Page 61 - Pastoral Epistles I & 2 Timothy, Titus

I Timothy 6 - Slavery

Connect…

Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, people were kidnapped from the continent of Africa, forced into slavery
in the American colonies, and exploited to work as indentured servants and labor in the production of crops such
as tobacco and cotton. By the mid-19th century, America’s westward expansion and the abolition movement
provoked a great debate over slavery that would tear the nation apart in the bloody Civil War.
Approximately 620,000 soldiers died from combat, accident, starvation, and disease during the Civil War. Though
the Union victory freed the nation’s four million enslaved people, the legacy of slavery continued to influence
American history, from the Reconstruction era to the civil rights movement that emerged a century
after emancipation.

When I was in High School, our family moved to the deep South in America in the 1960s. Even though this was
almost 100 years after the Civil War, there were deep feelings about segregation between white and black
people. I experienced the civil rights movement first-hand as our school was integrated with six black students
who were badly treated. I could not believe the animosity that existed at the school!

Back when Paul was writing these letters, slavery was an integral part of Roman culture. Thousands of believers
came to Christ who were slaves or masters. They needed instruction on how to interface with one another
within this environment. Let’s see what Paul has to say about living as a slave…

The Lesson ...

1 Timothy 6

1 Timothy 6:1-21.

V1-2. All who are under the yoke of slavery should consider their masters worthy of full
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respect, so that God’s name and our teaching may not be slandered. Those who have
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believing masters should not show them disrespect just because they are fellow believers.
Instead, they should serve them even better because their masters are dear to them as fellow

believers and are devoted to the welfareof their slaves.
Roman slavery was deeply ingrained in the Roman Empire and its economy. Some
scholars estimate that over one-third of the people in the Roman Empire were slaves
—that's approximately 50 or 60 million individuals!
Out of those 50-60 million slaves, there were a variety of different practices of
slavery during the Apostle Paul’s time. Some slaves were simply employees who did
a variety of different kinds of work: teachers, craftsmen, managers, cooks, and even
government officials. Many slaves owned slaves themselves. It's also important to
recognize that Roman slavery was not fundamentally based on background or skin
color but on economic and social status. To gain Roman citizenship and thus enter into Roman society, many
people would sell themselves into slavery. In some cases, slavery was helpful for poorer individuals, providing
security and stability for slaves in a variety of different locations. There were also opportunities beyond slavery,
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