It is a Christian belief and clearly stated in the Bible by Jesus.
But these American Christians we see today are NOT the same as the kind of Christians we have come to expect.
When audience members applauded executions and shouted "Let him die", no candidates said a thing about it. When you have a Republican leader, such as Andre Bauer, saying "Feed the poor and they'll breed", clearly, that goes against Christian teaching.
Ephesians 6:5 NLT Slaves, obey your earthly masters with deep respect and fear. Serve them sincerely as you would serve Christ.
1 Timothy 6:1-2 NLT Christians who are slaves should give their masters full respect so that the name of God and his teaching will not be shamed. If your master is a Christian, that is no excuse for being disrespectful. You should work all the harder because you are helping another believer by your efforts. Teach these truths, Timothy, and encourage everyone to obey them.
Clearly Jesus approves of slavery, otherwise he wouldn't be saying "be a better slave". This is why many confederates have no problem with slavery. Jesus says nothing against the gays, but the right wing makes gays central to their "hate", for lack of a better way to put it.
Someone once told me that helping the poor was central to the Bible. I believe that.
But how to help is the question.
Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.
Personally I think there are Natures battling inside each of us, RD. That's why it is important to feed Conscience, and work with it. We Each need to be seeing through our own eyes, right? We are alive in a World that rebelled, and is paying it's dues. When you think about it, there is allot wrong here. To borrow from Scripture, Our Force is Not Right.
That said, God First In All Things. That does not mean We always get it right,it does mean that we learn from our mistakes and develop. We don't Surrender In Spirit. It's weird saying this but instead of judging, set an example. Separate the Sin or act from the Sinner. We All stumble.My Philosophy in part, is that we each are of more value than the tangents we create. A constant theme throughout the Old and New Testaments, is Redemption, Reconciliation. For Each, there is a choice.
The Politics of the times of the Prophets, the Cultures were different, the People adapted or lived short lives. The Leaders had arbitrary power over life and death. Christ's mission was Salvation, not Political Science. He was here to redeem Souls, not Run for Office or Abolish Slavery, directly, anyway. I view the Bible as Inspired, it is a Book with hidden meaning by design, Matters to be revealed in their own time. There are pitfalls, there is even misdirection by design. There were Powers that were meant to be thrown off course, off guard, so, that does involve multi levels of understanding. It's a Tool. Let's distinguish between God, The Church, The Things many have claimed to do in His Name, both Rightly and Wrongly. I'm not big on Slavery. I know you aren't. How many slaves did Jesus have? Timothy?
I think Everyday we effect change, both good and bad. We help each other in allot of ways, more so when we try consciously. We do it by example, by what we say and do. We do it when we teach skill, respect for what is just. We effect attitude and motivation, tone, outcome. Purpose driven life? Not Someone Else's, but Each Our Own.
How many slaves does Christ have? For someone such as myself who has no mystical beliefs it's a matter of perspective. One could say billions and be perfectly correct.
But to say the focus was "spiritual salvation" may not be entirely true. The fact he told the rich over and over again to help the poor proves that he also wanted to reduce the physical suffering that comes from starvation and related ills. If it was all about "spirit", then the sooner they died, the sooner they could get to "Heaven".
I think he would say that his primary function was Salvation. Curing and Healing, easing suffering, are a part of the package. To claim that Christ Enslaved, a bit off of the top. Again, you are placing responsibility on him, for what others may have done in his name, rightly or wrongly. Learn how to distinguish.