Gospel Embellishment: The Work of Our Hands Text: Titus 2:9-10
Introduction: A Subversive Submission
We live in an age that is allergic to authority. The modern mind recoils at the very thought of submission. Our entire culture is built on the sandy foundation of personal autonomy, the right to be my own god, to define my own reality, to be subject to no one. And so, when we come to a text like this one, it lands on the modern ear with all the gentleness of a blacksmith's hammer. It speaks of slaves and masters, of submission and pleasing others. To our contemporaries, this is not just offensive; it is scandalous. It is Exhibit A in their case against the Scriptures as an antiquated and oppressive book.
But we must understand what the apostle Paul is doing here. He is not baptizing the brutalities of the Roman slave system. The New Testament is not a social policy paper endorsing the status quo. It is a slow-acting, world-altering, kingdom-advancing leaven. The gospel does not work by violent revolution from the outside, but by spiritual regeneration from the inside. The pagan world, like our own, was structured on dominance, power, and coercion. The Roman system of slavery was often a brutal and dehumanizing institution, a far cry from the indentured servitude regulated by Mosaic law. Man-stealing, the foundation of such systems, is a capital crime in Scripture (1 Tim. 1:10).
But how does God dismantle such a thing? He does not send in legions of angels to break the chains. He sends in something far more powerful: converted slaves. He plants Christian cells in the lowest rungs of a corrupt society and instructs them to live in such a way that the beauty of their doctrine becomes undeniable. Paul is teaching the Christians in Crete that their most potent weapon against the pagan darkness is a life of such integrity, such cheerful diligence, and such radical trustworthiness that it makes the gospel itself beautiful. Their work ethic was to be their apologetic. This is not about being a doormat; it is about adorning the doctrine. It is about living in such a way that your very life becomes an argument for the truth of the gospel.
Paul is giving instructions for how the lowest and most despised members of society can, through their daily work, put the glory of God on display and, in so doing, subvert the entire ungodly system from within. This is a strategy of gospel jujitsu. He is teaching them how to use the weight of the world's oppressive system against itself, all for the glory of God.
The Text
Urge slaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be pleasing, not contradicting, not pilfering, but demonstrating all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in everything.
(Titus 2:9-10 LSB)
A Gospel-Centered Work Ethic (v. 9)
Paul begins with the foundational exhortation, which is submission.
"Urge slaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be pleasing, not contradicting," (Titus 2:9)
The first thing to notice is that the command is to be "subject." This is the same root word used for wives submitting to husbands and for citizens submitting to the governing authorities. It is a military term, meaning to arrange oneself under authority. This is not a statement about essential worth or value. In Christ, there is neither slave nor free (Gal. 3:28). Before God, the slave and his master stand on perfectly level ground. But in the created order, God has established lines of authority, and He commands us to honor them. A Christian slave was to understand that in submitting to his earthly master, he was ultimately submitting to the Lord who had placed him there (Eph. 6:5-7). His service was not ultimately for man, but for God.
This submission was to be "in everything." This means in all lawful commands. The apostles gave us the principle that we must obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29). If a master commanded a slave to sin, to lie, to steal, or to worship an idol, the slave had a higher obligation to refuse. But in all the legitimate duties of his station, he was to be obedient. The goal was "to be pleasing." This is a radical command. The natural human response to being in a servile position is to do the bare minimum, to drag one's feet, to work only when the master is watching. But the Christian slave was to have a different motivation. He was to actively seek to please his master, not as a sycophant, but as one whose work was an offering to God.
And this attitude was to be demonstrated in his speech: "not contradicting." The word here means not talking back, not being argumentative or insolent. It speaks of a respectful and quiet demeanor. This is not because the master is always right, but because God is always worthy of honor. A quarrelsome, back-talking servant brings reproach upon the name of his God. A respectful, diligent servant forces the world to ask what makes him different. This is where the subversion begins. A pagan master would expect sullen compliance. What he gets from a Christian slave is cheerful, respectful diligence. This creates a cognitive dissonance. It is a quiet testimony that this slave serves a different and better Master.
Integrity as Evangelism (v. 10a)
Paul then moves from the attitude of the heart and the words of the mouth to the actions of the hands.
"not pilfering, but demonstrating all good faith..." (Titus 2:10a)
"Pilfering" refers to petty theft. It was a common problem among slaves in the ancient world. A slave might skim a little off the top, take small items from the household, or short-change a transaction. It was an expected part of the system, a small way for the powerless to exert some control. But Paul says that for the Christian slave, this is absolutely forbidden. Why? Because the Christian is not his own; he has been bought with a price. His hands belong to God, and they are not to be used for theft, no matter how small or justifiable it might seem.
Instead of pilfering, he is to demonstrate "all good faith." This means he is to be utterly trustworthy. He is to be a man of his word. When he is sent to the market, he returns with the correct change. When he is given a task, he completes it with integrity, even when no one is watching. His master should be able to trust him with anything. This "good faith" is the foundation of a powerful witness. In a world of deceit, corruption, and self-interest, a man of unshakable integrity is a walking miracle. He is a living demonstration of the regenerating power of the gospel.
Think of Joseph in Potiphar's house. He was a slave, sold into bondage by his own brothers. He had every reason to be bitter, resentful, and untrustworthy. Instead, he worked with such diligence and "good faith" that Potiphar put him in charge of his entire household. The Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake (Gen. 39:5). This is the principle Paul is teaching. A Christian's work, done with integrity, becomes a conduit of God's common grace into the world, and a powerful advertisement for God's saving grace.
The Ultimate Goal: Adorning the Doctrine (v. 10b)
Finally, Paul gives the ultimate purpose behind all these commands. This is the "so that."
"...so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in everything." (Titus 2:10b)
The word for "adorn" is the Greek word from which we get our word "cosmetics." It means to arrange, to put in order, to make beautiful. The doctrine of God our Savior, the gospel, is intrinsically beautiful. It is the most glorious truth in the universe. But that truth can be made to look ugly by the lives of those who profess it. Conversely, it can be decorated, embellished, and made attractive by our conduct.
Paul is saying that the behavior of a Christian slave in his daily, mundane work has cosmic significance. His submission, his pleasing attitude, his respectful speech, his absolute trustworthiness, all of it is like putting beautiful jewelry on the gospel. It makes the truth shine. When an unbelieving master sees his Christian slave working diligently without supervision, speaking respectfully when corrected, and handling his money with perfect honesty, he is forced to confront the reality of the God that slave serves. The slave's life makes the master's paganism look drab and ugly by comparison.
Notice that this is to be done "in everything." This is not just for Sunday mornings. This is for the workshop, the kitchen, the fields. Every task, no matter how menial, is an opportunity to adorn the doctrine. This is how Christianity conquered the Roman Empire. Not through political power or military might, but through the transformed lives of ordinary people, including slaves, who out-lived, out-loved, and out-worked their pagan neighbors. Their lives were a sermon that the world could not ignore.
Conclusion: Your Work as Worship
It is easy for us, in our context, to look down on this passage as irrelevant. We are not slaves, and this seems like a relic of a bygone era. But to do so is to miss the profound, timeless principle at work. The specific circumstances have changed, but the calling has not. Every one of us is in a position of submission to someone. You are an employee with a boss, a student with a teacher, a citizen under the magistrate. And every one of us is called to adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in everything.
How do you conduct yourself at your job? Are you pleasing to your boss? Do you work with the same diligence when he is out of the office as when he is looking over your shoulder? Are you respectful in your speech, or are you known for grumbling and contradicting? Are you a person of "all good faith"? Can you be trusted with the company's resources, with petty cash, with your time card? Or do you engage in a modern form of pilfering, stealing time, wasting resources, giving less than a full day's work for a full day's pay?
These are not small things. These are the very things that either adorn or deface the gospel in the eyes of a watching world. Your unbelieving coworker may never read a book of theology, but he reads your life every day. Your conduct is a commentary on the doctrine you profess. We are all slaves to someone. We are either slaves to sin, which leads to death, or we have become slaves to righteousness, which leads to life (Rom. 6:16-18). And the one who is a slave of Christ is the Lord's freedman. Our ultimate Master is Christ, and it is for His approval that we labor.
Therefore, let us go to our various callings, our jobs, our homes, our studies, and let us resolve to be the kind of people who make the gospel look as beautiful as it truly is. Let us, by our cheerful submission, our diligent work, and our rock-solid integrity, adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in everything. Let our lives be the decoration that makes the world stop and stare at the beauty of our King.