THREE WAYS YOU ARE HONORING GOD THROUGH YOUR WORK

This is the third in a series of short posts on work and why it is essential to our physical, mental and spiritual well being.

In the last post in this series titled “THREE BIBLICAL EXAMPLES THAT EXPLAIN MAN’S BASIC NEED AND DESIRE TO WORK” we established that man works to Feed, Clothe and Shelter himself. If you missed the post you can read it at http://salvationisagift.blogspot.com/2013/01/three-biblical-examples-that-explain.html.

Man's work is actually about much more than simply obtaining food, clothing and shelter.  God actually expects that we work to honor Him.  Here are three reasons we know this to be true.

God Is Honored When We Take Full Advantage of the Gifts He Has Blessed Us With

There are few greater tragedies in life than the squandering of great gifts (talents).  God grants us specific gifts so that we can work and be productive in our lives.  The Apostle Peter wrote in 1 Peter 4:10 "As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace".  This is a clear admonition to use the gifts God has provided us with.  Romans Chapter 12 verses 6-8 are even more specific about the different types of gifts we receive and how we are supposed to use them as it reads "Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness."  Each of us must examine ourselves to understand how God has gifted us and then we must use those gifts in our work so that we can glorfiy God through our accomplishments whether they be in the secular or spritual areas of our lives.

God Is Honored When We Work To Provide For Our Families and For Those In Need

Scripture is pretty clear that God expects us to work if we are physically able. In II Thessalonians Paul's directive is pretty blunt. In Chapter 3 Verse 10 it is written "If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat". In Proverbs 28:19 scripture says "Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty."  Work is not necessarily synonymous with employment.  We don't have to be employed by someone else in order to work.  We can work by farming our own land, maintaining our households or simply serving others.  The key thing to remember is that we are expected to work if we are able to work so that we provide for our ourselves, our families and others in need.  Working to help others in need is actually commanded in Ephesians 4:28 which says "...[one] must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need".  God expects us to work so that we provide for our own needs as well as the needs of others.


God Is Honored When We Work To Our Hightest Potential


From Sportspectrum.com

God doesn't expect us to work just enough to get by. He expects us to give it our all.  Colossians 3:17 says "And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." God wants your work to be exemplary.  He knows your workplace is a mission field.  God knows that the eyes that look out from the darkness will see you if you are His light. How you conduct yourself at work can bring either great glory or dishonor to God. Matthew 5:16 says "Let your light shine before men that they may see your good deeds and praise your father in heaven".  By giving work your all and being a living witness as you work you are glorifying God.  We should always remember that all of our work should be done as if we were doing it directly for God.

The next time you wonder exactly what you are working for take heart that you know THREE WAYS YOU ARE HONORING GOD THROUGH YOUR WORK.

THREE BIBLICAL EXAMPLES THAT EXPLAIN MAN’S BASIC NEED AND DESIRE TO WORK

This is the second in a series of posts on work and why work is essential to our physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing.

In the last post titled “TWO KEY FACTS ABOUT THE BIBLICAL ORIGINS OF WORK” we established that God Created Work and God Created Man to Work. If you missed the post you can read it at http://salvationisagift.blogspot.com/2013/01/two-key-facts-about-biblical-origins-of.html. The modern day definition of work from Webster’s dictionary was presented as [to] “Be engaged in physical or mental activity in order to achieve a purpose or result.”

There are three innate reasons that man engages in work and those reasons have changed little in over 6000 years. They are:

Man works to eat. The first recorded work that man performed was for an essential purpose that continues to this very day – in order that he has food to eat. In Genesis 2:5 scripture reads “Now no shrub of the field had yet grown on the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground.” From the dawn of time God intended for man to cultivate the ground and produce food to sustain himself. Man not only gardened and gathered food from the fields but he also worked in the form of hunting animals for food. There are numerous references in Genesis to the hunting of game for food.  In Genesis 26:28 it says that “Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game”. Food is essential to life. Man has always worked in order to eat.

Man works to clothe himself. Almost every child from a very early age knows the Biblical story of Adam and Eve and how God provided clothing for them in the Garden of Eden. Man’s need for clothing originated almost as soon as man originated. The idyllic climate of the Garden of Eden changed immediately when man was kicked out into the world as we know it today. The change in climate outside the Garden of Eden is well chronicled in the Old Testament in numerous accounts of floods, hail storms, droughts, etc. The harsh climate outside the Garden of Eden no doubt required special garments to provide cover, warmth and comfort. The importance of clothing is reinforced in the Old Testament through the sixty plus times that clothing is mentioned. There are many descriptions of animal skins and animal fur being used to produce garments for protective clothing. The Bible is filled with examples of man’s need for clothing for warmth and protection. One such example is in Job 31:19-21 where Job talks about providing warm garments to the needy so that they might not perish. Man has always worked to clothe himself.

Man works to shelter himself. There is clear documented evidence that in Patriarchal times Abraham, Issac and Jacob lived in tents. And it’s reasonable to assume that the art of tent making was likely derived by and passed down through ancestors who learned to knit animal skins together to provide cover from rain and other inclement weather. The Israelites were well known as sheep and goat herders. Sheep and goats not only provided food but their fur was woven together to make tent fabrics. Man hunted animals and raised goats and sheep to help provide shelter for him. In the Old Testament there are many references to the fortified cities that were constructed to provide sheltered protection from attackers. Jericho is one such fortified city of shelters described in the book of Joshua. Houses of the Old Testament provided shelter for man and often times provided shelter for domestic animals in the harsh winter climates. Man has always worked to provide shelter for himself.

It was God’s plan that man would work to provide food, clothing and shelter for himself and we are somewhat hardwired for it in our very nature. In future posts we will discuss how avoiding responsibility for work leads to life problems because of the conflict it causes personally, societally and spiritually. So the next Monday morning you feel that slight urge to play hooky from work you’ll have THREE BIBLICAL EXAMPLES THAT EXPLAIN MAN’S BASIC NEED AND DESIRE TO WORK to remind you why you need to head on in.