How To Be Right in Our Relationships (Part 4)

Let's get back to Ephesians. How long has it been? Three weeks? I'm going to assume that we need just a little bit of review.

! And it's good, you know, to...! I'm all about... Obviously, you know this studying through books of the Bible. And in the course of my studies, I've forced myself to keep always in my mind the overall theme of a book.

And so that when I get to the smaller portions of it, I don't make a mistake in how I interpret it. Because it's part of an overall theme.

And so I want to keep us kind of like ships moored to the dock. We want to be moored to this theme of the book. And so I'll put in your notes so you can kind of fill in the blanks again.

This will help remind us of not only what that overall theme is, but kind of where we've been. And then we'll be up to speed and ready to go forward. Our subject in this part of the letter.

And when I say part of it, I'm talking about, again, Ephesians 5, 22. Really, really, I need to go back to verse 18 of Ephesians 5. But specifically, verses 22 all the way to the ninth verse of chapter 6.

There's a particular theme here. And we've talked about it a number of times. But it is about relationships. How to be right in our relationships.

That's what Paul is talking about in this particular passage, this larger passage. And that fits into the overall scheme of the book, as I'm going to mention again here in a minute.

Relationships is the idea here. And specifically, the main relationships that you and I have in life, and at least most of us, there are some exclusions here.

But the first one that he deals with is husbands and wives. That's a very important relationship within the body of Christ. It's an important relationship in the world, though some people have decided to discard that.

And, you know, with the latest that's come out of our Supreme Court. And, in fact, by the way, when I was in China, the last three days of our trip there, we did a little sightseeing.

And I had been given a name of a believer, born-again believer, who was a tour guide. And so we got linked up with him, and he helped us. And in the course of traveling by taxi to the different places, we talked about the church, talked about things going on in China.

And he brought up the issue about the latest Supreme Court ruling that sexually legalized homosexual marriage.

And he said, when we heard about that, we were absolutely shocked that something like that would happen in America. They don't have that in China, but we do in America.

China, that is not a Christian nation in any kind of definition, does not allow homosexual marriage. But here in America, a, quote, Christian nation, now it's the law of the land.

And he just went on and said, we were just totally shocked to hear that thing. How could that kind of thing happen in America? Well, we talked a little bit about that. Anyway, the relationships that Paul deals with, of course, first of all, the husband.

Actually, first is the relationship of people within the body of Christ. I don't know why I didn't put that in the list. People in the church, that's really the first relationship that he deals with.

And then these specific relationships, husbands and wives, and then also parents and children, and masters and slaves, or masters slash employers and slaves slash employees.

Now, we'll talk about that in just a minute. That's the typical application we make out of this passage. And then let me again remind you, the overall theme of the letter to the Ephesian believers is the church.

This is the overall theme. That's a broad theme. But this is a church epistle. It's written to the church. Now, all the epistles were written to churches.

But it's written with that subject in mind. Strengthening the church. Everything that Paul has to say, even though much of it certainly applies to the individual, it is for the intent of strengthening the church and making it healthy.

So that's Paul's point. The health and effectiveness of the church today is directly related to two things. First of all, harmony.

Harmony in the Christian home. That's the first thing between husbands, wives, parents, children. And then the second one is honor or integrity.

We could use that word integrity among Christians in the workplace. In the workplace. Now, I say that's Paul's point. Actually, that's not Paul's point. Paul is talking about slaves and masters.

But the point can be crossed over, can cross over into the context of employee-employer relationships. And so he's going to deal with both Christian masters slash employers and Christian slaves slash employees.

Now, let me again remind you of something else. I've done this about every time. I haven't put it in the notes every time. But I just feel the need to continue to reinforce this.

And that's this. That verse 18, the command that Paul gives in verse 18, which is what? Be filled with the Spirit. That command is the divine source for all of this.

Don't ever forget that. And not just for relationships. That is, doing what the Bible requires so that we can have healthy relationships.

Not just for that, but for everything in the Christian life. Depends upon this obedience to this command to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

And again, let me just remind you, that doesn't mean getting more of the Holy Spirit. It means the Holy Spirit getting more of you. More and more and more of you.

So, being filled with the Holy Spirit, the idea is to submit yourself to the absolute mastery of God in your life.

No matter what. No matter what our circumstances. No matter what temptations may come our way. No matter what tasks God may call upon us to do.

We must be utterly dependent upon the mastery, the control of the Holy Spirit of God. So, none of what Paul commands will work apart from that.

That's the idea. Apart from yieldedness to the power and mastery of God the Holy Spirit in our personal lives. Relationships won't work as God intends for them to.

Won't work in a healthy way. Apart from submission to God. Alright, so we've already looked at the importance of the Holy Spirit in the believer.

The believer in the household of God. That's chapter 5, 19 through 21. The household of God. So, the view is that the body of Christ, the assembled body.

Whether it's corporate worship or submission to one another in the fear of God. He covers both of those things in chapter 5, 19 through 21. Then we've also already looked at the importance of the Holy Spirit in the believer's household.

The home. And that's chapter 5, verse 22. And that leads us all the way to verse 4 of chapter 6. So, we're talking about relationship between husbands and wives.

Relationship between parents and children. And we've covered all of that ground. And now we're ready to look at the importance of the Holy Spirit in this context. The believer in the workplace.

The believer in the workplace. And I believe that's the right application for us to make from this passage tonight. And we're talking there about the duty of the employee.

The duty of the employer. In that relationship that's very common to all of us. Some here are retired. But you still understand that context.

Alright, so. So. Before we delve into the passage. I think there's some groundwork to lay here. Some issues to talk about.

And I've kind of alluded a little bit to this. Kind of cryptically. But the first thing we need to talk about is Paul's intent in this passage.

And deal with this question. What is Paul's intention in this passage from his letter to the Ephesians? Remember. Well, don't remember.

I want you to know. Paul intends one thing here. Not a couple of things. And so. You know. When I study this passage. I need first to consider that.

In fact, any passage. To consider the author's intent. It's always important. Now. You know. We've got a few Sunday school teachers in here. And.

You know. It's always important. When studying any particular passage of scripture. It's always important to discover the author's intent in writing.

I can't say that enough. Now. You know. This is very much on my mind. Primarily because I've just. You know. Spent a week. Over there in China.

Teaching this very thing. To those pastors and leaders and teachers there. It is extremely important. Absolutely crucial. When you're studying the scripture. Whether you're studying it for yourself.

In desiring to know what God is saying to you. Or whether you're preparing to teach it in a Sunday school setting. Or. Like me. Preacher every week. Trying to prepare a particular message.

Out of a text. You must. Discover. What the author meant. When he wrote it. That's very important. The meaning of the passage comes from the author's intent.

What he intended to say. And. When he wrote it. Not what it means today. But what it meant when he wrote it. And I would say this.

It means today. Exactly what it meant when he wrote it. All right. And. And so. We've got to discover that. So. When a person. I mean. You can just. Give this testimony yourself.

If you. Write a letter. Or you write an. Email. You do that sort of thing. Or write something in your Facebook. You know. And. Something that you want others to read.

Then. You don't mean. Two. Three. Or four things. You mean one thing. When you write a certain thing. You mean it to mean one thing. And so. When you.

Compose that letter. Or that email message. Or blog. Or entry in your Facebook. Whatever it is. You know. You have a certain intended meaning. And you have a problem with people who.

Misinterpret what you meant. That ever happen to you. I mean. How could they not see what I said. But. But when you read. Someone else's writing. If you're not careful. You'll.

You'll allow. Certain. Feelings. To enter into the reading. Or certain preconceived notions. Or. You know. Whatever. And you kind of allow that.

To creep in. To the reading. Of that message. And then. It says something. Different than what was intended. That's a very common mistake. And.

And if you've ever written. A very serious note. To someone. That. And you. You've done so. Out of love. And concern. And then. When they misinterpret it. It just really.

Really hurts. Doesn't it? Well. What do you think about God? And. And his letter to us. The Bible. When we're not careful. To examine what is written.

So that we can discover. What the author intended. When he wrote. And. We've got to be very careful about that. And. You know. All sorts of problems.

In our. Interpersonal relationships. Have occurred. Because someone has misinterpreted. The meaning of what we've said. Or what we've written. And the same is true.

In scripture. I mean. Why do you think we have so many. Denominations today. And. Why we have so many. Cults. And. And.

And. Different things like that. Offshoots. It's because. People have not taken. The time. To. Really look. At what the author. Intended to mean.

What the real meaning. Of the passage is. So we've got to be very careful. About that. So that's why it's important. That when you're studying the Bible. Or preparing to teach. That you. That you.

Pay close attention to this. Now the technical term. Is. Authorial intent. What the author intended. And.

And. And. That's what we want to discover. Now how do we discover that? Well. Through. A process. Of study. Now.

You know. When I preach. And I teach. Quite often. This comes out. Some of the. Results. Of my. Study of words. Particular words.

In a text. That's. One step. In discovering. The author's intended meaning. To look at the words. But it's not enough. Just to look at a word. Because words have.

Different meanings. Depending on how you use them. And when you use them. And so forth. So you've got to also look at the. Context. Of the. Particular passage. You know. If you're studying for a Sunday school lesson.

You know. Hopefully. The author of your Sunday school book. Has done some of this work. To look at the context. And. And so then. Interpret the meaning.

Based upon the context. But if he hasn't. Or she hasn't. Whoever wrote it. Then you need to do that. As a. As a. A. A. A. Teacher. Even in our own. Personal study of scripture.

Don't just take. One verse. And pull it out of there. And. And. Allow it to mean. Whatever you. Think it means. Or want it to mean. At the time. Because. Any given passage.

Only means one thing. And. And it is what the author. Intended for it to mean. And so we need to discover that. So we do it through. A grammatical. Kind of analysis. We look at the words.

We look at the context. We. You know. We look at it. Theologically. You know. Many mistakes. Have been made. About a particular passage. Because we have not.

Considered. Whether it lines up. With the overall theology. Of God's word. You can't have a passage. Saying something. That contradicts. Other passages. In the bible.

So you need to. Look at that. You know. Even looking at the. Historical. Kind of setting. And the. Consistency. Of what is said. Based upon the culture.

Of the time. There's all kinds of things. That. That we want to. Look at. Now. You know. A good commentary. Helps you with some of those things. Because that commentator.

Spent some time. Looking into some of these issues. And. But the bottom line is. We want. To find out. What the author. Intended. When he wrote it.

All right. Now. All of that. To pose this question. And hopefully answer it. That is. What is Paul's intention. In this passage. From the. From.

From. From. From his letter. To the Ephesians. Because he means one thing. All right. Well. Here is the truth. Paul intended to convey. In this passage.

And we could. Boil it down to two things. Number one. The responsibility. Of Christian slaves. To serve their masters. As if they were serving the Lord. That's the first thing.

That he means. The responsibility. Of Christian slaves. To serve their masters. As if they were serving the Lord. And then the second one.

Which deals with the other side. Of the relationship. The responsibility. Of Christian slave owners. Is to master. Their slaves. As if the Lord. Were their master.

Now. Think about that. In the first place. The responsibility. Of Christian slaves. Is to serve their masters. As if. They were serving the Lord.

Which in reality. They are. They are. In everything. And then. The other side. The responsibility. Of Christian slave owners. Is to master.

Their slaves. As if the Lord. Were their masters. Which in reality. He is. He is. Now. The master. Of a slave. Has a greater master.

So he's serving. The master. As he is. Dealing with. His slave. And this is what Paul. Is leading. Uh. Of the Ephesian believers. These people in the church.

At Ephesus. Uh. To consider. And understand. And to obey. All right. So let's understand. That Paul's intent. Then. Is not. To speak.

To the issue. Of Christian employee. Employer relationships. That's not his intent. Now. I know we. You know. And this is what we do. We say. Well. Uh.

What he's really. Talking about here. Is the. The work relationship. That's not his intent. He's. He's talking about slaves. And he's talking about.

Masters of slaves. He's talking about. How. They are to conduct. Uh. Their lives. In relation. To that. Well. That relationship. That's his intent. All right.

Now. Then. Is it valid. To make the text. Speak. To the issue. Of the work relationship. Relationship. Employer. Employee.

Relationship. Now. I might be. Causing you. To think. That I'm going to say. No to that. But the answer. To that. Is yes. It is.

It is. Appropriate. And. Still. True. To scripture. To allow. That text. To speak. To an issue. That the author. Did not intend. Because you know.

There are two authors. In scripture. In any scripture. There is. The little. A author. And there is. The big. A author. That's the Holy Spirit.

Now. The Holy Spirit. Doesn't change. The meaning. Of a text. But the Holy Spirit. Allows us. To understand. Certain applications. Of the principles. Taught.

In the text. Now. We have to be. Very careful. About that. Because. We can. Take that. Further. Than. It should. And make it. Apply. To things.

And areas. That are not. Not intended. And not even. Scriptural. We have to be. Very careful. About that. But in this case. I think. It's.

Pretty plain. To see. That principle. That Paul. Is teaching. And he's directing. Toward. Slave owners. And their slaves. Is a principle. That can cross over.

Very easily. Into the relationship. Of the. Employer. And employee. Or boss. And employee. So. The.

Because the principle. That governs. That other relationship. Also applies. In the Christian context. Of relationships today. And why is that?

Well. Because at the heart. Of the principle. Is a Christ. A focused. A Christ focused approach. That really is. At the heart of it. And that's why.

It is permissible. To take. What Paul intended. And take that. And apply it. To other kinds. Of relationships. Because at the heart. Of what Paul is saying.

Is a. Christ focused. Type of. Of life. Concerning. Relationships. And so. If it. If the heart of it. Is a Christ.

Is Christ focused. Then we can apply that. To. Other relationships. Even many other things. Really everything. In our lives. And we can see. That.

I think. In every verse. In fact. I don't think. It's quite clear. You'll see it. In every single verse. This. Christocentric. Approach.

For slaves. Just look at. And I've. Provided the passages. Right there. In front of you. Verse five. Bond servants. Be obedient. To those. Who are your masters. As to Christ.

All right. So Christ. Is right there. In that verse. So the heart. Of what Paul is saying. The heart. Of the principle. Is. Christ focused. Christ focused.

In this relationship. Between. Masters. And slaves. Slaves. And masters. And so. Christ focus. Can apply. To other relationships. As well. Verse six.

As bond servants. Of Christ. Doing the will of God. From the heart. So there. It is again. Same idea. Verse seven. As to the Lord. And not to men.

Verse eight. Knowing that whatever good. Anybody. Anyone does. He will receive the same. From the Lord. So. In every single verse. Those verses.

That deal with. How the slaves. Are to relate. To their masters. In every single verse. You have Christ. At the center of. And then. When you get to the masters. What he says to masters.

And he only. Really devotes. One verse. To them. But he says a whole lot. In it. He says you masters. Do the same things. To them. To who? The slaves. Knowing that your own.

Master. Also is in heaven. So. Again. Right at the center of it. Is a focus. Upon the Lord. And. I would add to that.

Paul applies. This. Christocentric. Approach. To all. Interpersonal. Relationships. He's been doing that. All throughout. This portion. Of Ephesians five.

And on into six. So I put those verses. Down there for you too. In regard to the church. Verse. Chapter five. Verse 19. Singing. Making melody. In your heart.

To the Lord. I mean that's. It's to be Christ. Centric. Christocentric. In our worship. And also in our relationships. In the church.

Verse 20. Giving thanks always. To God the Father. In the name of our Lord. Jesus Christ. Submitting. Verse 21. One to one another. In the fear of God. I mean you can't hardly. Go averse.

Without. Finding the Lord. In there. Because he's at the center. Of all of this. And. And so everything. That we do. In the context.

Of the church. In our fellowship. As a church. Be it worship. Be it. Our interpersonal relationships. It is to be done. With Christ. In our focus. See that's the answer.

For. For. Personality. Problems. You put it. Put it in. Mild terms. You know. Where people get at odds. With one another. They don't like a certain person.

Maybe don't agree. With their way of leadership. Or. What they've said. Or doing. Or way they dress. Or whatever it is. You know. That's the answer to that. Is that our focus.

Is not on that person. It's on Christ. And so. We do all these things. We worship together. We. Give thanks to the Lord. Together. We submit to one another.

You know. Not thinking of ourselves. But thinking of the needs of others. We do all of that. With Christ. As our focus. And then when we get to the home. We have the same thing. Verse 22.

Wives. Submit to your own husbands. As to the Lord. Now that makes all the difference. In the world. I see. And that removes all objections.

And excuses. Why. You know. Why. Why we can't obey. What God has said. Because we're doing it. As to the Lord. That also. Puts aside. The problem of personalities.

You know. Puts aside the objection. Well. He's not worth it. Or. You know. He's not a believer. Or. Or. You know. He's a scoundrel.

He's a. You know. Stupid. Couch potato. You know. Whatever. It puts all that aside. Because you're not doing it for him. You're doing it as unto the Lord's. And then when you get to verse 25.

And the husbands. Husbands. Love your wives. Just as Christ also loved the church. You see how that cuts through. All of the. Personalities. And all of the.

Our likes. And dislikes. And put. It cuts through. Emotions. And cuts through. Excuses. And. And all these other things. Difficulties. And.

And so. It cuts through all that. And puts Christ at the. At the focus. At the center. Of it. Yeah. And. This is. This is how. Those relationships will work.

Then chapter 6. Verse 1. Children. Obey your parents. How? In the Lord. In the Lord. Fathers. Verse 4. Bring them up. In the training. And admonition.

Of the Lord. See he's at the focus. At the center. Of every bit of it. So this. Is the Christocentric. Approach. To all our. Interpersonal relationships. In the church.

Now. I should also say. Further. And this is important. We're just kind of. Building the. Groundwork. For the principles. That he's going to be teaching. But the principle.

That Paul teaches here. Holds true. Even in the absence. Of Christianity. On. On either side. Of the relationship. Because.

That's very typical. Is it? I mean. Christian slaves. With pagan masters. Or. Christian masters. With pagan slaves. Likewise.

It can cross over. Into the application. Into the. Workplace. Christian employees. Working for pagan employers. Or. Christian employers. With pagan employees.

See. Where. Christianity. Where Christ. Is missing. On either side. Of the relationship. It doesn't change. The principle. It still holds true. And so.

If you are a. Christian employee. Working for. An unbelieving. Employer. Then you follow. Paul's instructions. Regardless.

I mean. You don't. And it will work. And really. I could even. Go a step further. And say. That the principles. Taught.

Here. In scripture. Certain principles. About relationships. Will work. Even if both sides. Are pagans. There are principles. In scripture. That work.

When they are used. Doesn't mean. That the person. Is saved. By using those principles. But it means. That God blesses. Relationships. And businesses.

And other endeavors. He blesses those. If. Those people. Will follow. Christian principles. It's kind of. An amazing thing. All right. So let's. Just remember.

That it holds true. Regardless. So. A Christian slave. Can't say. Well. I don't have to obey. My. Master. Because he's an unbeliever. He can't say that. And.

Likewise. A Christian employee. Can't say. Well. You know. I can. You know. I can. Slough off. And. Rob from my employer. Because he's not a believer. Anyway. Well.

Obviously. Can't say that. So this. This principle applies. Even where Christianity. Is missing. From. One or the other side. Of the. Relationship. Let me say.

One other thing. Really. Kind of. In closing. Tonight. And I've run over. Anyway. But. This. This is an important issue.

And it's one that. Some people. A lot of people. Will bring up. When we get to this particular passage. And that is that. Paul is not condoning slavery. He's not condoning slavery.

He's. He's really admitting. It's reality. But he's not condoning it. In fact. I would even add. That nowhere in scripture. Is. Is. Is. Slavery. Commanded or condoned.

Practice of slavery. It just recognizes it. As a reality. And. Gives certain principles. To God's people. In.

In order to. You know. Handle some of the. Problems. In those kinds of. Those realities. And so.

With that. Said. We need to consider. Maybe several things. And that is. Number one. Slavery. Was an. Undeniable reality. In the Greco-Roman world. Of the New Testament.

Undeniable reality. In fact. So much so. That it wasn't. Wasn't even. Identified as they. As the problem. Of slavery. It was just so. Much a part of. Fabric. Of culture.

Not just in the Roman world. But in. Every. Every civilization. In that day. So. Understand that. And.

And. And. I think we'll understand. A little bit better. Why Paul. Why Paul writes. The way he does. It's been estimated. By the way. That.

In the Roman Empire. There were. Sixty. Million. Slaves. In Paul's day. Sixty. Million. In the Roman Empire. Slaves were acquired.

So many different ways. They were inherited. You know. They were purchased. Obviously. A lot of times. Through debt settlement.

Many. Many times. Through. As a result. Of judgment. For crimes. Committed. A person. Could become a slave. Even prisoners of war. Conquests.

And so. Those conquered. Were taken. As slaves. And so. Many different ways. That people became slaves. In those days. In fact. There. Even some cases.

Where a person. Would submit. To slavery. Kind of an indentured. Slave. Probably more. More like. The.

Like an employee. Than a slave. But still. Termed. Under slavery. In most cities. There were more slaves. Than free people. During this period.

Of time. And so. Because of that. Slaves. Constituted. The bulk. Of the workforce. I don't think.

We have. A concept. The right concept. Just how. How big. Slavery. Was in this day. And how much. A part. Of the overall.

Society. Slavery was. Again. So much. So. That. You couldn't. Even rightly. Define it. As a slave. Problem. Slavery. Problem. Just part.

Of life. That's not. Condoning it. That's. Admitting the reality. Or identifying. The reality. Of it. And. So. You know. They. Included. Domestic. Servants.

I mean. Manual. Laborers. Of course. I mean. That's what we normally. Think of. We think of slavery. In this. Time period. Or domestic. Servants. But also. Professional people.

Like doctors. And teachers. And administrators. And managers. Of the states. And households. And all kinds. Of things. All kinds. Of different. Slaves. Even many.

That were highly educated. In. In this day. It was just. Part of the. Of society. And so. Slavery. Slavery. Was so much. Part of the culture.

That to abolish it. If. If it went in. Abolish it. In one. Single stroke. It would have. Completely disintegrated. The society. That's not a case. For slavery.

That's identifying. How much. A part of. Of. Of the. World of man. Slavery was. In that day. And so. Therefore. If Christians.

Had liberated. Their slaves. And I think. Naturally. They would begin. To do that. But if they. Had done that. Immediately. At that time. They would have.

Actually condemned. Most of their slaves. To. Poverty. Unemployment. Poverty. In fact. Slavery was more. Like employment.

Than anything else. Not that they. Paid them wages. But some of them. Did they did. And they were. Able to acquire. Material things. And such. For their work.

But they were. Still slaves. In. The end result. Of Paul's teachings. In this. Passage. I think. Would. Essentially. End.

The evils. Of slavery. When. Paul. Talk. Concerning. The master. Slave. Relationship. What he taught. Was. Was.

Counterculture. To the Roman society. So. You really have. A. A. A. View. That Paul. Is. Is. Expressing. About the relationship.

Between masters. And slaves. A view. That was. Totally. Totally. Different. Totally. Contrary. To the. Thinking. About slaves. In his day.

Because. In his day. Slaves. Were regarded. As. Things. Rather. Than. Persons. And. I. Put this. Quote.

From Aristotle. Of course. Aristotle. Lived. Long. Before. Paul. Did. But this. Was. The mentality. Of. This. World. A slave. He said. Is a living. Tool. Just as.

A tool. Is an. Inanimate. Slave. Now. Think about. What he's. Saying. The only. Difference. Between. The two. Is. One's.

Living. And one's. Inanimate. But they're. Both. Just tools. That's all. They are. That was. The thinking. Of that day. Now. You don't. Get that. From. Paul. The principles. That Paul.

Is. Teaching. To the relationship. Of master. And slave. You don't. Get that. At all. You get something. Totally different. As we shall see. This was the thinking. Of the day. Aristotle. Also.

Said. That a slave. Is just a possession. With a soul. That's all. Or a tool. With a soul. So. Slave owners. Obviously. And even. In the early.

Years. Of our own. Country. Slave owners. Could do. With their slaves. Whatever they pleased. But you don't. Get that. From Paul's. Teachings. About how.

How masters. Should deal. With their. Slaves. So. Paul's. Intent. Was to address. This evil. In the Christian. Community. And demand.

A Christocentric. Approach. To the master. Slave. Relationship. Which of. Which was a reality. In the reality. In his day. But. If. The.

Two sides. Of the equation. Would follow. Paul's principle. The ultimate. Conclusion. Would be the end. Of slavery. And. And so. I think we need. To consider that.

When we. When we consider. What Paul has said. Here. About slavery. Yeah. Because we approach. The text. We wish that he would say. You know. Slave. So. Slave owners. Release your slaves.

And free them. We kind of want him to say that. But he didn't say that. And. He is simply addressing. A problem. And leading.

The people of the church. To approach it. With the mind of Christ. And. And. Let. Those principles. Take care of the problem. Itself. All right.

And I went ahead. And just gave you. What the outline. We're going to follow. Because we're not going to be able. To get into the. Actual text itself. And principles. But. Thought maybe. If you had the outline.

You could just. Maybe study the passage. For yourself. And see how it kind of. Plugs into it. And then. Next time. We'll. Take that. A step at a time. And.

Understand. Paul's principles. That he's teaching. And really commands. That he's giving. Slaves. And also their masters. Thank you.