We're going to turn to the scriptures and we're turning to the book of Ephesians in the chapter number six. The book of Ephesians in the chapter number six. And we'll read the opening nine verses of this chapter together. Ephesians in the chapter number six. It begins by speaking here to children. And the word of God says, Obey your parents and the Lord, for this is right. Honor thy father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise, that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling and singleness of your heart as unto Christ, not with thy service as men pleasers, but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with good will, doing service as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. And ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening, knowing that your master also is in heaven, neither is there respect of persons with him. Amen, and as I said, we'll just read to the verse number nine. Let's unite in prayer, and so let's seek the Lord. Just pray that God will speak to your heart, even as a believer. Let's seek the Lord now in prayer. Father in heaven, we now come before thy word. We pray that our hearts will be spoken to. God forbid, Lord, that we would come and assemble together Never hear the voice of God. Never be instructed in the things of God. O Spirit of God, be our teacher. Settle our hearts, we pray. Still our minds. Open these old hearts of ours. And may the good seed fall into good ground. And may it bring forth abundant fruit. the glory of our God, our Savior and King. We pray this in our Savior's blessed name. Amen. Well, this afternoon we're going to think about the practical outworking of what we've been considering together over the last number of weeks at our family worship services, namely what the Word of God has to say about work, what the Word of God has to say about work with a reluctance by some within our society to engage in any kind of work. I've highlighted to you from the scriptures that God's purpose for mankind when he created man was twofold, namely that of worship and that of work. He created man to worship him and he created man to work. We noted that God worked in creation. That is a work of God. And he set down the principle of work in his own being and what he did himself. And then we find that work commenced for man prior to and not as a consequence off the fall. For man was placed into the garden to dress it and to keep it before mankind ever fell in Adam, Adam being mankind's representative. And then two weeks ago we thought about the command to work. And we thought together about the fourth commandment. Yes, we are to remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. But that commandment goes on to say, And while there is much focus on the remembrance of the Sabbath day within the fourth commandment, there is little emphasis placed upon the second part of the commandment in that we are to work six days. Today, we want to think about our conduct at work. We want to do that really from the perspective of both the employee and of the employer. So without any further words of introduction, I want us to consider in the first place how God would have me as a Christian to conduct myself as an employee. How God would have me as a believer, a Christian, conduct myself as an employee. In the final two chapters of this book of Ephesians, we have some very practical counsel that is given to various groupings of people. In chapter 5 and the verse 22, instruction is given to wives. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands as unto the Lord. And then in the verse 24 of chapter 5, counsel is given to husbands. Husbands, love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it. Husbands and wives are then given further counsel in the verse 33 of chapter 5. Nevertheless, let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself, and the wife see that she reverence her husband. As I said in chapter 6, in the verse 1 and 2, guidance is given to children. Children, obey your parents and the Lord, for this is right. Honor thy father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise. And then in the chapter number 4, direction is given to fathers. And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord. Paul then moves to other groupings of people, as he is inspired here by the Spirit of God, to give counsel to, namely that of servants, we would call employees, and masters, those whom we would call employers. Now, before we look at the specific counsel that is given here in Ephesians 6 to these two groupings of people, I want to remind you that biblical Christianity affects every part of the Christian's life. Every part of the Christian's life is affected by a true, genuine saving work wrought within by the Spirit of God. And therefore, there cannot be a separation between a person's faith and a person's practice. There cannot be a separation between what we believe and what we do. Our work life and our worship life are inextricably linked to one another. They cannot be segregated or separated. Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones remarked that our Christianity is to cover the whole of our life and affect our every relationship. To compartmentalize our lives into church life and work life and family life and social life, to compartmentalize your life in such a way, finds no basis within Holy Scripture. No, a true saving work permeates into every compartment of life and reaches into every sphere of our lives, including Our work life, sadly, great damage is done to the testimony of Jesus Christ by professing Christians in their workplace as they do not give heed to the counsel that is given to the employee within the Holy Scripture. How many times have you not heard in the canteen or maybe on the office floor, well, if that's Christianity, I want nothing to do with it. The great damage that is done by professing believers not living out the teaching of Holy Scripture. That ought never to be the case. Christ said that by our good works men would glorify our Father that is in heaven. And so we must come to the Scriptures and we must understand what do the Scriptures teach with regard to my attitude and my conduct as an employee within a place of employment. We'll look at these verses together in Ephesians chapter six. Can I say in the first place, the Christian employee's work is to be marked by, first of all, obedience, obedience. Look there at the verse five. Servants or employees, be obedient to them that are your masters or your employer according to the flesh. Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters. Now this isn't the only time that this distinguishing mark is brought to our attention in the New Testament. We find this repeated on three other occasions. Let me give the verses and let me quote the reference and then quote the verse to you. Colossians 3 verse 22, servants Obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eye services, men pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing God. Titus 2 verse 9 is a second reference where Titus is exhorted to exhort servants to be obedient onto their own masters and to please them well in all things, not answering again. And then 1 Peter chapter 2 verse 18, servants, be subject or be obedient to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the fruit. Now the question that maybe is coming into your mind today regarding these particular texts with relation to our obedience to our employer, maybe the question that's going in your mind today is, how far do I go in my obedience? Because in Titus chapter 2 verse 9 it says that I am to please my master, my employer, in all things. In all things. I believe that the scriptures teach that we ought to obey our employer in all things that are lawful and legitimate. We're to obey them in all things that are lawful and legitimate. The line, I believe, is cross when an employer will ask you as an employee to do something that will contravene the plain teaching of Holy Scripture. The Christian employee, I believe, on that occasion, should refuse to do that which is contrary to the will of God as it is revealed in the Word of God. Albert Barnes, the Bible commentator, made this observation with regard to Paul's instruction for the servant to be obedient to their own masters and to please them well in all things. He said, this rule would not, however, go to the extent to require him to please his master in doing anything that is contrary to the law of God or that is morally wrong. And so there is the caveat, there is the caveat that an employee should not be involved in those things that are unlawful and those things that are not legitimate. And so if your employer would ask you to do something that is fraudulent in nature, you ought to refuse to be involved in such a practice because that will contravene the teaching off Holy Scriptures. It will contravene Scriptural principles. Now, that might cost you, but it's better to obey the Lord in these matters. I want you to think about some examples we have in Scripture where this happened, where people refused to do that which their employer asked them to do. The first were two midwives, Hebrew midwives. They were commanded by Pharaoh to kill the Hebrew boys at birth. But these ladies refused to kill the male children because, as the scripture tells us in Exodus chapter 1, they feared God. And they knew that the killing off the child would have been that which would have contravened the law of God. A law that would eventually be codified at Mount Sinai in the Ten Commandments, thou shalt not kill. And so these ladies refused to obey their employer, Pharaoh, with regard to the killing off the child. I think of Joseph. He was sold into Egypt, bought by Potiphar, and now was involved as the servant, the master of the house, promoted to such a position. But Potiphar's wife, Potiphar's wife one day said to Joseph, lie with me. And we read that Joseph fled and refused the bait. He fled the place of temptation. And this is what Joseph said. He said, how then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God? And therefore he refused his employer's wife to do that which would have contravened scripture. Thou shalt not commit adultery. And so there are examples, I believe, in Holy Scripture. Where if it goes against scriptural principles, then an employee can refuse and ought to refuse doing that which their employer asked them to do. And so there is this obedience that is to be given to our employer as long as the things be legitimate and lawful. But we live in a society where there is the rising of disobedience. Society today is a society that is marked by this mark of disobedience. And the wonderful thing is that the child of God, as they go into their place of employment, they can reflect that they are no longer a child of disobedience, but now they are as obedient children as the Scriptures speak of, that they have been possessed by a new nature, and not this old sinful nature, a sinful nature that is marked by disobedience. Now, you may say, but my employer doesn't treat me very well, so why should I obey him or her? Well, if you find yourself employed in such a place, And you find yourself employed by an employer who is ill-natured, who is ungenerous, who is ignorant. And I do not speak about knowledge ignorance, but just ignorant. Well, the apostle Peter, he says in 1 Peter 2 verse 18, he advises you that you are to be subject to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the fruit. According to Peter, Well, you find yourself on their payroll, the payroll of an employer. You, as an employee, ought to perform your duties with fidelity, whatever the character of your employer would be. Whether they are good and gentle, or whether they are to be froward, you are to be subject to your masters with all fear. I think of a man in the Bible who exhibited this trait. He was only a young man when he found himself employed in the palace of Saul. His name was David. And there David was put before Saul. Saul was an ill-tempered, arrogant, ignorant man. Spirit of God had departed from him. And that exhibited itself one day whenever Saul would take a javelin and he threw it at David, not only on one occasion, but twice. He escaped out of the hand of his employer. He was employed within the palace compound. But how do we read of David. What do we read about him? How did he conduct himself when he find himself in that difficult employment setting? I read in 1 Samuel 18 verse 14, it says, And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with him. David's exemplary behavior spoke to his employer Saul, because it goes on to say in that chapter in the verse 15 of 1 Samuel 18, wherefore when Saul saw that he, David, behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not advising you to put yourself in harm's way. I'm not saying that if your employer decides to throw a javelin at him at you tomorrow, that you're to stay in that place of employment. There's plenty of jobs, plenty of jobs about in the country that you could find yourself a better employee in these days. But can I say that if God would have you to be there, and God has placed you there by His providence, and He's directed you to be in your place of employment, and I trust He has, I trust that you've sought God's will for your life, that you know that you're in the center of God's will wherever your place of employment would be. But if God has placed you under a froward boss, then behave yourself wisely as David did because God may have you in that person's life to be a witness to them and for Jesus Christ. And so there is to be obedience There is to be obedience displayed by the Christian employee. The Christian employee, secondly, the employee's work is to be marked, secondly, by respect. By respect. A Christian employee is to respect their employer. Look there in the verse 5 again of Ephesians 6. Yes, we are to be obedient to them that are our masters according to the flesh with fear and trembling. Underline that phrase, with fear and trembling. Now, whenever Paul speaks of our work being done in fear and trembling. That isn't that you go into work with your knees knocking against each other, afraid to meet the boss as he comes up the work floor. This isn't this fear and trembling. That's not the thought behind the word. This phrase, fear and trembling, it isn't that we should dread going into work because we have got a volatile employer. No, this is not so much the dread of the master, but rather the thought is that of a genuine respect for the master's authority. And consequently, because you respect them, that you leave no duty undone. The idea behind the words fear and trembling is that of reverence and respect for our master and our employer. And again, respect is something that has fallen out of fashion in this world today. Today there's very little respect to authority. No respect in the home. The father and mother's authority, that's gone. No respect in their schools. The teacher says something in the child, they continue to misbehave within the classroom. No respect in the work environment. Aye, and at times no respect in the house of God for authority. Those whom God has placed within His church, No respect. Everybody wants to be the master. Nobody wants to be the servant. Employees are quite happy to talk behind the back of their employer. They like to ridicule. They like to criticize their boss. Many show little respect to those who have worked so hard to build up the business. They applied in vast quantities of money in order that them as an employee might benefit by being employed by their employer. They don't know the tears that the employer shed, the long hours that they put in to get the business up and going. So there's so much disrespect. You know, as Christians, I don't care what the world does. The world's going to do what it does. But as believers, brethren and sisters, you should never, as a Christian, get yourself embroiled in conversations, whether that's on the workshop floor, whether that's in the canteen. You should never involve yourself or be embroiled in conversations that, without warrant, cede to the assassination of your employer's character or their reputation. You should not involve yourself in such conversations. You should walk away. 1 Timothy 6 verse 1, all honor, all respect. The Christian employee's work is to be marked thirdly by focus. Focus. Look there at the next words in the verse 5 of the chapter here. We're still in the verse number 5, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart. The word singleness suggests that the employee is to be focused on their duty. The tasks assigned to them by their employer must be done with undivided attention, with concentration, with energy, with effort on the part of the employee. Dr. Jones again, let me quote, he said, our motive should be to do the best work possible in order that we may do it in the best way possible and above all for the sake of pleasing the master. If an employee goes about their duties with this singleness of heart, this means that they will not conduct their personal business in their boss's time without their boss's explicit permission." You're stealing from your boss. To do your business without your boss's explicit permission, to do your own business is to steal from your boss. He is paying you, she is paying you for your work, and you're to do it with singleness of heart, focus, working, working. No man can serve two masters. You cannot do your business and you cannot do your employer's business at the same time. And so, as I've said, we must be very careful that we do not steal from our employer. And this singleness of heart, this focus, I'm here, this is my place of employment, this is the task that God has given me to do. It's not to stand around and to look at my iPhone. It's not to stand and chat with others. I've been given a task to do, and as a Christian, I'm going to do it with singleness of heart, with focus. I believe that this singleness of heart really then deals with this danger of not giving our employer what we ought to give him or her. Fourthly, the Christian employee's work is to be marked by a God awareness. God awareness. It goes on to say, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ. You see, wherever we're found in this world, whether we're found at home, whether we're found at school, whether we're found at play, whether we're found in the workplace, God sees everything that we do. And I believe that this is what Paul is hinting at here in the verses 6 and 7 when he says, You know, too many people In their work they give this eye services on to men. Not with eye services, men pleasers, you know them. All busy and all industrious when the boss is about and then whenever he's away down the road or he's away into the office, well then they're just standing about folding their arms and they're doing nothing. That is this thought of being a man pleaser. Just doing it before the eyes of men. and yet they forget that God is watching. We sing the children's hymn, God is Always Near Me, hearing what I say, knowing all my thoughts and deeds, all my work and play. We sing it, but we don't actually live it out in our lives. The story is told of a young man, or of a man who entered a store one day, And he said to the clerk behind the counter, Robert, you must give me good measure. Your master isn't in. And then he gave the man, the young clerk, a wink, a sly wink, hoping that he would get just a little bit more than he would often, that he would have got if the master had been there. Robert was a Christian and Robert looked solemnly into the man's face and he said these words, my master is always in. My master is always in." You see, Robert lived with a God awareness about him, even when he was in the place of work. And as Christians, this is how we ought to work. We ought to work with an awareness that God is with me at my side. He sees what I do. He hears what I say. He's watching me. He's listening to me. And surely if we lived in the light of that truth, the light of the truth that everything is done under the all-seeing eye of an omniscient and an omnipresent God, we would perform our duties in the workplace, in the home, in the work of God, with the utmost diligence and care, and we would excel, excel, excel in the responsibilities that has been placed upon us by our employer, because we're doing it in the sight of God. Brethren and sisters, our work performance should have nothing to do whether or not our boss is there, our human boss. It should have nothing to do whether or not our boss is watching us, because far more important than the boss watching us is the fact that God is watching us. Hagar's words, thy God, seest me, ought to be the motto of every Christian employee. Thy God sees me. Your employers will be ringing me and thanking me for the message. This is scripture, brethren and sisters. Fifthly, let's go very quickly, enthusiasm. Now I'm aware that Enthusiasm for work on an old frosty morning. If that had been tomorrow morning, the morning we had this morning, I'm sure you wouldn't have been jumping out of bed and thinking, wow, I can get to work today on an old frosty morning like that. Or maybe the rain isn't coming down vertically, it's maybe going horizontally as you drive to work and maybe you're going to be out in work. And maybe you arrive at work and half of the people aren't there. They've all thrown a sickie and completion day is that day. I tell you, there's not much enthusiasm a day like that. But yet, we are to give ourselves wholeheartedly and enthusiastically to our duties. Paul addresses servants in Colossians chapter three in the verse 22 and 23. Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eye service as men pleasers, but in singleness as heart fearing God. You'll know that Ephesians and Colossians are quite similar. with regard to their content. And then he goes on to say, having spoken to servants, and whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men. Did you ever think your employer and consider your employer that I'm going to do my work as if the Lord was my employer? That's what Paul's saying. You're to do your work as if your employer is the Lord. Ecclesiastes 9, 10, whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might, for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave, whether thou goest. These verses speak of the enthusiasm that we're to show when we engage in work. We're to do it with heart, we're to do it with the heart, we're to do it heartily, and we're to do it with the might, as if we were doing the task for the Lord. And I wonder, let me speak to young people, whenever you come to your schoolwork, is there much enthusiasm? School, homework tonight, algebra, English language, spellings. Well, it's work. What about work around the home? I cleaned the house this week and I have to clean it again. I only cleaned it, hoovered it a few days ago and I have to clean it again. What about business work? Is there enthusiasm? What about God's work. Where's the enthusiasm in the work of God? Or do we go around grumbling, complaining, and murmuring? You see, brethren and sisters, when we view our work as unto the Lord and not to men, that will enable us to set about our business with the proper attitude. Did you know, mother, that you can iron your children's clothes and you can clean the home to the glory and to the honor of God? It's work. and you're doing it to the glory and honor, you can do it. And did you know, Father, you can go about your secular work and you can mow the lawn and you can paint the house to the glory and honor of God? And children, do you know that you can go around your schoolwork and perform your household chores to the glory and the honor of God? You see, work becomes worship when it's done for the Lord. Quickly, the other side of the coin. How would God have me to conduct myself as an employer? God, the Holy Spirit has something to say to the masters, to the employers, through the pen of Paul here. The verse number nine, and ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening, knowing that your master also is in heaven, neither is there respect of persons with him. You know, God strikes a balance here. In these words, reminding the employer that the same is expected of them as an employer as is expected of the employee. And G Masters do the same things. What I've said about the employee, don't think yourself to be above your employee. These thoughts of obedience, and these thoughts of being respectful, and being focused, and being God-conscious, and being enthusiastic, this is as much an injunction for you, a command for you as an employer, as it is for your employees. However, there is a stipulation. There is one stipulation that Paul places on the employer that is not placed upon the employee, namely that they are to forbear threatening. Verse number nine, and you masters do the same unto them, forbearing threatening. What does that mean? Well, the sense of the words is that the employer is not to threaten, he's not to be a menace, not to be a menace. They are to be kind, affectionate, courteous, and just. In practical terms, that means that the Christian employer is not to go around about yelling at their employees, intimidating them, verbally abusing them, threatening them. Why? Why are they not to do that? Well, Paul tells them why they're not to do that, because your master is in heaven. In other words, God is watching you, the employer. Just as he's watching the employee, he's watching you, the employer. And then he goes on to say in the verse number nine, neither is there respect of persons with him. And I believe that he's hinting here that there is to be impartiality shown by the employer to all of his employees. There is no respect of persons with God. And so when it comes to the structure of your business, whether the person be, as it were, on the lowest grade of pay, right up to the one who finds themselves at the highest rung of pay, each person within your business structure is to be treated with impartiality. There's to be impartiality. So to all Christian employers out there, and I'll soon be finished, let me ask you these questions. Do you as an employer seek the best for your employees? Do you pay them fairly? Do you provide for their basic needs within the workplace? Colossians 4 verse 1, There's the thought again, God is watching. God is watching. At work, he's watching. Do you, as an employer, interact with your employees in a way that they do not find themselves intimidated or threatened? Or do they say, here he comes, here he comes. I've been in places of work, so I understand how it works. Look at the head on him today. Hide, as it were. Is that you as an employer? As a Christian employer? It ought not so to be. Do you recognize that by serving your employees, that you're serving the Lord Jesus Christ as if they were Christ? Are you impartial in your dealings with your employees, remembering that with God there is no respect of persons? In other words, do you treat the cleaner in the same way as you treat the managerial staff? Do you treat them with respect, with dignity, showing no partiality or favoritism to either? Does honesty and fairness mark your transactions within your business? Proverbs 11 verse 1 reminds us that a false balance is abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is His delight. Now we know that sodomy is an abomination, but here's an abomination. A false balance is an abomination unto the Lord. Matthew, Henry, he said this about that particular verse, Proverbs 11, verse 1. Nothing is more offensive to God than deceit in commerce. And then finally, as a Christian employer, do you keep before you the fact that there is a day of accountability and that all you do in every sphere of life, including your business life, will be reviewed and rewarded accordingly by God? You know, God calls you and I, and God calls Christian employers and employees to show the evidence that God has transformed your life. In all spheres of our lives, we are to do what? Scripture tells us what we're to do. We are to adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things. In all things. And all things includes our work. We are to adorn. We are to dress. We are to exhibit, to display. We are to display the doctrine of God our Savior. You might be saying, preacher, these are pretty high ideals. How can I be the employee? How can I be the employer that God wants me to be? Well, let me say that you'll never be the employee or the employer God wants you to be in your own strength. You see, there is a key to success in this. And it's not found in Ephesians chapter six, but it's found in Ephesians chapter five, and it's in the verse number 18. And it tells us there, and be not drunk with wine, wherein is access. but be filled, be filled with the Spirit. That's the key. That's the key. The Spirit-filled life will make you the Christian employee or employer that God wants you and God expects you to be in this world. Be filled with the Spirit. That's what will help you to be the husband that God wants you to be, the wife that God wants you to be, the child that God wants you to be, yes, and the father that God wants you to be, and the servant, the employee, and the master, the employer that God wants you to be. It is to be filled with the Spirit of God. You'll not do it in your own strength, brother or sister. You'll not do it. Your employer will look at you crooked tomorrow, and you'll be ready to bite the head off them. But if you go into your workplace filled by the Spirit of God, then you'll exhibit the fruit of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness. Think of them all! Think of how necessary they are within a workplace, these fruit of the Spirit. Oh, too many of us were living in the power of the flesh, and therefore it is incumbent upon you to seek God's infilling, the infilling of the Spirit daily, so that you can engage in your work in a way that will bring the greatest glory to God, whether you're a worker on the shop floor or you're the CEO of the company in a boardroom. The Savior said, if ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? You know, brethren, sisters, God has providentially placed and positioned us all in various places of employment and at different levels within the chain of command, within the business in which we are employed, but wherever we work. Let these four mentioned characteristics mark our conduct at work, so that our lights may shine before men. And then those men, those ungodly men, that they in turn, as they look at how we live and conduct ourselves, that they in turn will glorify our Father that is in heaven. This is the counsel of God for masters and for servants. May we imbibe the truth in our hearts and live it out in our lives by the help of the Spirit of God as he infills us day by day. May the Lord bless His Word. Let's bow our heads in prayer. Thank you for listening. We appreciate, young and old, for your attention. We trust that the Word has been instructive. Our loving Father, our gracious God, we come before Thee. How inadequate we feel in and of ourselves with regard to how we are to live in this world and conduct ourselves and our places of employment. We cry to Thee that we will Not only let this word reach into one ear and then go out the other, but everything that our hand finds to do, may these distinguishing marks, may they characterize our conduct and our performance of that which that thou has given us to do. We pray that we will be good employees in our workplaces, May it not be said behind our back, well, if that's a Christian, I want nothing to do with that. Lord, help us to conduct ourselves in a proper manner and to live out the Christian life and to live out biblical truth. And so answer prayer and part us with thy blessing and bring us back to the house of God tonight to hear the glorious gospel We pray this in our Savior's precious name. Amen and amen. Thank you.