Why did Paul say in Colossians 3:22 "Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart" and not come out against slavery?
The first point, slavery in the Roman Empire was totally different from slavery in America. Slavery in America was based on race. Slavery in the Roman Empire was basically indentured servitude. Doctors were slaves. Lawyers were slaves. Business people were slaves. I became a slave if I owed you money and couldn't pay back my debts, then I became your slave. See my post here, where I argue that slavery in the OT was not chattel slavery
Slaves could work out of their slavery by earning money and paying the person back, and then they were no longer a slave. Not all slavery was like that in the Roman Empire - conquered people were at times enslaved and that was tragic but that majority of the Roman Empire at that time comprised debt slavery.
What is Paul doing in Colossians when he says "slaves obey your master" he's saying we're not going the Spartacus route - an armed revolt against Rome and free ourselves.
Instead, Paul writes in Galatians 3:28, "in Christ there is no longer Jew nor gentile slave nor free, but we are all one in Christ - There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." This verse emphasizes the unity found in Christ, transcending social, cultural, and gender-based distinctions. It highlights that in the spiritual realm, these earthly divisions hold no significance.
Then in the letter of Philemon, Paul writes this to Philemon to receive Onesimus back, not merely as a slave, but as a brother in Christ. In other words, Paul is laying the foundation for the abolition of slavery when he's doing it the same way Wilberforce did it in the English parliament to abolish the slave trade, which is we're gonna work in the system here.
We're not going to have an armed revolt. So if you're a slave, and you've put your faith in Christ don't prevail against your master, instead with your integrity, with your compassion, and your lifestyle point your master to Jesus Christ. Paul is saying, if you're a master - just remember that's not a slave, that's a brother in Christ. So let's forget this bit about master and slave and let's start accepting each other as brothers in Christ.
