1 Peter 2:18-25 Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the fraudulent.… I. RELIGION BROUGHT INTO THE LITTLE THINGS OF LIFE. It does not merely include duties unto kings, but duty towards lesser lords. We may learn from this — 1. That religion applies to all classes and conditions of men. Each state of life has its own little kingdom, its own little world. 2. That nothing is too insignificant to be brought under the power of Divine direction. II. PRINCIPLE SUPERSEDING COMPULSION. In this verse the apostle establishes one of the most important principles of morality — that our obligations to relative duties are not to be gauged by the character of the person to whom they are performed. 1. It is not utility that should regulate our conduct. The will of the world is to discard that which is not useful or profitable. 2. It is not comfort that is to direct our lives. 3. It is not force that is to drive. 4. It is neither the fear nor the love of man that moves. III. OBEDIENCE INDEPENDENT OF CIRCUMSTANCES. Masters, like kings, differ. Some are reasonable and kind, others are unreasonable and bitter. Is a servant only to serve them who are fair and kind? By no means. The reason is explained when we come to realise that the present is of very little moment to show who serve Christ. (J. J. S. Bird.) Parallel Verses KJV: Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward. |
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