Ephesians Lesson 38 of 39 part 2

Acts 16:32-34

"And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. (evidently their redemption was evident) And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway."* And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house."

*so the emphasis is the whole family became believers.

So the father was instrumental in the whole family coming to know the Lord. Coming back to Ephesians and carry that right on through as Paul is also using that same set of circumstances. That if the father, who not only is Godly in the treatment of his wife up there in chapter 5, he will be instrumental in raising his children, in the fear and admonition of the Lord. Because of what is stated in verse 34, "believing in God with all his house." This indicates that like in so many other places, there was a knowledge of God which the Hebrews had been instrumental in getting out to the pagans around them, limited as it may have been. Then we have to also take into account the gossip about the Messiah, which must have excisted during His three and half years of ministry, and must have also spread. And especially after His crucifixion and resurrection this kind of thing did not go unnoticed by even the pagans in the area. This is just plain common sense, and then we have to remember Christianity is practical. Christianity is not pie in the sky as some would have you believe. It is not, as one lady in up in Wisconsin put it, "Blab it and Grab it." But it is just simply practical, and if we have a practical operating Christian home more than likely we’re going to see Christian children, who in turn will go out and begin their own Christian home, and that is the only thing that keeps it going. But if there is a break in that chain, then the next generation is out in the cold. Like the stock man who unwittingly placed the Bible in the fiction book area, in the book section of a store recently.

Back to Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 5. Paul now brings it into another segment of society, and that is the work place. We have to recognize that at the time of Paul, slavery of blacks and whites was still part and parcel of the economy (though its more spirited by those within the ranks than the outsiders). The Romans after their conquest of a people took all the youth back to the slave market and sold them into slavery. Today we have a hard time understanding that, but that is the way it was, and we have to look at it in that light. Always remember, when God sanctioned slavery, even back in the Old Testament times, He was not looking at it in a mean spiritedness of treating people like animals, but rather it was, an economy, that, had it been done in a Godly way, would have worked. 

We also want to remember that the vast majority of those people had no education, so they could not build up a profession, unless they were out of the 2 or 3 percent of the elite. So the masses were totally incapable of running a business or being in production, or anything like that, so the most comfortable area for them was working for someone, often as a slave. So if you had a benevolent slave master, he would provide the housing and the food, and the clothing, and everything that these people would need, and life was enjoyable. But when you had a slave master who was totally of the old Adam nature, that person under the inspiration of old Satan, then yes. Being a slave was a horrible life, and remember that most of the human race, as the biggest majority of people lived was in the element of slavery. So now, when Paul is bringing this into the lifestyle of the believing slave master, as well as a believing servant, look what he says.

Ephesians 6:5

"Servants, (I’d be more prone to say, ‘slaves’) be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh (because he is your boss), with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart (and again what is the comparison?), as unto Christ;"

This is talking about the believing element in society. This is not talking about those out there with their bull whips and so forth. This can also be for those who are truly called to be a pastor, evangelist (missionary) or teacher, as they are all servants of men and of Christ. Yes, we are the peoples servants and not to lord over them, we came out from among them and God raised us, we did not raise ourselves. If we have NOT that kind of mindset we have missed it big time. I had a friend, who after graduating from a Bible School or college said, "that he was now ready to go out and fleece the flock, where is his?" This guy had no idea of God and His plan, he had some how missed the boat totally, in my opinion. But after meeting with many pastors in an effort to bring them together in a cohesiveness. I found out that many had this same mindset, though it was unspoken by them. They each were out to build their own little kingdom and used their position as the means to accomplish this. They had learned business principles, very well, while in the university or college of religious training. What was so amazing to me was that it did not matter what faith (Denomination) they claimed to be of.

Ephesians 6:6-7

"Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers: but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart: with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:"