Vietnam Evangelical Covenant Church – Reading the title, you may be thinking, “How can that be? Why would my career crush me?” Let’s look at an interview with Pastor Tim Keller of New York City to understand better.
A career is an important part of life, and Scripture encourages hard work. But Jesus also warned, “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet loses his soul?” (Matthew 16:26). This article helps us recognize when our career begins to take God’s place.
When a Career Becomes an Idol
A career is not bad, but it becomes dangerous when we look for our worth and security in it instead of in God.
Joining us this week is Pastor Tim Keller of New York City to talk about vocation and his very helpful book Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work. I have many questions for him, to be honest. We will be speaking to college graduates, parents and Christians who feel stuck in their jobs. Let me begin with a question: why does a biblical view of vocation seem so underdeveloped in the lives of so many Christians today?
I think the reason may lie in the fact that there is no consensus in the church about how the church is supposed to relate to the wider culture. In fact, I wrote another book on that, Center Church. I try to address that issue there rather than in Every Good Endeavor.
“A job is a vocation only if someone else calls you to do it and you do it for them rather than for yourself.”
Basically, you have very different views of how the church relates to culture, possibly based on different views of common grace, and perhaps on slightly different views of the role of the church as an institution.
When it comes to the doctrine of vocation, everyone says, “Oh yes, that’s really important. The core thing to remember is that all work is a calling from God. Work matters and you need to bring your faith to work. Yes, it’s very important.” But then the problem is that the doctrine of vocation gets caught up in this debate. There is no consensus on how to relate to culture, so there is no consensus on what vocation means.
Breaking Individualism
Thank you for helping clear up some of the confusion and move us toward clarity. Early in Every Good Endeavor, you write two sentences that capture the book’s main theme: a job is a vocation only if someone else calls you to it and you do it for them rather than for yourself; and thinking of work mainly as a means of self-fulfillment and self-realization slowly crushes the individual and undermines society itself. Powerful. So where does this destructive individualism in the workplace come from?
Well, the secular mindset begins with the idea that there is no meaning in life. We are here by accident. There is no purpose to life. There are no moral absolutes. We were not put here for any purpose.
But then I have seen this in many forms, where most people say, “Of course there is no meaning in life; you have to create your own meaning.” I have heard many secular people and atheists say, yes, of course life has no meaning, but that doesn’t mean you can’t live a useful and happy life. You create your own meaning.
Someone should really dig into that another time. I would probably say, “You can’t create your own meaning. If you think you are creating your own meaning, you don’t really have any.” Basically it means, “You decide. You decide what is right or wrong for you. You decide what is important and you live by that.”
In that case, there is no calling. You have no sense that something higher and more important than yourself exists. And without that, you can’t really have things like sacrifice or service. Everything you do is selfish.
And there is no real hope either. No real hope for the future. You are simply trying to create a bit of happiness for yourself for a short time. But in the end, there is nothing but darkness.
When you put that together, the ideas of calling, hope, service and selfless sacrifice all really depend on there being Someone more important than you, Someone who is still there: God.
I think when the whole concept of vocation disappears, work becomes simply a way to get ahead, and that is crushing us.
Hearts Transformed by the Gospel
Indeed, self-sacrifice is at the center of the biblical idea of vocation. I think that runs counter to many Christians who don’t like their jobs. Very practically, what about a Christian who shows up to work on Monday morning and is grumpy with everyone?
“If you make a product that helps people live better, even if it is a boring job, you are doing God’s work.”
In the book I talk about how the gospel comes into our work in many different ways. One of them is through the heart. Grumbling, anger or doing only what I must to get by means you are lacking the character of someone who follows God.
Through the gospel we learn to live with gratitude and humility; the gospel gives us real peace in our hearts and our souls become rich. If you are not showing those things at work, it means you haven’t really let the gospel transform your heart in God’s way.
In the long run, a heart transformed by the gospel usually makes you a good employee. People will want to work with you. People will want to be on your team. Employers will be pleased with your work. Truly, in the long run, a gospel-transformed heart is essential to the practical world of work.
The God of Options
Absolutely. Success requires hard work and focus on many levels. I first heard the phrase “the god of options” from Mark Dever in D.C. He was talking about young pastors who lead a local church but always keep an eye on another church, always looking for a newer church and a better position. Similarly, it seems many Christians are tempted to hold a job while being caught up in “the god of options,” never really committing to a particular job but always looking for a new job, a new position. Have you noticed this?
Yes. I think it’s a bit ironic that I just say “yes,” but your question states it clearly and I agree. I would just add one thing. People are looking for something more fulfilling. They often say, “I want a more interesting job. This one is a bit boring.” Or they are looking for a better-paying job. I think the Christian understanding of vocation is that if you make a product that helps people live better, even if it is a boring job, you are doing God’s work. You are caring for God’s creation. You are serving people’s needs. Why do you need to be so incredibly fulfilled when you know you are doing something that helps others? I think that is part of what I mean when I say we have lost the idea of calling, and we look at work as a way to be fulfilled, and in the end that really crushes you. You are always halfhearted, as you said.
(Tim Keller was a scholar, theologian and apologist. He was the founding pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City and a co-founder of The Gospel Coalition.)
Translated by: Translation Team – Communications Ministry, Vietnam Evangelical Covenant Church
Adapted from: DesiringGod.org
Putting Your Career in Its Proper Place
Ask yourself: if I lost my job tomorrow, would I still have peace? The answer shows where your career sits in your heart. Colossians 3:23 teaches us to work wholeheartedly “as for the Lord,” but not to let work become our lord.
Keep healthy boundaries: time for God, for family and for church. A career placed under God’s lordship becomes a place to serve and witness, instead of a place that crushes your life.
You may also like: How to Do Everything to the Glory of God and Ministry Isn’t Just for Sunday.
Prayer
Lord, thank You for the work and career You have given us. Keep our hearts from placing our careers above You, and use our work to glorify Your name and serve others. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
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