The Service of Slaves and the Master We Serve

Last week we learned about Christian duty and the higher standard of obligation that comes with our baptism in the New Covenant. This week we move on to Romans chapter 6:19-23, and notably Paul's use of use of the word slave to show the nature of our new relationship to God and His character and disposition towards us.  Slave is a culturally loaded word in our day but Paul has a purpose and it demands our fullest service. In return we discover our truest liberty.  Let's take a look.

"I SPEAK after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Slaves To Seven Deadly Sins

Paul suggests his presentation "in the manner of men" will be imperfect and rightly so as up to this point in history revelation hadn't been fully revealed much less the teaching of bondage to Christ. Bondage? Paul doesn't use the metaphor lightly and points out that we have been slaves to sin and makes a demand on our baptism calling us to be slaves to righteousness. We were consecrated into God in baptism and it's gifts and we are expected to make full and constant effort to consecrate (commit) ourselves to God's service.  Certainly we can not serve Christ less than we served sin and the imagery of slavery conveys the absoluteness of our service towards God. There is no middle ground here, we pass from one master to another. Our servitude to sin must be reversed.

Liberty of Seven Gifts of The Holy Spirit. Isaiah 11

Slavery wasn't new to Paul's audience and they understood at least the term in context of the Law. The Sabbath Year and Jubilee Year liberated slaves to remind the Jews of their deliverance from Egypt.  So in the New Covenant what is our deliverance, our recompense? We know Jesus stated he hadn't come to change the Law but fulfill it and he does so by freeing us from our old master... sin.

So we must put off the old man as the effects of sin are immediate- sin blinds us, blocks reason, brings us down, effects our morality and intellect and separates us from God. The wages of sin is death and we must leave sin behind to gain the immediate fruits of our new relationship with Him: the fullness of gifts of the Holy Spirit that come with our baptism and bear witness to His providence and compassion.


Mark 8:1-.

IN those days the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and saith unto them, I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat: and if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way; for divers of them came from far.And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness? And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven. And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people. And they had a few small fishes; and he blessed, and commanded to set them also before them. So they did eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets. And they that had eaten were about four thousand. And he sent them away.

Jesus has led the 4000 into the wilderness and after 3 days of teaching shows compassion on them with a miracle of abundance. He knows their needs and provides for them so they can go back without faltering.  He has demanded their all for three days and now he rewards their faith.

Jesus brings them to the wilderness for a reason. Just as the Father led Moses and the Jews into the desert and fed them manna to sustain them we see a fulfilling of the Old, a completion of a means in this miracle.  The wilderness serves to break the grip of their old master in unrighteousness, temporalities, and temptations. The flock is forced by their surroundings to recognize and acknowledge their new Master, and in return, he demonstrates grace and providence and bounty by feeding them not merely to relieve physical hunger but to feed the soul as well.

The Gospel testifies this is the second time Jesus performs this creation miracle because they didn't get it the first time. And we all know we need to hear things repetitively to commit them to memory and habit.  Isn't it wonderful that Jesus has infinite patience with us?  Now the flock gives their all in the effort for the trip and Jesus has compassion on them and blesses them with life giving bounty such as only He can give! The fruit of righteousness in the life and ministry of Jesus-- freely shared by simply acknowledging Him as our master.

"Does this offend you" John 6:61

Let me state it again -- this miracle illustrates the fullness of Christ's grace and providence. Just as Paul outlines the immediate effects of sin in the Epistle,  Jesus' miracle reveals an immediate reward for serving the new Master. A demonstration of divinity confirming his mission and edifying future generations as to his continued bounty not the least of which is the cup of salvation -- His Body and Blood taken in communion, of which he exhorts the crowd in John Ch 6 and refers directly to this miracle, is that life giving bounty.  We see affirmation of this reality when Jesus tells Peter "If you love me feed my sheep" and he says it three times because we just don't get it without repetition. And again, Paul reminds- The cup of blessing which we bless , is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break , is it not the communion of the body of Christ?  We receive immediate reward in the feeding of our souls to help us overcome sin.  A reward for our service but we have to partake... we have to Remember.

What's the takeaway?

The people who saw the miracles were hard of heart and slow to see the truth but Jesus, in his infinite love, didn't give up on them and in these trying times we must not give up on Him or each other.  We must freely choose to become slaves to righteousness and give our all in love to Him as he accepts no less. These miracles of creation confirm his Kingship and Messiahship and a means of keeping his promise "I am with you alway" and as a means to feed the sheep. This is our means into the coming Kingdom.

Man's tendency is to rely on the creation rather than the Creator in slavish pursuit of material needs and we lose sight of things spiritual just as in Egypt.  Grain is multiplied for our bodies and yet this feeding is literally more than the manna in the desert.  We need to surrender our sin before we can accept the bounty which is the spiritual food.  Jesus lays it out in no uncertain terms in St. John Ch. 6.

These Scriptures remind us that material things perish and that the real bounty is spiritual and eternal-- we were not made to be satisfied with bread alone and here it is provided.  The lessons also demonstrate we have to be active participants in our conversion if we want the reward. True liberty comes with acceptance of that high standard of service in baptism, our consecration of our whole self and the recognition of our new Master and for that we receive our spiritual feeding to strengthen us for our journey home!

Let's pray these Scriptures:

LORD of all power and might, who art the author and giver of all good things: Graft in our hearts the love of thy Name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of thy great mercy keep us in the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Devotion: Ps 47:1-4

Clap your hands together, all ye peoples; O sing unto God with the voice of melody.
For the Lord Most High is to be feared; he is a great King over all the earth.
He subdued the people under us, and the nations under our feet.
He chose our heritage for us, even the glorious land of Jacob, whom he loved.

We hope you enjoyed this lesson and will consider joining us for Christian Education at St. Athanasius next Sunday as we continue our study of service to Christ next week as slavery becomes sonship.

Peace of Christ,

John Dixon

Warden, St. Athanasius Anglican Church
www.glenallenanglicans.org

For further reading and devotion on this lesson: Psalms 18:1-20; 133; 134; 138; 40:1-16; Hosea 14; Ecclesiasticus 6:5-17; Genesis 22:1-18; Romans 6:12-18; John 15;12-27; Hebrews 6

Sources:  The Holy Bible; The Harmony of the Collects, Epistles, and Gospels, P. M. Scott D.D.; Ancient Christian Commentary; Book of Common Prayer.



*We use the KJV as it is a literal translation rather than a thought for thought dynamic equivalent translation such as NIV. If it helps you, just open your bible to Rom 6:19-23.