SERVE SOMEBODY
The legendary folk-rock musician, Bob Dylan, once wrote, “You’re gonna have to serve somebody. Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord, But you’re gonna have to serve somebody” (Dylan 1979). He wrote this song after many decades of serving the devil in the hedonist lifestyle of a rock and roll star, but at one point, he finally came to a place of repentance and surrendered his life to serve the Lord. His simple lyrics are a perceptively profound insight and are illustrative of the spiritual truth concerning the human condition. This insight was initially presented in the first century A.D. by the Apostle Paul, who said, “…to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness” (NKJV Romans 6:16). Let’s explore this metaphor of slavery in the New Testament, from the perspective of the first century Greco-Roman world.
Slavery played a major role in every-day life in Rome at the time of Paul, because the practice of enslaving conquered enemies had been wide-spread since the time of the Assyrians and Babylonians. The Greeks had adopted the practice on a large scale during the classical era, and the Romans eventually began doing so as well (Jeffers 220). Rome had indeed become a slave society, with around three million slaves accounting for their population of over seven million inhabitants, and the society became heavily dependent upon the slaves for its workforce (Jeffers 221). The slaves were not just restricted to menial tasks, however, in fact, “Many, if not most of Imperial Rome’s artisans, its potters, sculptors and painters, were slaves. Many of the most respected doctors in Rome were slaves of Greek origin. Slaves were also teachers, cooks and managers” (Jeffers 224). Slavery was and is an ugly blot on mankind’s history, no matter where we may find it, but for the most part, “most New Testament references to slavery accept it as a fact of life” (Jeffers 235). Paul also accepted this fact, but saw the spiritual implications of it as well.
Obviously, the Bible does not condone the mistreatment of other human beings made in the image of God, whether in the form of slavery or otherwise, but it does use the ugliness of slavery as metaphor to illustrate the insidious nature of sin in our lives. Paul’s exhortation to be free from the bondage of sin and to become a slave to righteousness; should in no way be viewed as an endorsement of some forms of slavery being acceptable, rather, it is a recognition that you have been freed from the horrors of slavery to sin, and you should never allow yourself to be taken captive again. Instead of looking back fondly upon that experience, as the Israelites did concerning their time in Egypt, recognize that you are now free and there are no benefits worthy of returning to it. In Douglass Moo’s commentary on this passage, he agrees that, “Sin, then, is a serious matter. Though set free from it, we can in effect become its slaves again if we give ourselves to it… we are ultimately confronted with a choice of only two masters to serve: sin and obedience” (310).
Therefore, we must concur that, “…we are the servants either of God or of sin,—there is no third course… that the yielding ourselves servants for obedience to any one, implies the serving, being (in reality) the servants of such person” (Alford 346). Allowing our-selves to return once again to our old master of sin should be viewed as an affront to our new master, who has paid for our freedom with His own blood. We should serve Him faithfully and loyally, considering the great price that was given for a debt that we could never pay ourselves.
By Pastor Glen Mustian
Works Cited:
Alford, Henry. The Greek Testament. Vol. 2. 1852. Reprint. Forgotten Books, London, UK: 2013.
Dylan, Bob. Gonna Serve Somebody. Slow Train Coming. Special Rider Music, NY, NY: 1979.
Jeffers, James. The Greco-Roman World of the New Testament Era. Downers Grove, IL: 1999. Print.
Moo, Douglass. Romans: The NIV Application Commentary. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI: 2000.
NKJV New King James Version. Holy Bible. Thomas Nelson. Nashville, TN: 2000. Print.
