Throughout the Bible, followers of Jesus are commanded to submit to Him as their King. They are told to obey and follow, faithfully and without hesitation. Every time Christians utter the word Lord, they are making a subtle yet profound declaration that God is their Master and that they belong to Him. In fact, the Bible describes believers as being His slaves. They have been bought with a price and now live for Christ as a people for His own possession.
But go into most churches today, even flip through most Christian literature and many Bible translations, and you won't find much reference to the ideal that Christians are in fact “slaves” of the Most High. Why would such an important principle be left out of the Christian dialogue?
Maybe over time, its simply been lost in translation. Given the stigmas associated with slavery in Western culture, translators and writers have understandably wanted to avoid any association between biblical teaching and the slave trade of the British Empire and the American Colonial era.
No one likes the idea of being characterized as a slave in the manner where one group oppresses another. It’s understandable how such imageries of the past could marginalize the use of the word “slave” and “slavery” as descriptions of our relationship to Christ. No one likes the implications of what it means to be classified as a “slave.”
While the word “slave” is offensive to many... in the context of being a follower of Christ, it is the one word that restores, illuminates and energizes our understanding of the Bible's definition of what true Christian freedom means.
What does it mean to be a Christian the way Jesus defined it... as a Slave? Think about it... we have been bought with a price, a very high price... Jesus death on the Cross. Therefore... We belong to Christ. We are His own possession... purposefully, fairly and justly acquired by His blood.
What’s the benefit of being a “Slave to Christ? Jesus frees us from the bondage of death into a royal slavery, so that we might be His eternal possession. Those who aspire to be His followers must, therefore, be willing to accept the concept of being one of His slaves. But “slavery” to the King of Kings is not a bad thing... it is a cause for extreme joy, because it frees you from the bondage of sin! Sin is a curse on your soul and if left untreated, will destroy you forever.
The way you become free from sin, is by becoming a slave to righteousness! One of the results of being a "slave" to God is being made righteous and holy: God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21).
In other words, when we are freed from bondage to sin by giving ourselves to Christ, a transaction occurs: we are changed from being sinners (i.e., slaves to sin... who occasionally mess up and do something right) into being holy ones (i.e., righteous slaves to God who occasionally mess up and do something wrong).
How can one become a slave to Christ? When you are baptized “into Christ,”—that is, when you become a slave to righteousness—you are made holy, made righteous, cleansed, forgiven, and freed from all sin (Acts 2:38). Therefore, the way you become free from sin is by baptism... immersed in water, dying to your old self–your old ways, rising to a new life, turning your life over to Christ and wholeheartedly following Him. This new freedom “in Christ”... makes you a slave to righteousness.
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery [to sin]. Galatians 5:1
The Christian's greatest privilege is to be a slave of Christ. It is true freedom! Freedom from sin and the wages it pays... eternal death. Being His slave is one of the Bible's most succinct ways of describing a life of discipleship. Our Lord’s kind of slavery sounds pretty good doesn’t it?
