God’s will in our earthly work

God’s will in our earthly work

God wants us to seek His will in everything, also in our earthly work.

02/06/20236 min

By ActiveChristianity

God’s will in our earthly work

8 min

Many people believe that God’s will only has to do with spiritual things like visiting the sick or giving a testimony. But God wants us to seek His will in everything, including the circumstances we are in now, and in the things we are busy with now.

Some people live mostly in the past, while others are always looking to the future, but this can make them miss what God’s will is for them right now, in the present moment. Satan wants to make sure that we don’t see the areas where it should be the easiest to seek God’s will; he leads our thoughts away and makes us think that earthly issues should be separated from the spiritual, that His will has nothing to do with earthly matters, only with spiritual matters.

Do your earthly work as if for the Lord

Everything we do with our bodies in accordance with God’s will is our "spiritual service" and is pleasing to God (Romans 12:1). Therefore, Paul tells us to do our earthly work as if we are doing it for the Lord Himself. He wrote in Ephesians 6:5-7 (BBE): “Servants, do what is ordered by those who are your natural masters, having respect and fear for them, with all your heart, as to Christ; not only under your master's eye, as pleasers of men; but as servants of Christ, doing the pleasure of God from the heart; doing your work readily, as to the Lord, and not to men.”

We see that we have to do everything, also our earthly work, as if we do it for the Lord. It is as if the Lord Himself were standing there and watching you, making sure that you are doing the work for Him. When you do your work in this way - under His watchful eye and guidance - you will find that His eyes (through your spirit and your conscience) will oversee the work that you are doing, even in the smallest details - point for point. He will then become the One who guides your earthly work.

If there is a point in your work that you haven’t done it as you know it should have been done, then you will know it in your conscience. He will tell you to go back and complete what is lacking (James 1:4).

Your earthly work is also “serving God”

If you see your earthly work as “serving God”, and you want to do His will, then you can carry out your tasks willingly, faithfully and wholeheartedly. You will receive your reward from the Lord, for it is for Him that you do your work. He will pay you what is right, even if you do not receive what is fair from people. The reward you receive from people is your earthly income by which God lets you live, so that you can be an example of His teaching during the time that you are on earth.

As you obey the Holy Spirit, you will become more watchful in your work, living before God’s face all day long so that you can please Him with your work and through it with your life. He is your co-worker in everything He wants you to do, just as you are His co-worker. He works in you to will and to do all things that are pleasing to him (Philippians 2:13).

Therefore, do your work “without complaining and arguing. Then you will be innocent and without any wrong. You will be God's children without fault. But you are living with crooked and mean people all around you, among whom you shine like stars in the dark world.” Philippians 2:14-15 (NCV).

If you are obedient to what God tells you in your earthly work, you learn to become more righteous in your daily life. This is how you live in the Spirit in every earthly task. These earthly tasks are “His works” that you must carefully do. Each task has heavenly value - first for the Lord, then for others, and finally for you.

The Lord serves other people through you

If your heart is 100% for the Lord, He will help you in everything you do (2 Chronicles 16:9), and therefore it will succeed. The things you do will help others, either directly or indirectly, and in this way, the Lord serves people through His children. Not many people know this or see it as coming from Him, but He still keeps helping people, because love never stops giving (1 Corinthians 13:8). He serves other people through you when you serve as to Him. In this way, He gives the same grace to people today, through the members of His body on earth (Ephesians 5:30), as He did when He Himself walked on earth.

The Lord could actually take His people home to heaven, but in His grace, He wants them to finish the work that He gives them to do, so that His grace can reach even more people. We live His life, and in this way it is as if Jesus is still walking on earth as the son of a carpenter from Nazareth, doing all His earthy tasks.

Gathering treasures in heaven

This is how, in a practical way, you can gather treasures in heaven at all times of the day. Perfect obedience on earth results in perfect joy - His joy in you and your joy in Him.

When it comes to these things, Satan makes people blind. We see many people in many churches who say they believe in Christ, but they don’t do their earthly work willingly as to the Lord. Often, they do their work with complaining and laziness, and therefore they become “sick and tired” of their work. If they sought God’s will in everything, including their earthly work, and did it as God and their conscience directed them, God would be pleased with them, and they would be full of joy.

Let’s not give up until we have learnt to do everything exactly as God and our conscience tell us to. We need patience for this, because it can take a long time, but as James writes: “Make sure that your endurance [patience] carries you all the way without failing, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” James 1:4 (GNT).

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This article is based on an article by Aksel Smith which first appeared under the title “God’s will in our earthly work” in BCC’s periodical "Skjulte Skatter" (Hidden Treasures) in January 1913. It has been translated from the Norwegian and is adapted with permission for use on this website.

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