Ephesians: Tear Down These WallsShembull

The Spirit-filled life is clearly more than a Sunday experience. It impacts the basic, everyday relationships in our lives: our family and our work (5:22–6:9).

While the relationship between a master and a slave in the first century is vastly different to that of the employer/employee in the 21st century, we are still able to draw some principles from these verses. 

In all our work, we ought to be conscious of the reality that earthly authorities are subject to the ultimate authority of God. 

For employees, this means working for your boss with the added motivation that your work is service to God. 

For employers, bosses and managers, it means working with the awareness that you are one under the authority of God and will be held accountable for your leadership. 

Our faith counts on Monday morning! Your work is your worship. Work is not a product of the fall. God gave Adam and Eve work in the garden of Eden. Work is good, and it’s one of the primary spheres with which to work out your discipleship to Jesus.

Our work is the space where we live out our new humanity. It’s the space where our counter-cultural character is perhaps most on display. 

In a culture of office gossip, we choose words that build up rather than tear down. 

In a culture of dishonesty, we choose truth over lies. 

In a culture of me-first and self-promotion, we adopt the posture of a servant. 

In a culture of climbing over others to get to the top, we get to the top by lifting others up. 

In a culture of profit at any cost, we stand for human rights, justice, and the poor. 

What does it look like to serve God today in your 9–5?