By Todd Paetznick, November 16, 2023.

God made people to do work.  It is one of the primary purposes for which people were created and recorded at the beginning of the Bible as a part of the creation story.  The biblical account explains that God wants people to manage the earth and its creatures.  All that exists had its origin with God.  Everything was created out of nothing, and everything was created with a purpose.  People were made to look after what God made, to be delighted and enjoy creation, and to have a special relationship with God.   

But why should the creation of everything by God matter to us in 2023?   There are (at least) four reasons that relate directly to how we think about our work.

1.  People have been made in the image of God according to Genesis 1:26.  Being the image of God, people have God-like characteristics that include an ability and desire to work.  Creation was the work of God.  Taking care of that creation was the task given to people.  However, people were not created to be slaves or servants to God and were not created to be preprogrammed robots.  People have been created with the God-like characteristic of free will.  In our case, this means we have a choice as to whether we will do what God asks or do something that may seem preferable, more pleasurable, personally beneficial, or fulfilling.  Being a God-follower means we choose to do what God wants us to do over and above what we may think is better. 

2.  Doing things God’s way produces superior outcomes.  The Bible contains many accounts of people who exercise their free will and act in ways that please God.  They chose to act without certain knowledge of what will happen next; this is what is meant by having faith in God.  Many, but not all, prospered as a result of their obedience.  The Bible also records accounts of people who chose to exercise their free will by doing what they thought would benefit them personally.  The Old Testament book of Judges repeats, “Everyone did what they thought was best in their own eyes.”  In the time before Israel had its first king, this self-serving attitude resulted in repeated cycles of good times followed by times of oppression that required God’s intervention.  Thousands of years later, our generation thinks much like the ancient Israelites; we confuse “success” with God’s blessing.  In our minds, we can justify nearly any action we take as long it produces the outcomes we desire.  Interestingly, we consider the unchanging nature of God as one of His characteristics; it may be that human nature is also unchanging.  Solomon wrote, “There is nothing new under the sun,” not referring to human invention but to people’s character (Ecclesiastes 1:9).  People have always been self-seeking.  Left to our own devices, we will do the same bone-headed things our ancient ancestors did despite having access to knowledge about their outcomes.  Knowledge is not the same thing as wisdom.  There is wisdom in the Bible that, when applied, will benefit our lives and our businesses.

3.  People are naturally curious and creative, which leads to fulfilling our purpose.  God has provided humanity with the resources and intelligence needed to discover and use those resources to benefit all creation.  Solving problems is a uniquely human ability.  All creation benefits when problems are solved, and the world is improved.  The biblical command to “subdue” the earth is a part of the charge God gave people at the time of creation (Genesis 1:28).  The word subdue often has a negative connotation.  It sounds like a command to make a conquered people or resource subjugated to the whims of a stronger conqueror.  Exploiting people or the earth’s resources for personal gain is not the idea behind the word.  Instead, people are to solve the world’s problems using the provided resources of the planet and continually improve how we do things. Every scientist, geologist, chemist, businessperson, farmer, inventor, doctor, manufacturer, manager, entrepreneur, parent, and many other vocations are acting within God’s command to subdue the earth, making it a better place.   

4.  Work is a way in which we worship God.  This can be surprising if we only think of work as drudgery and something we must do to survive.  Changing our attitude toward work will help us realize there is a more significant and even spiritual purpose behind nearly every job.  Our attitudes about work will determine whether the job feels like drudgery or joy.  Each of us, as God-followers, plays a role in the bigger narrative of God’s plan.  Sometimes, what we do may seem small and insignificant because we cannot see how we fit into the bigger picture of God’s plan.  The apostle Paul reminds us that God made us to do good deeds, which He also prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10).  Amazing. We may never know this side of heaven, the eternal impact of our actions, or how we may benefit others.  Nevertheless, we are asked to act and to do the right thing as our way of worshiping God through our work. 

  From the beginning, God created people to take care of His world, which includes other people and its creatures, and generally making the world a better place.  God provided us with the resources and intelligence needed for the task.  And God gave us an owner’s manual, of sorts, in the form of the Bible.  Through God’s instructions and the case studies included in the Bible, we can know what works and what does not.  We can discover what happens when people think they know better and do things their way.    We can know what happens when people do as God asks.  The Bible has the wisdom we need to address whatever circumstance we may encounter as we do the work we were intended to do.