Read with Me
1 Peter 2:18-22 (HCSB)
Household slaves, submit with all fear to your masters, not only to the good and gentle but also to the cruel. For it brings favor if, mindful of God’s will, someone endures grief from suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if you sin and are punished, and you endure it? But when you do what is good and suffer, if you endure it, this brings favor with God.
For you were called to this,
because Christ also suffered for you,
leaving you an example,
so that you should follow in His steps.
He did not commit sin,
and no deceit was found in His mouth;
Listen with Me
Peter is not advocating for slavery here, nor is he endorsing it as a system. Even though some in the past have used this passage as a rationale not only for keeping slaves but for mistreating them as well, all the while telling them that the Bible says that they must submit and obey, that is absolutely not the point that Peter is making here.
Slavery was simply a reality in the world in which Peter lived and worked, and many of the gentiles who had come to the Lord were in fact slaves. They were not enslaved due to the color of their skins, but because of conquest, debt, or simply social status. But because many Christians were slaves, both Peter and Paul wrote about slave/master relations in their letters.
Both apostles came from the same point of view. Even though both recognized that slavery was far from an ideal situation, with Paul encouraging those who were slaves to take advantage of any opportunity to legally obtain their freedom (1 Corinthians 7:21), they also knew that simply running away or rebelling against those who hold their indenture carried harsh penalties in the Roman-dominated society.
It was in that context that both advocated for submission and respect for their masters. Nothing would be served, especially not the cause of the gospel, through rebellion, disobedience, or dishonesty. But those masters who could see the transformation in their slaves who had come to faith in Jesus had a far greater likelihood of wanting to receive Jesus for themselves. And those slaves who, because of their witness for Jesus, proved to be diligent, honest, and of high character were far more likely to not only be treated well, but to hold high places of trust and responsibility (like Joseph in Egypt), and to even win their freedom.
Peter’s point verses 19 to 20 is that it is to no one’s credit to endure punishment that is deserved. Bearing up under pain that is justly inflicted does nothing to advance the cause of Christ. But if someone bears suffering and harsh treatment that is undeserved, as Jesus Himself did, that perseverance under trial can often prove to be a potent witness to the reality of salvation and the power of the Holy Spirit.
Pray with Me
Father, I am thankful that it, at least in America, we don’t have to work within the construct of slavery, a construct which did exist in our past. But I have frequently seen how these verses apply to those who have bosses and supervisors over them in their day-to-day jobs. Even though we, as workers, are compensated for our labors, it is still a horrible witness to those above us in the hierarchy if we are rebellious, lazy, or dishonest. But when we are obedient to the requirements of the job, diligent in every assignment, and scrupulously honest in everything we do, that can be a powerful witness to the reality of what you have done in our lives, helping us to shine like a lamp burning proudly on his stand, and opening the door for our coworkers and our supervisors to want to know more about Jesus. Amen.