Colossians 3:24 – The Compensation of the Allotment

23 All, whatsoever you may be doing, work from the soul, as to the Lord and not to men
24 Being aware that from the Lord you will be getting the compensation of the enjoyment of an allotment: for the Lord Christ are you slaving.

Paul now directs the slave’s attention to the future. He may know that his labor is not in vain. His earthly master may not see everything and certainly does not always reward him justly, but the Lord does. That is why Paul speaks of “the compensation of the allotment.” It is a certain expectation.

Paul addresses these words specifically to slaves. That is significant. A slave generally owned nothing and usually had no inheritance to expect. Yet Paul assures him that he will receive an allotment from the Lord. What people may withhold from him, the Lord will give him. The believing slave’s future is not determined by his social position, but by the allotment set before him.

Paul therefore concludes with the words: “For the Lord Christ are you slaving.” The earthly master treats his slave as a slave, but Christ does something far greater. He gives His slaves an allotment. Not what is due a slave, but what an heir receives. The one who serves Christ ultimately possesses infinitely more than any earthly master could ever give.

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