The majority of our week involves some form of work, whether it is paid or unpaid. You would think, then, that the intersection of our faith and work would be important and helpful to understand.
We live in a culture where work is to be meaningful and fulfilling, with some taking it so far that work borders on idolatry or religion. In his article for The Atlantic, Derek Thompson writes about work as the new religion of our day and times. At one point Thompson says,
“The decline of traditional faith…has coincided with an explosion of new atheisms. Some people worship beauty, some worship political identities, and others worship their children. But everybody worships something. And workism is among the most potent of the new religions competing for congregants.”
Our sense of fulfilment expected through our work can be off the charts. So much so that it impacts how we view ourselves, our worth, and our purpose in living.
In Christian culture this is compounded when we believe that the Almighty–the great all-knowing, and all-powerful God in whom we worship–has called us to a particular task, assignment, or work. In other words, we expect to be especially “called” into some particular work. It’s common for us to hear the phrase, “God is calling me to…”, or, “I’m waiting for God’s call”, or “I just don’t know what God is calling me to do”.
We need to recognise this is a modern issue. We live in a time where there are more options for work and different kinds of work available to us. In previous generations, the concept of being called to a particular work wasn’t a thing. It was simply to find a job and work diligently at it.
Not only is it a modern issue, it’s also a Western issue (and dare I say the word privilege here too?). Millions of people around the world live in contexts where the options to choose what they do is limited. Economic, cultural, geographic, or linguistic factors limit people in the kind of work they do. The choice of what type of work they partake in is not something they can worry about.
In the book, The Gospel At Work, it says,
“For most of human history, work was something you did to survive, and often there were no options to consider. Most of the time you did what your mother or father did, and that was the end of the story.” (Traeger and Gilbert, The Gospel at Work, p75)
Today, it is more common to seek work that will bring an inner sense of fulfilment and satisfaction. Something that will fulfil life’s purpose and form one’s identity.
Calling In The Bible
It shouldn’t surprise you that I believe the Bible speaks to this question of God’s call and our work.
In the Old Testament we find it is God who does the calling and is the instigator of the call. The majority of times God calls it is in relation to being in relationship with him. First and foremost, this call is to the community of God’s people. This is a corporate call to be in relationship with God and given to a people who God has set his love upon (Deuteronomy 7:6-8).
In the New Testament we find God’s call continues to be focussed on calling people into a relationship with him. Philippians 3:14 reminds us that all believers have an upward call in Christ to be with Jesus and to be like Jesus. We have been called to freedom, not bondage in Galatians 5:13. And we are reminded in 2 Timothy 1:9 that God has saved us and called us to a holy calling.
When we read scripture we understand that God does call. And that he calls us. But this is a call centred on relationship. Relationship with him in Christ Jesus. It is a call to come and follow. To come and follow him.
What isn’t taught in the Old and New Testaments is to expect a specific call to a particular task, job, or profession. It just doesn’t seem to be taught in scripture.
Another way of looking at this is how the New Testament uses the word call. It’s there over 300 times and used in 8-9 different ways. However, it’s never used in the sense of being called to a particular work.
How then shall we use the term call?
A more helpful way of understanding the call, is in the opening nine verses of 1 Corinthians. In this passage the term call is used in two ways, which are helpful for connecting our faith with our work.
First, Paul says he is “an apostle of Christ Jesus, called by the will of God”. Here Paul couches this call in the will of God (v1).
Paul has been called by God to be one of his followers. He realises that it is God who has done this calling. God is the initiator, and this call leads to Paul following him. We can say the same thing. We have been called into God’s family by God himself. It is through God’s hand and initiative that we are followers of Jesus.
Second, Paul uses the term call when he turns his attention to the church and tells them they are “called to be God’s holy people” (v2).
This time the focus is who they, as the church in Corinth, are as God’s people. As God’s people they are to be holy. They have been called by God to be holy as individuals and together as a church. This call is a call to Christlikeness.
Not only that, but this call to holiness isn’t only for the church in Corinth, but for other believers too, “for those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v2).
Given this we can certainly say that God does call, but it is a broader call. It is a call that is always about relationship with him.
A call to follow him.
A call to be more like him.
That’s it.
Rather than it be “what we do” that shapes our identity, it is “who we follow”. In recognising Christ as the identity-shaper in our lives then we will better understand our purpose. A purpose that is on display no matter what particular work, task, or job we perform.
