220 be strife, we're going to butt heads, because 00:11:05.220 --> 00:11:07.799 guess what? We're all sinful, right? Okay, there's 00:11:07.799 --> 00:11:09.860 going to be strife there, but that's what we 00:11:09.860 --> 00:11:13.220 are called to. But a beautiful part of marriage 00:11:13.220 --> 00:11:18.340 is realizing that both the husband and wife in 00:11:18.340 --> 00:11:21.740 our marriage get to be living examples of Jesus 00:11:21.740 --> 00:11:25.919 both to each other and to the world. This is 00:11:25.919 --> 00:11:29.360 what really makes these commands make so much 00:11:29.360 --> 00:11:32.779 more sense to us and in fact Make them beautiful 00:11:32.779 --> 00:11:35.399 for both the wife and the husband for what we 00:11:35.399 --> 00:11:37.740 get to do So let's go in order that Paul said 00:11:37.740 --> 00:11:41.820 the wife The call to submit to your husband is 00:11:41.820 --> 00:11:45.259 not a call to be lesser than him I want to make 00:11:45.259 --> 00:11:47.559 sure we we start with understanding that right? 00:11:47.919 --> 00:11:51.600 In fact, the Bible says that Jesus, though He 00:11:51.600 --> 00:11:55.320 was fully God, submitted Himself to the will 00:11:55.320 --> 00:11:59.100 of the Father. Would we agree with that? That 00:11:59.100 --> 00:12:01.919 that's what He did. Is Jesus any less than the 00:12:01.919 --> 00:12:06.600 Father? No. Why? Scripture is calling you into 00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:10.000 the beautiful role of being like Jesus through 00:12:10.000 --> 00:12:13.559 the submission to your husband's spiritual leadership. 00:12:13.929 --> 00:12:16.750 And then even by doing so, you will point your 00:12:16.750 --> 00:12:20.289 husband and others to the Lord. And let me give 00:12:20.289 --> 00:12:24.330 you a secret, okay? Most of the time, ladies, 00:12:24.990 --> 00:12:27.389 your husband might not actually expect you to 00:12:27.389 --> 00:12:31.210 just easily submit all the time. We might not 00:12:31.210 --> 00:12:33.710 actually be expecting that, right? The fall in 00:12:33.710 --> 00:12:36.850 Genesis 3 told us that there would be a power 00:12:36.850 --> 00:12:40.629 struggle in marriage because of sin. We're not 00:12:40.629 --> 00:12:42.309 going to be surprised or we shouldn't be surprised 00:12:42.309 --> 00:12:44.669 about that. We knew that from the start that 00:12:44.669 --> 00:12:47.590 the husband's desire would be to rule over his 00:12:47.590 --> 00:12:49.850 wife and dominate the wife and the wife's desire 00:12:49.850 --> 00:12:53.129 would be to rule over him. We know that that 00:12:53.129 --> 00:12:56.029 struggle is going to come. And sometimes the 00:12:56.029 --> 00:12:58.730 husband, when we are asking things or trying 00:12:58.730 --> 00:13:02.149 to lead the family, sometimes it might actually 00:13:02.149 --> 00:13:05.490 surprise us when our wife graciously, humbly 00:13:05.490 --> 00:13:08.409 submits to that. So when your husband sees you 00:13:08.409 --> 00:13:11.029 humbly submit to his spiritual leadership, he 00:13:11.029 --> 00:13:14.590 will see you as a shining example of what a Christian 00:13:14.590 --> 00:13:18.570 should be. And so will the world outside of your 00:13:18.570 --> 00:13:22.629 marriage. There's a reason so many people get 00:13:22.629 --> 00:13:26.230 their feathers ruffled by the term wives submit 00:13:26.230 --> 00:13:29.049 to your husbands. It raises the hackles of a 00:13:29.049 --> 00:13:31.250 lot of people because it doesn't make sense to 00:13:31.250 --> 00:13:33.809 the world. But listen church, that's the point. 00:13:34.120 --> 00:13:37.700 We are supposed to be different from the world. 00:13:38.039 --> 00:13:41.919 And when they see a wife fulfilling that God 00:13:41.919 --> 00:13:45.679 -given task and then picturing and imaging what 00:13:45.679 --> 00:13:49.500 Jesus did in His time on earth, it becomes a 00:13:49.500 --> 00:13:52.019 beautiful thing that the wife is called to do. 00:13:52.799 --> 00:13:55.179 But husbands, we're also given an incredible 00:13:55.179 --> 00:13:58.500 task, an incredible calling to love your wife 00:13:58.500 --> 00:14:02.000 as Christ loves the church. And to be honest 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:06.309 again, Our lives are busy, right, husbands? Okay? 00:14:06.690 --> 00:14:08.750 It's not that the wives' lives aren't busy. They're 00:14:08.750 --> 00:14:11.610 just as busy as we are. But this is often the 00:14:11.610 --> 00:14:14.250 argument I hear from the husbands. I'm busy. 00:14:14.470 --> 00:14:16.809 I do all of these things. And it can be easy 00:14:16.809 --> 00:14:18.950 to get caught up in what we are doing and not 00:14:18.950 --> 00:14:23.590 love our wives as we should. For some men, that's 00:14:23.590 --> 00:14:25.389 just the way things are. They come home, they 00:14:25.389 --> 00:14:27.450 say hi to their wives, they veg out on the recliner 00:14:27.450 --> 00:14:29.210 while the wife continues to work hard for the 00:14:29.210 --> 00:14:31.580 household. And the husband just thinks, well, 00:14:31.820 --> 00:14:34.620 that's how it's supposed to be. But how beautiful 00:14:34.620 --> 00:14:38.960 is it when we as the husband step into the moment 00:14:38.960 --> 00:14:42.159 of our wives come alongside them and love them 00:14:42.159 --> 00:14:46.659 in service to help them and nurture them, right? 00:14:47.419 --> 00:14:52.720 And I know that we're tired. I know we are busy, 00:14:52.779 --> 00:14:56.850 but so was Jesus during his ministry. We all 00:14:56.850 --> 00:14:59.429 remember the story of Jesus feeding the 5 ,000, 00:14:59.570 --> 00:15:02.470 correct? Right? An incredible miracle that Jesus 00:15:02.470 --> 00:15:04.909 did. He's surrounded by a crowd of much more 00:15:04.909 --> 00:15:07.289 than 5 ,000 because that was just the men. That's 00:15:07.289 --> 00:15:09.909 not counting the wives and children that were 00:15:09.909 --> 00:15:12.269 there in that crowd. So thousands upon thousands 00:15:12.269 --> 00:15:15.529 of people have found Jesus. They've literally... 00:15:15.960 --> 00:15:20.059 like encapsulated him, okay, cut him off from 00:15:20.059 --> 00:15:23.580 escaping so that he can preach to them and minister 00:15:23.580 --> 00:15:25.940 to them, and then they're hungry. And so Jesus 00:15:25.940 --> 00:15:29.500 performs this incredible miracle. But do we remember 00:15:29.500 --> 00:15:32.259 the context of what happened right before that 00:15:32.259 --> 00:15:37.120 incredible miracle? Right before that, Jesus 00:15:37.120 --> 00:15:40.600 had just found out that his cousin and dear friend 00:15:40.600 --> 00:15:43.539 John the Baptist, who had been arrested, had 00:15:43.539 --> 00:15:48.220 been executed and beheaded. He had just heard 00:15:48.220 --> 00:15:51.919 that news. And the Bible says Jesus wanted to 00:15:51.919 --> 00:15:55.899 get away, that he wanted to be alone. And we 00:15:55.899 --> 00:15:58.500 can understand why. He wanted to be alone, to 00:15:58.500 --> 00:16:01.940 pray and to mourn and to prepare himself to continue 00:16:01.940 --> 00:16:04.720 submitting to what the Father wanted him to do. 00:16:04.899 --> 00:16:07.700 But what happened? In the middle of his exhaustion, 00:16:07.960 --> 00:16:10.860 in the middle of what he wanted to do, thousands 00:16:10.860 --> 00:16:14.220 of people said, Jesus, we want you. We need your 00:16:14.220 --> 00:16:17.059 help. We need you right now. And what does Jesus 00:16:17.059 --> 00:16:19.779 do? Does Jesus look at them and go, no, I can't 00:16:19.779 --> 00:16:23.600 do it right now. I need some me time. Does He 00:16:23.600 --> 00:16:26.779 just escape to His ancient world man cave and 00:16:26.779 --> 00:16:31.080 say, I'll get to it when I get to it? No. Instead, 00:16:31.120 --> 00:16:34.639 Jesus showed compassion for His people and He 00:16:34.639 --> 00:16:37.559 ministered to them. And husbands, that is what 00:16:37.559 --> 00:16:40.940 it looks like to love your wives as Christ loved 00:16:40.940 --> 00:16:44.419 His church. When Christian husbands and wives 00:16:44.419 --> 00:16:46.960 truly live out these things in their marriage 00:16:46.960 --> 00:16:50.659 the world around them will know and be impacted 00:16:50.659 --> 00:16:54.039 by it I want you to write this down as another 00:16:54.039 --> 00:16:57.779 note for us this morning healthy Christian marriages 00:16:57.779 --> 00:17:02.860 Point people to Christ they point both the world 00:17:02.860 --> 00:17:05.839 and each other to Christ a healthy Christian 00:17:05.839 --> 00:17:09.970 marriage will point people to Christ. We should 00:17:09.970 --> 00:17:12.890 look different as husbands and wives to the rest 00:17:12.890 --> 00:17:15.369 of the world when they see the way we interact 00:17:15.369 --> 00:17:17.289 with each other, when they see the way that we 00:17:17.289 --> 00:17:19.690 love each other, and the way we disagree with 00:17:19.690 --> 00:17:22.190 each other. Being a healthy Christian marriage 00:17:22.190 --> 00:17:23.869 doesn't mean you're not going to get in arguments, 00:17:24.210 --> 00:17:27.349 amen? It's going to happen, but we still love 00:17:27.349 --> 00:17:30.289 each other even through those moments. We still 00:17:30.289 --> 00:17:33.150 cherish each other. We lift each other up, and 00:17:33.150 --> 00:17:36.039 both parties of that marriage will be pointed 00:17:36.039 --> 00:17:38.519 to Christ when we fulfill those roles that we've 00:17:38.519 --> 00:17:40.900 been tasked with. And so will the rest of the 00:17:40.900 --> 00:17:43.000 world when they look in on your household and 00:17:43.000 --> 00:17:45.539 they see the way that you love each other. So 00:17:45.539 --> 00:17:47.680 let your marriage be the incredible witnessing 00:17:47.680 --> 00:17:51.039 tool that it should be. Let your countercultural 00:17:51.039 --> 00:17:53.819 submission and sacrificial love for each other 00:17:53.819 --> 00:17:56.339 point others to faith in Jesus because that's 00:17:56.339 --> 00:17:58.759 what He's called us to do. But it's not just 00:17:58.759 --> 00:18:02.440 marriage, it's also in the area of parenting. 00:18:02.720 --> 00:18:05.759 Let's read the next verses here together, verse 00:18:05.759 --> 00:18:20.480 20 and 21. So let's start here, again, as Paul 00:18:20.480 --> 00:18:23.460 does in order, with children. Look at what he 00:18:23.460 --> 00:18:35.299 says. may have caught your attention. If not, 00:18:35.660 --> 00:18:37.960 you might not be paying attention, okay? Because 00:18:37.960 --> 00:18:40.700 you're still obey your parents in everything. 00:18:41.079 --> 00:18:44.380 Well, surely we don't have to actually obey everything, 00:18:44.720 --> 00:18:47.480 right? What if they ask us to do something wrong? 00:18:47.839 --> 00:18:50.579 Is a question I hear a lot from teenagers. Well, 00:18:50.640 --> 00:18:53.180 again, we need to remember again who Paul is 00:18:53.180 --> 00:18:56.710 addressing this to. He's addressing this to Christian 00:18:56.710 --> 00:18:59.230 families. And he's assuming, though it might 00:18:59.230 --> 00:19:01.809 not always be correct, that these Christian parents 00:19:01.809 --> 00:19:03.809 will tell their children to do things that are 00:19:03.809 --> 00:19:06.349 in line with God's Word. We are always supposed 00:19:06.349 --> 00:19:09.529 to obey God rather than man. God's Word comes 00:19:09.529 --> 00:19:12.029 first. But Paul is assuming here, and that's 00:19:12.029 --> 00:19:14.009 a challenge to us, right parents, that we're 00:19:14.009 --> 00:19:16.269 always going to be asking our children to do 00:19:16.269 --> 00:19:19.509 things that fall in line with God's Word. And 00:19:19.509 --> 00:19:23.519 so for that, Kids are supposed to obey in everything 00:19:23.519 --> 00:19:25.700 and that means that children don't get to pick 00:19:25.700 --> 00:19:29.480 and choose what they want to obey God has placed 00:19:29.480 --> 00:19:32.660 your parents over you as your first authority 00:19:32.660 --> 00:19:36.920 in your life and we please God when we show honor 00:19:36.920 --> 00:19:41.019 and obedience and respect to our parents and 00:19:41.019 --> 00:19:44.180 Just as with wives children picture Christ and 00:19:44.180 --> 00:19:47.970 being obedient to their parents kids or youth 00:19:47.970 --> 00:19:51.210 in here, you do well to remind yourselves or 00:19:51.210 --> 00:19:53.730 try to memorize this passage from Philippians 00:19:53.730 --> 00:19:56.809 chapter 2 verses 5 through 8. I don't think this 00:19:56.809 --> 00:19:59.250 will be on the screen, so listen to this. Philippians 00:19:59.250 --> 00:20:03.049 2 5 through 8 says, Have this mind among yourselves, 00:20:03.130 --> 00:20:06.430 which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, listen to 00:20:06.430 --> 00:20:09.769 this, though he was in the form of God, did not 00:20:09.769 --> 00:20:12.309 count equality with God a thing to be grasped. 00:20:12.480 --> 00:20:15.299 but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, 00:20:15.720 --> 00:20:18.259 being born in the likeness of men, and being 00:20:18.259 --> 00:20:22.279 found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming 00:20:22.279 --> 00:20:26.279 obedient to the point of death, even death on 00:20:26.279 --> 00:20:29.299 a cross." See, this passage reminds us that Jesus 00:20:29.299 --> 00:20:32.480 was a child at one point, too, and he was raised 00:20:32.480 --> 00:20:35.700 in a family and had to obey his parents just 00:20:35.700 --> 00:20:37.660 like we were supposed to. I want you to imagine 00:20:37.660 --> 00:20:41.839 this. The Creator of all things had to come to 00:20:41.839 --> 00:20:43.960 the dinner table when his mother called him. 00:20:45.299 --> 00:20:47.900 You thought of it that way before, right? The 00:20:47.900 --> 00:20:52.700 sustainer of the universe had to do the chores 00:20:52.700 --> 00:20:55.940 that his earthly father Joseph told him to do. 00:20:57.299 --> 00:20:59.279 Jesus is the one that holds all things together, 00:20:59.299 --> 00:21:02.019 but when Joseph says, hey son, come help me with 00:21:02.019 --> 00:21:07.880 this project, Jesus said, yes sir, the creator 00:21:07.880 --> 00:21:11.250 of all things. obeyed his parents. But not only 00:21:11.250 --> 00:21:15.509 did he obey his earthly parents, but he was incredibly 00:21:15.509 --> 00:21:18.769 and perfectly obedient to his Heavenly Father 00:21:18.769 --> 00:21:21.869 as well. That passage in Philippians says that 00:21:21.869 --> 00:21:25.789 he was obedient to the point of death, even death 00:21:25.789 --> 00:21:30.490 on the cross. So kids in here today, I think 00:21:30.490 --> 00:21:32.430 we can be obedient with the things our parents 00:21:32.430 --> 00:21:35.410 ask of us, huh? I don't think any of them are 00:21:35.410 --> 00:21:37.910 asking you to go sacrifice yourself for the whole 00:21:37.910 --> 00:21:43.259 world. Probably. I challenge you, in fact, to 00:21:43.259 --> 00:21:45.319 challenge the way that you think about obedience 00:21:45.319 --> 00:21:49.299 to your parents. Do you have to absolutely love 00:21:49.299 --> 00:21:52.079 doing chores or whatever it is your parents tell 00:21:52.079 --> 00:21:55.900 you to do? Not necessarily. Does it mean that 00:21:55.900 --> 00:21:58.119 you're going to have to be in love with washing 00:21:58.119 --> 00:22:02.680 dishes? No. However, I want you to realize that 00:22:02.680 --> 00:22:05.759 by simply obeying your parents with a humble 00:22:05.759 --> 00:22:12.099 spirit, You are identifying with Christ. Just 00:22:12.099 --> 00:22:15.480 as the wife identifies by submitting to the spiritual 00:22:15.480 --> 00:22:17.859 leadership of the husband, just by the husband 00:22:17.859 --> 00:22:21.279 identifies with Jesus by loving his wife sacrificially 00:22:21.279 --> 00:22:24.440 and giving himself for you. Kids, you identify 00:22:24.440 --> 00:22:28.640 with Christ by humbling yourself and being obedient 00:22:28.640 --> 00:22:32.319 to your parents. Then let's move to fathers. 00:22:33.059 --> 00:22:36.039 The command to fathers could easily be applied 00:22:36.039 --> 00:22:39.000 to mothers as well, but Paul is addressing fathers 00:22:39.000 --> 00:22:41.799 here as the head of the household, and as such, 00:22:42.039 --> 00:22:44.119 they should parent their children well. And Paul 00:22:44.119 --> 00:22:46.980 says that fathers should not provoke their children 00:22:46.980 --> 00:22:50.140 so that they do not become discouraged. Now, 00:22:50.220 --> 00:22:52.359 please hear me. We should properly discipline 00:22:52.359 --> 00:22:54.920 our kids when they misbehave. Yes, the Bible 00:22:54.920 --> 00:22:57.380 is also very clear on that, but there is a big 00:22:57.380 --> 00:23:00.839 difference in godly discipline and harsh, overly 00:23:00.839 --> 00:23:04.940 strict controlling. parenting fathers before 00:23:04.940 --> 00:23:07.119 your children truly knows what it means to obey 00:23:07.119 --> 00:23:10.039 you and everything they should already know just 00:23:10.039 --> 00:23:13.519 how much you love them and want to be with them 00:23:13.519 --> 00:23:16.640 that needs to come first i had a friend growing 00:23:16.640 --> 00:23:20.160 up whose parents were christians and they they 00:23:20.160 --> 00:23:22.559 were um very godly people and i mean that with 00:23:22.559 --> 00:23:24.720 all my heart i knew them for most of my life 00:23:24.720 --> 00:23:27.440 i spent a lot of time with them but they were 00:23:27.440 --> 00:23:31.769 extremely strict and harsh with my friend to 00:23:31.769 --> 00:23:35.789 the point where he was not allowed to like understand 00:23:35.789 --> 00:23:38.950 the mistakes that he had made and they would 00:23:38.950 --> 00:23:43.150 often put him down and be harsh with him instead 00:23:43.150 --> 00:23:46.710 of teaching him how to learn from those mistakes 00:23:46.710 --> 00:23:51.490 and sadly that friend did not draw closer to 00:23:51.490 --> 00:23:53.609 God and to the church because of the way that 00:23:53.609 --> 00:23:56.589 he was parented instead he walked away from that. 00:23:56.910 --> 00:24:00.069 And he has a relationship with his parents now, 00:24:00.069 --> 00:24:03.109 but for many years he didn't. And to this day, 00:24:03.430 --> 00:24:05.690 he still does not consider himself a Christian 00:24:05.690 --> 00:24:07.950 and is completely removed from the church. And 00:24:07.950 --> 00:24:10.710 I'm not fully blaming his parents. He makes choices 00:24:10.710 --> 00:24:14.250 in his own life, yes. But what could have been 00:24:14.250 --> 00:24:17.190 different if those parents had treated those 00:24:17.190 --> 00:24:21.130 rules and the obedience as a loving opportunity 00:24:21.130 --> 00:24:24.799 instead of being harsh with their son? as they're 00:24:24.799 --> 00:24:28.640 called to. See, growing up I love and I cherish 00:24:28.640 --> 00:24:30.980 my parents and they had plenty of rules for me 00:24:30.980 --> 00:24:33.160 to follow and obey and there were consequences 00:24:33.160 --> 00:24:36.859 if I didn't. But I, for the most part, had no 00:24:36.859 --> 00:24:41.460 problem accepting those rules because I knew 00:24:41.460 --> 00:24:44.980 first and foremost how deeply they loved me. 00:24:45.240 --> 00:24:49.299 I knew how deeply my father especially loved 00:24:49.299 --> 00:24:52.339 me for who I was. I hear Jessica talk about all 00:24:52.339 --> 00:24:55.420 the time about how close I am with my father 00:24:55.420 --> 00:24:58.859 and the really funny relationship. If any of 00:24:58.859 --> 00:25:00.839 you ever get to spend time with Ted Massey, you'll 00:25:00.839 --> 00:25:04.519 see just how similar to me he is in a lot of 00:25:04.519 --> 00:25:08.220 ways. But father's... Get to know your kids. 00:25:08.579 --> 00:25:10.579 Get interested in what they're interested in. 00:25:10.740 --> 00:25:12.980 Get on your knees and play with their toys with 00:25:12.980 --> 00:25:15.579 them. Go exploring with them. Take them shopping. 00:25:15.839 --> 00:25:18.119 Read a book that they want to read to them. Listen 00:25:18.119 --> 00:25:21.119 when they want to tell you about their day. Encourage 00:25:21.119 --> 00:25:24.240 them to follow Jesus. Do these things and you'll 00:25:24.240 --> 00:25:26.559 create an environment and a relationship with 00:25:26.559 --> 00:25:29.839 your kids that will make them want to obey you 00:25:29.839 --> 00:25:32.380 as God tells them to do. And more importantly, 00:25:32.440 --> 00:25:35.119 it'll show your children why obeying God and 00:25:35.119 --> 00:25:38.000 following Jesus is worth it because they see 00:25:38.000 --> 00:25:41.519 that example in you. Take note of this or write 00:25:41.519 --> 00:25:45.839 this down. Godly parenting is the best tool for 00:25:45.839 --> 00:25:50.890 exposing your children to the gospel. Godly parenting 00:25:50.890 --> 00:25:54.470 is the best tool for exposing your kids to the 00:25:54.470 --> 00:25:56.730 gospel. Bringing your kids to church and youth 00:25:56.730 --> 00:25:59.009 group are great things. Please do. I want to 00:25:59.009 --> 00:26:02.009 be the youth pastor for your kids. But there 00:26:02.009 --> 00:26:05.069 is no substitute for the influence of godly parents 00:26:05.069 --> 00:26:09.789 in the lives of their kids. I am not the first 00:26:09.789 --> 00:26:12.210 line of defense for your kids' spiritual lives. 00:26:12.440 --> 00:26:15.359 Ashley and the other children's teachers are 00:26:15.359 --> 00:26:18.019 not the first line of defense. Alex, if you just 00:26:18.019 --> 00:26:19.579 want to shove them in his office and be like, 00:26:19.579 --> 00:26:23.160 hey, fix my kids, it doesn't work that way. Parents, 00:26:23.279 --> 00:26:26.359 God placed them in your lives and you in their 00:26:26.359 --> 00:26:29.759 lives to be that first line of defense. So parent 00:26:29.759 --> 00:26:34.990 your kids in ways that draw them to Jesus. Now 00:26:34.990 --> 00:26:38.009 we move to what many would consider to be the 00:26:38.009 --> 00:26:39.529 Controversial part of the message and we're going 00:26:39.529 --> 00:26:42.269 to do the intro of this very quickly Okay, because 00:26:42.269 --> 00:26:45.650 we move here to the ESV says bond servants most 00:26:45.650 --> 00:26:47.690 English translations just go ahead and use the 00:26:47.690 --> 00:26:51.150 word slaves and so I want to make sure we understand 00:26:51.150 --> 00:26:54.130 something slaves were a much different thing 00:26:54.130 --> 00:26:56.630 for the most part in this ancient world and the 00:26:56.630 --> 00:26:59.940 Roman culture here that when we think of American 00:26:59.940 --> 00:27:02.339 slavery and the horrors that that is, right? 00:27:02.619 --> 00:27:04.680 The word bond servant there is much more what 00:27:04.680 --> 00:27:08.160 he is focusing on. A lot of scholars and historians 00:27:08.160 --> 00:27:11.680 have found that in this time, over 50 % of the 00:27:11.680 --> 00:27:14.700 population in the Roman Empire were slaves. And 00:27:14.700 --> 00:27:17.559 this idea of bond servant, indentured servitude, 00:27:17.839 --> 00:27:20.559 where they were paying off a debt. Some people 00:27:20.559 --> 00:27:24.500 were born into this, but many of them would become 00:27:24.500 --> 00:27:28.619 free. In fact, most different people, most jobs, 00:27:28.799 --> 00:27:32.660 including positions like shop owners, politicians, 00:27:33.059 --> 00:27:36.799 even doctors, were slaves in this ancient Roman 00:27:36.799 --> 00:27:40.920 world. Okay? And so if you want a more deep dive 00:27:40.920 --> 00:27:44.099 on the biblical version or the biblical idea 00:27:44.099 --> 00:27:46.740 on slavery and why, yes, it is wrong and Paul 00:27:46.740 --> 00:27:50.380 is not saying it is okay here in any way, then 00:27:50.380 --> 00:27:52.299 that is something we can address. It would take 00:27:52.299 --> 00:27:54.500 a whole other sermon or a really cool podcast 00:27:54.500 --> 00:27:57.299 episode, so send that in to Alex so we can talk 00:27:57.299 --> 00:27:59.359 about that another time. But I want to make sure 00:27:59.359 --> 00:28:01.799 we focus on the purpose here, because in this 00:28:01.799 --> 00:28:04.039 part of the passage, Paul isn't writing to try 00:28:04.039 --> 00:28:06.700 to abolish this practice. Remember, he's writing 00:28:06.700 --> 00:28:11.579 a letter to a church. And this church included 00:28:11.579 --> 00:28:16.140 both freed people and it included slaves. And 00:28:16.140 --> 00:28:18.779 so, yes, the Bible talks in plenty of other places 00:28:18.779 --> 00:28:20.700 what we should do with the practice of slavery. 00:28:21.019 --> 00:28:23.319 But here, Paul is encouraging the Christians 00:28:23.319 --> 00:28:27.279 in whatever walk of life you're in to be an obedient 00:28:27.279 --> 00:28:30.880 disciple. So he points out for those who are 00:28:30.880 --> 00:28:34.269 bond servants or slaves currently, How do you 00:28:34.269 --> 00:28:37.829 be an obedient Christian in that? So let's talk 00:28:37.829 --> 00:29:00.970 about that. Look there in verse 22. You are serving 00:29:00.970 --> 00:29:03.630 the Lord Christ, for the wrongdoer will be paid 00:29:03.630 --> 00:29:06.170 back for the wrong he has done, and there is 00:29:06.170 --> 00:29:10.289 no partiality. Masters, treat your bond servants 00:29:10.289 --> 00:29:13.529 justly and fairly, knowing that you also have 00:29:13.529 --> 00:29:17.950 a master in heaven. So what we're going to focus 00:29:17.950 --> 00:29:21.250 on, considering that most of these bond servants 00:29:21.250 --> 00:29:25.069 fulfilled the jobs of the time, the best way 00:29:25.069 --> 00:29:29.569 to apply this is as employees and employers. 00:29:29.900 --> 00:29:33.039 for our modern times, for those who are working 00:29:33.039 --> 00:29:37.180 and those who are bosses over other people. So 00:29:37.180 --> 00:29:39.819 let's start with those bond servants or workers. 00:29:40.059 --> 00:29:42.339 Just as with the rest of the Christian family 00:29:42.339 --> 00:29:45.640 that he was talking to, this is talking to Christian 00:29:45.640 --> 00:29:48.980 servants, okay? And all Christians are called 00:29:48.980 --> 00:29:52.380 to live their lives in ways that really baffle 00:29:52.380 --> 00:29:55.519 the lost. Therefore, Christian slaves were not 00:29:55.519 --> 00:29:59.059 called to rebellion here, but humble servitude 00:29:59.309 --> 00:30:01.849 in the name of Christ. It's interesting, isn't 00:30:01.849 --> 00:30:05.009 it? Paul doesn't tell these servants, hey, rise 00:30:05.009 --> 00:30:07.309 up in the face of your masters and say, no, you're 00:30:07.309 --> 00:30:09.970 evil, wicked people. No, he says, hey, in this 00:30:09.970 --> 00:30:13.309 place where you're in right now, you can still 00:30:13.309 --> 00:30:17.170 be a servant of Christ. And in fact, you can 00:30:17.170 --> 00:30:21.910 be a representative of Christ. So in our jobs, 00:30:22.329 --> 00:30:26.130 Christians are expected to be respectful, obedient 00:30:26.130 --> 00:30:28.670 employee. And that's regardless of the faith 00:30:28.670 --> 00:30:31.410 of our employers. See, the same language here 00:30:31.410 --> 00:30:35.730 is used as for children. Obey in everything those 00:30:35.730 --> 00:30:38.849 who are your earthly masters. Obviously, as I 00:30:38.849 --> 00:30:41.049 said before, if we're told to do something against 00:30:41.049 --> 00:30:43.789 God's Word, we are to obey God rather than man. 00:30:44.130 --> 00:30:47.309 But in every normal day -to -day thing, we are 00:30:47.309 --> 00:30:51.150 to obey those people who are over us in our jobs. 00:30:51.440 --> 00:30:54.759 And Paul even focuses on that obedience there 00:30:54.759 --> 00:30:58.759 saying, not just with eye service as people pleasers, 00:30:58.880 --> 00:31:02.539 but with sincerity of heart. Christian employees 00:31:02.539 --> 00:31:05.960 should be the most hardworking employees on the 00:31:05.960 --> 00:31:08.960 planet. Amen? That's what we're supposed to be. 00:31:09.059 --> 00:31:12.619 And not just when the boss is watching, not just 00:31:12.619 --> 00:31:14.799 on the day we're having our employee review. 00:31:15.220 --> 00:31:19.180 No, we're supposed to be the hardest workers. 00:31:19.420 --> 00:31:23.579 at all times, because we do this as if God was 00:31:23.579 --> 00:31:28.460 our master, because ultimately He is. He is the 00:31:28.460 --> 00:31:31.480 one that we are trying to serve. The passage 00:31:31.480 --> 00:31:33.240 that Christian read that Alex is going to cover 00:31:33.240 --> 00:31:36.160 next week ended saying, and whatever you do in 00:31:36.160 --> 00:31:39.099 word or deed, do everything in the name of your 00:31:39.099 --> 00:31:42.740 Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through 00:31:42.740 --> 00:31:46.680 Him. We might ask, but what if our boss isn't 00:31:46.680 --> 00:31:50.400 a Christian? Well, then our hard work and integrity 00:31:50.400 --> 00:31:55.460 can do the job of pointing them to Jesus. My 00:31:55.460 --> 00:31:58.339 favorite example, there's many examples of people 00:31:58.339 --> 00:32:01.799 that did this like Joseph or Daniel in their 00:32:01.799 --> 00:32:04.660 service. My favorite example of this was someone, 00:32:04.680 --> 00:32:07.839 we do not have her name, and boy I wish we did. 00:32:08.319 --> 00:32:10.599 I really can't wait to find out one day. All 00:32:10.599 --> 00:32:13.180 we know is that she was a little slave girl that 00:32:13.180 --> 00:32:17.720 was owned by a Syrian general named Naaman. Naaman 00:32:17.720 --> 00:32:20.880 was the enemy of God's people and he had raided 00:32:20.880 --> 00:32:24.000 this little girl's village and probably had her 00:32:24.000 --> 00:32:26.440 parents killed, or at least his soldiers did. 00:32:26.700 --> 00:32:28.839 And then he took her as a little slave girl, 00:32:29.079 --> 00:32:32.420 a little Jewish girl. And Naaman had a big problem 00:32:32.420 --> 00:32:35.799 because he was dying from leprosy. And the Bible 00:32:35.799 --> 00:32:37.799 says, we don't get any more context with this, 00:32:38.079 --> 00:32:41.279 all we know is his little slave girl, instead 00:32:41.279 --> 00:32:44.599 of hating him, reaches out to Naaman's wife and 00:32:44.599 --> 00:32:48.099 says, hey, don't want Naaman to die. There is 00:32:48.099 --> 00:32:52.759 a prophet in Israel who can heal him of his leprosy. 00:32:53.420 --> 00:32:55.779 And because of that little slave girl caring 00:32:55.779 --> 00:32:59.160 for her master, Naaman goes and meets the prophet 00:32:59.160 --> 00:33:02.099 Elisha, and through God's power he's healed. 00:33:02.180 --> 00:33:04.480 And not only is he healed physically, but he 00:33:04.480 --> 00:33:07.920 actually begins worshiping Yahweh, the God of 00:33:07.920 --> 00:33:13.279 Israel, because of that little slave girl. That's 00:33:13.279 --> 00:33:17.779 what we are supposed to be in our jobs. So Paul 00:33:17.779 --> 00:33:21.160 reminds workers to obey because it is ultimately 00:33:21.160 --> 00:33:24.140 God whom they're serving. But I love this, he 00:33:24.140 --> 00:33:28.200 also reminds them that God will reward them for 00:33:28.200 --> 00:33:32.440 their faithfulness. Sometimes it can feel like 00:33:32.440 --> 00:33:35.359 we're just trying our best to serve God, especially 00:33:35.359 --> 00:33:37.380 if we're not serving him in a Christian culture. 00:33:37.680 --> 00:33:40.480 And it might seem like we're just wasting our 00:33:40.480 --> 00:33:44.259 time. I'm trying to serve God, but I get in trouble 00:33:44.259 --> 00:33:47.039 because my boss wants me to work on Sundays and 00:33:47.039 --> 00:33:50.599 I'm saying I can't. Right? My boss doesn't like 00:33:50.599 --> 00:33:52.640 Christians, so maybe he gave the promotion to 00:33:52.640 --> 00:33:54.339 someone else who didn't deserve it instead of 00:33:54.339 --> 00:33:58.220 me because he just doesn't like Christians. Is 00:33:58.220 --> 00:34:01.019 this worth it? and especially for slaves in this 00:34:01.019 --> 00:34:03.319 time, because Roman slaves were not permitted 00:34:03.319 --> 00:34:06.180 to inherit anything from their masters as they 00:34:06.180 --> 00:34:08.380 were not an official part of their family. And 00:34:08.380 --> 00:34:11.079 since many slaves were born into that life, it 00:34:11.079 --> 00:34:13.300 left them without hope of any inheritance, even 00:34:13.300 --> 00:34:16.139 if they were one day freed from being a bondservant. 00:34:16.199 --> 00:34:19.619 But Paul says that God offers them the inheritance 00:34:19.619 --> 00:34:24.010 of Christ. Their service might feel unrewarded 00:34:24.010 --> 00:34:26.550 in this life, but they will receive the perfect 00:34:26.550 --> 00:34:28.889 reward for all eternity. So Christian worker, 00:34:29.090 --> 00:34:32.789 hear me. God sees your efforts. He knows what 00:34:32.789 --> 00:34:35.269 you are doing. And if you don't feel like you're 00:34:35.269 --> 00:34:39.170 being rewarded for that now, trust in that promise. 00:34:39.650 --> 00:34:42.369 That you have the inheritance of Jesus that goes 00:34:42.369 --> 00:34:44.710 beyond any earthly inheritance that we could 00:34:44.710 --> 00:34:48.289 ever possibly receive. That salvation and eternal 00:34:48.289 --> 00:34:51.579 life through Jesus. is offered to all of us. 00:34:52.039 --> 00:34:55.699 But then Paul moves to masters. Paul ends the 00:34:55.699 --> 00:34:58.500 section by addressing what I guess we could apply 00:34:58.500 --> 00:35:01.559 as our employers for us today. And he tells them 00:35:01.559 --> 00:35:05.400 to treat their servants justly and fairly. If 00:35:05.400 --> 00:35:07.820 you have employees that work under your authority 00:35:07.820 --> 00:35:11.760 today, what kind of boss are you? Because as 00:35:11.760 --> 00:35:14.440 Christian employers, we should treat every employee 00:35:14.440 --> 00:35:18.389 with respect, care, and fairness. We should not 00:35:18.389 --> 00:35:21.050 lord our position over them. We should take care 00:35:21.050 --> 00:35:23.650 of them. Paul reminds masters that the real reason 00:35:23.650 --> 00:35:26.289 they should do this and care for them is because 00:35:26.289 --> 00:35:29.969 every earthly master also has a master in heaven. 00:35:30.650 --> 00:35:33.349 And who are we to think that we are any better 00:35:33.349 --> 00:35:37.650 than anyone else? Just because we have pastoral 00:35:37.650 --> 00:35:42.090 interns that I make print things for me. Thank 00:35:42.090 --> 00:35:44.530 you, Christian, by the way. But just because 00:35:44.530 --> 00:35:47.170 we have like people like that, does that mean 00:35:47.170 --> 00:35:50.349 that Alex and I, because we have reverend and 00:35:50.349 --> 00:35:53.630 actual, quote unquote, pastor before our name, 00:35:53.889 --> 00:35:56.489 are any better of a Christian than these two 00:35:56.489 --> 00:36:00.429 incredible men? Does it? It's not a trick question, 00:36:00.570 --> 00:36:05.170 I promise you. No. Okay. As much as Alex and 00:36:05.170 --> 00:36:09.210 I want to and to teach them to, we have things 00:36:09.210 --> 00:36:12.349 that we learn about the ministry from these two 00:36:12.349 --> 00:36:15.329 men. Because we're no different from them. And 00:36:15.329 --> 00:36:18.889 if you are an employee or an employer, know that 00:36:18.889 --> 00:36:21.130 there's nothing about you that is any better 00:36:21.130 --> 00:36:23.710 than them. Don't identify yourself in that way. 00:36:24.030 --> 00:36:26.230 Identify yourself as equal but in a position 00:36:26.230 --> 00:36:29.349 of authority that God has given you. And when 00:36:29.349 --> 00:36:31.849 you view it that way, you'll see your employees 00:36:31.849 --> 00:36:36.519 as someone to reach out to. So the family unit 00:36:36.519 --> 00:36:39.039 is our first priority in living as disciples 00:36:39.039 --> 00:36:42.079 of Jesus, but the workplace is where we really 00:36:42.079 --> 00:36:45.139 tend to spend most of the rest of our time. So 00:36:45.139 --> 00:36:47.280 I want you to take note of this, right down this 00:36:47.280 --> 00:36:50.739 last point for us today. The workplace is the 00:36:50.739 --> 00:36:55.400 mission field God has called you to today. Maybe 00:36:55.400 --> 00:36:57.559 if you've wondered how you can find opportunities 00:36:57.559 --> 00:37:00.579 to share Jesus with others, look no further than 00:37:00.579 --> 00:37:03.889 where you work. Whether you're the boss or employee 00:37:03.889 --> 00:37:06.650 God has placed you right where you are Because 00:37:06.650 --> 00:37:09.769 he wants to use you and you can be his disciple 00:37:09.769 --> 00:37:12.349 right there at work. Let me use my own father 00:37:12.349 --> 00:37:14.250 again I know he's gonna be listening to this 00:37:14.250 --> 00:37:17.510 so he's gonna be embarrassed But my father has 00:37:17.510 --> 00:37:20.489 worked for Honda a Honda dealership since mr. 00:37:20.610 --> 00:37:23.769 Honda was alive probably It's been a long time 00:37:23.769 --> 00:37:27.010 and he works in the parts department and he while 00:37:27.010 --> 00:37:31.159 he has some Christian co -workers Most of the 00:37:31.159 --> 00:37:34.519 environment that he's working under is not, right? 00:37:34.579 --> 00:37:38.079 But what I love about my dad is he, I know that 00:37:38.079 --> 00:37:40.420 he listens to every single time that I preach 00:37:40.420 --> 00:37:42.820 and he listens to many of Alex's sermons as well 00:37:42.820 --> 00:37:45.199 whenever he's kind of on a break at work. But 00:37:45.199 --> 00:37:47.579 what I love about my dad and his coworker, I 00:37:47.579 --> 00:37:49.599 know his coworker friend does this too, when 00:37:49.599 --> 00:37:51.159 they're listening to the sermons, they don't 00:37:51.159 --> 00:37:53.400 put their headphones on, they turn their speakers 00:37:53.400 --> 00:37:58.150 on so that other people can hear it. the people 00:37:58.150 --> 00:37:59.949 there I guess because my dad's worked there so 00:37:59.949 --> 00:38:01.550 long that they probably think like well we can't 00:38:01.550 --> 00:38:04.469 tell Ted to turn it down because he's Ted right 00:38:04.469 --> 00:38:07.309 but he just lets it Blair and then people come 00:38:07.309 --> 00:38:10.550 ask questions and I remember back when I preached 00:38:10.550 --> 00:38:14.150 my um my very first sermon back in North Carolina 00:38:14.150 --> 00:38:16.630 he had a co -worker who I don't even know if 00:38:16.630 --> 00:38:19.389 he is a Christian but wanted to come here because 00:38:19.389 --> 00:38:21.750 he'd heard my dad talk about me and what God 00:38:21.750 --> 00:38:25.349 was doing in my life my dad is using a Honda 00:38:25.349 --> 00:38:29.389 dealership to be a mission field. So wherever 00:38:29.389 --> 00:38:31.909 God has you, He put you there for a purpose. 00:38:31.989 --> 00:38:34.570 If you're an employee or an employer, use that 00:38:34.570 --> 00:38:38.030 as the mission field He called you to. The Christian 00:38:38.030 --> 00:38:41.349 life is an incredible calling, and we're given 00:38:41.349 --> 00:38:45.050 the task of imaging God to the rest of the world. 00:38:45.130 --> 00:38:48.170 So when the lost look at us, they should see 00:38:48.170 --> 00:38:51.079 what God looks like. And Paul writes for us here 00:38:51.079 --> 00:38:53.480 that the best places to do that are in the home 00:38:53.480 --> 00:38:55.860 and in the workplace. And listen, I've said a 00:38:55.860 --> 00:38:57.880 lot this morning, but in case you missed it, 00:38:57.960 --> 00:39:00.539 here's the easiest summary of how to do all of 00:39:00.539 --> 00:39:02.480 the things that Paul wrote about here, and all 00:39:02.480 --> 00:39:06.019 the things that I said. Be imitators of Jesus 00:39:06.019 --> 00:39:11.019 Christ. Wives, look to how Jesus submitted himself 00:39:11.019 --> 00:39:13.539 to the will of the Father, though he was equal 00:39:13.539 --> 00:39:17.630 with him. Husbands? Look to how deeply Jesus 00:39:17.630 --> 00:39:19.949 loves his church and was willing to sacrifice 00:39:19.949 --> 00:39:23.610 his life for her. Children, look to Jesus and 00:39:23.610 --> 00:39:26.010 how he humbled himself to be obedient to the 00:39:26.010 --> 00:39:30.030 very creatures he created. Fathers, look to Jesus 00:39:30.030 --> 00:39:32.849 to see the grace that he offers us while we are 00:39:32.849 --> 00:39:36.369 still in our sins. Workers, look to Jesus to 00:39:36.369 --> 00:39:38.610 see how he humbly served as many people as he 00:39:38.610 --> 00:39:41.869 could. And employers, look to Jesus to see how 00:39:41.869 --> 00:39:44.829 he lovingly cared for the people that came to 00:39:44.829 --> 00:39:48.719 him. May we all look to Jesus as that perfect 00:39:48.719 --> 00:39:53.260 example for us to follow. Amen Let's pray together 00:39:53.260 --> 00:39:54.900 Father we thank you so much