Our Work in the World and the Gospel of Christ
THE BIBLE ELEVATES OUR WORK FAR ABOVE ANYTHING THE WORLD CAN CONCEIVE—IT REMINDS US THAT WE ARE BEARING WITNESS TO THE NATURE OF GOD AS WE WORK. ON THE OTHER HAND, IT RESISTS THE LIE OF THE WORLD THAT OUR WORK IS WHAT DEFINES US AND COMPRISES OUR CENTRAL IDENTITY.
Everyone should have a job they hate at least once in life. If you have never had to wake up at 2am and drive to a warehouse to unload trailers of boxes for 6-7 hours, you have missed out. I promise you that I never thought my “vocation” was to be a third shift union card-carrying laborer (Teamsters Local 89!) who unloaded trucks. But there I was, in my mid-twenties, in the second half of seminary, with a newly born baby. And I was working in a job I hated. No matter how much I might have tried to dress it up, it was really hard to think that my work was somehow tied to anything close to a calling or vocation. I hated that job.
A lot of our conversations about work and faith romanticize reality, suggesting that Jesus cares a lot about some lines of work, but there might be in which he really has little interest. Or we risk speaking of work in tones detached from reality, implying that there is no such thing as a job that is just inherently unenjoyable and toilsome. In doing so, we insinuate to those who labor in jobs in which they feel no real sense of fulfillment or calling that they are somehow missing something or that their faith is deficient.
The reality is that there are plenty of miserable jobs out there. Someone has to do them. And Christianity is not just some magical fairy dust to be sprinkled on them, suddenly turning them into deeply rewarding and satisfying “vocations.”
That said, how should we think about our work in the world as Christians? Thankfully, there are a number of biblical principles that provide us with a paradigm for how to think about the nature and purpose of our work. Not only do they offer practical applications full of encouragement and wisdom, but they also challenge some of the assumptions we have about our work and the ways the world can so easily distort our perspective.
First, God is at work in the world.
Everything begins with and finds its meaning in God’s work. The Scriptures make clear that God was at work in the beginning, forming the created order out of nothing by the power of his word (Genesis 1:1-2:3). This is fundamental to understanding all of the Bible and the grand arc of redemptive history. But it all begins in his work as Creator.
Theologian Carl Henry put it well:
“Man as a worker finds his archtype [sic] in God the mighty Worker. Think of God’s mighty works. The Great Worker, “maker of heaven and earth” (Apostles’ Creed), created out of nothing . . . God made the light, the heavens and the earth, the stars, the birds and beasts, then man in his own image for fellowship with himself. What magnificent power! What matchless skill! What superb artistry! Think of what was “all in a day’s work” for the Almighty One!”[1]
But it is also clear that God continues to work in his world. He has not suspended his labor. While his creative work was indeed unique and he rested from it, he continues to work as the sovereign ruler and Lord of all. For example, note Jesus’ words in John 5:17. After healing a paralyzed man in Jerusalem on the Sabbath and being confronted by the Pharisees, Christ simply tells them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”
Again, Henry helps us:
“[B]ehind God’s world is more than a Planner; there is a Preserver. The universe he has called into existence God sustains. He stands by his work; he does not abandon it. There is no “moral holiday,” no unjustifiable strike, no premature retirement. . . . The work of God does not stop with creation; it includes preservation.”[2]
Even now, God is actively working in your life, sovereignly directing and guiding the course of your life. He is at work and he is at work for your eternal good.
If we fail to grasp this—if it does not form the foundation of our thinking about work—we will have a really hard time having a clear perspective on our own work. If God is working, right now, for your good, then do you doubt that he is mindful of your own work? Surely he sees you, he knows you, he loves you.
Second, we were created to work.
What distinguishes you and me from the rest of the created order? Every speck of the cosmos was created to reveal the glory of God. We share that in common with oceans, stars, beetles, and ferns. But only humans are made in God’s image, designated as his image bearers. You and I reflect his character and nature before the cosmos as we submit to his lordship and obey his word.
Our work is a vital part of that image bearing. Have you ever considered this? We reflect his image through our work, and it has been this way from the beginning. In Genesis 2:1-3, Moses recounts God’s work of creation and his rest: “God finished his work that he had done.” But then, after recounting the creation of the garden of Eden, he makes very clear Adam’s assignment: “The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it” (Gen. 2:15).
Have you ever noticed that last part, “to work it and keep it”? This is not mere recreation. Adam is placed within a perfect world, where sin is unknown, and his charge is to work. It’s almost as if Moses is saying, “Adam gets dropped off, handed a job description and is told by the Creator, ‘Get to work!’”
Of course, there will be other commands given to Adam that will frame the way we understand the very essence of what it means to be human. But this one is foundational. Just as Yahweh works, so too do those made in his image. Notice this says nothing about salaries, wages, or income. Work is not necessarily tied to financial income. That means, in part, that there are countless expressions of work that bring glory to God yet have nothing to do with a job.
The Christian category of vocation—or calling—refers to God’s lordship over his people and his providential rule over the course of our lives.
When we speak of vocation, this is, at least in part, what we are talking about. The Christian category of vocation—or calling—refers to God’s lordship over his people and his providential rule over the course of our lives. So vocation certainly includes the idea of God’s effectual calling unto salvation for those who believe.
But when we speak of the connection of work and vocation--and these are not necessarily the same thing--we should recognize that every one of us has a common vocation: we are all made to work. It is not optional. There is no biblical category of a child of God who lives merely for his or her own appetites and leisure, preoccupied with self. In some way, each of Adam’s offspring is charged “to work it and keep it.” The question then becomes, into which bit of acreage will God place you to carry out that common calling?
Would the people who know you best say you are a hard worker? Let’s be honest, not everything we may be tempted to call “work” is actual work. It may not be glamorous, or even enjoyable. But you were created to work to the glory of God and for the good of your neighbor.
Third, sin has corrupted the world and our work.
While work was not a result of the fall, it was corrupted and cursed. We can infer that Adam’s labor previously had been pure joy, but now, under the curse, it became burdensome and toilsome (Gen. 3:17-19). By the way, if you want an extended meditation on this, just read Ecclesiastes.
While work was not a result of the fall, it was corrupted and cursed.
But the fall has not only corrupted the world around us, including our work, it has corrupted our own nature as God’s image bearers. We now resist work through laziness. Ever since the fall there have been those who oppress workers (James 5:1-6). And there have been those who would cheat, rob, and lie in their work. And, perhaps most perniciously, we are always tempted by the idolatry of work.
Maybe you think Christians who idolize their work are only those involved in especially glamorous or prolific work. So sure, the Christian senator might be tempted to idolize his work, and the Christian CEO may struggle not to do the same with hers. Or maybe it’s only “workaholics” who idolize their work. But a biblical understanding of idolatry is far broader. It shows us that we idolize our work whenever we expect it to do for us or be to us what only God can do or be. So you may have a job you do not particularly enjoy. It may be drudgery. And you may be bitter because you think, “This is not what I signed up for on career day. No one respects me for doing this. Everyone else around me at church is in more desirable and fulfilling jobs.” But our hearts often reveal where our identity is and the particular idols we have forged.
Fourth, Christ redeems and reorients our work.
Through his atoning life and death, Christ reverses the curse and restores our labor unto God. That’s part of the great wonder of redemption. It is the promise that begins in Genesis 3 with an anticipated son of the woman who will crush the head of the serpent. And the fulfillment of that promise is played out progressively throughout the entirety of the Bible. Our work is not exempted from this redemptive power.
Consider how Paul describes this in Ephesians 6:
“Bondservants, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a bondservant or is free.” (Ephesians 6:5-8).
We do not carry out our work as mere human drones or workers. We do so as “bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man.”
From the beginning, the early church understood that the gospel of Christ transforms the nature of our work. The early church picked up this kind of apostolic teaching and celebrated labor as something done not ultimately to please human authorities but as worship unto God himself. For example, we could go to Roman catacombs and find images of early Christians depicted in the everyday work of farming and milking cows. In the Greco-Roman world, these were lowly and menial tasks, void of dignity. The church was led by former fishermen, tax-collectors, and tent makers. This was not a movement of elites, or philosophers. Why? Because all work, when done in faith to the glory of God, gets reoriented with the gospel. We do it as unto the Lord, not men.
Our work is one of the primary ways we fulfill the great commandment to love God and neighbor.
Or we might consider Martin Luther’s insight on the priesthood of all believers. The German Reformer did not mean to imply that the church had no need of clergy. What he did mean is that Christian men and women do not need to be pastors or exercise pastoral functions in order to be priests unto God. Luther detonated the medieval Catholic dichotomy between religious orders and the life of laypeople, reminding us that all work is holy when done by one who is righteous through faith in Christ.
Of course, we recognize that not all work is redeemable. There is work that is evil, demonic, and wicked. There are some lines of work that are “out of bounds” for Christians. It should go without saying, but it is impossible to attach the adjective of “Christian” to a slumlord, drug dealer, pimp, etc.
Our work is one of the primary ways we fulfill the great commandment to love God and neighbor. This is certainly true of our paid employment, but our work extends far beyond a paycheck. So our work is never merely about us and our own individual appetites. When Christians assess the value of their work, we do so with a different rubric than the world. “Whatever contributes to the elevation and good of mankind is worthy,” Carl Henry wrote, “even if it lacks romance and novelty.”[3]
Think about your work right now. Let’s limit it to your job, what you do for income. Have you ever paused and considered how your labor serves the good of others? Did throwing boxes out of a truck at 3am at UPS do that? Sure it did. Did I enjoy that? No way. But there is meaning given to our work, even when it is work that is grueling and seemingly mindless.
Fifth, God’s people will work in the new creation.
This often seems to be where Christians are the most surprised. “Wait, work in heaven?!” But consider what the Apostle John tells us in his vision in Revelation 22. He portrays a new Eden, a new Garden, in which God’s people serve Him forever. But this picture is not one of perpetual or eternal recreation. What makes the vision glorious is the absence of the curse. So consider for a moment what it will be like to work, to serve God and one another, without sin, fatigue, or weakness.
We actually get a picture of what is foretold here in Isaiah 65. Remember, this is Isaiah’s prophecy of the coming judgment that will await Israel in exile due to their unfaithfulness to God. But then there is an astonishing promise: “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind” (17). What will characterize all of this newness that God promises? From all we have in these passages it is clear it will be pure joy and gladness to the glory of God. But there will also be work:
“They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be, and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.” (Isaiah 65:21-22)
Consider that last promise for just a moment. “My chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.” The gospel of Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of these promises. Christ’s kingdom, established already but awaiting its full consummation, will bring this to fruition. Pure joy in work. We were created for this and, thanks be to God, Jesus Christ has redeemed our work. And we anticipate the work that will be ours in eternity.
So are you working in a job that seems joyless? Or perhaps you have retired. Maybe you are unemployed and wondering if you will even find work to pay the bills. But if you are a Christian, you live with the certain hope that a day is coming when this promise will be fulfilled. This promise is yours in Christ Jesus. If you feel dissatisfied with your work now—whether paid or not—that may actually be God’s grace to you, reminding that your work right now is anticipating the work you will enjoy in the new creation.
On the one hand, the Bible elevates our work far above anything the world can conceive—it reminds us that we are bearing witness to the nature of God as we work On the other hand, it resists the lie of the world that our work is what defines us and comprises our central identity. To keep this focus, we desperately need the gospel. It is only in the evangelion of Christ that we are reminded that our fundamental identity is as those who have been reconciled to God, adopted as his sons and daughters, united to Christ by faith. At the very center of who I am, that’s my defining identity. And it is unmovable.
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[1] Carl F.H. Henry, Aspects of Christian Social Ethics (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1964), 50.
[2] Ibid, 51.
[3] Ibid, 59.
