Dearly beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, we come this evening to our final sermon on the household code. Though Abraham Lincoln said, "As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master," the Apostle Paul recognized that among Christians at many times and places in history one would find both slaves and masters. Rather than pretending that this scenario would never happen, he addresses it head-on, not by saying it should never exist, but rather by pointedly telling both slaves and masters how to act within the system. As we saw last week, his instructions are likely guilty of the charge of strengthening slave systems by improving the character of the people within them. But as we also saw last week, his instructions are undoubtedly derived from a higher moral value than equality or freedom. That higher value is love. And here, in his words to the masters, Paul does not back off a single iota. He told the slaves to do something tough. No doubt. But he tells the masters to do something even tougher, which is to do all the things the slaves are supposed to do while giving up violence and the threat of violence. Ultimately, he commands slaveholders in the sight of God to treat their slaves as they, the slaveholders, would want to be treated. The golden rule applies to slave owners too; they too must love like Christ.
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Caleb Nelson grew up in Ft. Collins, CO. Born into a Christian home, where he eventually became the eldest of 11 children, he has been a lifelong Presbyterian. He professed faith at the age of six, and was homeschooled through high school. He then attended Patrick Henry College...
