Freedom to Serve

Thanks be to God.

If you have not had a chance to turn your Bibles to 1 Peter 2 yet, please do so now.

Chapter 2, verses 18-25.

We have been going through the book of 1 Peter, and within the book of 1 Peter,

we're kind of in a mini-series within the book about talking about our freedom in Christ

and how that leads us to one we talked about last week's submit to human institutions,

including governing authorities, and this week about our freedom to serve

and being subject even to masters or employers that we might have.

And so this is 1 Peter 2, 18-25.

And in his book, Liberating the Laity, Paul Stevens, an author,

writes about how most lay Christians, so not pastors or ministers,

but lay Christians that go to church and go to other church events and such,

will spend about 3,000 to 4,000 hours with church people in church functions.

But compare that to the fact that the same people spend 60,000 to 80,000 hours at their workplace.

So that's a huge imbalance there, and I don't mean that in the sense that you need to spend as much time

with church as you do at work.

But what is important is that that means the important part of Christian discipleship

has to be about our workplace, how we conduct ourselves in the workplace.

And unfortunately, as people who study this stuff at London Institute for Contemporary Theology,

they say that 98% of Christians are not equipped or envisioned for living as Christians in the workplace.

So that means most Christians are invited or recruited to use their volunteer hours serving at church

when really for most of their lives, their work hours,

they are not really serving Christ and living for Christ

and have not been equipped and envisioned to do so.

But Scripture not only addresses how we have to live personally as Christians

or within the context of the church,

but also how we have to live and behave in society and the workplace as well.

And that's what Peter talks about here in this passage.

And he wants to teach us that we ought to, as believers,

serve God in the workplace by doing good while suffering,

just as Christ did good and suffered for us.

So that's the big idea that Peter tries to get across to us in this passage.

And he starts in verse 18.

So read with me there.

It says,

Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect,

not only to the good and gentle, but also to the unjust.

As I mentioned,

last week we talked about submitting to human institutions

and the same word was used.

Be subject for the Lord's sake, it said, to every human institution.

And he's telling now slaves, household slaves,

at the time it was written,

to be subject to their masters with all respect.

And now at this point you're probably asking,

okay, so how does this have anything to do with our work?

I mean, they're talking to slaves.

He's talking to...

And secondly,

why does Peter say nothing about the evil of slavery

and instead tell slaves to be subject even to unjust masters?

So that might be a question that you might be asking.

And I will address both of these questions in turn.

So you probably have heard it said

that the Bible is bigoted and regressive

because it doesn't address things like slavery

that most modern people agree is evil

and that it doesn't criticize it as evil,

that the Bible doesn't.

However, I want to point out

that the slavery in the Greco-Roman world

is very different from the slavery that we think of.

When we hear the word slavery,

we immediately think of 17th, 18th, 9th century slavery, right?

The New World slavery.

But that's very different from that.

So there's a book called Slave of Christ

by a biblical scholar named Murray Harris

where he writes about slaves in the Greco-Roman times.

And he writes, first of all,

that the slaves in the Greco-Roman world

were totally indistinguishable

from the rest of the people in society.

By how they looked,

by how they dressed,

you know, how they walked about in the streets,

they were completely indistinguishable

from the rest of society.

But in contrast,

the New World slavery, right,

its slaves were distinguishable

because it was race-based, right?

It was all African Americans

or people taken from another place.

That was not the case.

The slavery in this Greco-Roman world

was not race-based.

And then secondly,

slavery in the Greco-Roman world

was different

because the slaves were often highly educated.

Sometimes they were even more educated

than their masters.

But they just turned to tough financial times,

whatever,

and they sold themselves into this position

so that they can work,

have a means of living.

And for that reason,

they often held managerial positions

and were able to make enough money

to often buy themselves out of slavery again.

In contrast,

New World slavery, right,

slaves were reduced to menial and manual labor, right?

And they were forced to work

pretty much for the rest of their lives.

There was no guarantee of manumission, right?

They could not buy themselves out in most cases, right?

And finally,

as I mentioned,

the Greco-Roman slaves

sometimes sold themselves into,

put themselves in that situation

because that was better

than living in poverty

or whatever they were in.

But in the New World,

the slaves were not,

didn't become slaves voluntarily.

Rather,

they were forced into slavery

through kidnapping, right?

Which is roundly condemned

by both the Old and the New Testament.

1 Timothy 1, 9,

Deuteronomy 24, 7.

So it was not justifiable in any way, right?

So that's,

it's very different.

And now I don't say this

just to justify slavery

in biblical times,

but I say this

to give you a picture

so that you recognize

that it's not an equal comparison

when you criticize the Bible

on the basis of New World slavery, right?

Because that was a completely

different situation.

And even though it's,

and we may,

we'll still agree

that slavery in this time

is wrong as well

because it's not right

for one human being

made in the image of God

to own another human being

made in the image of God, right?

So it's that the humans

are not intended to be property, right?

And even in this time,

even though the slaves

were much better off

in the Greco-Roman world,

they were still considered property.

And Peter begins to challenge

some of the cultural

understanding of slavery as well.

And we know this

because how he begins verse 18.

He says, servants, right?

He's directly addressing servants.

That's, that's, he's saying,

he's talking to them.

He's speaking to them.

And Greek philosophers,

for example, Aristotle,

wrote about how slaves

cannot think deliberately, right?

They wrote about the fact

that slaves, therefore,

should not be addressed,

but rather should be addressed

through their masters, right?

Peter is not buying any of that.

He's speaking directly

to the slaves

and affirming their dignity

and saying,

I have something to say to you, right?

God has something to say to you, right?

And in addition to that, right,

the slaves in this culture

were expected to subscribe

to the religion,

faith of their masters.

They didn't have a choice, right?

But here,

Peter clearly assumes

that these slaves

would be following God

regardless of where

the masters'

religious allegiance lay.

lay, right?

So he's, again,

affirming the dignity

of slaves,

even in this culture.

So he's beginning

to challenge that.

And then finally,

we have to remember

that Christians

in the Roman Empire

did not have the political clout

that we now have,

people living in a democratic

United States of America

where we can vote

or we can lead,

we can protest.

They, I mean,

they would have been executed

or, you know,

they would have been

quelched immediately.

So they did not have

the political means

to affect the kind of change

that we saw

in this world.

And theologian Miroslav

Wolf observes

about this situation.

He says,

The call to follow

the crucified Messiah

was,

in the long run,

much more effective

in changing the unjust

political,

economic,

and familial structures

than direct exhortations

to revolutionize them

would ever happen.

For an allegiance

to the crucified Messiah,

indeed,

worship of a

crucified God

is an eminently

political act

that subverts

a politics of dominion

at its very core.

You guys follow that?

So what he's saying

is that as Christians

we're called to serve

and be subject to

and to suffer

in the pattern

of a crucified Christ

because Christ himself

submitted,

he became subject to

and suffered on our behalf.

And because of that,

that kind of mentality,

that kind of mindset

and attitude

in the way we live

radically subverts

the politics of domination,

power over another being.

Right?

So in doing this

and in teaching these things,

Peter is subverting

the structure

from the bottom up.

He's laying

the moral

and the spiritual

groundwork necessary

for any kind of

social and political change.

Right?

So you see this

in what Peter is doing.

So he goes on,

once again,

verse 18,

servants speaking to them,

be subject to your masters

with all respect,

not only to the good

and gentle,

but also to the unjust.

This is particularly

relevant for believers

because slaves occupied

the lowest,

you know,

social stratum

in Greco-Roman society.

But Peter had just

told everybody

that he's writing to

in verse 16,

earlier chapter 1,

verse 16,

live as people

who are free,

not using your freedom

as a cover-up for evil,

but living as servants.

The word is slaves

of God.

Right?

Regardless of

your social status,

whether you're a noble

or whether you're a slave

or whether you're an emperor,

as a Christian,

you are a slave

of God,

he says.

Right?

And because of this,

this actual slaves

in the Roman Empire

becomes the paradigm,

the example,

the pattern.

Right?

That all Christians

cannot identify with

because we're all

the slaves of God.

And this is not a sign

of our enslavement.

Rather,

it's a sign of our freedom

because we belong to God

and only those

who truly belong to God

can be free

because God alone

is Lord over all things

and for us to be

enslaved to anything else

would be true slavery.

And because Christians

are slaves

first and foremost

to God,

it's not human authority,

the authority of these masters

that demands our allegiance,

but it's the fact

that it's God's authority.

It's the fact

that we're loyal to God

that we are supposed

to be subject

to their masters.

And that's what the phrase

with all respect

refers to.

Literally,

actually,

the phrase

with all respect

can be translated

in all fear.

Right?

And now that I say fear,

some of you guys

who have been here

for the whole series

already,

it rings a bell

because you've heard

the word fear

several times mentioned.

In chapter 2,

verse 17,

Peter said,

honor everyone,

love the brotherhood,

fear God,

and honor the emperor.

Right?

Chapter 1,

verse 17,

he said,

and if you call on him

as father

who judges impartially

according to each one's deeds,

conduct yourselves

with fear

throughout the time

of your exile.

This fear is not

a terrifying fear.

Rather,

it's a reverential awe

that the idea

of living constantly

every moment of your life

before the face of God,

the fact that the God,

the impartial judge,

is watching.

Right?

And that changes

the way we live.

Right?

That's the kind of fear

that he's talking about.

And because he repeatedly says,

1 Peter,

the Bible never exhorts us

to be fearful of men.

Never tells us

to fear men.

It only tells us

fear God.

So when he says,

be subject to your masters

in all fear,

with all respect.

He's saying,

don't be subject

to your masters

because you fear that master.

Be subject to your masters

because you fear God.

Right?

That's why in verse 19

he continues,

for this is a gracious thing

when mindful,

of who?

Mindful of God,

not mindful of men,

one endures sorrows

while suffering unjustly.

Right?

It's because we're mindful of God

that we're supposed

to be subject

even to unjust masters.

Right?

If we were being subject

to the masters

for their own merit

or their own deserving,

then we wouldn't be subject

to the unjust ones.

But because we're doing it

on the basis of God's authority

and his call on our lives,

we are to be subject

even to the unjust masters.

Right?

And this is a gracious thing

before God.

It's,

it's,

it's,

God shows favor.

He's gracious

toward those

who are suffering

in this way

and being subject

to human masters.

And,

and because

the slavery

in the context

of the Greco-Roman Empire

was different,

it's kind of more like

indentured servanthood

than slavery

that we know of.

We can rightly

apply it

to our workplace.

Right?

Because we're,

we're called

to be subject

to all human institutions

as we learned

in the last passage

and we are really

beholden to

our employers.

They,

they pay us.

Right?

Where we owe them

a certain allegiance

and a loyalty.

We're supposed to

serve them.

We're supposed to

work for them.

Right?

And so in this context

if we could,

we could apply this passage

to that for,

to our workplace

for that reason.

And he tells us

in verse 20

that we are to serve God

in the workplace

by suffering

while doing good.

Right?

So he continues

look with me

at verse 20.

For what credit is it

if when you sin

and are beaten for it

you endure?

But if when you do good

and suffer for it

you endure?

This is a gracious thing

in the sight of God.

Once again he's saying

it's a gracious thing

in the sight of God.

Did you catch that?

So there's,

the Bible's not giving us

any excuses

for getting punished

for doing bad things.

Right?

I mean he's saying

like what credit

is it to you

if you sin

and are beaten for it?

I mean if you sin

and are beaten for it

then you deserve it.

Right?

He's saying that's not

to our credit.

Right?

So he's,

it's not

and plenty of people

get punished at workplace

for doing bad things.

Right?

For negligence,

for rudeness

or for lack of accountability

or maybe

even deceit

or fraud

or just simple incompetence.

Right?

So these things

are not what Peter

has in mind.

He's not saying

well if you get punished

for doing bad things

then yeah you deserve that.

But,

but as Christians

we are to do good

and suffer

on account of that.

While doing good

we're supposed to endure

unjust suffering.

Then what does it mean

to do good

in the workplace?

And we learned

lastly

he told us to do good

in the context of society as well.

We learned that doing good

involves not just doing something

that is good

only to Christians

but doing good

that is recognized

there's a common recognition

by society at large as well

is good.

Right?

So that they also

the world also sees

that it is good.

There will be some conflict

of interest

there will be some conflict

in values

but there are things

that we hold in common

that the Christians

would uphold as good

that the world also sees

as good.

And likewise

in the workplace

I think a similar idea

is in play.

In fact

I think it goes back

all the way to Genesis 1

when God creates all things

he creates the universe

he says

it is good.

Right?

And at the end of all creation

as he rejoices over all creation

he says

it is very good.

Right?

So

then our work

everything that we do

is to be patterned

after what God did

in Genesis 1

to do

to create

what is good.

Right?

And let me unpack

what this means

because

as Christians

it's so easy

to just think about

okay so that means

now I need to go

into the workplace

make sure I have my Bible

out on my desk

and make sure

every time I get an opportunity

I evangelize.

Right?

And that's not

I don't think

what this doing good

is referring to.

In fact

there's a really

well done film

from 1999

called

The Big Kahuna

and has anyone seen that?

I guess that's pretty old.

Yeah.

It's

it has

it's Kevin Spacey

in it

it's spectacularly acted.

It's about

three salesmen

of industrial lubricants

and they go

on a business trip

to Wichita

in Kansas

and

they go

and there's this

big kahuna

at the conference

and

he's the president

of this large company

and they need to land

a deal

with this guy.

Right?

And

the way

the circumstances

pan out

it turns out

that only one of them

of the three

has an actual opportunity

to even meet this guy

this big kahuna

and unfortunately

that one guy

is a first time

business trip

it's his first time

business trip

and he happens

to be

a born again

Christian

and that's how

he's described

and

he's very

sincere

in one way

and he goes

into the meeting

and he comes back

and these other two guys

are waiting

and there's

I mean

they get up

immediately

as he comes

into the door

oh so did you get

to meet him?

And he says

yes I did

so well

did you talk to him?

He's like

yes I did

and

they're starting

to get frustrated

and they say

so I mean

what did you guys

talk about?

And his name is Bob

what did you talk

about Bob?

And then Bob

hesitating

continues

and he says

we talked about Christ

and after a long

weighty silence

one of the guys

Larry

asks with

a look of

utter disbelief

you talked about

Jesus?

He's shocked

and frustrated

and he quips back

did you mention

perhaps

what line of

lubricants

Jesus would have

endorsed?

And what did you

say to him

Bob?

Larry says

and as the

conversation goes on

Bob admits

that the president

never brought up

the subject of

Jesus

he did

and he never

brought up

the subject

of industrial

lubricants

and the

conversation gets

heated

and at some

point

Bob also gets

exasperated

and he says

I understand

Larry

I just don't

see the

crime

and speaking

to another

human being

as another

human being

I couldn't

mention work

or lubricants

or anything

like that

because I

didn't want

him to think

that I was

using the

subject of

religion

to cozy

up to him

to get

him to sign

some contract

I didn't

want him to

think that I

was insincere

and then Larry

says this

back to him

but you were

insincere

Bob

in a much

greater sense

the company

sent us here

they said

Bob

Larry

Phil

why don't

you go

down to

Wichita

for a

couple

of days

don't

worry

about

your

room

and board

we'll

take care

of that

and for

a couple

of days

Bob

we become

the hands

of the

company

shaking

all the

other hands

before us

what you

did

the reason

why you

were insincere

is that you

cut off

that bond

it would be

like the

hand breaking

itself off

from the arm

and saying

oh I got

this other

thing going

on out

here that

has nothing

to do

with you

right

Bob

is

devastated

he was

a sincere

believer

but he

was an

insincere

employee

right

I don't

think that's

what God

has in mind

for us

but he

says do

good

while suffering

at work

he wants

us to

flourish

in the

workplace

he wants

us to

do good

in the

work

he doesn't

want us

to be

an

ineffective

employee

in fact

there's

ethical

questions

to be

brought

into that

as well

since he's

getting paid

to do a

certain

thing

and during

that paid

time

he was

doing

something

that he

was not

supposed

to do

right

and he

wasn't even

an effective

witness

right

because he

lost

the credibility

before his

co-workers

and he

became a

sales pitch

because he

steered a

conversation

to go to

that as

opposed to

really caring

for that

person

loving him

in the

context of

relationship

sharing the

gospel

with that

person

right

but

I would

also

challenge

that

that this

then means

we should

just leave

our faith

at home

and then go

do good

work

work hard

and that's

what the

enlightenment

thinking

would have

us think

right

the enlightenment

worldview

separates

the facts

of the

public

sector

from the

values of

the private

sector

right

they say

in your

workplace

do everything

according to

the facts

don't bring

any of your

values

which are

private and

personal and

relative

here

right

but that's

a completely

unreasonable

and just

an unfeasible

thing to do

because everybody

brings values

everybody lives

out of their

values

and we can't

as Christians

let the

facts of the

business world

of the bottom

line of

profit

you know

and

trump our

Christian values

of integrity

right

and charity

and equity

right

and it's

profit is a

good thing

right

and when you

make profit

as a business

you're able to

compensate your

employees and

your investors

well

and when you

work for a good

company with a good

purpose then you're

producing good

you're producing

doing a common

good for the

service of mankind

so profit

itself in and of

itself is not a

bad thing

but when that

becomes the

purpose

when that becomes

the driving factor

in our work

that can lead

to dehumanizing

bureaucracies

it could lead

to dead end

jobs

it could lead

to bad

customer service

it could lead

to all kinds

of bad

work

right

so as

Christians

we can uniquely

contribute to

that

do good

while suffering

because we

have this

this

the gospel

perspective

on the world

same thing

if you're a

Christian in

education

right

and sometimes

the temptation

is to idolize

education itself

as the panacea

the thing

that will solve

all evils

in society

as long as

people are more

educated

then everything

will be better

right

but we know

better than that

as believers

don't we

because we know

the gospel

and we know

that the deep

root sin

at the root

sin is the cause

of all social

ills

the broken

homes

the inequitable

distribution of

funds in

schools

right

all of this

and because of

that we're able

to have a more

properly pessimistic

and more properly

optimistic view

of education

right

because we know

that God

is redeeming

all creation

we can serve

in light of that

and offer the hope

of forgiveness

and accountability

and create a culture

of mutual accountability

in our education

and also Christian

educators

as because we have

the gospel perspective

we can remember

that self-knowledge

and self-discipline

and virtue

can't be neglected

right

at the expense

of getting trained

so that you can be

a better wage earner

right

the gospel perspective

changes that

and as we do that

we might suffer

right

and Christians

in business

might suffer

when you live

when you work

with integrity

and you work

and do good

in your workplace

you might suffer

in your bottom line

in your profits

and you might even

get punished

by your employees

in education as well

when you try to offer

a more holistic education

in investing in the kids

and teaching values

teaching them

not only to be

better wage earners

or technicians

but teaching them

also to be better citizens

when you do that

you could also

get punished

right

you could suffer

unjustly

but when you do

this is a gracious thing

when mindful of God

one endures sorrows

while suffering unjustly

I mean obviously

I can't go through

all the professions

but maybe just

one more example

if you're in medicine

right

the temptation

frequently

is because

it's a social service work

it's good work

and you could do

so much tangible

good for people's lives

there's a huge temptation

to idolize it

right

just like pastoral ministry

to idolize the work

and say that

this is what defines me

this is who I am

and to give all of your life

dedicated to that

so that you're basically

worked

run down to the ground

right

and when you are serving

so

you know

working so hard

and serving so well

and people

are not responsive

which often happens

in the medical profession

and in pastoral ministry

when people are not

grateful for the service

you're providing

when people are

actually rude towards you

right

then people in the medical profession

can become really cynical

right

because their pride

is hurt in that

and they

I don't deserve any of this

why are you treating me this way

all I'm doing is providing

this good and service for you

and only when you have

the gospel

the fact that Christ

is the one that redeems us

and saves us from sin

and that the sin

is at the root of all of these

interactions with people

and also

the gospel grounds

our identity

so remember that

we're not first and foremost

a doctor

or a nurse

or a pastor

but that I'm first and foremost

a Christian

that I belong to God

then we can have

a proper perspective

on work

have a proper life

work balance

and provide holistic care

for people

and you can suffer

for doing good

in the workplace

in that way as well

right

and we know

I mean

the spirit

the soul

and body

are intricately related

right

and often things like

stress

anxiety

or false beliefs

are related to how people

become ill

like physically as well

and so in order to provide

holistic care

then you might be

more emotionally invested

in your clients

or patients

and that could lead to

professional consequences

as well

right

when they want you to keep

a clinical distance

so that you can be more efficient

you're caring

you're investing in people

pouring into people

but when you suffer

in this way

this is a gracious thing

he says

when mindful of God

one endures sorrows

while suffering unjustly

so these are just

few sketches

and I hope

that you wrestle

with the idea

what does it look like

as a Christian

to do good

while suffering

at my workplace

because God says

serve him

God calls to serve him

in the workplace

by suffering

while doing good

and this is a high call

we recognize this

how can we possibly

do that

and we have

exactly a blueprint

for that

in verses 21 to 25

because what enables us

to suffer

while doing good

is the fact that

Christ suffered

for us

look at verse 21

it says

for to this

you have been called

because Christ

also suffered

for you

leaving you an example

so that you might

follow in his steps

and the word

example

is a really cool word

actually that

is used

if you guys have seen

kind of a pattern

of the alphabet

that you kind of

put on paper

put over paper

and then you trace

that's how kids

first learn to write

the alphabet

you guys know

what I'm talking about

so it's a word

that's used to refer

to something like that

so it's actually

a much stronger word

than simply an example

oh Christ is

one of your examples

no Christ is

the blueprint

he's the paradigm

by which we ought

to live as believers

in the workplace

and to do good

while suffering

and in order to

demonstrate that

he goes to quote

Isaiah 53

he uses the language

of Isaiah 53

but follows the

narrative order

in Mark's gospel

of Jesus' suffering

so he notes

let me just read

verse 22 to 23

he committed no sin

neither was deceit

found in his mouth

when he was reviled

he did not revile

in return

when he suffered

he did not threaten

but continued

entrusting himself

to him

who judges

justly

and we see this

in the passion narrative

in the gospel of Mark

in Mark 14 65

it says

some began to spit

on Christ

and to cover his face

and to strike him

saying to him

prophesy

and the guards

received him

with blows

chapter 15

18 to 19

it says

the soldiers

salute him

in mockery

hail king of the Jews

and they were

striking him

in his head

and with a reed

and a spitting on him

and kneeling down

in homage to him

in mockery of Christ

but Jesus does not

revile in return

or answer back

or threaten

instead it says

in Mark 14 61

he remained silent

and made no answer

if anyone could have

made an answer

he could have

he was the son of God

he was the king

he committed

no sin

every single human being

that's ever lived

had committed sin

they deserved

some blame

there was some deceit

in them

but in Christ

there was no sin

there was no deceit

found in his mouth

but he didn't answer

and why?

because it says

he was entrusting himself

to him

who judges

justly

if you

kind of think

for a moment

about this

we have a

as human beings

we have a very

deeply ingrained

habit of speaking up

for ourselves

don't we?

when we're criticized

when we're slighted

we are our best advocates

we speak up for ourselves

we defend ourselves

because we have learned

from experience

from living in this world

that if we don't

no one else will

that if we don't

assert ourselves

if we don't advocate

for ourselves

if we don't defend

for ourselves

that we will become

victims of injustice

because that's the kind

of world we live in

but in God's economy

in light of God's

ultimate justice

he says

Peter says

we don't have

to defend ourselves

because God's

justice is perfect

and he is supremely

worthy of our trust

we can entrust

ourselves to him

who judges

justly

and there's

one more

perhaps even more

important reason

that Christ

doesn't speak

when reviled

verse 24

look at it with me

tells us

Christ himself

Christ himself

bore our sins

in his body

on the tree

that we might

die to sin

and live

to righteousness

by his wounds

you have

been healed

the fact that

Jesus bore our sins

in his body

on the tree

is a reference

to Deuteronomy 21

23

which says

that those

who are hung

on a tree

are cursed

by God

so Jesus

died on a tree

he was crucified

on a cross

because he was

bearing the curse

that we deserved

he was cursed

on our behalf

so that we could

bear his blessing

Jesus bore our sins

in his body

it says

so that we might

bear his righteousness

the perfectly

righteous life

that he lived

it says

Jesus bore our wounds

so that we might

be healed

it says

in this passage

in order to return

us

the straying sheep

back to God

to return us

to him

he became

the slaughtered

sheep

and he died

on the cross

and if you guys

I don't know if you guys

know this

but the cross

was a punishment

that Romans

never had to experience

because they reserved

that punishment

only for slaves

and for people

who were not

Roman citizens

so Christ

our king

died the death

of a slave

he was the ultimate

suffering servant

so we can now

have the blueprint

to be suffering

witnesses

so we can now

be the slaves

of God

and

if you're not

a believer

with us today

or if you're just

hearing this message

online

I want to ask you

and invite you

entrust yourself

to this God

who judges

justly

because the only

way we could

follow in the

footsteps

and to do

truly do good

in our workplace

in all that we do

only way we can

have the spiritual

resources to

endure unjust

suffering

while doing good

is when we

follow in the

footsteps of this

Christ

is when we are

indwelled by the

spirit of this

Christ

and we have

the Christ

who indwelled

through the spirit

living through us

and in us

and every believer

I want to exhort you

as I've been doing

throughout this

sermon

serve God

in your workplace

by suffering

while doing good

just as Christ

suffered for us

and I can assure you

that as you do that

tells us

verse 25

the shepherd

and overseer

of your souls

will be with you

every step of the way

he will not leave you

to suffer alone

with that truth

as you were

thinking about that

and reflecting on that

deal meetings

so

as you were

all

.

for the

part of the

experience

is cutting

like

20

as you

kind of

say

about

in

or

little

text

to

your

body

or

point

to