DISCOVERY INSTRUCTIONS

Many people believe that the only way you can work for and serve God is by working for a Church, being a Pastor, or being a missionary. Scripture tells us a very different story. Scripture tells us that any work that is done unto the Lord is sacred work, even work that we would characterize as secular. God shows up present in the ordinary, everyday jobs that many us will hold. Let’s take a moment and look at what the Bible teaches about identity, vocation, and calling.

Read Genesis 1

• What is our first example of work in Scripture? Who is the original worker?
• What type of work is being done? What type of work is being commissioned?

God calls humans to work that seems rather ordinary, but God defines as sacred!

Read Colossians 3:17; 22-24

• What does this passage have to teach us about vocation and calling?
• Can all work we do (that is not inherently sinful) be sacred?

Read 2 Thessalonians 3:6-10

• What is the model of work that Paul is asking them to imitate? How did Paul see his tent-making work as mission?
• How can our everyday work be seen as missional?

EXAMPLES OF WORK IN SCRIPTURE

• God is the original worker (worked for 6 days and then rested)
• Moses and David were shepherds
• Jesus was a carpenter/stonemason until He called His disciples
• Peter, Andrew, James, and John were fishermen
• Paul was a tent-maker on top of his religious work

THOUGHT:

All work if done for the Lord is sacred, missional work! The Lord needs plumbers, doctors, business people, factory workers, etc., to reach people from all nations. Pastors and missionaries aren’t the only kingdom workers – all Christians in all professions have the calling!