Many followers of Jesus live under the illusion that their work is not as important and God-honoring as the work of others. We’ve neglected Martin Luther’s teaching that all Christians are priests, regardless of occupation. Instead, we’ve created a hierarchy of jobs ranging from the most “spiritual” to the least.
We’ve traded the dignity that God bestows on every life for an unbiblical struggle with spiritual job comparison. And no matter what we do, there is always someone with a more “spiritual” job. A bigger platform. A greater impact.
Enough.
Properly understood, our work is to be thoughtfully woven into the fabric of the Christian life. Work is one of the best ways we can grow in Christlikeness, love our neighbors, and tangibly advance the kingdom of God in the world around us.
From Tom Nelson’s book Work Matters, here are seven reasons why our work matters for today and eternity.
1. All Christians are called to “full-time Christian work,” doing good work well for the glory of God, regardless of their specific vocation.
2. God designed and intended our work, our vocational calling, to be an act of God-honoring worship.
3. The excellence of our work often gives us the credibility to speak of the excellence of our Lord Jesus and to share the good news of the gospel with our coworkers.
4. According to Scripture, our work, no matter what we have been called to do, is filled with great meaning and significance.
5. Our gospel mission really advances when we faithfully embrace our vocations, whatever and wherever that may be.
6. One of the primary ways we tangibly love our neighbors is to do excellent, God-honoring work in our various vocations.
7. Our God-honoring work is often one of the greatest apologetics for our God-focused words.
Your work matters a great deal to God, to others, and to our world. In the Christian teachings, there is no ordinary, average work. The work God has called you to do is extraordinary. Don’t miss out on what God is doing in the world around you by taking an ordinary approach to work.
Dorothy Sayers was right when she said in her essay “Why Work”, “The only Christian work is good work well done.”
We must not compartmentalize our work and our worship, but rather we must learn to see our work as an act of worship.
But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for if it prospers, you too will prosper. – Jeremiah 29:4-7
The greatest opportunity our vocation affords us is not the financial reward it brings or the important contribution we can make to the common good, as significant as these things are, but rather the glorious conduit it becomes in conforming us into greater Christlikeness.
Our work is one of the primary tools God uses to transform us into his glorious image. And that, if nothing else, is a great reason to get up and go to work today.
