HOW TO BE A ‘MASTERED’ MASTER

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on December 17, 2023 under 2023 |

Bethany Bible Church Sermon Message from December 17, 2023 from Ephesians 6:9

Theme: As Jesus’ followers, we must be in submission to our true Boss in how we treat those who serve us.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

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We’re opening up our Bibles this morning and looking today at Ephesians 6.

But that would not have been how the early church in Ephesus would have done it. They couldn’t have ‘opened their Bibles’ to look at one of Paul’s letters. Instead, the leaders of the church family would have said, “We have received a letter from our dear brother, the apostle Paul!” Then, the church congregation would have gathered together and listened with excitement and prayerful interest as one of the church leaders read it to the gathered believers.

So; for a few moments this morning, I ask you to imagine that you’re in that early church gathering—listening for the first time as this new letter from Paul was being read.

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As you look around you today, you see that there’s a wonderful mix of people in the household of faith. You’d notice that quite a few of your fellow believers have come from the humble classes of life—from what might be called ‘the servant class’¹. It wouldn’t be much of a surprise, really. After all, in another one of his letters, Paul said that—in the calling of God—there are “not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble” (1 Corinthians 1:26). But here you sit in their midst of the church family as someone who was from the more noble class. That wouldn’t be a surprise either. After all, Paul wrote “not many”; but thankfully, he didn’t write, “not any”. Praise the Lord Jesus that His grace has extended to you too.

Now; you’re a follower of Jesus. But as a Christian who happens to be wealthy by this world’s standards, you also have a large house with some bondservants who labor for you. Some of them have become your brothers and sisters in Christ. And as you look around at the church family this morning, you even see some of them sitting and listening with you to Paul’s latest letter. What a wonderful thing the church is! In it, there’s neither slave nor free; but Christ is all and in all. You’re glad that those who serve in your household are here today—on equal footing with you—to listen to what God is teaching the church from Brother Paul.

And in his letter, Paul had emphasized the new life in Jesus. Just a little while ago—in the section of the letter that we today would call Ephesians 5:18-21—you all heard Paul speak about the wonderful ministry of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Paul wrote;

And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God (Ephesians 5:18-21).

You listen as Paul—in his letter—reminded the church that the power for living the Christian life comes from the indwelling ministry of the Holy Spirit. All people—of all walks of life—who have believed on Jesus are now indwelt by the same Holy Spirit. And you would have heard that the indwelling ministry of the Spirit produces genuine happiness of living in His people. His empowering ministry shows itself by such things as joyful expressions of worship, perpetual thankfulness in all circumstances of life, and even a humble submissiveness in the various roles and relationships in which God sovereignly places us.

And then, as you listened on, you would have heard how Paul placed special emphasis on that last point; that in the enabling power of the Holy Spirit—as He rules over His people in a prevailing and pervasive way—they will be ‘submitting to one another in the fear of God’. They’ll be submitting first in reverential awe to our mighty God through our Savior Jesus; and then, in obedience to Him, they’ll be submitting to one another.

You would have heard as Paul went on to explain how this Holy Spirit-empowered submissiveness would show itself in how wives honor their own husbands as the church honors Christ, and in how husbands are to love their own wives as Jesus loves His own church—with both husbands and wives in submission to the Lord Himself. And then, you would have heard as Paul explained how that Holy Spirit-empowered submissiveness would show itself in the family relationship; as children are to obey their parents in the Lord, and as fathers are to raise their children up in the instruction of the Lord—and all, again, in submission to the Lord Himself. And you would have thought, “These instructions from Brother Paul are good today! Mutual submission to the Lord Jesus! Yes! Just think of how harmonious home life will be when we all apply these words!”

And then, the reader of the letter would come to the portion that we today call Ephesians 6:5-8. When you hear Paul’s letter mention “bondservants”, you sit up just a little straighter. You look around you to see if your own household servants are listening. One of them just happened to glance at you; and you wink at them and nod your head toward the reader—as if to say, “Pay attention, now!”

Paul said;

Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ (6:5) …

Of course, you understand that Paul is not telling your bondservants to cower in fear of you. You certainly wouldn’t want that. And you know that such a thing would not be honoring to the Lord. Rather, you understand Paul to be talking about the respect those servants should show to the Lord Himself in the role that they have under you. They’re to be serious about their work in your household because they’re actually serving the Lord Jesus in that work. You want them to sincerely serve Jesus Christ with a sense of holy awe in how they work for you. And you smile slightly; because you know that some of your bondservants needed to be reminded of that fact … and they’re clearly listening.

And Paul went on;

not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart (v. 6).

And you’re glad that Paul is making that point too. You know that if your household servants are doing their job for the Lord as they should, they won’t be satisfied with just doing a good job when you’re watching. They’ll want to do a good job all the time; because they’re serving the Lord Jesus who watches them always. You’re glad that two of your servants in particular are hearing this today. Just the other day, you walked into the room by surprise and caught them sitting around swapping stories and horsing around when they should have been working. You had to scold them—but in Christian love, of course. “So; ‘when the cat’s away, the mice will play;’ eh?” you told them. And you turn your attention back to the reader and think, “Preach it, Brother Paul!”

Paul went on in the letter to tell the bondservants that they’re to be …

“with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men …”

And you certainly hope that your household servants hear that one. After all, you’ve done your best to make your estate and your business enterprises easy environments in which to be. It hurts you whenever you hear them complain and murmur against you. You sincerely hope that—in the enabling power of the Holy Spirit—they will do their work with a good attitude … as if doing it for the Lord.

And then, finally, you hear it read that believing bondservants are to do all of this …

“knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free” (v. 8).

“Amen!” you say to yourself. That’s exactly what you hope for. You want those dear believers who serve you to do so with an eye to the day when the Lord Jesus will reward them for their good and faithful work. “Great sermon! Great letter! ‘Do your work in submission to the Lord through the power of the Holy Spirit!’ Let’s go home, remember those words, and get to work!”

But then—just when you thought that the ‘submission’ part of the letter was over—you’re taken aback as you hear that Paul went on to write, “And you, masters …” You know what that word “and” means. You realize that Paul has more to say about this whole matter of Holy Spirit-empowered submissiveness—and that it’s now directed to you. Paul goes on to say—in verse 9;

And you, masters, do the same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him (v. 9).

“Do the same things to them!” Now, you’re looking around to see that your bondservants are gazing right at you. And you realize that you and them—all together—are all bondservants who are obligated to the service of the same great Master.

As it turns out, all of you need the Holy Spirit’s enabling power to submit to your distinct roles toward one another as unto the Lord Jesus Himself.

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Now; let’s come back to our own time.

You may have heard those words from Paul and thought to yourself, “Well; I’m sure glad that the days of ‘bondservants’ and ‘masters’ are over. I don’t know what Paul’s words would have to do with me today. After all, I’m nobody’s ‘master’. And I know for sure that I don’t have any ‘bondservants’.”

But stop and think about it. Almost all of us are in an employee/employer relationship of some kind somewhere. Or some of us are in a student/teacher relationship. Or we occasionally hire someone to do some work for us or are hired by someone to do some work. We either owe service to someone else, or we receive service from someone else. And as I suggested to you last week, Paul’s words to ‘bondservants’ and ‘masters’ can be legitimately extended to those kinds of relationships.

Almost every person here today—in some way or another—has someone doing some kind of service for them; whether they are staff employees of ours, or are temporarily providing some kind of service for pay. And any time you and I are in some sort of relationship in civil society in which one of us has obligations to the other in which some kind of work is to be done, then these instructions from Paul apply. I believe that the implications of Paul’s instructions in this one verse extend all the way down to the level of how you and I treat the person who is filling up our car, or how we treat the person serving us food at the restaurant, or how we talk to the service representative who is helping us with our shipping order. It applies to any situation in which—in the providence of God—we play the ‘master’ role to someone else’s ‘servant’ role. In all such instances, we are to remember that we ourselves have a great Master in the heavens, and we are always to conduct that relationship as if we are in His service toward that person in our service.

And so, Paul’s words this morning—directed specifically to those who are in the lead position—teach us that, as Jesus’ followers, we must be in submission to our true Boss in how we treat those who serve us.

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Now; let’s consider a few questions. First, let’s ask …

1. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TODAY TO BE A ‘MASTER’?

One good way that we can answer that question is by looking back to what Paul had said in the earlier verses—in his instructions to bondservants. In verse 5, a ‘master’ is someone to whom ‘obedience’ is, in some sense, owed. Obviously, it would not be a ‘total obedience’; since we owe that kind of obedience only to the Lord Jesus—who is our true and ultimate Master forever. But a ‘master’ in the lesser sense would be someone who is in the position of setting the agenda for what is to be done. In verse 7, a ‘servant’ is someone by whom service is rendered. And so, a ‘master’ is someone who is in the position of receiving that required service. And in verse 8, it’s suggested that a ‘reward’ of some kind is expected for the work that is done. And so, a ‘master’ is someone from whom those who serve are to expect to receive something as a part of an agreement—perhaps directly, or perhaps through the agency of a larger company that they work for.

We are in the role of a ‘master’ then whenever we’ve entered into some kind of an arrangement in which someone is obligated to obey our wishes in the fulfillment of some kind of service to us for an expected reward. That covers a lot of relationships; doesn’t it? You can think about your daily life and realize that there are lots of such relationships you’re already in. It might be that you are—or have been—a supervisor of others at the workplace. Or it might be that you have hired temporary work to be done at your home, or on your car, or even to your hair. It may even be as short-term and simple as placing an order at the drive-through window at a fast-food restaurant. But in all of these cases, God has—in His providence—placed you for that time over someone else in some way. And in all of those relationships, you are obligated to serve your true Master—the Lord Jesus—in how you conduct yourself in that role.

When you think back to the stories of the Bible, you discover that there were lots of great ‘masters’ who set a noteworthy example for us. Think, for instance, of Joseph—the son of Jacob who had been taken captive and then thrown into prison in Egypt. He served for a time as the manager of the prison in which he had been confined. I always love how we’re told that, as he came in for work in the prison one day, he noticed that some of the other prisoners were sad. “Why do you look so sad today?” he asked them (Genesis 40:7). Think of that! He cared for the feelings of those other prisoners who were under his authority—even though he was stuck in prison with them.

Or think of one of the noblest ‘masters’ in the Old Testament—Boaz, who eventually married Ruth. Boaz was a wealthy man who had a large farm with lots of workmen who were harvesting his crops. We’re told in Ruth 2:4 that he came greeting them with the words, “The LORD be with you!”; and that they responded with “The LORD bless you!” (Ruth 2:4). How many managers greet their personnel that way today? And how many employees would respond that way if he or she did?

Or you could think of a remarkable bondservant/master story in the Book of Philemon. Philemon was a wealthy Christian who, it seems, had opened up his home as a meeting place for a local church. He had a bondservant named Onesimus who had apparently stolen something from Philemon and had run away. In the providence of God, Onesimus somehow ran into the apostle Paul; and Paul led him to the Lord. Paul then wrote to Philemon that he should receive Onesimus back—“no longer as a slave, but more than a slave—a beloved brother” (Philemon 16). Paul was confident that godly Philemon would do so wholeheartedly. It’s a beautiful story of the redeeming power of Jesus Christ.

These ‘masters’ stand out because they were clearly under the mastery of the Lord in the way that they fulfilled their role. They cared for the welfare of those who served them. They were courteous and gracious to them. They sought to emphasize their union together in the Lord. They truly ‘served’ as ‘masters’ in a godly way; and they used their authority for the benefit of others—just as Jesus would do.

I think here of what the Lord Jesus once said to His disciples:

“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:25-28).

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So then; that’s what it would mean to be a good, godly ‘master’. In one way or another, all of us are—occasionally—in the ‘master’ role over someone else. And that leads us next to consider …

2. HOW ARE WE TO CONDUCT OURSELVES IN THAT ROLE?

Paul said in verse 9, “And you, masters, do the same things to them [that is, to servants], giving up threatening, knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.” So here, we see that there’s something to “do”, something to “stop doing”, and something to “know” while we’re doing it all.

First, what are we to do? Paul said that we who are in the ‘master’ role are to “do the same things” to those who are in the ‘servant’ role. And I’m taking it that ‘the same things’ are the things that Paul mentioned in verses 5-8.

Look at those verses again. Paul wrote to bondservants and told them;

… be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free (vv. 5-8).

Obviously, the outworking of these principles would be different in practice for a ‘master’ than it would be for a ‘servant’. Nevertheless, the principles are basically the same. A believer who is in a ‘master’ role needs to fulfill that role with a sense of “fear and trembling”—that is, a reverential sense of holy awe and responsibility for the task that the Lord Himself has given them toward that servant. They’re to fulfill their ‘master’ role with “sincerity of heart, as to Christ”—not pretending to be a Christian at church and then behaving like a harsh unbeliever toward those who serve them at work. They’re to fulfill their leadership role as a ministry to God “from the heart”—that is, not from being forced into it from the outward circumstances of things, but from deep within—from a Christ-transformed heart. They’re to behave with “good will” toward those who work for them—like Joseph, who cared for those under him; or like Boaz, who warmly greeted them and blessed them; or like Philemon who forgave Onesimus, and welcomed him as a beloved brother in Christ. And they’re to do it all “as to the Lord, and not to men”—always remembering that both they and their servants work for the same Lord and Master.

Second, what are we to stop doing? Paul said that we’re to “give up threatening”. The way that Paul puts this in the original language is that we’re to let the power of ‘threatening’ simply drop from our hands. It’s no longer to be a weapon that we use against those who serve us.

In Colossians 4:1, the apostle Paul spoke of this same idea—but in a different way. There, he said,

Masters, give your bondservants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven (Colossians 4:1).

If we are giving what is ‘just and fair’, then we won’t be unreasonable in our demands, or withhold what is due to someone, or threaten them harshly for failures and errors. We will treat them as Jesus treats us whenever we ourselves fail. Just think of what a wonderful asset it would be to the work relationship if people were rewarded with compliments and courtesy rather than driven by scolding and reprimands—truly treating them as Jesus treats us!

And finally, what are we to ‘know’ while all of this is going on? We’re to ‘know’—in the perfect tense of the verb; which means a complete, sure-and-certain kind of acknowledgment—that our own Master is in heaven. He watches and supervises our conduct toward those who serve us with far greater righteousness and justness than we could ever exercise over others.

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And that leads us to one final question …

3. WHO ARE WE TO ALWAYS REMEMBER IS OVER US?

Paul answers that by saying, “knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.” Our Master in heaven loves us so much that—even when we were completely unworthy—He died on the cross for us to wash us clean in His Father’s sight. He gave His all for us. And yet, He does not show favoritism. He treats all—both bondservant and master—with perfect justice and equity. Just as Paul put it in verse 8; we’re to remember that “whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.”

There’s a very serious warning that is given to us in James 5:1-6. Pastor James was not writing about rich people in a completely general way; because the fact is that many who are rich are also very godly people. Rather, he was writing to those who were ‘rich and evil’—those who used their position as ‘masters’ in an unjust way, thinking that they were accountable to no one. James wrote;

Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. You have condemned, you have murdered the just; he does not resist you (James 5:1-6).

Those are sobering words; aren’t they? James wrote them in order to warn those who thought they had no ‘Master in heaven’ that—indeed—they do! He sees and weighs out everything. Everyone—master and servant—are all accountable to Him; and He will reward each according to their deeds.

But godly, believing masters have no need to fear such judgment … if indeed they fulfill their ‘master’ role as to the Lord and not unto men.

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Now; I remember hearing a story once about a pastor that had invited a well-known Christian speaker to come to his church. The pastor picked this noteworthy Christian author and speaker from the airport and then took him out to lunch before bringing him to the church.

As they were eating, the food server accidentally knocked a glass of water over and spilled it all over the guest speaker. And this ‘noteworthy Christian’ was outraged. He got up and really laid into her for it. He scolded her, and shamed her, and did a ‘Don’t you know who I am?’ at her, and said that he was going to complain to the manager about her. She was humiliated. And after she apologized to the guest speaker and ran immediately to get some towels, the pastor turned to him, looked him square in the eye, and said, “Brother; when she comes back, I’d like to see you try to tell her about Jesus!” What a shame. Of course, this ‘noteworthy Christian’ speaker could hardly have done that with any integrity! She’d never be able to hear about Jesus from him.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ; I wonder if that’s not a good way to test how we conduct ourselves in those ‘master-role’ relationships that God places us in. After we’ve had an encounter with those who work for us in some way, can we say that we’ve behaved in such a way that we can then—in full integrity—tell them about Jesus and His love?—and that they would sincerely want to hear about Him from us?

May God help us as we’re all sitting in this church family today—listening together to Paul’s letter being read to us—to heed what the Holy Spirit has told us through him;

And you, masters, do the same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.

As Jesus’ followers, may we truly be in submission to our true Boss in how we treat those who serve us. Someone’s willingness to hear about the Lord Jesus may—to some degree—depend on it.

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¹The specific word in the New Testament that is used for ‘hired workers’ is mithois; see Mark 1:20 and Luke 15:17.

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