Theology Of Work

“When deprived of meaningful work, men and women lose their reason for existence; they go stark, raving mad.” – Fyodor Dostoevsky

“It is well with me only when I have a chisel in my hand.” – Michelangelo

Think about it: Work is life. Life is work. With the amount of time you spend on the job, if you don’t learn to love it and gain fulfillment from it, it’s going to be a miserable life. But it’s not about finding a job you love. It’s about working in a way that you love the people around you and you love to accomplish things and produce.

No job will make you successful, but how you work can. Sometimes the job falls apart. Keep at the work. I tell young people, “The harder you work with a good attitude, the more opportunities you will have to better your working conditions.”

Let me give you some principles on the theology of work.

1. Working is godly.

“Godly” means “God-like.” Can we ever be like God? Not when it comes to His attributes that make Him supernaturally unique: omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, etc. But He wants us to be like Him in the attributes He shares with us, like love, justice, and wisdom.

And God is a worker! We were created in His image and He wants us also to work. The first thing He told Adam was to work in the Garden of Eden. That was before sin came into the picture. Jesus also said, “My Father is always working, and so am I” (John 5:17).

Not everyone who works hard is necessarily godly. But no one who is lazy is. We display the image of God in us when we work hard and productively.

2. Working is worship.

You can worship any number of things with work. You could be worshipping the money you earn. Or you could be worshipping your own image or reputation. But the New Testament aims this toward Christ: that as followers of Jesus, we are to worship Christ with our work.

Colossians 3:23-24 – “Work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”

3. Working is serving.

Martin Luther said that work is a way to love and serve your neighbor. Serve your boss at work. If you’re the boss, serve your employees, as Jesus taught leaders. Serve your coworkers, and serve your clients and customers.

4. Working is mission.

I’m here today because my dad’s boss, Everette Hasse, made it his mission to reach my dad with the Gospel and get him to church. After many conversations and invitations, my dad eventually went.

I went with him, and that changed my life, as well as my kids’ and grandkids’! Seeing your job this way will breathe new life into it!