What the Bible Says About Work | 7 Bible Verses on Work

I promised myself I would post more regularly in 2023. So, here I am. This is my post. Thank you for taking time to read it. Blogging is work.

A study I ran across recently determined we spend about 90,000 hours at work in our lifetime.

I started working around February 1980, a few months before my 15th birthday at a small retailer who sold some of everything. I say “around”because it’s been a minute and I’ve slept a few times since then. The following year, right before Spring, I went to work one day to discover the place had closed and I no longer had a job.

I scrambled to find another after school job and landed one waiting tables, marking my first foray into the food business. About six weeks later, I took part in my first restaurant opening. Later that Summer, around the time I turned 16, I was invited to train for an assistant kitchen manager position at the same restaurant. This began my journey into management. At the time, I had lot going for me—probably more than I realized at the time—but I had trouble staying out of my own way.

All that to say, I’m not sure how many hours I’ve worked in my lifetime, but I’d venture to guess it’s more than 90,000 already—and I’m far from done.

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[50 x 52]43=111,800

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Work undoubtedly makes up a large portion of our day. For many of us, work defines our existence. We are what we do.

In a conversation I had with a friend the other day, he said that he spends a good chunk of his day off doing a different type of work at home. There’s this to fix, that honey-do to complete, this home maintenance vendor to meet, that repairman to call.

You know how it is…

However, as Christians, our identity doesn’t rest in our work, but rather the One we are working unto.

²³ Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.²⁴ Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.

Colossians 3:23-24 New Living Translation

While the Bible is predominantly a spiritual book, it also offers historical insight into what it was to live, work, and worship in ancient times. Scripture offers a lot of practical advice when it comes to work. God’s word provides us a glimpse of what working to live and living to work looked like during biblical times.

The Bible celebrates a strong work ethic over indolence.

But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I.”

John 5:17 New Living Translation

Work has always been divided between manual and mental labor. My late father always expected me to work with my mind rather than my back. Truthfully, I’ve done some of both throughout my working career. Dad would have been ecstatic, I believe, had I chosen to pursue a career in math while becoming an expert in chess. However, that’s not the path I chose to pursue.

In Genesis, we see Adam meld physical labor with mental effort. He tilled the soil while naming all the animals.

“No bees, no honey. No work, no money.”

Old Folk Proverb

Here are 7 Scriptures Concerning Work:

1. The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. Genesis 2:15 (NLT)
2. The coming of the Son of Man can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. When he left home, he gave each of his slaves instructions about the work they were to do, and he told the gatekeeper to watch for his return. Mark 13:34 (NLT)
3. Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.” John 6:29 ((NLT)
4. So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless. 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NLT)
5. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)
6. But if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ. So I really don’t know which is better. Philippians 1:22 (NLT)
7. On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation. Genesis 2:2-3 (NLT)

Work, clearly, is ordained by God. The Bible tells us that as God works, so should we. We are, after all, His creation created in His image. However, experience teaches us that we are plagued by people who have no real occupation nor any desire to find one. They are happy to live off the fruit of other people’s labor.

As Christians, we should celebrate steady employment and faithful employers. We should have strong distaste for idleness, particularly when found in the grasp of able hands.

We should strive to do our work with excellence, not merely for ourselves, but in worship of the God we serve and follow.

Rainer Bantau
The Devotional Guy™

#bgbg2#BibleGateway#work

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