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Slaves have always had it tough. In early America, they had no property and no rights. It was worse in ancient societies; there, they literally didn’t have an identity. The law of non habens personam meant that they “did not have a person” or “did not have a face.”
But Jesus’s example would change all of that.
Many Bible readers have at least some understanding of the culture in which Jesus ministered 2,000 years ago: the richest person in the community was given the best seat at public events, while the poorest person was given the worst. Slaves didn’t even get a seat.
In other words, there was a seating order…and everybody knew their place.
But when Jesus came along, He taught a totally different standard, and lived by it, too! He preached the good news to the poor, healed those who were afflicted, and assumed the role of a lowly servant so He could wash the feet of His disciples. Then, Jesus challenged His disciples to follow that example.
As a result, the seating chart began to change.
In Who Is This Man, pastor and author John Ortberg described the impact Jesus’ example had on those who followed Him. The early disciples didn’t treat the rich with favoritism, nor did they deny the poorest slave love or mercy. In fact, the lowliest people were often elevated to a stature of importance in Christian circles. According to Ortberg:
In the early church, a slave might wander in and have one of the masters – one of the rich and powerful – get down on his knees, take a basin and a towel, and wash the feet of one regarded as a non-person by the law. The Didascalia Apostolorum, an early church order, instructed bishops not to interrupt a service to greet a wealthy person of high rank who entered late. But if a poor man or woman entered the assembly, the bishop was to do whatever was needed to welcome them in, even if it meant the bishop were to end up sitting on the floor.
The seating chart was changing.
Then again, changed seating charts have always been the by-product of a changed heart.
Resource’s Origin:
Who Is This Man by John Ortberg. Zondervan, 2012, Page 41.
Topics Illustrated Include:
Bishop
Care
Christians
Church
Favoritism
History
Jesus’ Teaching
Love
Poor
Respect
Slave
Wealth
Worship
(Resource cataloged by David R Smith)
