As children of the hardest working Person of all time, our Lord, we are to strive for excellence in all we do. Yet there’s this strange notion in certain factions of Christianity that supposes striving for excellence in this world is somehow evil or aligned with the “god of this world” (ref: 2 Corinthians 4:4). Nothing could be further from the truth! In fact, just the opposite is true!
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him…
Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord.
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.
– Colossians 3:17, 22-24
It’s a supreme privilege to know that your work is a form of service to the Lord. Do you see anywhere in the Bible where it says mediocrity is good enough? I don’t. I see a book filled with exhortation to work hard so others might see you and attribute your ethic to the Lord. Laziness is frowned upon, especially when it begins to affect others.
Command these things as well, so that they may be without reproach. But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
– 1 Timothy 5:7-8
I’ve heard folks say stupid things like, “Blessed are the poor” (twisting Matthew 5:3) in order to justify their laziness. If they were to finish the verse, which actually says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit”, they would realize that it refers to a posture of humility and recognition of one’s own depravity! For context’s sake, it’s true that God comforts the lowly, but that is a provision from a gracious, merciful God, not the high-water mark in terms of aspirations.
Christianity isn’t an excuse for laziness. There’s no “higher ground” for those who shun hard work in this world. There’s no heavenly prize for underachievers and sluggards.
It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.
– 2 Timothy 2:6
The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.
– Proverbs 13:4
In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty. The crown of the wise is their wealth, but the folly of fools brings folly.
– Proverbs 14:23-24
All honorable work is profitable. Nothing but talk leads only to poverty. We all know people who talk by the hour about their problems but never lift a little finger to solve them. They talk up a storm about world evangelism but never move from their reclining chair to witness to their neighbor. Without coming up for air, they tell you what they plan to do in the future, but they never do it.
The glory of the wise is their riches. They have something to show for their wisdom, whether we think of that wealth as spiritual or material. Fools have nothing but folly to show for their lives and labors.
– William MacDonald on Proverbs 14:23-24
The truth about hard work is that God rewards it! God loves to prosper His children. Just as an earthly father loves to see his children prosper and encourages them to work hard to that end, so does our Heavenly Father. A good father will never reward laziness; rather, he will discipline his children and exhort them to reflect the nature of the One who saved them, whose image they represent.
Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.
– 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12
One thing I’ve learned, the older I get, (and I’m speaking especially as a man here) is that the happiest Christian men I know are hard workers. I believe that men need to work as a fundamental pillar of their happiness (even if they don’t currently realize it). Getting out of bed in the morning with a sense of purpose and then completing a hard day’s work builds character and peace knowing they have served the Lord well.
Hard work, in its purest form, is an expression of love for God.
The soul (appetite) of the lazy person craves and gets nothing [for lethargy overcomes ambition], But the soul (appetite) of the diligent [who works willingly] is rich and abundantly supplied.
– Proverbs 13:4 [Amplified]
Christianity isn’t an excuse for laziness. In fact, Christianity represents the very opposite of laziness. Christianity entails prolonged, hard work to bring glory to the Lord. After all, most people first see the Lord in us. What kind of image do we want others to see? What kind of representation does the Lord deserve down here on Earth? I think we all know the answer.
Love in Christ,
Ed Collins