Finding Joy in Your Work (Col 3)

Explore how God’s Word can transform your perspective on work, turning even the most routine tasks into meaningful acts of service and worship. Let’s come together to learn, grow, and find renewed strength as we align our labor with God’s purpose. “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” – Colossians 3:23-24. 

NOTES:

Rockwell Church     Sept 1, 2024     Pastor Chris Teien
Finding Joy in Your Work
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." - Colossians 3:23-24

#1  WORK with your Wholehearted Commitment
#2  RECOGNIZE your True Master You Serve
#3  ANTICIPATE your Eternal Reward
#4  EMBRACE your Privilege of Serving Christ

The WELL Faith Podcast offers encouraging, Bible-based messages from Pastor Chris Teien and guests. New sermons are released every Sunday. Replay episodes are marked with an asterisk. Find us online at ChrisTeien.com and Rockwell.Church in Virginia, MN. Email comments to wellfaith24@gmail.com

Transcript

Chris T 0:16

Alright, so I know that some people are students, and so their work is learning. So they go to school and they learn things, and so that's work, and they should do that to the best of their ability. They should learn all that they can to get skills and tools to be successful in their life. Sometimes uh moms or sometimes even dads get to stay at home with kids, and that is work if you do it right. So it should be a lot of work if you do it right. So some people are retired from their official jobs, but they still have time, abilities, and resources to do work. And so no one should sit around and waste their days not doing anything if they're able to do something, even if it's work they don't get paid for as a volunteer to do some kind of work to glorify the Lord. So just about, well, every time this year around Labor Day, last week, last time it was the week before Labor Day, and also in February of this year, I've talked about work because work is such an important part of people's life. If you can see uh worship and work tied together, you can have more satisfaction in life. Your life can take on more meaning. You can accomplish more for the kingdom of God. So work is important. On um February 11th, 2024, I talked about how God can bless you through your work. And I like my introductory paragraph so much, I'm gonna read it again. Work is a gift from God, and it seems everybody is busy working on something. The average person will work at their job for 90,000 hours during their lifetime and have 12 different jobs over those years. Many people who retire from their careers fill their schedules with work they want to do and volunteer many hours to help others. God can use your job as a source of blessing for you and can use you at your work to be a blessing to others. So the last time in that message, my points were God blesses us with work, God blesses people by giving them skills, God blesses people by giving them opportunities, uh, blesses them through quality work, or God blesses people through your quality work. God blesses you with rewards, God blesses when you give back to Him. And then on August 27th, I talked about God cares about your work, to see work as worship, work as ministry, and to be a good worker, work being wages, opportunities, relationships, knowledge, and experience. And then another message, August 28th, 2022, also talked about work, hit some of those same points, but uh said God is a worker, God is the creator and owner of all things. It's for him that we work. Work is a natural part of current and eternal life. Work is a requirement. Work is work that is worth doing should be worth doing well. Work should never be done to the exclusion of rest in time with the Lord. The fruit of our work is established by God. The work must be done in God's strength for lasting rewards. People are meant to enjoy their work, and the work of God for you is to believe. And I actually got that from God's top ten working principles from the Bible from the Biblical Counseling Manual by Hope for the Heart. All right, so that's what I said on past Labor Days about work. Labor Day actually is a time in the United States to celebrate and honor the contributions and achievements of American workers that originated in the late 19th century during a time when labor unions were growing and workers were advocating for better condition, fair wages, and reasonable working hours. So, got a holiday for that. For Christians, Labor Day is an opportunity to reflect on the dignity of work as a gift from God. It's a time to appreciate how our work, whether paid or unpaid, can serve God's purposes and benefit others. Just as God worked in creation and Jesus worked during his earthly ministry, we are called to approach our work with dedication and integrity. And Labor Day encourages us to celebrate the work we do, to rest from our labors, and to acknowledge the most important importance of balance between work and rest as modeled in Scripture. And it's also a reminder for us to pray for those people that really struggle at work. And if we are the leader, the boss, the one in charge, to figure out what we can do to be more of a blessing to our employees, to our vendors, to the people that we work for, people that work for us, the people that work around us. So one of the great passages about working is Colossians 3, 23 and 24. And it says, Whatever you do, so think about it, what is it that you do? So I'm sure we could go around the room and some of you could tell me all the things that you've done over time. Uh many people, like it said, this says you have 12 different jobs over a lifetime, um, many different types of work. But whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for human masters. Since you know that you'll receive will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. So there's just so many things that you could think about and talk about when I think when it comes to working for the Lord and doing what is right. So I was when I was in high school, I was trained up in the Hardee's way, read the Hardee's franchise manual. My grandpa owned a couple Hardee's restaurants, brought me to his one on Rye Street when I was like 14, got me all trained up in the Hardee's way, so that when we moved to Mound, I could work at the Hardee's there by Lake Minutonka. And anyway, so the franchise manual tells you exactly how you're supposed to make a bacon cheeseburger. So, you know, you've got the beef, you've got the, if you remember three strips of bacon, and it tells you how to assemble it. So if I'm gonna be a good worker and I'm gonna do what the company wants me to do, I'm gonna do what the customer wants me to do, um, and I'm gonna do what's the honest thing to do, I'm gonna make it according to that franchise manual. I'm not gonna say, well, I love bacon, so I'm gonna put nine strips of bacon on it, and three pieces of cheese, and two pieces of meat, and serve that to whoever comes along because I'm feeling generous. Well, if I was the owner of the company, I could feel as generous as I wanted to, and I definitely could do that. But if I'm an employee in the company, then I do what's expected of me in the best way possible. So you can make it hot and fresh and make sure it's perfect, but serve it up the way that it's expected. And people, when they get what they expected and it's good, they'll come back for that. So two things can happen if you like are overgenerous. Uh they can be like, okay, I'm gonna expect it this way every time, or they're gonna be like, What in the world? This is just way too much. You're gonna blow my diet. I can't eat this much, now I have to waste food. Anyway, working, whatever you do, as for the Lord. Um your masters, when your employer can see you or not, when uh your boss can see you working or not. Uh I've I've heard and read that some people that work at home, you know, which is such a great, wonderful thing to be able to work from home instead of in the office, until you realize that um when you worked at the office, you just did your work. When you worked at home, all of a sudden they're like tracking your keystrokes. You know, they know exactly how much work you're doing anyway. Um, but to work. Colossians 3, 23. So um in Colossians, in that passage in chapter 3, it had just to talk, it had just talked about um how children are supposed to obey their parents, and here it's talking about how slaves are supposed to obey their masters, and so um, I'm not a proponent of slavery. I don't think the apostle Paul was either, but it was the culture in that time, and so many people were slaves in the Roman Empire, and they uh did many different things. Uh, women and children and slaves had few rights, um, but in the church they had more rights. But they would teach, they would clean, they would uh oversee, they would care, they would do all of these things. Um and some were like brought as captives from war. Some people sold themselves into slavery because of their debts. And so it would have been great if Paul had just said, you know, um, it is God's will that no one should be a slave and everybody should be set free. But the only problem was is where are they gonna live? What are they gonna do for work, and how is that gonna, you know, work out at that time. So um in the rest of the past, if you continue to read in the in Colossians 3 and uh verse 1 of chapter 4, it talks about how earthly masters should treat their slaves well and care for them. So you could be a godly Christ follower and say that, okay, so in this situation that we're in, I'm the master and you're the slave, but we're both believers in Christ, so therefore I'm gonna treat you well. I'm gonna make sure that my tone of voice isn't harsh, I'm gonna give you a great place to live, and I'm gonna, you know, we can work together. It's more of an employee-employer relationship. And slavery in the Old Testament, um, it said that if the slave wanted to uh proclaim their allegiance to their master, that the master would drive uh all through the slave's ear and mark him or her as uh uh loyal to that master. Why would anybody do that? Um one, because maybe you had a better place to live, a safer place to live, a great family, uh you were doing better in that situation than you could ever do on your own. So don't get hung up on the the master slave part, um, which yeah, I don't think anybody should be a slave. Um, though I think that sometimes you feel like a slave when you're at work uh to get the check. So then sometimes they add to it too. They're like to increase the loyalty in the company, they bring in the credit union to help you finance the new truck, and then when you finance the new truck that you love, then all of a sudden you're willing to put in those overtime hours that your boss needs you to because now you're on the hook for$900 a month on a truck. So kind of tricky. But nonetheless, as we worship the Lord as we put him first, we um think about that employer-employee relationship, and we are slaves to Christ because he bought us with his blood, with his own life. But we think about okay, where are we in this whole equation? Am I am I the am I a servant or am I a master? And how can I glorify Christ in that? How can I do that well? How can I um further the kingdom of God and better people's lives and help them in all of the things that they do, all of the things that we have opportunity to do to work, work with your wholehearted commitment. Whatever you do, work at it with all of your heart. John Stott said that work is the expenditure of energy, manual or mental or both, in the service of others, which brings fulfillment to the worker, benefit to the community, and glory to God. And so um we're always supposed to be working. We are, like I said, whether you're retired or not, you should wake up in the morning and have something to accomplish, something to do, not waste your days away, not waste your time away. Um, use the skills and the resources that you have. Um as you bless others, it also opens the door for you to have opportunities to share about your faith in Christ. If you have extra time and you're uh able to volunteer or help somebody in need as you're helping work on their car or work on their house or whatever it is that they need, then you have opportunities then to share about your faith in Christ and to glorify God. And it is a good thing. You remember in the Old Testament that Joseph, in the Old Testament, Joseph found himself in many bad situations. He was sold by his brothers into slavery, and he was in Potiphar's household, and things were going really good, and he was a good worker, and uh everything was great, and then Potiphar's wife accused him of uh making sport or um, you know, chasing after her. And then he ended up in prison, and when he was in prison, he was a good worker, and the prison guard appreciated him and put him in charge and all of these things. And so Joseph, I'm sure he was depressed. I'm sure that he was like, God, where are you? But he was actually getting trained up because soon he would be the second most powerful person in Egypt. And so the way that Joseph worked glorified God. The way that Joseph continued to have hope, even though he wasn't where he wanted to be, glorified God. Sometimes when you're waiting for success, you can be disappointed with God and stray away. Other times when you find the success, it can be so wonderful. Joseph, number two in the kingdom. He could have strayed away from God, but he didn't. Proverbs 16, 3 says, Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed. And so we pray about our work. We should pray about our opportunities. We should pray about the way that we do the work, the resources, the safety, all that stuff. Number two, recognize your true master is Jesus. Recognize your true master you serve as working to the Lord, not for human masters. What kind of quality of workmanship would you do if Jesus was your customer? If you knew that he was uh there because you love him so much, because he's such a great part of your life, how what would you do? How would you treat him? What would you be willing to endure for him? In Ecclesiastes 9, it says, Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom, Solomon wrote. So the Bible reveals God's word and will as time goes on. So now we have a greater concept of heaven and eternity, and we do know that in eternity there will be stuff for us to do, and it what we get for opportunity might be based on how faithful we are to work in this world during this time. You know, when Daniel in the Old Testament, when Daniel was in Babylon, he worked hard as unto the Lord, he served a pagan king, he did all of these things to glorify God, and he was persecuted for it, even thrown into a lion's den, but he was victorious. Paul endured as a tent maker and an apostle of Christ. See your work as an offering to Christ, see it as a way to provide your material needs, but also to bless others and to worship through it, to glorify God through it. And you will feel blessed. You will feel more satisfied at the end of your days. You will feel at the end of your work week like you have accomplished something. I've said this before, but when I worked for the optical lab, they made anti-reflective coated lenses that I tried to convince myself. I told myself all the time, my purpose here is to glorify God by helping other people see better. So every part of what we do, shipping it out, uh helping the customer with trouble, um, talking to optical labs and opticians, every part of what we do helps other people see better, and that is a way to glorify God, and that is a good thing. So, I mean, think about Noah. Noah in the Old Testament, he was told to build an ark and in a time when people weren't building boats, it wasn't a thing. And so he's building it, and he's also a preacher of righteousness at the same time, and he's ridiculed and he's mocked, and for decades he's building this boat, and then he finally gets the satisfaction when the God shuts the door and the rains come down and the floods come up, and he's like, Everything that I did to honor God was true and right. I am now receiving what I believed. I'm receiving the reward of what I did. Um, I honored God, and he found joy in that. He didn't find joy, I'm sure, in all of the other people that were destroyed, but I think he found joy and a sense of um contentment that he did what God told him to, that he saved his family and a bunch of animals, and that it wasn't his choice to close the door, that God closed the door when it was time. So number three, anticipate your eternal reward since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. So your eternal reward as you um think about the stuff that you do and the way that you do it, that the Lord can bless you for eternity for it. The Bible talks about rewards, it talks about crowns, it talks about all of these things. Even just to hear well done, good and faithful servant. All those hours that people spend downstairs with kids, sometimes difficult kids, in children's ministry and the nursery, and the children's church, and the midweek program, and the junior and senior high youth group, and teaching Sunday school and hosting small groups and um serving on the worship team and doing music and hosting memorial services and funerals, which is a great place to preach the gospel, and um, you know, taking care of the church and uh mowing the lawn and all these removing the snow and all those things are things that God sees and God knows that you are up to it. When you help somebody in need, when you pray for other people and then provide their needs, God sees all of that. Proverbs 11:18, evil people get rich for the moment, but the reward of the godly will last. What a good thing to remember is that you might see people out there that are doing better than you. They may be totally godless, and for some reason they keep getting their promotions and they keep getting their raises, and all their investments seem to, you know, double and turn to gold, and everything about their life seems simple and easy. Um, on the other hand, your life is one that might, you might struggle, things might not be perfect in every situation. You have to pray for things and pray things through and everything. But the difference between the rich or the successful or the person with the easy life untouched, the ungodly one, and the difference between you that might struggle is that you are relying on God. You're going through this whole life praying and seeing God answer prayer and um going through having this adventure, um, having sometimes a struggle in a sinful world, going through and knowing that God is Jesus is part of your life, and you have a relationship with Jesus and it goes on for all eternity. Meanwhile, this other person, this other person who is just, you know, God at all, they've got everything but Jesus, and in the end, they lose it all. They get nothing, they get eternally separated from God. It'd be better to be a poor beggar and love Jesus than to be a rich person that has all that they ever wanted and be godless.

SPEAKER_00 19:46

Work. What pops into your head when you hear the word? The hands of a clock crawling slowly toward five, endless meetings, stacks of paperwork, just hanging on for the weekend, for that next paycheck, or maybe it's the thrill of success, closing the deal, hitting your numbers, finding the thing you were born to do, whether you love your career or hate it, or more likely land somewhere in between. One thing is turned. You'll spend a huge portion of your life at work. So, one of the first words that should pop into your head when you think of work is work at current chip. If we are done at a church or out of the method field, sometimes we feel that we are truly doing God's work. But God makes it clear that whatever our hands find to deal with. We should do it with all our minds. We work with all our hearts. We're called to work of God with our work. Whatever may be just a Sunday morning event. God doesn't wave goodbye from the church and say, See you next week. It's always with us. And every aspect of life is an opportunity to bring him forward. For most of us, our workplace is one of the primary places we can put our faith into action. We work to fulfill our God-given responsibility to provide for our families, to financially support our local church, and the advance of God's kingdom at home, and abroad. At work, we love and serve co-workers and customers in word and deal, knowing that we'll encounter many who have never set foot in a church. And as a representative of Christ, we operate with integrity. In doing so, we earn the right to be heard. We work with excellence because we serve a master craftsman, the very maker of heaven and earth. From the very beginning, he created us to work. It's not a punishment, though at times it may seem that way, it's a high calling. So the next time you think of work, think of worship. Because work is worship.

Chris T 22:16

Your privilege of serving Christ, it is the Lord Christ you are serving. To embrace that privilege that we have, Ecclesiastes says it is a good thing to receive wealth from God and the good health to enjoy it, to enjoy your life, or to enjoy your work and accept your lot in life. This indeed is a gift from God. There are so many other Bible characters that I could talk about that served the Lord faithfully, that it is a good thing to realize that as we go to this life, that we can embrace the opportunities, that we can we can see the privilege of serving Christ. Whatever it is, it could be little, it could be big. But so many times it's not really even about the work so much as it is about the relationships that are made at work. So you could hopefully, if you got skills, you could be helping with a roof and at the same time honoring Jesus and maybe sharing your faith with other people. So you could be doing like all sorts of different menial things. Like you could be doing meals on wheels and delivering groceries to people or whatever, and have that opportunity to share Christ. Think about what is it that you have, what is it, the time that you have, the energy that you have, the resources that you have, and pray about how could you plug that in? On the bulletin board, there's a bunch of uh information about uh Pregnancy Resource Center that you could volunteer in or talk to Sue over here about it, but just pray about it, think about it. Where what is it that you struggle in when it comes to your attitude at work? Um, what is it you could make better? Pray about that. Maybe you need to get more training, maybe you need to pray and get a different job. Um, maybe you need to let go and trust God a little more sometimes when it comes to your job so that you put him first. So you have that period of rest and worship and you put God first. There's so many more things I could say if I had more time. But let me pray. Lord Jesus, I thank you that we're able to worship you at this time. Lord, I thank you that we can work. Lord, work is a gift from God. Adam, when he was created, first he worked in the garden, then he named the animals, and Adam had work to do. Adam and Eve. And all through human history, there's been work to do. Lord, help our work to glorify you. Help us to use your time to glorify you. Help us to be kingdom minded and help us to use our resources to bless others and even give back to you. God, we pray for these people. We even pray for the roof. But Lord, we pray that you'd provide everything that we need so we can glorify you. We thank you for a holiday tomorrow. Help us to be thankful in all things, and we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.