The Mark of a Slave

^{Exodus 21:6 The Message}then his master is to bring him before God and to a door or doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl, a sign that he is a slave for life.

This is a very difficult portion of a very difficult passage on slave ownership. Slaves served a maximum of six years and were set free in the seventh year. If a slave stated before a judge that he wanted to remain with the slave owner, the judge would approve the request and then the slave would be marked by piercing the earlobe with an awl.

Then the slave became a slave for life.

Paul spoke of being a slave for Jesus. He also mentioned that he had a thorn in his side that he prayed for fervently and often and that God told him would not be removed. We can only speculate on what the actual problem was.

But do we ever connect the two? God seems to be using the thorn in Paul's side for a glorious purpose. Perhaps it is a slave mark? Perhaps it is a pierced ear lobe?

I've heard preachers handle this subject and they mention that once the piercing was complete, that some kind of metal earring would also be put into the ear to keep the mark of piercing and of slavery visible. It was a continual reminder about the relationship between the slave and the slave owner.

As I said, this is a hard passage, and the obvious application is even harder:

Am I willing for God to mark me for life as his friend, his servant....his slave?? Aren't we marked through difficulty? Didn't Jesus promise persecution for those that are his friends?

I carefully, and humbly, state that I am willing to be marked for life. I will endure what God allows, even if it tears me apart inside. I will commit myself to him. I might even, like Paul, ask the thorns of life to be removed from me, but, again like Paul, I commit to endure them if God asks me to.

Will you?