Back in the first century C.E., when slavery was common in the Roman Empire, many Christians found themselves working as slaves or servants. Appropriately, God’s Word discusses their obligations toward their masters. We today can apply the principles of conduct in the master-slave relationship to the employer-employee relationship.

19. What counsel did Peter give to Christian house servants?

¹⁹ Directing his counsel to house servants or domestics, the apostle Peter wrote:

“Let house servants be in subjection to their owners with all due fear, not only to the good and reasonable, but also to those hard to please.

20. (a) How would a house servant be in subjection “with all due fear”? (b) What situations might have resulted in suffering for a Christian slave?

²⁰ What did heeding this counsel require? While discharging his responsibilities as a slave, the Christian was to manifest proper fear or regard for his master, not wanting to displease him. This fear was to be shown even if the master proved to be inconsiderate, harsh or unreasonable in his demands. The master may have been a man who found fault even with work that was well done. He may have demanded that the Christian slave do things that were contrary to God’s law. Because of faithfully obeying the dictates of his godly conscience, the Christian slave may have suffered unjustly for refusing to steal or to lie for his master. At other times, too, the slave may have been the object of physical and verbal abuse.

21. What good could result from a slave’s patient endurance of mistreatment?

²¹ In harmony with Peter’s counsel, the Christian slave would not rise up against his harsh master. He would continue to do his work conscientiously, and patiently bear up under mistreatment. This course would be agreeable in God’s eyes, for it would not reflect unfavorably on Christianity. Others could see that true worship had exerted an influence for good on the slave. It could move them to investigate Christianity in order to find out how a mistreated slave could exercise such commendable self-control. By contrast, if a slave wronged his master and was severely disciplined for it, people would see no particular merit in his quietly taking punishment.

22. How would a Christian employee want to conduct himself at work?

²² Today a Christian who faces a particularly trying situation at work may be able to procure other employment. But this may not always be possible. He may be working under a contract or be forced to continue laboring under undesirable conditions because other jobs simply are not available. So his situation may differ very little from that of a house servant in the first century C.E. who could not get away from an unreasonable master. Therefore, as long as a Christian continues in the employ of someone else, he would do his utmost to perform quality work, and patiently and uncomplainingly put up with any abuse to which he may be subjected and which could not be stopped by Scriptural means. He also would continue to treat his employer with due respect and consideration.

1 Peter 2:18