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WORK OR WORSHIP?
At the outset, I would like to recall an incident at the end of my junior college stint.
Whilst trying to gain an entry into a prominent educational institution in our country,
I was required by it to produce ‘a recommendation letter ‘ of one of my erstwhile lecturers’
with his/her remarks on my personality. My English lecturer who
kindly condescended
to oblige me with such ‘a recommendation letter’ wrote in her opening remarks
‘ For him, work is worship’. Now, I want to apply brakes, cut short that story & come-up with
a poser ‘Can work ever be worship’? It is a catchy English phrase all right but in the spiritual realm,
is it true? While our earthly employers would treasure a person with such an attitude,
what does God’s word say on this subject?
Though work by itself is commendable
(Gen 1: 15 /
II Thessalonians 3:10),
can it ever be a substitute for worship? Which actually brings us to the point
‘Why was man created in the first place?’ Was it not for enjoying sweet communion with his
Creator more than anything else.
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Again, while, there is no denial of the fact that work is God-ordained (a lazy Christian would be a poor
testimony to his faith in the society), however between work & worship, what does God prefer? We may not be
required to go beyond the Biblical Bethany village
(mentioned in Luke 10:38-41) for an answer,
where we see two contrasting attitudes of two sisters’ vis-à-vis our Lord. There was that bustle
bee Martha toiling away in the kitchen to provide a sumptuous fare to her Divine guest,
whereas her sister Mary was all quiet devotion at her Lord’s feet. Which sister’s demeanor pleased
our Lord the most? The attitude, which aimed to satiate his physical hunger or the one,
which longed for fellowship with Him? The Biblical answer sums it up, isn’t it? In fact,
whilst commending Mary even while mildly rebuking Martha our Lord goes on to say that Mary has
discovered ‘the most worthy thing & it won’t be taken away from her’. The most worthy thing
(she discovered), of course is the fact that one was made to enjoy sweet communion with his/her Creator.
David is often referred to as a ‘man of God’s own heart’. Now look at how this ‘heart’ longed for fellowship with son
Absalom following separation triggered by an intra-family crisis
(II Sam 13:39). Can God’s heart be
any different with respect to His children who are indifferent to Him? How often,
we limit the understanding of scripture portion ‘God made man in His own image’
(Gen 1:27)
to the physical dimension of it all, little realizing that God & man are alike with respect
to emotions as well. If we parents always long for ‘quality time’ with our children,
our God being emotionally alike, won’t He also long for fellowship with us? The answer
is crystal clear, isn’t it?
In fact, once we do our part of taking time out to be in His presence
(preferably in the quiet morning hours), He takes us the initiative of clothing us with His grace
to be worthy of worshipping Him
(John 4:23 & 24)! O, What a wonderful God, we worship!
He not only welcomes us to His Royal court but also clothes us with His grace fittingly for the occasion!
Whereas work can compete with worship & eat into that precious time, we need to set apart for God
(just as tithing 10% of our income has a Biblical mandate, the same applies to our time too),
can worship conversely ever be a deterrent for work? NO WAY! Can any man who has begun
his day worshipping His righteous Creator, give anything less than his best to his employer,
working, so to speak, ‘as unto the Lord’
(Col 3:23)? Which in fact, increases
his chances of being given higher responsibilities with all financial privileges,
which go along with such an elevation. By the same token, can a businessman,
who was in the middle of God’s will in the morning, cheat his customers after a few hours?
In fact, his credibility - the source of which is his life of seeking God first & worshipping Him- would
enhance his business reputation in ever-widening circles contributing subsequently to his increased profits.
While bread-earning secular work can never be equated with worship, which stands on a higher pedestal,
what about God’s work like Evangelism? Does it also pale before worship? YES! It is only because man fell
in the Garden of Eden, there is a need for evangelism today. What, if he had stuck to the original
purpose of His creation, of remaining in constant close fellowship with his Maker? The answer is
quite apparent, isn’t it? Just as worship abets secular work of an employee or businessman,
does it to the same to Godly work also? YES, ONCE AGAIN! In fact it is true worship,
which can lead to any worthwhile evangelistic work of lasting value. Notice, how apostle Paul’s
first missionary journey in tandem with Barnabas (about which we talk about in hushed tones today)
began in
Acts 13:1-2.
Bible says that it was while, they were WORSHIPPING THE LORD, that
they were called to go on a special assignment! So let’s get our priorities right.
I would like to conclude this essay with a final word from the ‘action’ Gospel of St.Mark. Why ‘action’?
Because, Mark portrays our Lord as a very busy person, a man on a mission, being always on a constant move.
In fact, Mark uses the word ‘immediately’ to emphasize action, not less than 42 times in his gospel.
Yes, our Lord’s earthly, physical ministry was packed into those three & half years of fast-paced life,
which would begin early in the morning & stretch into the wee hours of the night but it is very pertinent to note,
how our Lord used to begin the day. Even before any of his preaching, teaching or healing work
commenced ‘ Very early in the morning, He would go out to a
solitary place to commune with His Father’
(Mark 1:35). Should one need to say, more?
Our Lord himself by virtue of His own example has exhorted us to get our priorities right,
of putting the horse before the cart, as it were, when it comes to this dicey issue of
‘Worship before work or vice-versa’. Important as work is (secular or spiritual),
let’s never miss out on the greatest joys of our life…the very purpose of our creation,
which is to enjoy, sweet intimate communion with our Father.
Yours in His grace,
(Suresh Manoharan)
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