Download Work that Works for You - Downey Seventh

Work that Works for You
Discovering God’s Way of Handling Money Part 6
Well the summer I turned 17, I took a plum picking job. Now picking plums is an honorable
profession. I want to make that really clear. I pastored a church in the San Joaquin Valley many of
my members were pickers of plums, and cotton, and grapes, and lots of other agricultural produce
that we all love. See my sister invited me to live with her in Bakersfield for the summer. I was
looking for a job. When I read the paper, it said that you can make some real money in agricultural
work. So I took a job. Before I knew it I was riding in the back of a big old flat bed truck heading
for the plum orchids. Now the newspaper ads did tout there was good money to be made. The only
thing they didn’t tell you was that you were paid by the bucket of plums that you picked. Now these
buckets were not the size that we see our children take to the beach to play in the sand. These
buckets were not just the regular pails that you might see around town. These were goliath buckets.
These things were this big with a big handle on it. And you would get down off the tree you would
take your whole bucket of plums over to a gentleman and you would tell him the last four digits of
your social security number, he would check it off, you would dump it in and go back and do it some
more. After the first day my heart was certain that my plum picking career had to end. Sheepishly I
described to my sister in the most graphic terms I could conjure up my unhappiness that I felt in my
new career. So I called my girlfriend, who was named Ginny, to get some sympathy which I did plus
I also called her begging for help basically as much as my pride would let me beg. Well Gin was
really connected. She knew a friend whose father owned a convenient store. So they put their
collective minds together and guess what I got? I got a job in the convenient store. So I had to say
goodbye to my sister to try to save face and all I can say was I got a better job. I took the job and
moved back to LA.
Now come to find out when I did a little research on jobs, I found out that there are not not
everybody is completely satisfied with their work. There is a lot of job dissatisfaction going on out
there. Now don’t raise your hands if you’re one of them. You know what I’m talking about.
Whether you’re a homemaker or a blue collar worker or professional person there is some
discontentment and some frustration. Today I want to talk about job satisfaction and I think the
Bible actually speaks to this really well to us. Today we are looking at a message from a series
called “Discovering God’s Way of Handling Money.” If you would be so kind as to take out your
sermons notes found in your bulletin now, I want to share with you two points. This is a two point
sermon. This two point sermon is to discover the scriptures that teach us about job satisfaction. Are
you interested in job satisfaction? I mean really and truly when we go to work as Christians we need
to go with a really an attitude that I think that the Bible wants to give to us. And we apply that
attitude to our work and I think it will make a difference in our lives. So this sermon is called “Work
that Works for You.” What we are trying to do here is we’re trying to find out how to find job
satisfaction in this whole scheme of things. See because we’re talking about God’s way of handling
money this is part of that genre. We are going to find out what God has for us about job satisfaction.
So take out your notes and here we go two point sermon.
The first point is this, would you read this with me? Apply yourself to your job as if the
Lord was your employer. Would you read that one more time with me? Apply yourself to your
job as if the Lord was your employer. Wow! Now this is a thought and you’re sitting there
thinking Pastor if you knew my work, you wouldn’t be asking me to do that. Well I don’t know your
work but I am asking you to do that because we’re going to talk about a bigger picture than just our
particular career or profession or job. It doesn’t matter. There is something much bigger here.
Now here is what the scriptures say. Okay want to read this please. Work hard and
cheerfully at all you do, just as though you were working for the Lord and not merely for your
masters, remembering that it is the Lord Christ who is going to pay you, giving you your full portion
of all he owns. He is the one you are really working for. Colossians 3:23-24 (TLB) If you have
your scriptures open, your Bibles, I want you to turn to this particular scripture because I am going to
refer to this in just a minute. This is Colossians chapter 3. So this morning did you all get a chance
to look at that scripture? I want to make sure we saw this carefully. Work hard and cheerfully
especially on those Monday mornings. Right. You have to get up and go to work. And the Bible
says in Colossians 3 this is from Today’s Living Bible this particular verse that I up here it says,
when you go to work, go cheerfully just as though you were working for the Lord. Wow! And not
merely for your masters.
Now I’m going to get into this thing about slavery in just a minute. That’s who is talking to
today. The Apostle Paul is talking to a congregation some of whom are slaves. We are not slaves
today but sometimes when you go to work, do you ever feel like a slave? Okay I only got one
truthful yes out there. It’s okay. Truthfulness will rise up as time goes by. And it says, see the thing
of it is, you have to remember it says, that it is the Lord Christ who is going to pay you. So I want to
tell you something right off the get go the job that you’re at is not just about acquiring stuff like
money. That’s not what your job is about. You have a job and no doubt about it God was
instrumental in helping you get there but there is a huge picture that’s part of your job and our real
pay isn’t from the job we work every day, and we should work every day, but the real pay comes in
2
when the Lord comes. It is the Lord Christ who is going to pay you giving you your full portion of
all he owns. He is the one you are really working for. Wow!
You know this morning we’re talking about job satisfaction and we want to know what the
Bible is teaching us about this. Jobs are important and you as Christian people are important in the
job force out there. Now I want to take a minute to do this though because I want to make sure we’re
all clear. Now let me say that I’m not, when I’m talking about getting out there and working hard
and working for the Lord, I’m not talking about salvation issues. This is not a salvation issue, as if
the harder you work, the more salvation you get, the better God loves you. No, no, no, no, no, no.
No because remember this see it is for by grace that you have been saved so this is not about a
salvation issue. You were saved through faith. It is the gift of God. Not by what? Not by works, so
that no one can boast. So I’m not talking about that today. I’m actually talking about going to your
work, going to your job, with a new attitude. With an attitude that I’m at this position now, and I
may want a better one, that’s fine but for now I’m entering into that as if I’m working for the Lord.
Wow! What a difference that would make? So we’re approaching this in a little different attitude, in
a little different way.
The scriptures actually are teaching us to look beyond the daily task as an end in itself. Kind
of like if you’re a carpenter or sheet metal man you go to your job, you pound the nails or you beat
the tin, you put it up and you feel good about your work. That’s fine and that’s good but there is
something bigger behind that too. It has to do with you at your job at how you’re affecting those
around you. Have you ever worked somewhere and the person you worked with is like working with
Frankenstein? That’s the best word I can come up with. How did I get to work with this guy or this
girl? It doesn’t matter. You know what I’m talking about. But there are other times in your job
careers when you’re working with someone and you’re going man it is so nice to work with her or
him. God is calling us to be those people. And as we are God’s people and as God trusts in us,
people are drawn to the Lord because of our patients, our kindness and love, cheerful smile. Isn’t it
terrible to go to work and everybody is ugly? They look ugly. They don’t have any smiles. Nobody
is happy. Maybe you should be the happy one there and then they’re going to say, hey what’s going
on? Why is she so happy? Not hilarious you guys. Not hilarious you know then they wouldn’t
know something is going on. The scripture we’re talking about here though wants us to work hard
and cheerfully as though we were working for the Lord and to emphasize the point, he is the one we
are really working for.
The Apostle Paul evangelized as he traveled from city to city. This is what the Apostle Paul
did. He traveled around. He evangelized and many of the people who came to Christ were slaves.
3
In the first century slavery was very common. Many of the Christian wealthier people owned slaves
in the first century. Many of them did. And some of the slaves came on their own but they came and
they found Christ. They found salvation. So Paul’s advices to those slaves, and by the way you
think you have a tough job, how would you like to be a slave for a week? You know when you’re a
slave, you are property that is owned by another person and you have no time. No time belongs to
you. All the time belongs to the slave owner. So 2 o’clock in the morning, 3 o’clock, it doesn’t
matter if the slave owner needs you, you’re summons and you come, and you help and do whatever.
You have no choice and you have really no say so. It was a tough life. So Paul says to these
individuals you know what? Work hard. Work cheerfully at all you do. Because I can just assure
you the slaves are coming in, Paul, kind of like the Pastor, Pastor, what should we do now that we
know we have freedom in Christ? What should we do? And I’m pretty sure they wanted to say like
rebel. No, no, no. Contrary. Get back to work. Work hard and do it cheerfully. Not with a long
ugly face. Do it with a smile as if working for the Lord. Wow! Cause you know the thing of it is it
is human nature if any of us were slaves you know how it is, slave come here. Now the slave hears
of course but the slave is going whistling. Slave. Whistling. You know how almost like teenagers
when you ask them to come and they just want to rebel. Well slaves could do that too. And by the
way, you can get really hurt if you were a slave because you were property. You weren’t thought of
as human. You were property. So you can get whipped and beat and there is all kinds of problems.
The Apostle Paul is saying you know don’t let whippings and beatings be your motivation but just do
it and work hard, and do it cheerfully because this is what God wants you to do. Slaves you’re in a
much bigger picture than you’re looking at. If you go to work, and your cheerful and you’re happy
what you’re doing, those around you are going to notice, and they’re going to say what do you have?
I want that. And, of course, what they have is the love of God in our lives. So the Bible encourages
us to embrace our work days each one as if working for the Lord. See the bigger picture that we’re
in here. We’re not just doing our little thing right here and it has nothing to do with salvation. It has
nothing to do with anybody else. It just has something with me doing my work. It is much bigger
than that. That is what this is all about. We serve the Lord. If you serve the Lord just say amen.
Amen! It is true. When you go to work, do you stop serving the Lord? No. You’re still serving the
Lord. Now you’re working for someone. It may not be the best but that’s where you’re at right now.
Now some of you want to make advancements and I’ll talk about that but I want to give a
shout out to Vince. Vince is our UPS guy. The UPS the brown guy you know. Vince comes over
here and usually he will go to the secretary’s office and knock on the door and bring our stuff. If she
is not there, then and if he doesn’t see my car out here on this side, he drives around and he does his
4
deliveries and when he passes by, he is always looking to see if somebody is here. So he will pass by
at 3 in the afternoon. If I’m here, he stops in, knocks on my door and I’m always glad to see Vince.
Now UPS driving is a wonderful job. It’s a good one. It’s good pay. It’s good benefits. And Vince
comes in and I always, and he always says, Pastor how are you doing? Good. I’m doing fine. I say,
Vince, how’s your day? He always says the same thing. He says, you know what I am happy when I
get up in the morning. I am glad to come to work. I am just glad to be here. And I’m going man.
That is cool. And you could just see the smile on his face. You can just see you know you can look
at someone’s eyes and see what they are radiating. And he is just radiating kind of enthusiasm and
love for everybody and he just does it. You know what? That has a real affect on me. You know
what I’m saying. Are there people at work that have that affect on you? Maybe you’re the one.
Now what we don’t want to do is go down there with the big old long jaws you know and the
long face you know and hey aren’t you a Christian? Yeah. Aren’t you supposed to be happy? Yeah
I’m happy. See that doesn’t help. It’s a much bigger picture we’re looking at here. So when you go
to the work, and people are saying, man he has a good attitude. Look it he is doing his work and it is
not just for advancement. I don’t have the scripture for you but Paul the Apostle says to the slaves
look it don’t just work hard when the boss is watching you okay. Work hard all the time. It’s the
right thing to do. And we want to do that.
Now let me show you something. Next thing. Got to pass that one up. Here is part two.
Would you read this with me? Develop your work goals to extend into eternity. Would you read
it one more time please? Develop your work goals to extend into eternity. Now a lot of us we get
a job, we get a position you know, we’re on a career path, and you say you know I’m feeling like I
need to do something else or I need to advance to another job or a higher responsibility. That’s all
good. That’s a good thing. So basically we set goals that we’re going to try to reach and achieve
these goals as we go along here. And this is the kinds of goals we want to set. Want to read this
please. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. Colossians 3:2 (NIV)
Now do you have Bibles open to Colossians? If you don’t, please open your Bibles to the
book of Colossians. You have Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians. That’s how you find it. I’m
going to read a scripture with you in just a minute but open your Bibles now to Colossians. As we
think about our goals, as we think about advancing, the Bible says, set your minds on things above,
not where? On earthly things. Okay don’t raise your hands. Many of us have set goals. Whether
you have written them down or not you may have a goal in your heart. A particular position. A
particular job. A particular advancement. So I’m talking about these kinds of things. When you
start thinking about your career, and your goals, and your pathway, many times the focus is on the
5
advancement itself. I want to get that position. It has to do with I want to make this much money. It
has to do with I want to acquire another something or get a house which is good or a car. These are
all good. But many times goals tend to focus on the things below here. You ever notice that? See.
What the Bible is saying you want to have some job satisfaction, you want to have self-satisfaction,
then start thinking about goals that transcend this place and go on up to eternity see when you’re
setting your goals. Yeah you have short term goals and you have long term goals. I know that. I’m
going to talk about that in a minute.
Do you have your Bibles open? I want you to look at chapter 3, Colossians 3 and I want you
to look at verse 3. You there? It says, For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
Is that what your Bible says? It actually says, For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ.
Of course we know that died to what? We died to the earthly ways. You died to living your life
alone you know self-guided for me only, and now we have embraced Christ and we die in the
baptismal pool behind me where a person you know there is the death, the burial, and then the
resurrection in baptism. That is what the Apostle Paul is talking about. You’ve died to yourself and
now your life is hidden with Christ. So I looked up the word “hidden” in the original. And the word
“hidden” if you have your Bible, circle that word in your Bibles so you won’t forget this. Your life is
now hidden which means intertwined, interconnected. That’s what that word means. It’s hidden and
intertwined. You know the parable that says no one takes a candle and puts a bowl over it see. You
know a candle is lit so it can get bright. No one puts a bowl over it. The same word for hide. When
you’re in Christ, you’re in God’s company. Intertwined with him. So our goals are not just about the
next 5, 10 or 50 years in our lives of course, my goals go way beyond that. It depends on how you
are. So our goals are not just about a few momentary years here. From now on by God’s grace he is
leading us to set goals for eternity, and your job is part of that setting and part of the goals that you
are going to be making.
Now God wants us to make some really long range goals but you know they are not that long
range. Some might say, well Pastor I’m not going to make the goals into eternity. I’ve got to think
about the next 5 or 10 years. Good. That’s fine. But I want to tell you something sometimes
eternity comes at a time we don’t expect it. Is that true? You know we live our lives on the
threshold of eternity every single day. And I think I know one long term goal that reaches way into
eternity that every one of us here and listening to this has. You know what that is? How many want
to be with the Lord in heaven? Yes! Oh yeah! Definitely! Well that is number one. That is one of
our long range goals. So it’s not really that kind of crazy when you’re thinking about writing out and
thinking about goals to think into eternity. It really isn’t.
6
Now went to the websites out there and looked up things like how to set goals, setting goals
this kind of thing you know and I found that huh this is a website called nwlink.com and it says, good
organizations convey a strong vision of where they will be in the future. Think about this. Good
organizations convey a strong vision of where they will be in the future. I think we can actually
paraphrase that to ourselves. It should be something like this, people who love Jesus have a good
idea of where they want to be in the future. Right! You all love the Lord you’ve got a pretty good
concept of where you want to be in the future. I do too. I want my whole family to be with me in
heaven. Don’t you want that too? That is definitely a long range goal. By the way, that was one of
my life goals. One of my life goals was that all of my children would love Jesus and serve the Lord.
That was on my life goals. Still is. Still working at it. Now I have the grandkids coming on right.
Going to start working on them. Got to have some pastors, missionaries coming up here you know
people that really serve. So when you start thinking about goals, especially goals into eternity, it’s
really interesting to go to these websites that are talking about business and making money. Their
advice is really the advise we can take. Get a vision of where you want to be in eternity and make
that part of your goal. Too often we set goals for just this life; better job, better position, better
salary, more responsibility, and that’s all good and fine, and we should make those. Shouldn’t we?
Because I believe God is using you and all of us to make advancements in the Company and
whatever you are doing. God uses you to do that but it is not just for getting stuff. It’s not just about
well why did you take that position? It made more money. Well why did you take the sales job? It
made more money. See. Okay that is good. God wants to give you more. You know why he really
wants to give you more? Tithes and offerings. Oh yeah. More tithe, more tithe and offerings. It’s
okay guys. Take it easy. I’m not taking up any offerings yet. But the thing of it is, should we
always be interested in that kind of incentive? Isn’t there a higher incentive of how we behave at
work? How we approach our work? How we conduct our lives? I think there should be. And the
bigger picture is I want to be with the Lord, and I want the Lord to be proud of me, and I want people
around me not necessarily that people we’re all performing you know faking it, please don’t fake at
work. Yes I’m very happy. Oh yes I love everyone when in your heart you’re going I hate that
woman. I hate my boss. People see through that stuff. Don’t we see through that? Don’t be fake.
We don’t want to be fake. No plastic. But if you really love the Lord, and you’re really your heart is
full of goodness of God, people are going to see that too, and you’re going to have some bad days but
you’re going to have a lot of good days too. God is calling us to that.
Now on this website it is called Topachievement.com. Topachievement.com. It says, this
should be your first goal. You want to write some goals. This is how you write your first goal. And
7
I’m quoting now. It says, make sure the goal you are working for is something you really want not
just because it sounds good. You know what I’m saying. Your first goal should be are you really
interested in being in heaven? Do you really want to be there? Is that what you’re really interested
in? Because if it is, that is going to change a lot of stuff. Your approach is different. Your attitude is
different. See. And basically the Company you work for is just a vehicle while you’re here on earth
serving the Lord see. And as people see you diligently at work serving faithfully, truthfully, honest,
hey does some businesses out there need some honestly huh? I only got two yeses. Does our
country need some honesty? Doesn’t our financial system need some honestly and some people who
will tell the truth? That’s the kind of leaders you guys are. And the Bible says, if you’re faithful in
the small things, you will be faithful in the bigger things. So when you’re at work, and you’re telling
the smallest truth, and you’re saying I’m not going to lie about it, I’m telling the smallest truth, God
is going you know what? Now you can move head. Now you move ahead and serve the Lord in that
way. You know we’re going to set our minds and hearts on the things above and not on things
below. Too often we’re all the time looking below. God is calling us to think about things above.
Now I want you to take your Bibles, do you still have your Bibles open to Colossians
chapter 4 verse 4? I want you to look at verse 4 now. It says, When Christ, who is your life, appears,
then you also will appear with him in glory. Do you have your Bibles open? I hope you do because
if you’re looking at Colossians 3 verse 4, the Bible says unequivocally when Christ, who is your life.
Wow! Hey I thought it was my life. I thought I was doing my thing. No. We died to self and now
we live to Christ. Amen. See. And so Christ is your life and he is the motivator and he is the one
that you’re really working for over there. And then it says that when he appears, you know what that
appearance is about – that’s the second coming. And when he appears, then you will appear with
him in glory. Wow! That’s wonderful. There is no threat to this. There’s no threat about this. You
are saved by the grace of God. But God is saying while you’re here, while you’re working for me,
do your work cheerfully, work hard, be the exemplary employee where you work at, and don’t worry
about who gets all the kudos, who gets the credit. Don’t worry about it. You know who is watching?
Not the boss. No. But the owner who is God who owns all things. And see as we do this and live
our lives this way, you know what? Work takes on a whole other field. It looks different. It looks
like fun. It looks enjoyable, cheerful even though it maybe feel monotonous to you. I don’t know.
But when you’re working for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, I would love to be, I would love
for you rather have be a gatekeeper in the house of God than the richest guy on the planet. Amen.
Isn’t that how you would feel? I’d rather take out a broom a sweep out the Lord’s house every single
day than do anything that has to do with earthly stuff because this earth is collapsing in on itself.
8
We’re seeing that really and truly. We’re seeing it financially and in many other ways. We’re seeing
it ethically, and morally, and decay of those kinds of things. So we have a living and growing
relationship with our Lord and that includes our daily work. Doesn’t it? Okay can I stop right here?
Turn to the person next to you and say, my work has something to do with God. Go ahead. Turn to
your friend. My work has something to do with God. It’s true. Isn’t it?
Now look it. Joseph, okay Joseph gets the worse job in the world. What does Joseph get?
He gets sold into slavery. And they take him on down there to Egypt, and then Potiphar sees him on
the slave block and buys him, and Joseph could have gone in there woe is me man. I’m a slave. I
use to be my father’s love. You know I use to be number one with all the boys. My father loved me
most but now I’m a slave. What am I’m going to do? What he did was he realized he’s not working
for Potiphar. He is working for the Lord. And everything that Joseph did because he did it unto the
Lord everything he touched turned to prosperity for Potiphar. So you know old Joseph didn’t come
into the house and Potiphar said on the first day okay you’re the head of the house. No, no, no that’s
not the way it works. He came in there as one of the low guys coming in. But Potiphar a very
shrewd man recognized in him something different of quality that was divine. Oh yeah. And when
he put his hands to the work it prospered. So he said, well hey I’m going to move you up here. It
prospered. Old Joseph hey let’s try him over here. Boom. He tried that and it prospered see, and
God was using Joseph to speak to Potiphar about something bigger than Potiphar. He thought he was
the man. See. This is how you become a witness for the Lord. You don’t have to go around and
saying, hey you want a Bible study? You want a Bible study? You be the Bible study. You be it. If
you love Jesus and people, then love them. Go ahead. Joseph was faithful to the Lord. He
embraced, check it out, he embraced his slavery. He is not resisting it all the time. I don’t want to be
a slave. I don’t want to be a slave. I don’t want to be a slave. No. He embraced. He worked it.
And he wasn’t manipulating anybody. Hey by the way slaves couldn’t manipulate nobody. No way.
They weren’t even thought about as people. They were just furniture like. It’s terrible. So we want
to look at our jobs as a way of serving the Lord. And Potiphar saw everything that Joseph touched
turned him into a more prosperous man, and he was elevated until he ran the whole household. I
mean Joseph ran the entire home. Everything including that’s the fields, the cattle, all done in the
home. It’s just not talking about who sweeps the floor. This is talking about his whole operation
until, of course, Potiphar’s wife came and that’s another story. But that’s another story of
faithfulness to God because when Potiphar’s wife came and asked him to do something that was
contrary to the 10 Commandments, to commit adultery, he goes no. How can I can do and sin
against God? Not sin against you, not sin against him, how can I do that and sin against God?
9
Because he is not working for Potiphar. He is not working for himself. Who is he working for? The
Lord. That’s who you work for too. See. And that’s why you are there where you’re at in your
position. You’re going to say, oh Pastor I have such a menial small position. Praise God. That’s
good. That’s where it starts. Faithfulness in little things and then it moves on to much bigger things.
It’s God’s way.
Joseph was in training. We all know the story. Joseph was in training. Went to jail for
something he didn’t do. When he got to jail, he didn’t walk around woe is me man. These guys are
so mean to me and they throw me into jail for doing the right thing. And look at this filthy place.
I’m working. No. You know what happened. He gets to jail and the jailer recognizes everything
that Joseph does turns to prosperity even in the pitiful jail he was in. So who is running the jail now?
Joseph. Yeah he is in the jail but he is out there doing all the stuff because the jailer you know his
boss sees Joseph as a very divinely appointed man who touches things and its prospers. And we all
know that Joseph was in training until he became he was called by the Pharaoh to take the second
highest position in the entire country of Egypt. I mean Egypt was the world power at that time. It
was the world power. Nobody was bigger or stronger than Egypt at that time. Who is number two?
Joseph. Who is number one? Pharaoh. Wow! See what I’m saying. I think there are some of the
Josephs out here. Right here. Even our young people. Even people who are just four years, five
years, two years before retirement. Be the Joseph man. Start moving in that direction.
Okay we have set off this morning and I forgot to show you that. What we’re trying to do
this morning is talk about job satisfaction. That’s what we’re trying to do. We’re asking the Lord to
show. And the Lord says you know what. There are two things you can do. Two things you can do.
Go to work as if you’re working for the Lord and when you’re starting to make your job goals, when
you’re thinking about where you want to advance to, make sure that they are connected with eternity
because that is where we’re going. Let’s pray together.
10