How to live for Christ even if you are a nobody
(The sermon on Titus 2:7, 8 seems to be missing somewhere)
Text Titus 2:9, 10 Time 29/09/10 Place Childs Hill Baptist Church
Text Titus 2:9, 10 Time 29/09/10 Place Childs Hill Baptist Church
"I
woke this morning with a taste most foul in my mouth. Funny how sweet
on the lips the grape’s first kiss; how betraying then beneath the
heat of the rising sun. But the success of the Prefect’s new
building project has made him most generous of late and the wine
flowed ... Any musician of The Empire surely envies the station I’ve
achieved.
"Though
Romana by status, I am Hiberni by birth. Inside this tired old chest
beats the heart of a Celt - proud and ancient. My people, the
Cruithin, dwelled in the Hibernian Highlands for a thousand years or
more. But that all ended with the great Romana Invasion of Fromhoire
in which my tribe was taken into servitude. I never again saw my
mother, father, brothers or sisters after that fateful day. I was a
young man of 12.
"Though
craftsman by trade - an artisan most skilled in tooling fine leather
- my father was, like his father before, our clan’s poet-musician.
Countless nights around the village fire he would regale with tales
of our people past, their conquests and defeats, all performed with a
talent all said none could compare. ... I was to follow in his
footsteps. I’d practised long and hard these magical tales, all to
the accompaniment of the pipes, the subtleties of which I’d strove
to master. And it was this that the Romana general found to his
liking that darkest of days. So unlike my fellow clansmen taken in
shackles back to Roma, I slept in the officers’ tents at night
while my kinsmen lie on hard, cold ground. By the gods, for many
years I felt myself a traitor.
"Upon
arriving in the Imperial Capital, a visiting Prefect from Pompeii,
Gaius Secundas, seemingly fascinated by my storytelling, ordered me
brought to his palace. Most treacherous a man to those who displeased
him - Romana and slave alike - he appeared to marvel at my clumsy
attempts to entertain. He would summon me to Court both day and night
to recite the magical tales that enlivened my now scattered clan -
... And through the years I grew in his favour; each year dedicating
more of my repertoire to his many campaigns. And as reward for my
cleverness
he granted me my freedom at the age of 25. Though an ageing man was
I, it was then that I became a liberi
of Roma. A free man of the Romana Empire. And though I could have
many time easily stolen away, back to my beloved homeland, I had no
home to which return. No land to plot or plough. And so it is 40
years since I was first taken from the rich, green land of my
memories."
This is part of
James Coffey's attempt to give us an insight into the life of a
British born Roman slave in the time of Jesus.
We
are looking at Titus 2 and the way that Paul instructs Titus to teach
various members of the congregation. We have looked at what he has to
say to old men, older women, young women, young men and to Titus
himself.
This
week we come to what he has to say in verses 9 and 10 to slaves. This
is one of four main passages in the New Testament that deal with the
matter of slaves. The others are in Ephesians 6, Colossians 4 and 1
Peter 2. The book of Philemon and Paul's remarks in 1 Corinthians 7
are also germane.
It
is important to remember when we come to such passages that slavery
in the first century Roman Empire was quite different to slavery
today or for example in America before the civil war. There are at
least 4 things to note.
1.
In the Empire slaves were either taken as the spoils of war or got
into financial difficulties and sold themselves into slavery. Some of
them were very well-educated. For example doctors and tutors were often
slaves.
2.
Although their masters had absolute rights over their slaves, they
generally showed them respect and often treated them with dignity.
Beating was allowed but was not common.
3.
Unlike slaves in other times, they could marry, accumulate wealth,
purchase their own freedom, run a business, etc. Cicero noted that a
slave could usually be set free within seven years; in any case,
under Roman law a slave would normally be set free by age 30. After
the revolt of Spartacus in 73 BC, however, slaves in the west were
generally treated more harshly than those in the east.
4.
About a third of the Empire was made up of slaves. By the first
century AD an increasing number of slaves were being freed - so much
so that laws were drawn up to govern the procedure!
The
New Testament pattern was not to condemn slavery outright or
encourage rebellion. Rather, they instructed slaves (and Masters for
that matter). There are no real equivalents today of New Testament slaves,
though many can identify with them - those working long hours,
especially for low wages, others in dead end jobs or people saddled
with debt. All of us who earn our living by working, especially
outside the home, can identify. Here in Titus 2:9, 10 there are at
least three things that come out.
1.
No-one must be ignored but all must be taught how to live
The
first thing is easy to miss. Verse 9 begins Teach
slaves.
It doesn't sound odd to us perhaps because we have read it before or
other passages addressed to slaves but when you think about it, it is
quite striking. We made the point that everyone should be taught some
weeks ago but it is worth underlining it here. Paul's attitude is not
that certain members of the congregation are to be taught but not
others. No, he wants them all taught, including the slaves.
In the world of education today you will often hear people talk about
“inclusion” or “inclusive education”. There is some debate
about what that actually means but the basic idea is that even
students with special education needs spend most or all of their time
with non-disabled students. Inclusion tends to be about the child’s
right to participate and the school’s duty to accept the child. The
idea of special schools or classrooms separating students with
disabilities from students without disabilities is rejected. All
students learn together.
More
broadly, the term is used to refer to the breaking down of religious,
racial, ethnic and linguistic barriers as well as distinctions based
on gender, ability, number, etc. The aim is to remove barriers and
enable all students, including previously excluded groups, to learn
and participate effectively within general school systems.
When
it comes to teaching Christians how to live then none are to be
excluded. They all have a right to learn and must be taught.
It is important for preachers to keep this in mind when they preach
and for all of us to be thinking in these terms if we are to be
biblical. Here again is an argument for Sunday Schools and women's
groups, etc. What is true of those within the church is also surely
true also of those without – we must try and reach all sorts,
regardless of social, linguistic, ethnic or religious barriers.
2.
We need to be ready to be submissive and to show integrity
Paul
lays down some five things that slaves must be careful to do –
three positive and two negative. There are many situations that we
face today where these rules apply.
1.
Be submissive
Slaves
are
to be subject to their masters in everything. Submissiveness
– the doffed cap and tugged forelock of yesteryear – are rather
sneered at these days. Many people complain about the general
rudeness that marks our society today and so being submissive to
those who are above us is just not something we see much of. A
submissive attitude is seen to be a mark of weakness and so people
are slow to show it and there is little encouragement for people to
act in that way. Yet this is what Paul calls on from slaves, however,
- subjection in
everything. No
doubt he would also expect it from children to adults, students to
teachers, workers to their bosses, wives to husbands, citizens to
those in authority such as the police, people to preachers, etc.
So here is a question for us – do I ever show subjection or
submission? How easy do I find it to be submissive?
2.
Try to please
Secondly,
he urges them to
try to please them. Now
this, on one hand, seems eminently reasonable. The slave belongs to
the master. Surely his one main aim should be to please his master.
Yet, you know what human nature is like. “Why should I try to
please him?” There is a rebellious streak in all of us that makes
us resist authority. “Why should I stand up when the teacher
comes into the room?” “Why do I have to take my hands out my
pockets when I'm speaking to an adult?” “Why should I do what he
says when he's not watching me, even though he is the boss?” “What
right has he got to tell me where I can go or not go?” “Who is he
to tell me I ought to be more submissive and try to please people?”
So here is another question for us – do I try to please those who
are over me? How easy do I find it to do that?
3.
Do not be insolent
Then
negatively, slaves are
not to talk back to their
masters. The temptation to say something clever or that puts the
other person down can often be strong especially when the other
person already has the upper hand. It must have been especially
tempting for salves who had become Christians. The master says
something like “Do what I say because my word is law” and you wan
to say “But it is God's word that is the only law that really
counts”. Don't do it, says Paul. You must refrain. No back-chat, no
answering back. Curb your tongue.
Again this calls for self-examination. Are there situations where we
are doing this sort of thing? It must not go on. We must learn to
bite our tongues and more than that to avoid all insolence. There is
such a thing as dumb insolence, where no words are used but the very
look you give says it all. That is not on for the Christian.
4.
Do not pilfer
Paul's
other negative comes in verse 10 where he warns slaves
not to steal from their
masters. Because of their position many salves were in the position
where the temptation to steal was very strong. It is difficult when
the goods are there before you and the arguments for not stealing
seem very weak. The temptation is there today in the work place too.
Millions of pounds
are lost annually from businesses today because of employee theft.
Estimates in America show that 75% of all employees steal from their
employers at least once in their careers. The same statistics show
that at least half of these 75% steal multiple times from their
employer. Employees steal money, supplies (paper, pens, computer
equipment, cabinets, etc.), goods on sale and sometimes valuable
information. Sometimes customers are overcharged and the money
pocketed. Time can also be stolen in various ways, such as being at
work and not working or falsifying time sheets, etc. The MPs expenses
scandal is just one example of the sort of thing that can happen.
Again, it is not on and we need to examine our lives to be sure that
we are no falling into anything of that sort.
5.
Show that you are trustworthy
The
final point is positive but
to show that they can be fully trusted. Immediately
one thinks of the integrity of a Daniel or a Joseph especially and
the way they showed themselves to be so highly reliable. Many a
Christian no doubt has shown similar integrity and even in this life
they have received some sort of reward.
In all our dealings with others this is the sort of integrity we
should show. We should be those who people can trust, who they can
rely on. We must seek to be, in these respects, like the Lord Jesus
Christ himself.
3.
The reason we need to live in this way
So
that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Saviour
attractive. Again,
we have drawn attention to this in the past. We
must underline it, however. This is the way to
make the teaching about God our Saviour attractive. It
is not the matter of clever posters or some big campaign. No, as we
go about our daily business we should show submissiveness, try to
please people, avoid insolence or petty pilfering and show in every
way that we are trustworthy. That is the way to draw people to
Christ.
I have mentioned to you before how the person through whom Dr Sinclair
Ferguson was converted was himself converted. Apparently he worked in
a place where they had what was known as a typing pool. This was a
room full of women sat at desks typing whatever needed to be typed
up. Being near the typing pool he noticed simply by ear that one
woman was obviously very conscientious. That created an interest.
First he found out the woman's name and then the fact that she was a
Christian. It led eventually to his own conversion. It is an unusual
example perhaps but a reminder of the powerful impact that even the
most lowly of us can have in God's providence.
