“Jesus told this story to His disciples: ‘There was a certain rich man who had a manager handling his affairs. One day a report came that the manager was wasting his employer’s money. So the employer called him in and said, “What’s this I hear about you? Get your report in order, because you are going to be fired.”’” (Luke 16:1-2 NLT)
We often lose sight of the fact that our job, our work, as believers in Jesus, is a gift from God to be managed as if we were employed directly by Jesus Himself. It could be argued that, outside our homes and family, there’s no greater environment where our witness as a believer is more vitally important. To be lazy and non-productive; to just do enough to get by, to fly under the boss’ “radar” is a sin and we are answerable to God for our attitude and behavior.
Showing up early and ready to work should be our normal pattern, regardless of whether we like our work or not. God Himself has given us that assignment and He never does anything without a reason. If we’re there we have purpose and we must be dependent upon the Lord to enable us to do our absolute best to His honor and acclaim.
Often the “mission” is a person or persons. It could be a co-worker, our boss, the person on the other end of the phone or whoever cleans the windows, but regardless of who it is our primary goal is to do the best job possible for our company. Any “witnessing” has to be done on our time, not company time. Hanging out in the breakroom talking to people about Jesus may make us feel better about ourselves, but it will also get us fired, and rightfully so.
Our commitment is first to Jesus, then to our boss/company, but that priority doesn’t excuse us from doing our best to forward the purposes of our employer. If, for moral or other reasons, we can’t in good conscious do that, we need to ask the Lord to put us on another job where we can.
David Bahnsen has written a new book entitled Full Time: Work and the Meaning of Life, in it he writes: “How the sovereignty and faithfulness of God reframes a true understanding of the economy and financial stewardship are not talked about nearly enough by Christians. Too often, we are shaped by fear, market volatility, an over-reliance on politics, and, especially, a secular view of work and money.” In his book, Bahnsen argues that work is better understood by the truth God has revealed about the world and who we are in His image.
He further writes: “But in the marketplace, where most people spend most of their time, there is an opportunity for incredible cultural conquest and influence. And I believe that we have to understand creationally why God made us to that higher calling and the opportunity it represents for us in the future.” (See BreakPoint Christian Work Is Christian Witness -02-04-25)
As I understand my responsibility to Christ and His Church, I owe it to Him and myself, as well as my boss or company, to excel, to stand out to His glory. Sometimes, admittedly, there’s a thin line between accepting praise and honor and pointing it to Jesus, but nonetheless, if our heart is right and our positive work ethic and it’s results are motivated by a heart that loves Jesus, He WILL be glorified and honored, and our work environment will be blessed.
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 