READ | SERMON NOTES
Summary l How do I know if I am called to a particular job or vocation? We may be struggling at work with challenging bosses or difficult colleagues or coping with demands at home. 1 Cor.7:17 states that “each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them, just as God has called them.” The Latin word “vocale”, from which the word “vocation” is derived, means being called. This calling for work refers to:
1. Called to a faithful Person. Each of us is called to belong to Someone before we are called to do something.
a.Our identity is defined by God. “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters” (Col.3:23). We belong to Him and hence, He defines who we are. We are not defined by our work or our roles in life.
b.Satisfaction is from God. Jesus is our Bread of Life. We will never hunger or thirst when we believe in Him (John 6:35). We find satisfaction in our work because our reward is from God.
c.Values are shaped by God. We are “God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved” and so we are to clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience (Col.3:12). These values reflect God’s character.
d.Purpose is from Him. We are God’s ambassadors (2 Cor.5:20) and kingly priests (1 Pet. 2:9). We represent Him so that others may know Him. As mediators and priests, we bring God’s presence wherever we go.
We are called first to be like God, even before we do anything for Him. Our calling is to be like Him rather than focusing on what jobs we are to do. How is our relationship with the Faithful One who has called us?
2. Called to obedient stewardship. There are God-given indicators of the type of work he would like us to undertake.
a.Burdens and desires. These are the purposes and issues that direct, drive and compel us to action.
b.Gifts and abilities. We are to excel in the different gifts which God has endowed us with (Rom. 12:6-8).
c.Open doors and opportunities. God gives us open doors to guide us. However, not every opportunity is from God. We need to seek His will. Is it God’s timing? What are our motives? Are we trying to avoid an issue by going through an open door?
The above points can also be used by the world. What distinguishes Christians from the world’s views is that we are stewards and not owners of the desires, gifts and opportunities God has given us. Are we obeying God and working for His glory and pleasure? It is through our obedience that God is glorified. As Mother Theresa said, “God didn’t call me to be successful; He called me to be faithful.” Even as we obey, God strengthens and leads. More insights on discerning our vocation can be found in Tan Soo-Inn’s book, “Discover Your Calling: The ABC of Vocational Discernment”.
3. Called to wise choices. There are occasions when we have little choice on our roles or jobs. There may be some who do not know what his or her calling is. How then do we make daily decisions in our workplace?
a.Permissible but beneficial (1 Cor. 10:23). We have choices to make each day. There are many things we can do but are all of them beneficial to others around us?
b.Freedom or bondage (1 Cor. 6:12). Are we slaves to our work because of what we want in life? Are we stressed out because we want to prove ourselves?
c.Loving or stumbling (1 Cor.8:13). Will my decisions stumble others and create doubts in their minds? Will my actions and words nurture someone else’s faith? Am I showing Christ-like love at work?
Marketplace Support Groups are being formed to enable godly support so that we can journey together to make wise choices at work. More details can be found in https://wesleymc.org/events-courses/events/marketplace-support-group-msg.
4. Called to a discipleship journey. The seasons in our lives are not isolated ones but are connected to form our discipleship journey. Biblical heroes such as Joseph, David, Esther and Paul were all assigned roles to prepare them for the next phase in their lives. Each path we take prepares us for the next step. Pastor Ray shared on how God prepared him for his internship with HealthServe through the years of earlier experience in the Ministry of Manpower dealing with foreign worker workplace injuries.
Work done in God’s way, through God’s time, will yield God’s success and fulfil God’s purposes. The journey will not get easier, but we will be strengthened by God in our work. Throughout this journey, we can rest in Him. We need to continually abide in our Lord, so that regardless of whichever season we are in, we can rest in the finished work of Christ.
PONDER | REFLECTION QUESTIONS
- Why is it important for us to be called to God first before any work we do?
- Why is our relationship with God so crucial to our calling to work?
- Burdens, abilities and opportunities. How does being God’s steward of these change your perspective?
- What are the three factors which will guide us for godly decisions at work? Which one is most challenging for you? Why?
- How has your work journey been one of discipleship? Have you experienced how your past work experience has prepared you for your current assignments?
- Rest and rested. How can we find our rest in our discipleship journey of work?
- Pray for and encourage each other to be faithful disciples at our workplaces.
