Paul wanted to make it clear that when it comes to relationships in God’s church, masters and slaves are equals. This is seen most clearly in Philemon 1:15–16: Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back for good—no longer as a slave, but better than a slave—as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a man and as a brother in the Lord.

When we read about the idea of treating each other as brothers, it probably does not fill us with shock and surprise. Certainly not if we live in the Western world where the Christian faith has had a significant impact on the structures and assumptions in society. The biblical teaching that we are all made in the image of God—that we all have innate dignity and worth—has resulted in a world where the very idea that someone could be a slave to someone else is immediately rejected as evil and wrong. It is not a matter for debate. Even amongst those who care nothing for Christ, there is widespread agreement on this topic. However, for the greatest part of history and certainly in the time when this letter was written, things were very different. Slavery was part and parcel of the Roman world, it was the way society operated. Scholars estimate that approximately a third of the total population were slaves—one in every three men and women.

There were slaves who worked in the fields picking olives and figs; slaves in the home, cooking and cleaning; slaves who helped with administration and education; slaves who played music and wrote letters. Everywhere you went, there were slaves. Some of them enjoyed a decent standard of living with regular food, clothing, and shelter. It was the master’s responsibility to provide such things. However, many would have most certainly been neglected and abused with long hours and harsh discipline. One thing to bear in mind is that anyone could have been a slave. It was not based on skin colour or ethnicity. Certainly there would have been parallels with the Atlantic slave trade, but there were also many differences.

Within this system, whether you were chained in the fields or free to roam your master’s house, you were considered to be property. You belonged to someone. You were not a person with rights. You could not appeal to courts when you were wronged. There was no equality between you and your master. He would be the boss and you the servant. He would tell you what to do and you would have to obey him, or else. That is the context in which the early church lived and now Paul says to Philemon: no longer as a slave but better than a slave, as a dear brother.

As modern readers, we probably do not fully appreciate exactly how radical this statement would have been at the time.

I do not think we can appreciate just how radical this idea would have been at the time. Property had now become a person and not just a fellow human being or a fellow Roman citizen, but a brother. Someone who has the same status. Someone who has a right to my time and energy. Someone who must be loved. Someone who must be treated with dignity. Person, not property.

A similar teaching is found in Galatians 4:1–7. There Paul writes to affirm that those baptized into Christ are all sons of God. Every Christian believer has been washed clean by his blood. The Son who took on flesh perfectly obeyed God’s law and died the death that we deserve. He came to redeem all those chosen by the Father before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:3–5). Equally dead in our sins and transgressions (Ephesians 2:1–10), we are not part of God’s church because we are better or more deserving than others. We have been shown mercy on account of God’s sovereign choice and not because of anything good within us. As a result there is no Jew or Greek, no slave or free, no male or female (Galatians 3:28). We are all equally loved and valued by Jesus. We are all made part of a new family. All have been given the same Spirit. All have been made fellow heirs with Christ. Every Christian is to be treated as a brother because that is what God has made us.

It is not just in God’s church where we are to think differently, but also in our relationships toward those outside. As we see in Colossians (Colossians 3:22 – 4:1), Christian masters must treat their slaves justly and fairly. That is not just applicable to their Christian slaves, but all their slaves. They must care for them. They must be the best masters they can possibly be. Slaves likewise must not rebel. Whether their masters are Christian or not, they must continue to serve them without complaint. Working within the structures of their day, their aim is to be the best slaves—slaves that please their master even if they do not earn a reward from him. The Lord will give them an inheritance. Through their behaviour slaves will win an opportunity to confess Christ to their masters, and masters will be able to do the same toward their slaves.