On The Office there is a character named Angela – it’s apparent she’s a Christian. It’s not apparent through her sharing her faith or attending church, rather it’s because she’s so judgemental about certain things, the producers have drawn a caricature of a real phenomenon where many Christians don’t know how to reconcile work and their beliefs.
At its worst, this confusion can come out as prejudice, anger or manipulation. Or it can be inappropriate and insensitive attempts to convert everyone they work with.
Instead, sometimes Christians will withdraw. They can either quit working in their industry, feeling the only way to be true to their faith is to work at a Christian ministry. Or they might find a company where all their co-workers are Christian. Or, Christians might compartmentalize their lives and give up their beliefs Monday-Friday, and only live out their faith on Sundays.
Neither extreme is good. In one Christians withdraw from the world that God created. In the other, they see their contribution only as moral police and evangelists.
What if God is calling us to do good work in his world? What if God is calling us to be serving others and creating – not just in Christian ministries, but in industry, education, art, media, business, civil service and more?
How could you tell the difference between a Christian doing God’s work, then, and anyone else? What difference does being a Christian make? Clue in this short little bit of a Psalm, a kind of musical poetry in the Bible:
Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.
It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.
Psalm 127:1-1 ESV
We come back to foundations…something we looked at in last series. The image is of two subcontractors – say two carpenters, perhaps even working for the same general contractor. Or the second image: two soldiers guarding a base. They could both be in the same country, same regiment, same platoon. The difference is one works for God, and the other works for something else. You can imagine the possibilities, they could simply work for the company, dad, greed, comfort and security in life, ego, etc.
That kind of work, the Psalm says, is in vain. It’s an exercise in frustration.
When we think the world revolves around us, we can’t stop. Can’t rest. Up early, go go go, late to bed. Not because there’s something to be done, but something to be proven.
But the one who works for God first, and humans and himself second, does work with purpose – it’s not in vain. Most tellingly, it leads to the kind of satisfied rest in knowing you’ve done your part, and the world doesn’t revolve around you. “God gives his beloved sleep.”
We’ll explore tomorrow how work, of various kinds, can be “for God”.
Question: What kind of work have you done that felt like it was “in vain”? How did it feel useless?
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Today we’ll try to explore the transformation in the disciples who saw Jesus risen, then ascending, and were given a mission. They were told to wait for the Holy Spirit before they set out on that mission, though.
United:
Look at the list of names in yesterday’s reading. Some biological brothers are separated in the list, perhaps to indicate they are all part of one big brotherhood now. Peter is listed, who denied even knowing Jesus. The other disciples are there, even though they deserted Jesus as well. Their pioneer story – Jesus being raised from the dead – brought them back together.
In other surprises, Judas is missing – he broke his relationship with Jesus, committed suicide, and hence his community link.
But also, Jesus’ own brothers and mother are mentioned – the same brothers who doubted him and thought he was crazy during his ministry on earth.
These people are all together now, in some kind of upper room – perhaps the upper room from the night before Jesus died, but we don’t know. Either way, they stay there together and are “with one accord” – they have one purpose.
Prayer: They were devoting themselves to prayer. There’s an energy in how this is described. They’re actively preparing for something, something much larger than themselves, and they can’t do it alone. So they’re nurturing their relationship with God the father, who’ll be the source of their strength and courage. And that project is God’s.
On Mission: As they stare up at the sky where Jesus left, the angels redirect them. Your job is to pay attention to the Earth, not the sky. Get out there, you have a story to tell.
Common Story: All of this change comes from their common experience. Jesus, the pioneer’s teaching would be in their minds, and their experience of his ascension. For example, his brother James. James is specifically named as having had an encounter with the risen Jesus. Why else would he, as one of Jesus’ concerned brothers, realize his brother wasn’t throwing his life away but sacrificing it for James and every other human being?
Jesus’ ascension into the clouds was not showing us heaven is “up there” in a physical sense in the clouds – he’s gone to be with his father in heaven, the dimension of life where the kingdom of heaven is already present in its fullness, simply because of God’s presence being there. Clouds aren’t a bad way to show that he’s gone from the disciples direct presence, they had no way to get up there! Someday the whole kingdom will “descend” and transform this world as well, as Jesus “descends”.
Imagine the disciples’ anticipation. Telling the stories amongst themselves, realizing how it all fits together, and anticipating the next stage – the Holy Spirit of God is coming…to us!
Question: Consider your group. Do you focus more heavily on unity, on prayer, on mission, or on the story? If you’ve not started a group yet, who can you start sharing these challenges with, in the pattern set by these pioneers?
