Work Matters (Chantilly Sermon)

Genesis 1:27,28 CSB – 

So God created man
in his own image;
he created him in the image of God;
he created them male and female.

²⁸ God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.”

Genesis 2:1-5,15 CSB – 

So the heavens and the earth and everything in them were completed. ² On the seventh day God had completed his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. ³ God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, for on it he rested from all his work of creation.

⁴ These are the records of the heavens and the earth, concerning their creation. At the time that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, ⁵ no shrub of the field had yet grown on the land, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not made it rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground.

The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it.

God Dignifies Work

God Dignifies Work by Being a Worker

Genesis 2:2 CSB – On the seventh day God had completed his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.

John 5:17 CSB – Jesus responded to them, “My Father is still working, and I am working also.”

Genesis 2:15 CSB –  The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it.

God Dignifies Work by Saying, “Work with Me!”

Genesis 1:27-28 CSB – 

So God created man
in his own image;
he created him in the image of God;
he created them male and female.

²⁸ God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.”

Psalm 147:2 CSB – The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem;

Psalm 147:13 CSB – For he strengthens the bars of your city gates

Psalm 147:14b CSB – He satisfies you with the finest wheat.

The Brokenness of Work: Work Separated From God

Genesis 3:17-18 CSB – The ground is cursed because of you.
You will eat from it by means of painful labor
all the days of your life.
¹⁸ It will produce thorns and thistles for you,…

 “The biblical doctrine of work is that work is the gracious expression of creative energy in the service of others and of God.” – Dorthy Sayers

Let God Redeem Your Work

• Be Ambitious To Serve With God

Genesis 1:28 CSB – God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.”

Matthew 22:37-39 CSB – [Jesus] said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the greatest and most important command. ³⁹ The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.

Genesis 2:15 CSB – The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it.

1 Peter 2:9 CSB – you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood

Ephesians 6:7-8 CSB – Serve with a good attitude, as to the Lord and not to people, ⁸ knowing that whatever good each one does, slave or free, he will receive this back from the Lord.

Hebrews 6:10 CSB – For God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you demonstrated for his name by serving the saints—

• Live Sent

Matthew 28:18-20 CSB – Go into all the world and make disciples…

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 CSB – …do this even more, ¹¹ to seek to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, ¹² so that you may behave properly in the presence of outsiders and not be dependent on anyone.

Matthew 5:16 CSB – let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.