¹All who are under the yoke as slaves are to regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so that the name of God and our doctrine will not be spoken against. ²Those who have believers as their masters must not be disrespectful to them because they are brethren, but must serve them all the more, because those who partake of the benefit are believers and beloved. Teach and preach these principles.

Paul writes as a freeman, but he understood what it was like to be physically abused and have his freedom significantly curtailed. He was falsely imprisoned numerous times, tortured by the whip five times, beaten with rods three times, beaten so many times he couldn’t count them, and left for dead at least once (see 2 Cor. 11:23–27, Acts 14:19). He accepted that treatment for the sake of the gospel. So when the apostle writes to slaves, he speaks as one who has been treated just like slaves in the worst situations. He writes with the credibility and authority of someone who has been there and done that!

His instruction is simple: honor your master as one worthy of respect. Why? For the sake of the gospel, which has to do with proclaiming the name of God, that is, Jesus Christ, and the message of salvation (“our doctrine”). In other words, there is something more important than resisting slavery, and that is being above reproach as believers so that no one can accuse Christians of mixing politics with the message of salvation.

God does want to change social institutions to reflect Christ-like glory, but He wants to do it from the inside out, not vice versa. Wherever Christianity has expanded, people are treated better than in pagan societies. But change that is solely based on political agitation does not prove genuine or permanent. Paul’s letter to Philemon provides a study in the transformation in the life and attitude of a believing slave master (Philemon) toward his returning runaway slave (Onesimus), and deserves parallel study at this juncture.

Slaves who are transformed through the gospel message and who honor their masters disprove any accusation of Christianity being subversive. Peter writes similarly: “Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable. For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly” (1 Peter 2:18–19).

When both master and slave are believers, the slave does not have license to resist the master-slave relationship but is obligated all the more to show respect, precisely because the master is now a fellow believer.

Lord, help me not to take advantage of my fellow believers who are over me.