Friday, March 12, 2010

Your Work Matters to God, Part 45 of 45

Text: Ephesians 6:5-9 – "Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear and with sincerity of heart just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one of you for whatever good you do, whether you are slave or free. And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him."

Paul refers to those slaves as "slaves or bondservants of Jesus Christ."

That's the same phrase that Paul uses of himself in the opening verse of the letter to the Romans: "Paul, a slave of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle."

It doesn't take liberty with the text to see what Paul might write to workers today:

• Harry, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to work making pizza
• Mary, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be a physician
• Steve, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be a salesman
• Anna, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be a homemaker
• Norm, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to work in a radio station

Clearly, men and women who serve Jesus Christ serve Him on their jobs, in their place of employment.

II. Christians at their work have two employers: One is their employer on earth who gave them their job and pays them their salary. The other and most important is their employer in heaven.

Look at Ephesians 6:5-9 again: Paul almost stumbles over himself saying, be obedient, as bondservants of Christ, service to the Lord, etc. He acknowledges two employers.

What implications does Paul draw from this?

We are not to serve with "eye-service" as men-pleasers.

This is a word picture Paul made up to get across the point. What do you think the picture of "eye-servers" is getting at?

How would that apply:

To someone working in an office?

To someone who is a student?

To someone working in a supermarket?

To someone working as a pastor?

To someone working as a security guard?

To someone who builds houses to sell?

Henry Giles (19th-century American preacher) said, "Men and women must work, that is as certain as the sun. But we may work grudgingly, or we may work gratefully; we may work as people or as machines. There is no work so rude that we may not exalt it; no work so impassive that we may not breathe a soul into it; no work so dull that we may not enliven it if we understand that what we are doing is service for our Lord Jesus Christ."