{"id":30920,"date":"2022-09-10T15:09:47","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:09:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/the-post-pandemic-opportunity-to-rethink-work-biblically\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:09:47","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:09:47","slug":"the-post-pandemic-opportunity-to-rethink-work-biblically","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/the-post-pandemic-opportunity-to-rethink-work-biblically\/","title":{"rendered":"The Post-Pandemic Opportunity to Rethink Work Biblically"},"content":{"rendered":"
Mario Gogh – Unsplash <\/p>\n

By Meredith Flynn <\/em><\/p>\n

The COVID-19 pandemic forced most employees to drastically change where, when, and how they work. The effects of those shifts are ongoing, but one result is already apparent: a workforce that is in many cases ready for a change in what they do\u00a0or\u00a0how they do it. A Harris Poll early this year found more than half of American workers were\u00a0considering a\u00a0job change\u00a0in 2021.<\/p>\n

More than half of American workers were considering a job change in 2021, according to a Harris Poll. Click To Tweet <\/p>\n

\u201cI think the nature of work has changed for most people,\u201d said Pastor Greg Gilbert of Third Avenue Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky. He is the co-author of the 2013 book The Gospel at Work<\/em>. \u201cWork has just become harder in a lot of people\u2019s experience. It\u2019s certainly required everybody to kind of rethink it.\u201d <\/p>\n

But adversity always creates opportunity, he said, and Christians know from Romans 8:28 the Lord is working all things together for good. \u201cWe may not always see how, but we know as a matter of conviction that He is,\u201d Gilbert said.  <\/p>\n

The challenges of the last year can be a chance to rethink work and, for the Christian, to rightly position their vocation within life as a\u00a0follower\u00a0of Christ.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Idol or idle<\/strong> <\/h3>\n

Gilbert\u2019s book, co-written with Sebastian Traeger, identifies two main categories of sinful thinking Christians can fall into concerning work: making it an idol or becoming idle in it. When work is an idol, he said, it takes on an importance God never intended it to have and becomes the main source of significance in the Christian\u2019s life.  <\/p>\n

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On the other end of the spectrum\u00a0is a worker who has grown idle about their work. But that doesn\u2019t necessarily mean they\u2019re not doing anything, Gilbert said.<\/p>\n

Christians can fall into two temptations about their work, says @greggilbert. They can make it an idol or they can become idle in it. Click To Tweet <\/p>\n

\u201cIt can mean you\u2019ve just lost a perspective on the fact that work really is meaningful. It\u2019s not just a necessary evil. It\u2019s not just a drudgery. It\u2019s actually something the Lord means to give life and joy and fulfillment and happiness. Just not ultimate life and joy and meaning and happiness.\u201d <\/p>\n

It\u2019s wise to be vigilant, consistently assessing whether you\u2019re falling into one or both of those categories, Gilbert said, but there are also some warning signs to look for in diagnosing the problem. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you realize your entire week, your mood for a week with your family, with your kids, with your church, whatever it is, if that is being set almost entirely or largely by whether your personal stock at work is going up or down, whether you\u2019re being successful or not, then there\u2019s a real danger you\u2019ve made an idol of your work.\u201d <\/p>\n

Or, he said, \u201cIf you hate your job, if the only thing you can think about is the grind of your job and you want to get out of it, it\u2019s possible you\u2019ve gone idle in your heart about work.\u201d <\/p>\n

Keeping the balance is difficult, Gilbert said. \u201cBut if you can catch that balance, it really imbues work with a whole different significance.\u201d <\/p>\n

Searching for purpose<\/strong> <\/h3>\n

A\u00a0recent YouGov survey\u00a0found\u00a0most\u00a0Americans are\u00a0optimistic about whether their job\u00a0is making an impact. A\u00a0slight majority of Americans (55%) think their job is making a meaningful contribution to the world, while 22% do not.\u00a0And even among those who don\u2019t think their job is making a meaningful contribution, YouGov noted, 42% say their work is fulfilling. Overall, 67% of Americans feel personally fulfilled by their jobs.<\/p>\n

55% of Americans say their job is making a meaningful contribution to the world and 67% feel personally fulfilled by their job, according to a YouGov survey. Click To Tweet <\/p>\n

An earlier\u00a0Barna Research study\u00a0found that among Christian workers, a majority said their\u00a0church has provided teaching\u00a0on aligning unique strengths, talents, and capabilities with their faith.\u00a0Fewer\u00a0were satisfied with how well their work fits\u00a0their calling.<\/p>\n

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See also  What Churches Must Do to Reach Gen Z<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Leaders like Gilbert and others who have entered the conversation about work and faith have tried to help Christians connect\u00a0how the gospel influences\u00a0their\u00a0everyday\u00a0work.\u00a0Tim Keller, former pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, wrote\u00a0Every Good Endeavor<\/em>\u00a0to help believers\u00a0think about\u00a0restoring God\u2019s purpose\u00a0for work, as he explained in a\u00a0video clip\u00a0about the book.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If money and self-esteem is the main reason you work, the work will be boring and very often it won\u2019t add to other people\u2019s lives. \u2014 @timkellernyc Click To Tweet <\/p>\n

\u201cAll work is rearranging the raw material of God\u2019s creation for the purpose of human flourishing,\u201d Keller said. \u201cIn the process you make money, and sometimes you even get self-esteem. But if money and self-esteem is the main reason you work, the work will be boring and very often it won\u2019t add to other people\u2019s lives.\u201d <\/p>\n

Redeemer\u2019s Center for Faith & Work provides training for Christians\u00a0who want to apply the gospel to every area of life, including their work. Programs include a multi-week course on Faith & Work 101, and the\u00a0nine-month Gotham Fellowship designed to promote integration of faith and work.<\/p>\n

Most churches don\u2019t have a center dedicated to faith and work (although Redeemer has as part of its mission to help other churches teach the same principles). But church leaders can help people develop a biblical doctrine of faith and work, Gilbert said. His church has devoted a six-week Sunday School class to the topic. He also encourages pastors to think of the workplace as a specific category of application in their preaching. Just as some Scripture passages have specific things to say to husbands and wives or to Christians and non-Christians, the Bible speaks to workers, too. Questions of faith and work impact everyone, he said. <\/p>\n

To have a biblical\u00a0perspective on work, to understand it correctly becomes really important, and can become a really important thing in having a joyful and happy Christian life. \u2014 @greggilbert Click To Tweet <\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone is in a position of needing to support themselves and do something, and also work is one of the main things in our lives that tends to be a stressor. And so, to have a biblical perspective on it, to understand it correctly becomes really important, and can become a really important thing in having a joyful and happy Christian life.\u201d <\/p>\n

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Meredith Flynn<\/h2>\n

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Meredith is a freelance writer in Springfield, Illinois.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n