Col 3:22-25 Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality. NKJV

Paul instructs the bondservants, or slaves, to make sure they obey their masters in sincerity of heart. Paul understood and knew that the lives these lived in front of their masters may make all of the difference in the world in whether or not their master became a Christian or not. To Paul the uppermost thing that should be in the mind of every child of God was living life to glorify God and cause men to reflect upon their relationship to God. (Makes us wonder sometimes what is the uppermost thing on our mind – doesn’t it?)

Then Paul emphasizes that whatever they did, they need to do it heartily. The word that is translated “heartily” comes from the Greek word psuche, which denotes the soul of man – hence, when these worked for their masters, doing what was commanded, they were to do it from the soul, giving it the very best they had. They should give their best work, because it would have been a reflection of them and their allegiance to God. Shoddy work would have shown that they did not care about themselves or the God that put them there in that place at that time.

They were to give their best work as if they were serving the Lord, and not men. It is important to realize that when we work, when we worship, when we are husbands, wives, parents, children – Christians – that we must do everything as serving the Lord, and not men.

I think about this on Sunday mornings as we gather together to worship. Are we giving God our very best, or settling for less than the best? When we give, does it come off the top of our income? When we partake of the Lord’s Supper, do we truly reflect on and remember the greatest sacrifice in the world made for you and me? When we sing, do we sing from the heart? When the preacher preaches, do we listen, meditate, and strive to apply what is being said to us in our situation? When we pray, are our hearts united together as one?

I think about this when it comes to working for the church. Do we realize that God is in our midst, and watches the work we do for him? Consider how our building looks on Sunday mornings or evening – have we left trash on the floor, a mess for someone else to clean up (I know, some think – “that is what we pay the cleaners to do.” Would we do better if we didn’t pay someone to clean up after us?) Think about letters we send to visitors, or cards we send out to shut-ins – have we given our best effort in all of these things? Have we done our best if we haven’t even taken the time to make sure of the spelling of their name? As we gather together to worship – do we encourage our brothers and sisters, or complain and gripe because the service is too long, the singer is off key, and the preacher is boring? Are we here to encourage, or discourage? Would we want to encourage the Lord, or do what we can to discourage him and make him think that his great sacrifice is in vain? What about visiting those who are sick, or calling others? What about teaching – whether in the building or not? Are we doing it heartily – with all of our soul – realizing that we are doing it for God? IS GOD PLEASED WITH OUR SERVICE TO HIM?

He is our Master, and we will give an account to him for the way we have used or misused our talents he has given us. Let us not make excuses, but think about ways to please him today!