A Biblical View
of Labor
by Wesley G. Vaughn
© 2012
by Wesley G. Vaughn
© 2012
Text: Ephesians 6:5-9
Labor is Worthy
Many
people see labor as a curse, the result of sin.
The basis for this is Genesis 3:19, which says, “By the sweat of your
face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were
taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” According to this view, God sentenced Adam
(and all who follow him) to work. But is
labor itself really the curse? It is NOT
the Curse. There was Labor before the Curse. God Himself labored. Creation was His work, the fruit of His
labor. On the seventh day of Creation
God “finished his work that he had done, and he rested . . . from all his work
that he had done” (Gen. 2:2).
Labor is Ordained by God
“The Lord
God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it”
(Gen. 2:15). Before the Fall, humans
were to work, to labor. They had a job
to do. The angels, the Host of Heaven,
have work to do, too, and they have not sinned; they are not under a
curse. There is work to do, and there
are angels and people to do it. God
works, and we work too.
Labor is a Blessing
It is the
Gift of God. Ecclesiastes 3:13 says,
“Everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil—this is God's
gift to man.” (See also Eccl. 2:24)
Labor is Honorable
Proverbs
is full of statements about the honor of honest work, such as, “In all toil
there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty” (Prov. 14:23). On the other hand, slothfulness is seen as
dishonorable (Prov. 21:25). Throughout
history, Jewish rabbis have associated labor with honesty and integrity, while
they consider laziness (sloth) as sin.
Labor is Beneficial
It
provides needed exercise. Exercise is
needful for good health: it builds and tones the muscles, improves circulation
and breathing, and produces an overall feeling of well-being.
It
produces needed things. Good work is
productive, supplying food, fiber and other things for living. Psalm 128:2 says, “You shall eat the fruit of
the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.”
It helps
others. Beyond supplying ourselves, we
can help others with their tasks or give to them from what we have
produced. The Apostle Paul taught this
as the opposite of stealing: “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him
labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to
share with anyone in need” (Eph. 4:28).
It
satisfies. Accomplishment is a good
source of satisfaction, especially when we see the fruits of our labors.
Worthy Examples of Labor
$ God worked when He created the universe, and He is working
now sustaining the world, ruling, judging, listening to His children.
$ Solomon labored, even as the king. In Ecclesiastes, he lists many of his
ccomplishments.
$ Nehemiah worked as the Cupbearer to the King of
Persia. This was an administrative
position with much responsibility. He
was probably in charge of all the buying and preparation of food and drink for
the palace. He took a leave from this
job to go to Jerusalem to serve as governor and repair the walls, then returned
to the palace to resume his duties.
Obviously, Nehemiah was not afraid of work.
$ Jesus worked as a carpenter before becoming a traveling
rabbi. The nature of His labor then
changed to teaching, mentoring and healing.
Before this, as the Son of God, He had labored through Creation. As the Angel of the Lord, He had guided the
Old Testament saints. His earthly labor
culminated with the work of Salvation on the Cross, where He announced, “It is
finished” (John 19:30). Now, in Heaven,
His duties include interceding for us and being the CEO of the Church.
$ Peter labored as a fisherman before Jesus called him to be
a disciple. Then his job description
changed to “man fisher” (Matt. 4:19, Mark 1:17).
$ Paul was a tentmaker.
When he became a missionary, he continued tent making to support himself
and his ministry team (Acts 18:3; 1Cor. 4:12; 1 Thess. 2:9).
Labor Balanced with Rest
Labor is
to be balanced with rest. The natural
cycle is to work in the daytime and sleep at night, though in some jobs this
order is reversed (John 9:4). The Old
Testament law also prescribes a weekly day of rest. “Six days you shall labor, and do all your
work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall
not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your
female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates”
(Ex. 20:9-10). This day of rest is for
our benefit. Jesus said, “The Sabbath
was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27).
Labor is Worship
Labor is
obedience to God. He put us here to work
(Gen. 1:28; 2:15). Paul told the
Thessalonians that they should work (1 Thess. 4:11; 2 Thess. 3:10, 12) and gave
himself as an example (1 Thess. 2:9; 2 Thess. 3:8). Furthermore, we are told that whatever our
labor may be, we are to do it as though we are working for God (Eph. 6:5-8;
Col. 3: 22-25; Titus 2:9-10; 1 Pet. 2:18-20). Therefore, in our labor we serve
God.
Labor is Witness
Finally,
our labor is a witness of our faith: a
witness to those we serve, a witness to those we work with, and a witness to
our families. Those who know us through
our work judge us by our work. They
judge not only us, but our faith. The
testimony of our words carries more weight if our labor shows honesty,
diligence, and a good attitude.
All Scriptures from the ESV
