Being a Slave for the Savior

Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. —1 Peter 2:16 (NIV)

To me, reading the words “live as God’s slaves” was puzzling. A slave doesn’t paint a serene picture of a cottage sitting on blades of grass with fresh dew in the morning. I’d read through Exodus. Pharaoh's heart was hardened many times by the LORD to keep the Israelite slaves toiling in Egypt. I’m in awe of Moses’ servitude to God’s instructions, even when Pharaoh tried to alter the arrangement several times.

Moses refused to bend to Pharaoh's whims of:

• God’s chosen people making sacrifices to God in Egypt (Exodus 8:25-26)

• Only making allowance for the men to go worship God (Exodus 10:9-11)

• Leaving the Israelites’ livestock behind to go worship God (Exodus 10:24-26)

In doing so, Moses used his freedom as an ambassador for God to obey Him. Living as God’s slaves puts us in a position like Moses. We are given liberty to align our hearts with God, not to make compromises for ourselves. It means living a sacrificial life, and like a slave you must live for the master.

The prophet Micah spoke to the people of Jacob for their unholy ways. Side note: Micah’s name means Who is like God; an apt name for being the messenger of God’s disapproval.

Hear this, you leaders of Jacob,

you rulers of Israel,

who despise justice

and distort all that is right

who build Zion with bloodshed,

and Jerusalem with wickedness.

Her leaders judge for a bribe,

her priests teach for a price

and her prophets tell fortunes for

money.

Yet they look for the LORD’S support

and say,

“Is not the LORD among us?

No disaster will come upon us.”

—Micah 3:9-11 (NIV)

These people held positions of power—even priests and prophets were lumped into God’s judgments against them.

In verses 9 and 10, Micah admonishes leaders of the nation with no sense of justice and peacekeeping. They shamelessly disobeyed God’s decrees: “Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.” (Leviticus 19:15 NIV); “Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life.” (Leviticus 19:16 NIV).

In verse 11, greed is added to the sins God punished them for. Unlike Moses, the priests and prophets didn’t give God their allegiance, they gave it to greed. That is why the God of Abraham was not among them. Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount makes that point clear.

No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. —Matthew 6:24 (NIV)

To recap, the apostle Peter advises for us to refrain from using our freedoms for an ulterior motive: anything evil. Moses used his position to achieve God’s plan. The ruling class, priests, and prophets being judged by Micah used power to satisfy sin. The connotation of being a slave means having the right heart posture before God. It’s not meant to be a runaway-person-from-a-tyrant scenario, because God is good (Psalm 73:1; Psalm 86:5) loving (Psalm 90:14-15) and a refuge (Psalm 121:7-8; Psalm 125:2).

So how can we live as God’s slaves, using our freedoms to suit our Savior above all else?

• Remember that you are called out of darkness into the light.

If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. —1 John 6-7 (NIV)

• Be a doer of the word.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in the mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. —James 1:22-25 (NIV)

• Carry your cross daily.

Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.” —Mark 8:34-35

Liturgy

Lord, I thank You for Your mercy

And creating me in Your image

Create in me a heart to be Yours

Help me to use freedom for Your plan

And compel me to carry my cross,

Be a doer of the word,

And walk beside You like Moses

In Jesus name,

Amen