WORK: A Theology of the Gift of Work

Work Is Witness

Jon Fredricks

Today's Scripture: 2 Corinthians 9:12-15 NIV

2 Corinthians 9:12-15 NIV

12 This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. 13 Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. 14 And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. 15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

Exodus 20:8-11 NIV

8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

1) PRAY

2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV

14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Matthew 6:6 NIV

6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

James 5:16b NIV

… The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

2) POSTURE

2 Corinthians 2:14 NIV

14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere.

2 Corinthians 2:15 NIV
15 For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.

James 1:19 NIV

19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,

3) PRESENCE

John 13:34-35 NIV

34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Ephesians 5:2 NIV

2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

1 Peter 4:8 NIV

8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

4) PROFESS

1 Peter 3:15 NIV

15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

Acts 1:8 NIV

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Colossians 3:23 NIV

23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.

WORK: A Theology of the Gift of Work

Work as Worship

Bobby Humes

Today's Scripture: 2 Corinthians 9:6-9 NIV

2 Corinthians 9:6-9 NIV

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. As it is written: “They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor; their righteousness endures forever.”

Colossians 4:1 NIV

Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.

Genesis 2:1-3 NIV

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

Genesis 1:28 NIV

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.

Genesis 3:17-19 NIV

Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.

Genesis 9:7 NIV

As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.

Galatians 5:22-23 NIV

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

1) WORK AS WORSHIP

Psalm 139:13-14 NIV

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Ephesians 2:10 NIV

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Exodus 23:10-11 NIV

For six years you are to sow your fields and harvest the crops, but during the seventh year let the land lie unplowed and unused. Then the poor among your people may get food from it, and the wild animals may eat what is left. Do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.

Titus 2:2-3 NIV

Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance. Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good.

Colossians 3:23 NIV

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,

2) GOD'S WORK

Matthew 7:17-18 NIV

Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.

Matthew 7:20 NIV

Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

1 Corinthians 10:31-33 NIV

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God—even as I try to please everyone in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 NIV

I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.

John 4:34 NIV

“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.

John 4:36-38 NIV

BEYOND Expectations

This Changes Everything

Jon Fredricks

Today's Scripture: Hebrews 1:3 NIV

Hebrews 1:3 NIV

3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

1) EASTER IS A SIGN: JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD

Luke 24:1-6 NIV

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. 5 In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee.

John 14:9 NIV

9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

John 3:16 NIV

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Luke 18:31-33 NIV

31 Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; 33 they will flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.”

2) EASTER IS THE SIGN: THE HOPELESS HAVE HOPE

Hebrews 1:3b NIV

3b After he has provided purification for his sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

Ephesians 2:6 NIV

6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

Ephesians 2:1-10 NIV

1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Ephesians 1:19-20 NIV

19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,

John 14:6 NIV

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 10:10 NIV

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

John 3:16 NIV

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

BEYOND the Horizon

How Jesus Reveals God

Jon Fredricks

Today's Scripture: Hebrews 1:1-3 NIV

Hebrews 1:3 NIV

3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

John 14:6 NIV

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

1) THE NATURE OF GOD REMAINS HIDDEN

Hebrews 1:3 NIV

3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

Romans 1:20 NIV

20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

2) THE EXPERIENCE OF GOD FEELS HIDDEN

Acts 17:27 NASB

27 that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;

Isaiah 40: 13-15 NIV

13 Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord,or instruct the Lord as his counselor?14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,and who taught him the right way?Who was it that taught him knowledge,or showed him the path of understanding?

15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;they are regarded as dust on the scales;he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.

Isaiah 59:1-2 NIV

Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear.2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God;your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.

Romans 3:23 NIV

23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

3) THE RESPONSE OF GOD TO HIDDENNESS

John 1:9-14 NIV

9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1:18 NIV

18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

Colossians 1:15 NIV

15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

4) MY STEP INTO THE UNHIDDEN LIFE

John 17:3 NIV

3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

John 1:12 NIV

12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—

Revelation 3:20 NIV

20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

BEYOND Belief

How Jesus Restores Trust

Jon Fredricks

Today's Scripture: Hebrews 1:1-3 NIV

Hebrews 11:1 NIV

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

1 Corinthians 15:3-4 NIV

3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

1 Corinthians 15:17-19 NIV

17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.

Hebrews 1:1-3 NIV

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

John 20:27 NIV

Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

John 20:31 NIV
31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

1) CONSISTENCY: JESUS CONFIRMS GOD'S PROMISES AS TRUE

John 5:18 NIV

18 For this reason they tried all the more to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.

John 5:24 NIV

24 “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.

John 5:36-39 NIV

36 “I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to finish—the very works that I am doing—testify that the Father has sent me. 37 And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, 38 nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent. 39 You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me,

Isaiah 7:14 NIV

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel

Isaiah 53:3-9 NIV

2) REMARKABLE INTEGRITY: JESUS REFLECTS LIKE NO OTHER THE CHARACTER OF GOD

Hebrews 4:15 NIV

15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.

John 1:18 NIV

18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

John 10:24-26 NIV

24 The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” 25 Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, 26 but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.

John 5:19 NIV

19 Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.

3) MIRACULOUS UNIQUENESS: JESUS ACCOMPLISHED WHAT NO OTHER HAS

1 Corinthians 15:13-14 NIV

13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.

4) RELIABILITY OF WITNESS: JESUS' WORD IS TRUE

Luke 1:1-4 NIV

John 5:39 NIV

MONSTERS: Faith and the Problem of Pain

Portray, Pray, & Praise Through It All

Bobby Humes

Today's Scripture: 2 Corinthians 11:21-23, 25-28, and 30-33 ESV

__________

2 Corinthians 11:21-23 ESV

But whatever anyone else dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that. Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.

2 Corinthians 11:25-28 ESV

Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.

2 Corinthians 11:30-33 ESV

If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

1) CONFIDENCE AND CONSTANT CHALLENGE

2 Corinthians 11:21-23 ESV

Deuteronomy 8:2-3 ESV

And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.

Acts 4:10-11 ESV

let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.

2) BLESSED BOASTING

2 Corinthians 11:30-33 ESV

1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Psalms 23:1 ESV

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

3) WONDER OF OUR WEAKNESSES

2 Corinthians 12:7-10 ESV

So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

John 16:33 ESV

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.

2 Corinthians 4:7 ESV

But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

John 7:38 ESV

Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.

4) PRAYER WARRIORS

Ephesians 6:11 ESV

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

Ephesians 6:18 ESV

2 Corinthisns 1:11 ESV

Galatians 5:22-25 ESV

Matthew 6:9-13 ESV

MONSTERS: Faith and the Problem of Pain

Not Going Alone

Bobby Humes

Today's Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:8-11 NIV

__________

2 Corinthians 1:8-11 NIV

8 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, 11 as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.

2 Corinthians 2:4 NIV

4 For I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you.

2 Corinthians 2:13 NIV

13 I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.

Psalm 68:6 NIV

6 God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.

1) BELIEVE YOU ARE NECESSARY HOWEVER YOU ARE!

2 Corinthians 1:8 NIV

8 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.

2) TRUST GOD TO DO THE WORK

2 Corinthians 1:9-10 NIV

9 Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us,

3) CHECK YOUR PRAYER METER

1 Corinthians 2:11 NIV

11 as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
Matthew 18:19 NIV

19 Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.

James 5:14-16 NIV

14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

4) SHOW UP AND KEEP SHOWING UP

2 Corinthians 1:8 NIV

8 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.

Hebrews 10:24-25 NIV

24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.