Colossians 3.23-Slaves in the Colossian Christian Community Must Continue to Work Hard As For the Lord and Never For People
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday December 11, 2016
Colossians: Colossians 3:23-Slaves in the Colossian Christian Community Must Continue to Work Hard As For the Lord and Never For People
Lesson # 98
Colossians 3:23 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men. (NASB95)
Not translated by the NASB95 is the conditional particle ean (ἐάν), which introduces the protasis of a third class condition which is expressing a spiritual principle, that everything the slaves in the Colossian Christian community do in life, must be done as for the Lord Jesus rather than their human masters.
“You do” is the verb poieō (ποιέω), which means “to perform, to act, to accomplish a particular activity or activities with one’s own resources on behalf of another” and here it denotes any activity performed by these slaves which benefits their human slave masters.
The second person plural form of this verb refers of course to these slaves in the Colossian Christian community as a corporate unit and is used in a distributive sense which emphasizes no exceptions.
The present tense of the verb poieō is a gnomic present, which is used to describe something that is true any time and does take place rather than expressing a universal statement that is true all the time or a spiritual axiom.
Therefore, this would indicate that whenever these slaves “at any time” do something, they must continue to make it their habit of doing it from the perspective that what they are doing is ultimately for the Lord Jesus rather than from the perspective that what they are doing is for their human slave masters.
“Heartily” is composed of the preposition ek (ἐκ) and the noun psuchē (ψυχή) with the latter referring to the immaterial invisible human attributes of a slave in the Colossian Christian community and which attributes would include volition, self-consciousness, conscience, mentality and emotion.
This word speaks of one’s entire being and is the object of the preposition ek which is functioning as a marker of source indicating that Paul wants the slaves to continue to perform every activity in life on behalf of their masters “from their entire being” or in other words, with one hundred percent effort.
“Do your work” is the verb ergazomai (ἐργάζομαι), which means, “to engage in an activity involving considerable expenditure of effort, energy and diligence,” thus “to labor, to work hard to accomplish something.”
The present imperative form of this verb ergazomai is a “customary present imperative,” which expresses the idea of these slaves continuing to make it their habit of working hard from the perspective that what they are doing is ultimately for the benefit of the Lord Jesus.
The middle voice of the verb ergazomai is an indirect middle meaning that the subject acts for himself or herself indicating that it would be “for their own benefit” that these slaves continue to make it their habit of working hard for the Lord Jesus rather than simply to please their human slave masters.
“As for the Lord” indicates that these slaves in the Colossian Christian community must continue to maintain the perspective or attitude that working hard from their entire being for their human slave masters is in reality for the benefit of the Lord.
“Rather than for men” is emphasizing with these slaves what must never be their motivation for obeying this command here in Colossians 3:23.
Colossians 3:23 Whenever any of you, at any time, should do something, each of you from your entire being, for your own benefit, must continue making it your habit of working hard as for your one and only true Lord, indeed, never for people. (My translation)
This fifth class conditional statement asserts that whenever any of these slaves, at any time, should do something, each of them from their entire being, for their own benefit, must continue making it their habit of working hard as for their one and only true Lord, indeed, never for people.
In other words, they must always do everything in life from the perspective that what they are doing is in reality for the Lord Jesus Christ and never from the perspective that what they are doing is for their human master.
Paul is not saying that the slaves are not to work hard for their human slave masters but rather, he is teaching these slaves that they must adopt the view and perspective that their service for their human masters is in reality on behalf of the Lord.
In other words, he is teaching them that they are not only serving their human masters but ultimately they are the Lord Jesus Christ’s slaves.
It was for their benefit that they continue obeying this command because Paul teaches them in Colossians 3:24-25 that they will receive the reward of the inheritance if they do so and if they fail to do so, they would lose this reward of the inheritance.
Colossians 1:3-5 and 2:5 affirm the Colossian Christian community’s faithfulness to the gospel.
Therefore, Colossians 3:23 is addressing again the motivation behind Paul’s command in Colossians 3:22 which required that each of these slaves continue making it their habit of obeying their human masters, submitting in each and every circumstance.
They were not to obey only when being observed as people pleasers but rather, they were to obey because of possessing a sincere attitude being characterized by reverence and respect for their true Master, Jesus Christ.
So the spiritual principle in Colossians 3:23 makes emphatic this command in Colossians 3:22.
The former makes emphatic that their motivation must be their reverence and respect for the heavenly Master, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Notice that Paul in Colossians 3:23 mentions these slaves “working hard” and doing so “from their entire being.”
Paul is emphasizing that these slaves must give one hundred percent effort because they possess the attitude and perspective that this service for their human masters was in reality on behalf of the Lord Jesus Christ since they ultimately will be rewarded at the Bema Seat for this faithful service to their human masters.
Therefore, Paul’s Spirit inspired teaching of the gospel in Colossians 3:22-24 transformed the slave/master relationship in the Roman Empire in the first century A.D. since it taught the Christian slave that they were ultimately serving the Lord Jesus Christ and not their human slave masters.
For them, their position as a slave had been transformed by their union and identification with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
Now, being a slave had meaning and a purpose and it now gave dignity to even the most menial tasks.
The gospel promised these slaves that they would be rewarded by the Lord Jesus for faithful service to their human slave master.
Slavery need not be drudgery and toil and a hopeless situation.
Rather, if they trusted in this teaching from the gospel, their position of a slave would provide them satisfaction and even enjoyment knowing that they would were in reality serving the Lord Jesus Christ who would reward them for faithful service and working hard for their human slave masters.
Indeed, for the Christian slave, the gospel transformed their slavery into an act of worshipping and serving the Lord Jesus Christ.
Consequently, the gospel not only transformed the slave/master relationship from the perspective of the slave but also from the perspective of the slave master because it required that the slave work hard and be conscientious in their service as a slave.
Paul wanted the slaves in the Christian community to therefore, live out the gospel in their lives.
He wanted them to stand in stark contrast to the non-Christian slaves in the Roman Empire.
Non-Christian masters could be led to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ as the direct result of these Christian slaves being trustworthy and honest and hard-working and conscientious.
Many non-Christian masters would never step foot in a home where the gospel was taught and practiced.
However, by Christian slaves demonstrating their obedience to the gospel resulting in their being trustworthy with their master’s affairs, these slave owners might give the gospel a hearing or simply believe in Jesus Christ as a result of their slave’s trustworthiness.
Christian employees today in the twenty-first century need to do the same as Paul instructed Christian slaves to do in the first century.
Non-Christians not only need to hear the gospel but they need to see it lived out the lives of Christians.
We, as Christians need to be trustworthy and conscientious employees who work hard for our employers.
The Christian’s godly conduct is what makes the gospel attractive to non-Christians.
When the Christian’s actions and words agree, the message is loud and clear.
The non-Christian sees the truth and power of the gospel through the godly conduct of the Christian employee and employer.
This fifth class condition in Colossians 3:23 also echoes the one that appears in Colossians 3:17 with the former specifically applying the latter to the slaves in the Colossian Christian community.
So therefore, the spiritual principle in Colossian 3:23 would prompt these slaves in the Colossian Christian community to remember the spiritual principle in Colossians 3:17.
The former emphasizes the motivation for anything in life whereas the latter emphasizes the holy standards of the gospel which the Christian must conform to when performing any activity in life.