Read 1Peter 2:16-17
16 Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God.
17 Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.

As Christians, we are free from the sin’s condemnation, i.e., we are free from the judgment that will come upon the unbelieving world, all those who reject God’s Son.

Romans 6:22-23
“Having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

We are bondslaves of God, and we live to please God, to honor those who are made in God’s image (all humankind). We are to love the brotherhood, our fellow Christians (see 1Peter 1:22-23).

1Peter 1:22-23
22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,
23 for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.

John 13:34-35
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

1John 5:1-2
“Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments.”

As Christians, we are to fear God (reverence, respect, and trust); and we are to honor the king, for he is God’s agent for fulfilling the purpose of human government (see Romans 13:1-7).

Romans 13:1-7
1 Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God.
2 Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.
3 For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same;
4 for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.
5 Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake.
6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing.
7 Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.

Read 1Peter 2:18-21
18 Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable.
19 For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly.
20 For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God.
21 For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps,

Slaves [subordinates, workers, employees] are to serve their masters [supervisors, employers] obediently and respectfully, just as if serving Christ.

Notice (1Peter 2:18), this command is not limited to those who have kind, good, gentle, and trustworthy masters, but also to those who have mean, even unreasonable [dishonest or crooked] masters; the Greek word used here is skolios, from which the medical term scoliosis [twisted/crooked spine] is derived.

Anytime we find ourselves in subordination to someone, we are to serve as if serving Christ; the reason being, He is our example and we are to follow in His steps

(1John 2:6),
“the one who says he [lives] in [Christ] ought himself to walk in the same manner as He [Jesus] walked.”

We are to serve wholeheartedly, as if serving the Lord.

Ephesians 6:5,
“Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ.”

Colossians 3:23,
“Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men.”

God wants us to do our best, in whatever situation we may find ourselves, whether serving under, over, or alongside other believers or unbelievers.

1Peter 2:12
“Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

1Peter 2:15-16
“For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God.”

At the time 1Peter was written there were millions of slaves; they were a very necessary and normal part of everyday life. There are many ways a person might have become a slave: as a prisoner of war, as one owing a debt, as one born to a slave, as one who voluntarily becomes a slave, or one who stays a slave even though given his freedom.

In God's Church, we are all equal and there is to be no partiality or favoritism shown in regard to a person’s demographics, education, wealth, etc., for everyone in God’s family is equal in salvation, inheritance, and worth.

Galatians 3:28
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

What is important is who we are in Christ and that we live our lives to please God, not the role we have been given or the situation we find ourselves in .

Colossians 3:17
“Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father,”

Colossians 4:1
“Masters, grant to your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you too have a Master in heaven,“

Ephesians 5:15-18
Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,”

Ephesians 5:20-21
“always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ” (out of reverence, respect, and trust in Christ).”

In whatever capacity you serve, whether under, over, or alongside others, you are to serve wholeheartedly, as if serving the Lord, confident that He will provide all you need to accomplish what He requires of you.

Philippians 4:12-13
“I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me,”

Philippians 4:19
“And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

Our greatest enemy is not our depraved culture or those who have authority over us, neither is it unbelievers who seem to be bent on making our lives more miserable; our battle is ultimately not against people, but against the devil, our own flesh and the godless system of this world that opposes God.

Satan is God's greatest enemy, for he is the god of this world and therefore, the ultimate enemy of God’s people. Satan wants to confuse and separate us, in order to destroy our witness for Christ; and he uses the cravings of the flesh and temptations of sin in order to do that.

Jesus died (physically, temporarily) so that we might live (spiritually, eternally); He came to save us from an eternal punishment, allowing us to overcome the world, sin, death, and hell through Jesus Christ (1John 5:5, 11-12),

1John 5:5,
“Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”

1John 5:11-12
“And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.”

2Corinthians 5:21
“He (God) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Read 1Peter 2:22-25
22 WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH;
23 and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;
24 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.
25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

Jesus loves us so much that He took upon Himself our penalty, suffering in our place, allowing His own blood to be shed, so that we might receive forgiveness.

Romans 3:23-24
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 6:23
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

No wonder Acts 4:12 says,
“And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” Jesus is the way, and the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father accept through Him. He paid the highest price (His own life); suffered the most brutal death (crucifixion); and experienced the greatest pain (separation from the Father), when He took upon Himself God's punishment for sin, so that we might be justified through His once for all sacrifice for all sin.

Romans 3:10-12
“There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; There is none who does good, There is not even one.”

Romans 5:8,
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

When John the Baptizer saw Jesus approaching him at the Jordan River

(John 1:29) he said,
"Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" Jesus' death was God's ultimate expression of love for us, bringing eternal spiritual healing from sin, and we will also receive eternal physical healing, but not until we go to be with the Lord."

Revelation 21:4
“and He will wipe away every tear from [our] eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

1Peter 2:25
25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

Believers and followers of Christ [Christians] are members of Christ’s Body, we are children of God and members of God’s family; we are also like sheep who have been brought back under the loving care of their Shepherd, the One who guards, protects, and provides for us.

God the Son [Jesus Christ] was submissive to God the Father while on He was on this earth. Jesus, although equal to the Father, submitted Himself to Him for the Glory of God. How much more then, should we humble ourselves under the Lordship of Christ, as we serve God here on earth.

Philippians 2:5-8,
“Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Hebrews 9:11-12,
“But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”

Hebrews 9:26b-28,
“He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.”

Hebrews 10:14,
“For by one offering He [made perfect] for all time those who are sanctified.”

Hebrews 10:16b-18,
“‘I will put My laws upon their heart, And on their mind I will write them,’ He then says, ‘And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.’ Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.”

As Christians, God’s people, we have been forgiven all our sins (past, present, future) and we have been made holy and righteous through the sacrificial death and sovereign resurrection of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Lord and Savior.

1Peter 2:9-12
9 But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
10 for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY.
11 Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.
12 Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.

Therefore, while we have life on this earth we are to serve God in accordance with what His revealed Word teaches us, no matter who we may be serving under, over, or alongside of, whether they are trustworthy or they are corrupt, we are to serve wherever God places us, as if we are serving the Lord Himself, for He is our Master in Heaven and it is to Him that we must give an account!

Pastor Mike Hale
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Topics: Serving God