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You Already Work a Christian Job
As a teenager, I didn’t know about the Christian doctrine of vocation. I believed some people did important things—my pastor was working for God; others, like missionaries, doctors, and high-level leaders, were changing the world. I never imagined the work familiar to me (farming and construction) could be a calling from God or make a significant difference.
I was wrong.
You may have a similar outlook. You want your life to mean something. You crave significance. But you aren’t sure how those proper desires relate to the ordinary work you do every day. If you’re a serious believer, you may wonder, Are some jobs more Christian than others? Am I really changing the world as I change tires or diapers? The biblical doctrine of calling, or vocation, can answer those questions and put you on the right track of working for God no matter your occupation.
What Is Vocation?
The fourth-century church father Eusebius said those who “have minds for farming, for trade, and the other more secular interests” have “a kind of secondary grade of piety.” Only church workers had first-rate godliness. Medieval Christians who came later followed this reasoning. In their view, only church workers had a vocation; everyone else simply labored. This false distinction was challenged by the Protestant Reformation, which rescued devotion from the confines of the monastery and released it into the rest of God’s world.
In Scripture, “calling” almost always refers to God’s call of his people to faith, the Spirit’s working of that faith, or the active life of faith. So in one sense, what we call a vocation is just a part—though a large part—of our general calling to live honorably before God. Our master vocation is to love the Lord supremely and our neighbors as ourselves.
Our master vocation is to love the Lord supremely and our neighbors as ourselves.
But in at least one place, Scripture broadens the sense of Christian calling. Paul exhorts each believer to “lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him” (1 Cor. 7:17). Paul gives the example of a bondservant who becomes a Christian through the effectual call, the gift of regeneration. Even in a lowly station, a Christian is free to serve the Lord. John Calvin understood this passage to apply to the vocations of tailors and merchants, to give two examples.
Enlisted in God’s Service
After their conversions, tax collectors and soldiers don’t take up new work. They stay in their vocations but now have a different master and new motives (Luke 3:10–14). They’re owned by God and work for his glory. The Christian doctrine of vocation teaches us that even bondservants—and anyone else with a hard, undesirable job—can work “heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.” Paul reminds lowly servants that they’re “serving the Lord Christ” (Col. 3:22–24).
There’s no reason for people doing valid work to change professions when they become Christians—they can serve God where they are when they’re called to faith. Paul’s wonderful point is that the gospel is equally well suited to people employed in any honorable work (1 Cor. 10:31). Vocation dignifies all legitimate efforts.
Three Vocation Ingredients
At least three things are necessary to enjoy a true calling from God.
1. Right Perspective
Dorothy Sayers said the outcome of our work “will be decided by our religious outlook: as we are so we make.” There’s a difference in how believers and unbelievers approach their varied responsibilities. Without trust in God, some might use work to chase wealth, make a name for themselves (Gen. 11:4), or attempt to secure satisfaction outside of Christ. Others may be tempted to shirk off because no one notices, or feel discontent because the work doesn’t seem very important. But faith in God and obedience to his Word can transform any valid work into worship.
Not all work is intrinsically satisfying. All work has challenges (Eccl. 1:13). But a vocational outlook can help you transcend the liabilities of working in a fallen world. The various arenas of our lives—work, church, family, recreation—must be governed by trust in God and an interest in his glory.
2. Valid Venture
You can glorify God in whatever labor you undertake, provided it’s noble work. God acknowledges as vocations only work that he approves and that can be done according to his law. You cannot glorify the Lord by bringing a godly attitude to an evil job. The builders of the Tower of Babel worked heartily but lacked a valid calling because the project displeased the Lord.
Faith in God and obedience to his Word can transform any valid work into worship.
A job is worthy of our efforts if it harmonizes with God’s original mandate that humans steward the earth in submission to him (Gen. 1:28). Legitimate work must serve God by serving people. So some occupations cannot possibly be callings—you can’t, for example, be a Christian loan shark, pornographer, or thief.
This doesn’t mean every qualified job will feel like a calling. But while a mundane job may not be your ideal career, it may be the place where you live out your faith for a time, or even for your lifetime.
3. Faithful Labor
Vocation defines not only the why and where of work but also the how. God’s people, made in his image, must do something worth doing, with the right perspective.
Kingdom work means doing quality work in a way that honors the second great commandment (Matt. 22:39). You must produce a quality product or render excellent service while using your calling to love your neighbor. For Christians, work isn’t how to get ahead by clambering over others’ backs; it’s how to value others’ interests (Phil. 2:4).
Vocation is the doctrine you need to elevate work to its rightful place as designed by God. In a fallen world, you can’t do whatever you want, no matter what your heart tells you. But anything you can do will please God if it’s noble work done for his glory, out of true faith, and with your best effort.
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