Colossians 3.20-24
Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is your acceptable duty in the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, or they may lose heart. Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything, not only while being watched and in order to please them, but wholeheartedly, fearing the Lord. Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord and not for your masters, since you know that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you serve the Lord Christ.
A word from another time and a word from another place, but still has relevance today. These were specific instructions for these Pauline followers for children, fathers and slaves. The references for these are purposeful: to transform the powerful and the powerless to their rightful place in the hierarchy of the kingdom of God. (Purposeful language used here for kingdom; for the context, a ‘kingdom’ or ‘realm’ would be relevant for the earliest of Christians.)
Now, replace the words “children, fathers, and slaves” for “servants” for our context. What does it look like for servants of Christ today? What positions and roles have to be righted in our lives in order for us to follow Christ more faithfully? Maybe we can reframe our titles as ‘Christian’ or ‘United Methodist’ or ‘leader’ or ‘minister’ and embrace our role as Follower of Jesus Christ. Following means waiting, listening, watching, responding to God’s call on our lives. So, put yourselves to the task of followership! When we finally understand this, our reward, our inheritance, will be evident and it will be abundant!
