Who Are You Working For? - Ephesians 6:5-9

WHO ARE YOU WORKING FOR?

 

The gospel of Jesus Christ changes marriages

The gospel of Jesus Christ changes the relationship between parents and children.

In our study of Ephesians, we have been looking at how the gospel of Jesus affects our relationships, like marriage and parent-child. As part of the household codes, Paul now turns to the master-slave relationship. But how many slaves do we have here today? 

            We are going to take an interpretive leap then and apply this master-slave teaching to the workplace. Paul taught that even the employer-employee relationship is changed by the gospel.

            What would be the ideal for a Christian in the marketplace? A Christian boss; a Christian product; a workplace that has Christian values. Right?

            You know that I worked at a Christian bookstore in Winnipeg. I was an employee there for five years. The first thing I was told is that this was a business, not a ministry. Fair enough. Even Christian businesses need to make money. But then I heard my boss tell a Winnipeg Jet hockey player that the store was first a ministry and then a business. It depended on who he was talking to, I suppose. 

            You would think that this was an ideal place to work otherwise. I could tell you horror stories. I watched as young women were driven to tears by our boss. My close friend was nearly fired unfairly for a misunderstanding. I observed racism and bigotry. I saw financial gain elevated over integrity. How do you work for a man like that? A Christian boss? What motivates you in deplorable work situations to do your best?

            That’s what Paul is trying to teach here: the man or woman who believes in the gospel of Jesus will discover that this gospel even transforms their attitude towards work.

 

1. Working hard or hardly working? (5-6)

 

The first principle Paul teaches is that the gospel changes our view of work itself. Many people view work as a necessary evil. It is a means to an end, a long pause before the weekend and a chance to relax. We need money to live, so we work. If that’s our attitude, then we will try to work as little as possible. 

As Shrek said, “Working hard or hardly working?” 

            According to the latest research, the average worker is only truly productive for 2-3 hours of an 8-hour workday. A lot of time is frittered away checking email, social media, chatting with coworkers, and coffee breaks. 

            Part of this waste is due to how we perceive who we are working for. When we work for people, the quality of our work will depend on how much we think of those people. If your boss is incompetent or mean you will feel poorly motivated to work hard or to do a good job. But they’re still the boss, so Paul correctly perceives that we work “only to win their favor when their eye is on you…” (6a). 

            There are two results (failures) with this attitude. If you have ever watched “The Office,” you know Jim and Dwight. Their boss, Michael, was incompetent and a lousy motivator. So, Dwight would suck up to him when he was around and criticize him behind his back. Jim worked hard and played hard (pranks) but stopped working altogether when he discovered one day that he had capped out his sales commission. He couldn’t earn anymore, so why work? 

            Paul turns this attitude on its head when he says, “…obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart…” (5a). It could say, “singleness of heart. What does that mean? It means without divided loyalty, a freedom from the tension of conflicted loyalties. We are to settle in our minds once and for all that we are not there to please the boss, or only to make money, or “working for the weekend,” we are working for the Lord. You are to work as if working for Christ. 

 

2. Working for the Boss! (5-8)

 

Four times in this little passage of Scripture, Paul emphasizes that our work is for the Lord. Take a look at your text:

“…just as you would obey Christ…” (5c)

“…but as slaves of Christ…” (6b)

“…as if you were serving the Lord…” (7b)

“…the Lord will reward each one…” (8b)

Whether you are welding trailers at Midland or Haul-All, or making bins at Novid, you are working for the Lord. You are not working for the boss of the company, under human direction, your daily task is the work that God has given you, no matter how mundane you think it is. This view of your work reveals it as holy unto God. 

            Ray Stedman said that if you approach work like this you will never have another dull day. You will never be bored stiff with the routine and humdrum of picking eggs if you recognize that you are doing it with the eye of the Lord upon you, with a desire to please him, and with the belief that one day it will be made clear that doing it for the Lord was a good thing. Then every single piece of work the Christian produces must be good enough to show to the Lord. 

            If anyone would have a negative view of work, it would be the slaves that Paul originally wrote to. They must have thought of work as a necessary evil, doing it under compulsion while the profits go to the master. Yet Paul tells them that their work is holy, their work is doing the will of God. Even as slaves!

            But if you are slaves (or feel like slaves), you are slaves of Christ. And this is a liberating realization. How do you convince a group of slaves that their work is holy? By showing them that the ultimate servant, Jesus Christ, “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many,” (Mk. 10:45). Paul shows them that Jesus humbled himself, leaving the wealth and titles of heaven and became a slave (Phil. 2:7), even succumbing to death on a cross. When slaves grasp that supreme example, with the Spirit’s help, we will see our work transformed.

3. Working for the Real Payday (7-8)

 

We have no concept of slavery in our culture. But you may feel like a slave at your workplace. When do you feel like a slave?
            When you are stuck in a dead-end job.

When you feel like you have no marketable skills to go out and get a different job.

When it feels like your boss doesn’t value your opinion or work effort. Nothing you say or do matters.

When your wages barely cover your rent and groceries.

When you feel trapped with no way out.

What motivates you to do your best work in these conditions? There is to be an awareness, Paul says, of an unseen but powerful fact: “…you know that the Lord will reward each one of you for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free,” (8). 

            I want you to take this to heart: whatever work you are doing, paid or unpaid, paid poorly or paid adequately, if you do your best work as if for the Lord, you will be compensated by the Lord. He will reward you. God works to correct the conditions that cause unhappiness in the workplace or will bless you in some other way in your life. We must note that the Lord does not promise always to correct the injustice of your workplace or the lousy conditions, because God’s will is that sometimes Christians must live as Jesus lived, under difficult and contrary conditions if only to reveal God’s grace amid the pain. But God promises to reward you even so. 

            

            We haven’t the time to address the masters (bosses) of v. 9, but we can see that Paul has turned the tables of the workplace upside down. He has revolutionized in a subtle but powerful way how even employers should think about their employees. If it’s not clear, Paul says that both are on the same status level before God – God plays no favorites.

            As for the theme of work, it is clear that Paul makes it a holy prospect. Even for the janitor who cleans the toilets, there is an aspect of kingdom work in this.

            I recall an article in Guideposts or the Christian Reader, not sure which one, that talked about Expo 86. A Christian businessman was interviewed about his involvement in the event in Vancouver. He was asked specifically about how he blended his Christian faith with his business life. Matter of factly he said, he didn’t. His Christian life was his Christian life (read “private”), and his business life was his business life. He did not mix the two. I was shocked. My understanding of the Word of God is that the gospel of Jesus permeates my whole life. I must be consistent.

            The gospel affects every part of your life, including your work, or it is not the gospel. You are transformed completely or not at all. 

            Who are you working for? 

 

                                                            AMEN

 

"Everything I Know About Parenting" by Paul - Ephesians 6:1-4

“Everything I Know About Parenting” by Paul

 

With tongue-in-cheek, I have titled this sermon as a reflection of Paul’s very brief entry on parents and children. We get three short sentences from a man who likely had no children or experience in parenting. In his letter to the Colossians, Paul gives them two sentences abbreviating what he says here. He is a wise man to say little rather than act as an authority on the subject.

            You know that I have a daughter and a son, but I do not claim to be an expert on parenting. As I told Michael when he preached on marriage, just stick to the Scriptures. I will heed my own advice…and run! 

            I will say this: many studies have been done in the last two decades by Barna and LifeWay revealing an alarming trend for the church. Twenty-somethings who are raised as Christians, who have gone to church as children, are disengaging from active participation in the Christian faith during their young adult years. Seven in ten young adults who went to church regularly in high school quit going by age 23. 

            Tim Challies interprets these studies to mean that Christians are doing a poor job of reaching the children in their midst. Our hope as Christian parents is that by introducing our children to Jesus while they are young, they will not be engulfed by the world’s pleasures so easily when they mature. These reports tend to defuse that hope. The statistics say that we are doing a bad job of this. That’s very sobering. 

            Paul may have little to say about parents and children, but we should not discount the commands (that’s right, commands) he gives his readers about this relationship. He gives us four words in Ephesians 6:1-4 that challenge both children and parents. Paul has been applying life-changing gospel truth to the intimate relationships we all have. He spent a long time on marriage; now he turns to how your relationship with Jesus Christ changes your family dynamic. 

            Let’s see what Paul has to say about family…

1. “Obey”: A Gospel Assumption (6:1)

 

“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right,” (1). Romans, Greeks, and Jews would all agree on this point: children ought to obey their parents. This is the right thing to do. It’s not always easy, but we know that our moms and dads had our best interests at heart. They knew/know what’s good for us. 

            Obeying our parents is a universal expectation. It’s not a Christian thing or a race thing. But note that Paul doesn’t just say “obey your parents,” he says, “obey your parents in the Lord.” There is an assumption here that draws us back to the beginning of the letter. Before you can apply what Paul says about parenting, the assumption is that you the reader have been changed by the gospel. He’s speaking to a child who follows Jesus; he’s speaking to a parent who has been changed by the gospel. Paul began the letter talking about the amazing plan of God, what God is doing in the world, how he adopted us, revealed his grace to us in Jesus, and so on. 

            The expression “in the Lord” or “as to the Lord” is found in Paul’s teaching about wives submitting to husbands (22). But you remember this was prefixed by Paul’s command in v. 21 to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. That banner of mutual submission flies over the parent-child relationship too. You children belong to Christ and must be loved as such; parents who follow Jesus must be especially obeyed. So, there’s an assumption in Paul’s command…

            The assumption in reading “obey your parents” is that you have been transformed by the gospel. You can’t pass on what you don’t have. If you have Jesus, you are changed. And that change compels you to, in the family context, obey your parents. 

            Tim Challies again commented on this expectation. He said that in the US and Canada, the majority of children are raised in churches where what they hear is a false gospel or a gospel emptied of its power for salvation. In other words, if children are not seeing the power of the gospel at work in us as parents, they will not be convinced of its power to change them. 

             

2. “Honor”: It’s for your own good (6:2-3)

 

Paul’s second word appeals to the OT. “Honor your father and mother – which is the first commandment with a promise – so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth,” (2-3).

            Now it’s not just the right thing to do, it’s in your own self-interest to obey or honor your parents. But why add this quote from the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:12) to what everyone agrees on? To honor your parents has a different nuance. Obeying is passive (you do what’s expected); honoring is active (you pursue ways to do good). 

            To honor your parents is to value them, to show high regard for them. It is more than obeying, more than following orders; it is living in such a way that your parents feel valued by you. It is an attitude that is noticeable in the community. People will see that you esteem your parents. (see Parable of the Prodigal re: the father’s esteem in the community when the son leaves)

            That’s huge in an honor-shame culture. We don’t quite understand that culture in North America. But in other parts of the global community, what your children think of you and do for you is a big deal. And when a child is successful (becomes a doctor) it brings great honor on the parents. To do good as a person is highly motivated by wanting to bless your parents.

            Victor Frankl lived through the Holocaust during World War II. He could have escaped before the war – he had an American visa because of his work in psychology. His parents were glad for him that he could escape the coming troubles. But then Frankl was troubled: Could he leave his parents to face their fate alone? He knew that they could end up in a concentration camp. He was looking for an answer to this dilemma when at his parent’s place he noticed a piece of marble on the table. He asked his father what this was. He explained that it was a piece of the synagogue that the Nazis had burned down. He had taken the piece home because it was part of the tablets with the Ten Commandments. There was one gilded letter that stood out. One commandment. He asked, “Which one is it?” His father said, “Honor your father and mother…” Frankl knew at that moment he had to stay. He would lose his parents, his wife, and his child to the holocaust, but to honor father and mother was too important to ignore.

            What do we do for our parents? How do we honor them?

 

3. “Do not exasperate”: Don’t be too strict (4a)

 

Paul’s first two words were for children (any age); his next two words are for parents (fathers). First, he gives a negative command: “Fathers, do not exasperate your children…” (4a). Sounds like “don’t take the wind out of their sails.”

            Before we unpack this, you need to know how the gospel of Jesus changed parental attitudes in those days. The rights of fathers would blow your mind. A Roman son never came of age; he was always under his father’s authority. When a child was born, the baby would be placed at the feet of the father. If the father stooped to pick up the child, it was a sign of acceptance. If he turned away, the child was rejected and discarded. Rejected children became slaves of others. 

            Jesus elevated the value of children. When his disciples were chasing children away from Jesus, Jesus said, “Let the children come to me.” That was huge. That was like saying, “You’re not invisible to me.” In the “Jesus way” Paul teaches, he too elevates children as a sacred responsibility given to parents. 

            Contrary to Roman cultural norms, Paul says to Christian parents, “Don’t be too strict.” Don’t exasperate your children. Translation: Don’t make them angry. How do we do that? There are many ways (let me show you): 

·      Guilt trips – using guilt to shape or control them (Don’t you care how I feel? When I was your age…)

·      Inconsistent rules – rules for one child that don’t apply to another (unreasonable; unfair, unpredictable)

·      Speaking harshly – snapping off hurtful put-downs that destroy instead of build up.

·      Not trusting them – This says as much about you as it does them; if you can’t trust them with responsibility, it means you haven’t’ taught them right.

·      Forgetting to encourage them – Martin Luther said, “Spare the rod, spoil the child. But make sure you have an apple for when they do right. 

Benjamin West’s mother left him alone one day in charge of his younger sister. He found some ink and decided to paint his sister’s portrait. His mother returned to an awful mess, ink stains everywhere. She picked up the paper, ignoring the mess, and said, “Why, it’s Sally!” and she kissed him. West said that kiss made him a painter.

            Isn’t that a picture of the gospel? If the gospel of Jesus has changed us, if you are transformed by God’s love and grace, that grace will affect your parenting. 

 

4. “Bring them up”: Don’t be too lenient (4b)

 

Then Paul gives a positive command: “…bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord,” (4b). 

            The verb “bring them up” literally means “to provide food.” Figuratively, it means “to raise them up from childhood.” So, this verse does not picture a father standing back and giving orders to be obeyed but rather investing himself personally in the raising of his children. 

            That means discipline and instruction. In this current era, that seems counterintuitive. I mean, children seem to do whatever they want. New trends empower children to explore life and choose their own way. Then why don’t they seem happy? Most of us, child or adult, feel more secure and even happy in life when there are boundaries.

            More importantly, Paul emphasizes our responsibility to instruct our children about the Lord. Are we teaching them Jesus at home? Our we making the Lord a priority in our schedules? I know it’s difficult for parents with young children to attend church services and feel like they got something out of it, but I believe the discipline of attendance speaks volumes to our children about the priority of worship. 

            We want our children to know and love the Lord. Church, Sunday School, Awana, and Bible camp are instrumental in teaching Jesus. But you know what Paul says here? The primary responsibility for knowing Jesus is in the home. It’s the parents’ job. You are the main influencers in their lives at the early stages. You are the models they look to show them how to live the “Jesus way.” You influence their priorities. If you show them that sports are more important than church, then they will put church second or third in their lives. 

            Teach your children and show them what it means to be changed by the gospel. Show them a life transformed by the love of Christ Jesus. Then they will understand what all the other Christian stuff means.

 

Paul gives us two words for children: Obey and Honor.

He gives us two words for parents: Don’t exasperate them and bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

            Tim Challies wrote this: “If there is a solution to this problem of children abandoning the church it must be a solution that depends on the gospel. Programs are not the answer…The gospel is the answer. Where churches and families, where pastors and parents know the gospel and proclaim the gospel, children will be saved. This is true. It is not universally true; there are some children who grow up with every possible favor the Lord could bestow upon them who reject it. But by and large where the gospel is preached and spoken and whispered and celebrated, the Lord works.

            What children need from us is a consistent example of choosing the “Jesus way” every day. They need to see the true gospel at work in us, changing us, and showing them Jesus.

                                                            AMEN