“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”
-Colossians 3:23-24

There is this wonderful passage in Colossians (see above) where the Apostle Paul is talking to a very specific group of people. Do you know which group it’s written to? Slaves. That encouraging instruction is written specifically to slaves, though it applies to us all.

Slavery was prevalent in the first century, and many slaves were Christians. In fact, although we often talk about Paul being the one who brought the gospel around the world, did you know a lot of it was because of slavery? As slaves became disciples of Jesus Christ, they were shuffled around the world by their owners like cattle. And the irony is that, although the Roman Empire wanted to hold in Christianity, by spreading slaves around, it actually helped to spread the Christian faith like a good germ around the world.

In the end, Christianity undid the evil Roman Empire, and God’s will was done.

Prayer: Dear Lord, may I hear your instruction and do my work with all my heart as I do my work for you. Amen.

Reflection: What are your thoughts on how the Christian faith was spread through the first-century slave population?