Do you want to be a slave?

Do you want to be a slave?

“Paul and Timothy,
slaves of Christ Jesus:
To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers and deacons.”
Philippians 1:1

The Word slave sounds so brutal and poor.  A slave is someone we associate crippling lowliness with.  Someone who has no freedom, no will to change the course of one's day, and no love.  A worthless object who only lives to benefit their master.  Serve! Serve! Serve! And perhaps the master will feed you his leftovers or expect you to eat the pieces of meat that dangled off the platter, like the fat or ligaments that are tough to chew.  And perhaps you'll have a place to sleep, but it won't be very warm and the sleep won't be long...just enough for you to wake back up and serve! Serve! Serve!

That's usually the picture in my head when I think of slave, but let's be more objective.  The treatment the slave receives is entirely contingent upon the will and personality of the master.  Do slaves live to serve their master's will and desires?  Yes.  Do slaves belong to their master? Yes.  Do slaves get ill-treated by their masters?  That depends on the master.

So here is what is true about slaves for sure:
1. They serve their master
2. They belong to their master
3. They live with their master
4. Their master can ask them to do anything, and they will obey if they are slaves

Before we talk about good treatment or bad treatment we have to get it straight that there is no objective reason to believe that slaves have it bad.  They may not have a lot of freedom in the sense that they have to do whatever their master wants, but that isn't bad unless their so-called freedom is good.  In other words, a child who wants the "freedom" to do whatever they want will probably choose not to go to school or eat their veggies or clean their room.  Habits that are all meant for the good of the child's health and good character in the long run.

So sometimes not having that type of "freedom" is better for us than having it--if having it lead to destructive choices.

Now let's consider the master.

The most important person in the slave-master relationship is the master.  The life of the slave is submissive to the primary life of the master.  A loving master will mean love for the slave who serves him, a cruel master will mean cruelty for the slave who serves him.  Whoever the master is will reveal the life of his slave.

We are all slaves.
Either a slave to sin or a slave to righteousness.

Let me put the same concept into different words that all point to the identity of the master as the distinct difference between this kind of slavery to that kind.  Either way we are slaves, the only difference is in who our master is.
We will do what our master wants or at least do what we can to make our master pleased/satisfied.

Slave to Christ vs. slave to Law
Slave to righteousness vs. slave to sin
Slave to God vs. slave to self
Slave to grace vs. slave to law

What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace?
By no means!

Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?

But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations.
For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.
But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed?
For the end of those things is death.

But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
-Romans 6:15-23

So I ask again,
Do you want to be a slave?
If you desire a life and a free will then the answer will be yes.
A slave is merely someone who's life depends on the will of its master.
You can be a slave to your own will.
The point is not to be or not to be a slave.
The point is the master to whom you are a slave to.
Remember the life of the slave is contingent upon the person that the master is.

The only way to not be a slave is to not exist.
If you wish to cease to exist, then that's another topic.

But if you want a life of awestruck goodness, fullness of joys, deep and meaningful moments of intimacy with others, love, truth and beauty, then those are things that only a slave can experience.  Because those things involve existing.  You can't experience if you don't exist.

The next time you think you're being forced to do something and it feels like slavery, consider who your master is.  Or consider when you feel free in doing something consider who you're master is.
Feeling enslaved or free has nothing to do with being a slave.  You are a slave whether you feel like one or not, because remember a slave is simply someone who does the will of His or her master.

It's all about looking at the master.
In which case I join Paul and Timothy in declaring with thankfulness that I am a proud slave of Jesus Christ.  The most loving, good, and beautiful master whom I love to serve and do what He wills because everything He does leads to my perfect contentment.

Who is your master?
And how's that going for you?

A slave to Jesus,
Jmegrey

PS: my Master even tells me to stop calling Him "master" and instead call Him "friend."
He's that awesome, but whatever I call Him I still only want to do what He wants because His will is my life's greatest contentment.

“You are My friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you slaves anymore, because a slave doesn’t know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from My Father.”
John 15:14-15

We will do our master's bidding, so knowing your master well will help us know ourselves well.  Our life is contingent upon the master we serve.

Who is your master?