Kaleo San Diego Church

INTRODUCTION

Historical views of work

The Classical (Greek and Roman) view of work was that work was a curse, an obstacle to leisure and the province of slaves. This view still shapes a lot of people's thinking: 'If only I could win enough on the lottery then I could give up work and enjoy myself'.

The Middle Ages developed a secular/spiritual dichotomy. The only true vocation was to be a monk or nun - anything else made you a second-class Christian. This attitude is dangerous: it suggests that God is not interested in our secular work and so does not care how we carry it out. Nothing could be further from the truth, yet many parts of the church still act as if only the priest or Bible teacher has a worthy calling.

The Renaissance brought a move to regarding secular work as having dignity. The real sea-change came with the Reformation, the Puritans and the now much misunderstood 'protestant work ethic'. The reformers fought to break down the barriers of sacred and secular, believing that God was sovereign in all areas of life. They taught that all moral work should be done to the glory of God and was thus sacred. They developed the doctrine of calling or vocation to work in a world where God has placed us as stewards.

The Enlightenment (so-called) brought a perversion of the protestant work ethic. The spirit of humanism replaced the spirit of God. Work became man-centred not God-centred; a means to the end of personal success and money. Work was removed from the idea of partnership with God in the stewardship of his world and was exclusively understood as self-interest.

The Nineteenth Century saw two opposing views of work: unrestrained capitalism and Marxism. But as Brian Griffiths quotes in 'Morality in the Marketplace':

'The trouble with capitalism is that there is no limit to man's greed and the trouble with socialism is that there is no limit to man's desire to control'.

Do you recognize your views above? For many Christians it is the Enlightenment view: we work hard for maximum personal gain and to gratify our personal ambitions. When we are thwarted in this (due to the curse) we react with cynicism, despair or anger and God is not glorified.

The True Origin of Work

Work originated before the fall when Adam was given a digging stick and told to till the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 2:16). There was to be such a close relationship between man and the land that the two words are related as the masculine and feminine of each other. The Hebrew word for ground or land is adamah. It is from the adamah that Adam came. The extra “–ah” ending is the feminine. Adam is the generic word for “mankind” add an “ah” and you get the feminine adamah – the word for ground or earth. In Hebrew the feminine of Adam is not Eve but "ground"! Work was originally meant to be incredibly fulfilling and agricultural work became arduous after the Fall (Genesis 3:17) as a result of God cursing the adamah. Part of our redemption in Christ is a renewing of the meaningfulness of work.

What is God's view of work?

First, God is a worker: 'By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work' (Genesis 2:1). Jesus makes it clear that God continues to work: 'Jesus said to them, "My father is always at his work to this very day and I too am working" ' (John 5:17). We are created in the image of God and work is part of God's perfect plan for us. Second, work is a creation ordinance: 'The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it' (Genesis 2:15). Work is part of stewardship and partnership with God. It expresses an aspect of the divine character within us. God works through us to achieve his purposes. Third, work is marred by the Fall as described in Genesis 3:17-19. Work becomes toil, often appearing futile and senseless: 'Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after wind; nothing was gained under the sun' (Ecclesiastes 2:11). Through the Fall, work becomes subject to abuse: idleness, unemployment and exploitation. Many people find work burdensome, boring and apparently pointless. They count the days until retirement. For others, work becomes an idol. We define ourselves by it and draw all our self worth from it. If we lose it or it goes wrong, we despair.

Fourth, the good news is that work can be redeemed. When we become Christians we move out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light.

Let's look at three perspectives on the redemption of work:

• Jesus' work on the cross. Colossians 1:15-21 teaches that Jesus is the creator, sustainer and reconciler of all things: '...through him to reconcile to himself all things... by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross' (Colossians 1.20). All life is God's. He created it, sustains it and redeemed it. God is interested in whatever we do and can be glorified by it: 'So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God' (1Corinthians 10:31).
• The worker is a steward for God. One of the most significant passages about work is Jesus' parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30. It teaches us that God provides us with talents, opportunities and materials. He expects our service (laziness is harshly judged). Furthermore as stewards we exercise choice and responsibility in our actions. Our faithful work is rewarded, often with more responsibility.
• The worker is called by God. The reformers talked about two callings: the first was to salvation, godliness and discipleship, the second to work for God. Prior to the Reformation this was seen simply as a call to 'religious' work; Luther and Calvin extended the concept of vocation to every moral form of work. They based this calling to work on both Old and New Testament Scripture. In Exodus 35:30-35 God called Bezalel and Oholiab as craftsmen and teachers. In Ephesians 2:10 we are called to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us. In 1 Corinthians 7:17 Paul teaches that 'each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him'.

The synoptic view of rebuilding the Jerusalem Wall- Ezra, Esther, Nehemiah

Sectarianism and Syncretism

“Left Behind” theology makes our work insignificant because we are waiting to leave. We should have an optimistic view of what we do as we realize it really makes a difference in this world.

Ephesians 4:28 He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.

STUDY

Colossians 3:22-4:1

Verse 22- Slaves, in all things obey those who are your masters on earth, not with external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord.

Expanded Parallel: Ephesians 6:5-6 Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; 6 not by way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.

The modern reader winces at the word ‘slaves’ (v.22) and ‘masters’ (v. 4:1.) to a great degree because we immediately think only of the modern African slave-trade but slavery in the ancient world existed in many forms. Slavery in Israel as outlined in the Mosaic legislation was more like indentured servanthood and probably would not be something we today would recognize as ‘slavery.’ It was usually a way of working off indebtedness and was never allowed to last longer than seven years. Slaves in Rome however were people who had been captured by the army in its vast campaigns of conquests. When Paul speaks to Christians in Ephesians 6 he is not denouncing the institution of slavery per se (which would have been useless in imperial Rome.)

Paul says something radical to the slaves who are under the yoke of slavery.

First, workers are told to be whole-hearted in their work (with sincerity of heart v.22.) They are not to do only the minimum work necessary to avoid penalty, nor are they to only work when and in ways that can be observed, nor are they to work in a distracted, mindless way. Instead Christians are to be at work as whole persons, giving their mind and heart fully to doing the best job possible on the task at hand. Why?

Second, Christians workers can be this way because they have a new motive for their work. In Ephesians 6 they are to work (literally) “as unto the Lord” (v.5.) What this means is that because they will have an unimaginable reward in Christ (v.8) their work does not have to be overly tied to the amount of reward (or lack of it) that they get from their masters. The parallel passage in Colossians 3:24 reads, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.” (NIV translation) The Greek word “an” should really be translated “the inheritance.” Paul is talking about the bliss of the world to come.

What this means is that Christians have been set free to enjoy working. If we work primarily for money, or for approval, or for advancement, or for status, work will constantly be frustrating or heart-breaking. Many tasks before us will be useless for advancement or money, so we will drudgery to do. Often we will find that others who are far better at showing themselves off or at political maneuvering will get the promotion. But if instead we have Christ’s salvation, and if he becomes our main source of significance and security, then these other motives should lose their power over us. If we begin to ‘work as unto the Lord’ we will be freed both from over-work and under-work. Neither the prospect or the lack of prospect for money and acclaim will be the controlling consideration. Work is no longer primarily a grinding necessity nor a path to self-worth and fulfillment. It is a way to please God and do good in the world for his name sake.

Verse 23- Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men,

Expanded Parallel: Ephesians 6:7 With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men,

1 Corinthians 10:31 Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

“The ancient Greeks saw the material world (and therefore manual work-for-pay) as demeaning and degrading. A work-less, contemplative life was considered the most humanizing, ennobling, and ideal. Work was seen as an unmixed burden and curse. For example, Sparta forbade any of its citizen-soldiers to do manual labor. Think how counter-cultural it was for a tent-maker [Paul] to tell slaves (Christians) to work cheerfully, as if they were working for Jesus (a carpenter!) Unfortunately, a strong strain of this thinking has come down to us in Western culture. This view created a hierarchy for all work from the 'nobler' work of the philosopher down through the 'helping professions' and on down through the businessman or woman and finally all the way down to domestics and 'people who push brooms.' Today, we find our dignity or identity in doing work that is high-status and high-paying. Many people take jobs that a) they don’t like and/or b) aren’t good at--simply because they are higher status jobs. But this thinking has even invaded the church. In many churches it is either implicitly or explicitly stated that full-time ministry is the way to really please God, while all other jobs are just ‘secular work.’ Young people that want to go into mission work or ministry are celebrated while those who want to go off to the big city to do business or art are simply warned about all the dangers. Lay persons who spend an enormous amount of time at church are celebrated while those who are more immersed in more absorbing careers are not. Churches make no effort to deliver pastoral support and Christian instruction to the busy professionals who often cannot make it to a weekly week-night class. All this has greatly undermined the influence of the Christian faith in the world. The widespread belief that the only way to truly serve God is through direct ministry has effectively removed Christians from places of cultural influence for generations. It sees the church and its activities as good and untainted, while the secular world is bad and polluting. But the Biblical view of the dignity of all work should put a stop to that. We should be as excited about a young Christian who wants to be an lawyer or film-maker as about one who wants to be a minister.

The Bible tells us that Jesus has to be Lord of every area of life--not just of our private lives. The gospel shapes and affects the motives, manner, and methods with which we carry out every task in life, including our vocation.

‘Dualism’ is a term that refers to the separation of spiritual life/faith-beliefs from the rest of life. It originally had roots in Hellenistic thought that viewed the material world as bad and the spiritual world as good. The philosopher Immanuel Kant accentuated it, because he drew a sharp distinction between the public world of ‘objective facts’ and a private world of ‘moral values.’ Religion is often seen then as a means of individual spiritual peace and strength and not as a comprehensive interpretation of reality that affects everything we do. Dualism is expressed popularly in statements like ‘religion should be kept separate from your public work--it should be personal and private.’ But Christianity is not simply a set of beliefs to be held in order to save my individual soul. It is also an interpretation of (and a distinct way of understanding) everything in the world, in life. It brings a distinct perspective on human nature, right and wrong, justice, beauty, and character. If you believe the universe happened by accident (rather than believing it was created, entered, and redeemed by a personal, Tri-une Creator God) then you will have to have a different view of every one of these fundamental issues. And these issues determine how you live your daily life.

The fact is, then, that all work must be done out of some world-view. For example, if you believe that this world is all there is, and therefore all moral values are relative and there is no after-life--this will have an effect on how you do business. Making money will be the number #1 priority, and you will do it any way possible, as long as it does not lead to arrest. Plenty of people in San Diego City go about their business in exactly that way. Why? They are doing their work in accord with their world-view.

The problem comes for Christians when they enter in to a work-world that is operating on the basis of different world-views. As we just said, the business environment in a place of San Diego City is a culture with values and policies that are deeply effected by non-Christian views of things. The temptation for Christians is to simply plunge into vocational fields dominated by these world-views and conduct their vocational lives in accordance with the reigning paradigms rather than thinking out the implications of the gospel for how they can do their work with Christian distinctiveness. This is true of everything from the 'method-acting' approach for actors to the latest leadership theories being touted at Harvard Business school.”

-Tim Keller, Redeemer Presbyterian

Verse 24-25- knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.

Expanded Parallel: Ephesians 6:8 knowing that whatever good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.

In other words; even if the earthly master doesn’t give fair compensation, even if he is harsh and treats you poorly, even if you are taken advantage of, God will not be such as he. God will give you the reward of serving Him. It is a reward of inheritance.

Verse 25- For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.

Verse 4:1- Masters, grant to your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you too have a Master in heaven.

Expanded Parallel: Ephesians 6:9 And masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.

He is speaking directly to individual Christians within the institution about how to conduct themselves, and what he says is quite revolutionary.

He tells masters that they are slaves too--of Christ. That is an extraordinary and radical thing to say into a highly hierarchical culture. He is saying, “conduct yourself among your servants as if you are a fellow-slave!” And on top of that, we have Eph 5:21 that commentators agree is a governing, introductory verse to the whole section. Masters are to ‘submit to’ their servants in the sense of serving their best interests and servants are also to truly work hard to serve their master’s interests as well. This kind of mutual respect and self-denying support of the master and servant was absolutely unheard of. As the scholar F.F.Bruce says about Paul’s brief statements to slaves and masters in Ephesians, Colossians, and Philemon, “What [Paul’s letters] do is to bring us into an atmosphere in which the institution of slavery could only wilt and die.” (F.F. Bruce, Paul: Apostle of the Heart Set Free, p.407.) That is quite right. Slavery was accepted institution in all cultures and societies of the world from time immemorial. Only within Christianity did the idea eventually arise that slavery was an abominable institution to be abolished. Why? Largely because of the implications of the gospel, laid out by Paul. All Christians are ‘slaves’ of Christ, who himself came as a ‘doulos’ or servant (Phil 2:7).

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