We return once again to instructions regarding the treatment
of one’s slaves. For whatever reason,
God in the days of the Old Testament did not abolish slavery. Perhaps we will never know why He did not at
the time. Looking at the history of
mankind after God created Adam and Eve, He pretty well left us alone to
exercise our free will, sometimes not positively and often beyond what Cain had
done to Abel. We slowly fanned the
flames of our sinful nature and developed a number of practices that were not
to God’s liking.
Slavery was one of these.
Another was how we thought of, and actually treated, females. So in the Old Testament God takes steps to
curb our behaviors in those areas. But
as we progress through the centuries and move into the New Testament, we see
God’s ultimate plan for ending slavery as a means of economic gain being played
out, and eventually being outlawed many centuries later. Similarly, God intended for male and female
to be different, but equal. This too is
taught in the New Testament and is also what we believe today.
In our current Exodus passage, God is giving His people
instructions as to how they need to treat their slaves. And while doing so, He emphasizes His
position on equality of the sexes, in this case in the equality of male and
female slaves. The ordinance He gives
here applies equally to both genders of slaves.
God, in this passage, is focusing on the master-slave or
servant relationship. And the general
principle He imposes is twofold. First,
there are limits to what masters can do to slaves without consequences, and secondly,
when you physically harm one of your slaves to the point of permanent damage,
he or she is to be given their freedom.
In today’s world, the context changes from a master-slave relationship,
to an employer-employee one. In keeping
with what God was imposing on His people in Exodus, employers are still limited
in how they are allowed to treat their employees. And if they neglect paying attention to the
laws that prescribe such treatment, at a minimum, they can suffer considerable
financial penalties.
But what does all this teach us in 2015? Let me suggest the following: We must understand that God never intended
for one man (or woman) to be owned by another.
He believes in the equality and dignity of all men and women. It is with this understanding that the
American Pledge of Allegiance (since 1954) is what it is, and I quote, “I pledge allegiance to the
Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands,
one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for
all.”
Furthermore,
we who care about what God thinks and desires from us, have a responsibility to
work to eliminate anything in society which allows one person to ‘own’ or
‘misuse’ another. As a minimum, we should
call it out and make it public.
And
finally, we have a responsibility to make sure we personally and genuinely
value the intrinsic worth of all individuals, of both genders, alike – be it
our children, spouse, parents, co-workers, employees, and employers.
Are you really there?
________________________________________________________________________
[Are you
looking for a speaker at your church, your club, school, or organization? Ken
is available to preach, teach, challenge, and/or motivate. Please contact us.]
Thanks for dropping
by. Sign up to receive free updates. We bring you relevant information from all
sorts of sources. Subscribe for free to this blog or follow us by clicking on
the appropriate link in the right side bar. And please share this blog with your
friends. Ken Godevenos, Church and Management Consultant, Accord Consulting. And while you’re here, why not check out some
more of our recent blogs shown in the right hand column. Ken.
________________________________________________________________________
It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for your comment.