by Michael Armstrong
Work is defined as activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result. You probably knew that. Indeed, you probably have a great deal of personal experience with the nitty-gritty reality of working. In contemporary parlance work generally means having a business or a job, regardless of whether it puts you elbow deep in dirty dishwater or on the top floor of a high rise office complex. Nor should we neglect to include those who devote themselves to maintaining a home, raising a family, or caring for someone who is elderly or disabled. Try it, it’s work!
Maybe you don’t like your work. Worse, maybe you dread and hate every excruciating moment of the mindless drudgery you’ve contracted to perform and every moment feels like an eternity. Maybe it has its frustrations but is typically tolerable. Maybe (ideally) it’s meaningful and fulfilling in every way. The point being, however you feel about it, it is necessary. Traditionally men worked at foraging, hunting, fishing, or farming. Today we mostly trade our labor for fiat currency, which works out great for our nation’s largest employer, the U.S. government itself, but I digress… You must work to survive, to have shelter and sustenance. Unless, of course, you live in a welfare state, but I digress again…
The idea that we must work to provide for ourselves is part of the foundation of humanity. It is evident from creation, throughout the Biblical narrative, and in the Kingdom of God. From the very beginning, man was intended to be doing something. Notice Genesis chapter 2. In it God creates Adam and plants the Garden of Eden. Verse 14 says, “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” That means work. It was literally man’s first job. Was it a big garden? It contained “every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food,” (verse 9). Adam was told he could freely eat of every tree in the garden, except one of course. Why? Because he worked there! He was earning his keep so to speak. Pruning, watering, fertilizing, raking leaves; use your imagination, “to dress it and to keep it” could entail quite a lot.
However difficult his duties were, things could be a lot worse, as he was soon to discover. After Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden tree and were expelled from the garden, the amount of work they had to do to get by increased significantly. “Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
“Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
“In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return” (Genesis 3:17-19).
Idleness is not good for us. Innumerable studies link activity levels with both mental and physical well being. That being said, there are serious dangers from over-working and stress. Rest and relaxation are also necessary. Apparently, God knew what He was doing when He instituted the Sabbath day! It originates from creation after all. Genesis 2:2-3 reads, “And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.” Not only does the Sabbath day give us a necessary reprieve from our endeavors, by observing it we acknowledge God as our creator and sustainer.
Let us consider ourselves objectively. We need rest, we know that. Yet life gets busy, full of projects with no good stopping place short of completion. Chores with no end in sight. Children, pets, family, friends, all needing assistance and attention. Would you really take a whole day off every week, a full 24 hours, sunset to sunset, if you didn’t have to? Wouldn’t you be tempted to keep working, keep going just a little bit longer? Thankfully, God COMMANDS you to rest! He “sanctified” the seventh day, setting it apart and making it Holy for a divine purpose that just so happens to benefit you!
Now, if there is one special day you are required to rest what do you think you should be about on the other six days? Let’s not guess, God thought it was important enough to write in stone after all. The fourth commandment, as stated in Exodus 20 verses 8-11, says, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.”
Isn’t that great? Work six days, rest one. Honoring God is good for you in many ways. It’s a total win-win situation. Interestingly, the seven day week is not based on any observable astrological phenomenon like the day, the month, or the year. Thus the need for us to remember the Sabbath day.
This theme, this requirement to work, continues throughout the Bible. Psalm 104, enumerating the glories of God’s creation, mentions many natural wonders, animals and their habits, and even man. Verses 14-24 read, “He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth;
“And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man’s heart.
“The trees of the Lord are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted;
“Where the birds make their nests: as for the stork, the fir trees are her house. The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats; and the rocks for the conies.
“He appointed the moon for seasons: the sun knoweth his going down.
“Thou makest darkness, and it is night: wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep forth.
“The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God. The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together, and lay them down in their dens.
“Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until the evening.
“O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.” Man, working all day, is part of the natural order of things.
There are many quotable verses from the Proverbs on this matter. Such as chapter 18:9, “He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster.” Also chapter 14:23, “In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury (poverty).” Though the necessity to work is stated over and over, emphasis is constantly laid on how we go about it. Riches and wealth are not to be the culmination of our desires. Proverbs 16:19 reads, “Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.”
We must tread carefully in our endeavors. We labor for gain but we do not covet the increase. It’s a conundrum that must be solved by every individual, as the Lord put it, “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:14). Nor does our duty end once our physical needs are satisfied. Salvation is given to us freely. Nothing you can do in life will earn it. No one truly deserves it, yet through the grace of God we have received it. What then is our responsibility? Paul wrote, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).
These good works should define your life in a way that no one should have to ask, are you a Christian? It should be obvious! Even at the menial job you detest? Yes! Colossians 3:22-25 says, “Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God;
“And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.
“But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.”
Conquer every frustrating problem or situation as a living example of faith in Jesus Christ. Every obstacle is an opportunity to demonstrate the very power of God’s Holy Spirit, dwelling inside of you, to overcome. Isn’t the change that has been wrought in you truly a notable miracle? Your family, friends, and coworkers have probably heard the name of Jesus. The way you live your life can show them His power! “In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity, sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you” (Titus 2:7-8). Preaching the gospel, doing the work of God, starts with the evidence that God is working in you.
Our lives are passed in laboring for the most part. Hopefully there is joy in it, at least a certain satisfaction of accomplishment or resolution to persevere on to some goal. The effort spent on others, helping, instructing, or even just listening or being nearby, is never wasted. It is an adornment to the crown that awaits you, a powerful testimony to the sincerity and dedication of your faith. Part of the covenant God made with Israel was to bless the endeavors of those who keep His commandments. Moses said, “He is the Rock, His work is perfect: for all His ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He” (Deuteronomy 32:4).
If the work we must do to provide for ourselves and our families is tedious or seems meaningless, know that it is the way we go about it that truly counts. Our net worth does not matter. The accolades men have created to award one another do not matter. It is the quality of your character that matters. Your dedication to the truth and the example set for others. Do the works of God, and in so doing accomplish the work of God.
