I recently wrote of the freedom to serve and that was to serve God. This morning I was reminded that we serve all in addition to God. I am to serve everyone, yes everyone as I move through this world. I am even to serve those in authority, regardless of who they might be. The passage I was led to this morning is titled, “Submission to Authority”. It is not titled submission to the authority of God, just authority.
“16Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 17Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor. 18Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust.” — 1 Peter 2:16-18 (ESV)
I can only imagine the difficulty it was/is for those who are living under the thumb of one who treats me like an animal and thinks of me as something that is here for my own pleasure. I am not going to try and indicate that I know what it is like to be a slave, not even a little. What I am speaking of is that which I believe God has indicated through Peter here in this passage and how it aligns with the will of God and His Word.
Peter is indicating in the above that we are to be free in the LORD. We are to follow Him and just as Jesus did, we are to treat those in authority with respect and do the work assigned. For Jesus did indicate that we are to give to the authority that which we are to give to the authority.
“18But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, ‘Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? 19Show me the coin for the tax.’ And they brought him a denarius. 20And Jesus said to them, ‘Whose likeness and inscription is this?’ 21They said, ‘Caesar’s.’ Then he said to them, ‘Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’” — Matthew 22:18-21 (ESV)
It is clear that where we are to serve the LORD, we are to also serve the authority here in this world.
We are free in the LORD and therefor we are certainly to be serving Him who gives us that freedom. Yet we are also to use our freedom to serve others. We are to bring the gospel to all and we do that through service and love and not through rule and fear. Service is giving of ourselves for the good of others and not for our own good.
Who are you serving in this world? Are you avoiding the service of those in authority as they, “have no power over you”? What if you just served all, even those in authority as we are commanded by God, so that through that service you are spreading the gospel?
Trevor's Thoughts 