1 Peter 2:18 KJV
[18] “Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.”
In Bible days, a servant was more of a slave than an employee. Some servants were hirelings, but many were considered the property of their masters. Their daily treatment was in the hands of their master. Some servants would have had masters who were good and gentle, meaning that they were fair in their treatment. Other servants were not so blessed but served under froward masters, meaning they were crooked.
The message to these early believers was simple. Live a life of submission to your masters, and do not lose your testimony if they mistreat you. Salvation does not give you a right to revolt but rather the grace to carry on. Live a godly life before crooked masters by being a good worker and submitting to their authority over you. A good picture of this in the Bible is in the life of Joseph. Even though he was repeatedly mistreated by those who were over him, he did not get bitter. Joseph never displayed signs of rebellion but always lived a life of submission before all.
As we look at our world today, God has blessed people in this country with good-paying jobs. We are servants, but we are also employees, and at the end of the pay period, we receive wages for our services. The Lord has blessed us with the ability to work as an employee to care for ourselves and our families independently.
We show gratitude by working hard each day and being a good employee. That means we should never ride the clock and take advantage of the company that hired us for the job. We are not there to sit around and complain about those in management. There is nothing Christ-like about blowing up on the job and demanding more benefits and raises. We can’t find that kind of behavior in this verse. The Lord wants us to go to work daily and give our best with the right attitude. A sorry attitude on the job does not display the spirit of Christ. If you have the testimony of being a lazy employee, then change that today. The place you work is your mission field. Do not destroy the testimony of your mission field by taking on the attitude of entitlement. Ask yourself if your boss and those who work with you view you as a good employee. If the answer is no, then make some changes today.