Just Do It! (As Unto the Lord)

“And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.” (Colossians 3:23-24 NKJV)

Popularized by Nike’s ubiquitous advertising campaign, the phrase, “Just Do It!” is emblazoned on the consciousness of many Americans. It encourages the timid to be tenacious, the reticent to be resolute and inactive to initiate action, whether running, jumping or other forms of exercise. In today’s verse, Paul also encouraged his readers to strive for excellence in all they did, but for an altogether different reason.

In other letters Paul was moved to emphasize the freedom and liberty believers have in Christ, but the church at Colosse did not seem to have that need. Instead, Paul found it necessary to, if anything, reign in their sense of freedom, tempering it with warnings against carnality at the beginning of chapter 3. “Freedom,” he might well have said, “is not license to do whatever your little heart desires.”

As part of that instruction, Paul dealt briefly with interpersonal relationships in the most basic arenas where conflict might arise – at home and at work. He prefaced all that with a more general behavioral guide, saying we should, “put on tender mercies,” in verse 12. Beginning in verse 18 he moved into an abridged version of his more detailed instructions to the Ephesians (5:15 – 6:9). Wives to husbands, husbands to wives, children to parents, and fathers to children – each in turn was encouraged to deal with one another in an appropriate manner.

In verse 22, Paul begins with the term, “bondservants.” The concept of bondservant was not simply an at-will employee. Many translations use the term slaves to reference that group. Bound to their master for a specified or indefinite period of time, the bondservant was just a step up from outright slavery. It is specifically to this group Paul addresses today’s instruction, that their service to the master should be as unto the Lord.

If even the slave should do their work in this way, how much more in modern, Western society, should we who live in freedom serve our employers in the same manner? This mindset requires understanding that God is in control; that same realization requires us to obey earthly governmental authorities as we would the Lord. (Romans 13:1-7)

Leaving no group neglected, Paul covers the inverse relationship in verse 1 of chapter 4 (another example of the chapter breaks not serving us well), where he tells Colossian masters to deal fairly with their slaves. This mutual submission across all cultural barriers is what Paul had in mind when he told the Ephesians they should be, “submitting to one another in the fear of God.” (Ephesians 5:21 NKJV)

Why does Paul tell the young church they should do this? Their service should be thus rendered, “knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance, for you serve the Lord Christ.” It’s not for promotion, better pay or improving our lot in life. We are to, “Just Do It,” because 1) it is the right thing to do and 2) we work to please the Lord, not just man. There’s not much better motivation than that.

Related Scriptures

“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10 NKJV)
“Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.” (Ephesians 6:5-8 NKJV)
“For he who is called in the Lord while a slave is the Lord’s freedman. Likewise he who is called while free is Christ’s slave.” (I Corinthians 7:22 NKJV)

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Pappaw Pyle