Galatians 3:28

‘There can be neither Jew nor Greek, there can be neither bond nor free, there can be no male or female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.'

And as all who are His are ‘sons of God' there can be no difference between them. Being a Jew or a Gentile (thought of by Jews as ‘dogs') has been done away in Christ, a full answer to the Judaisers. The Gentile does not have to become a Jew because in Christ he stands in an equal position of acceptability before God without doing so. (But he does become a member of the new Israel, the Israel of God (Galatians 6:16) which incorporates both Jews and Gentiles. That is the central message of Ephesians 2:11. ‘Jew' does not equal ‘Israel', it is Jewish distinctiveness that is in mind here). Furthermore being bond-slaves or free makes no difference for they are now brothers (Philemon 1:16), of equal standing before God and in each others eyes. Many saw slaves as mere chattels, not as persons (Aristotle called them ‘animated tools'), but Christ has changed all that for in Christ they are brothers. Even the distinction between male and female has been done away. No longer should the male arrogantly lord it over the female. They should recognise their equal worth before God. For ‘in Christ' all are equal, of equal honour and of equal standing. For they are all ‘sons of God' and united as one in Him. This relates, of course, to their standing and status before God, not to their inter-relationships within the world.

In the Christian world the difference between Jew and Gentile ceased because every individual became of equal worth. In Christ such distinctions cease. So the Law no longer affects them. Master and slave becomes a relationship between two brothers, a revolutionary concept, even though one still legally had rights over the other. And the female gains a position of equality with the male. This latter was especially important in view of the low opinion of women held by many, especially by the Pharisees, who would pray, ‘I thank God you have not made me a woman', but they were not alone in their opinion.

But while this will affect the behaviour between these different functionaries in society it is not describing how that behaviour will be conducted. Many slaves of benevolent Christian masters would not want to be freed. There were worse things than slavery under a benevolent master. And women were still to recognise the ‘lordship' of their husbands (Ephesians 5:22), and be ‘in subjection' to them. There were still masters and servants. But in Christ they were all of equal value.