In this sermon, the speaker emphasizes the importance of having a strong work ethic as Christians. He highlights four key principles: having faith in Jesus as our Savior, joyfully serving in God's kingdom, being submissive to God's word and leading, and staying focused and alert in our tasks. The speaker also references the story of Andrew Summers Rowan, who was given a difficult mission but accomplished it without questioning or complaining. The sermon encourages believers to approach their work with excellence, integrity, and gratitude, whether it is in the business world, ministry, or family life.

Hi, this is Ben Zorns of Ellerzoo Mission Society. I think my mom dreaded asking me if I had cleaned my room, because she knew that while my room appeared clean, my closet and underneath my bed were filled with all the junk. I'm really grateful God doesn't have a work ethic like ten-year-old Ben did, and that he is refining his people to labor as he does. This deeply convicting message by Pastor Eric Lutie is entitled The Christian Work Ethic, and it will certainly lead you into a cry for a deep reliance on Christ. Please contact us at www.ellerslie.com. Now here's Pastor Eric Lutie. This message has the potential to make you feel very, very, very uncomfortable, because the ethic that we have grown up around is slovenly, sluggish, lethargic, and it excuses mediocrity, and in fact, oftentimes, it praises it as excellence, because compared to the lack of quality in so many lives, a little sparkle of integrity, a little sparkle of hard work, shows forth such an excellence in comparison with the low-quality standards of our generation that people praise it. They give it standing ovations. And I'm saying, let's remain in our seats a little longer. We give our standing ovation to Jesus Christ. We want to be dead serious about this Christianity. This is not something we're playacting in. And when it comes to how we live out our every moment of every day, this is very important, because God has a manner in which a Christian is to live, and it's not necessarily been passed down to all of us that are Christians, that grew up in the Christian world. There's a higher level of living. It's the God level of living. And you could say, well, I can't live at the God level. You're right. He can, in you. It's Christianity. Your life is not your own. You're the habitat of the Most High God. These hands now belong to Him. So how would He use them? That's the key question of a Christian. These feet belong to Him. So if these are His feet, how would He use them? This mind belongs to Him. So if He has control of it, what would His thoughts be? These eyes belong to Him. So if He's truly operating them, what's He looking at? How's He handling His job? Because God, this is going to sound strange, but God works. Isn't that an odd thing to think about God working? We always think of a time clock. God doesn't clock in, clock out the way we would envision someone working. But God works. And however He's working, we must learn to adopt His method. And so that's what this message is about. Christian ethics. There's a big word for you. Ethics. It's one of those words that every one of us has heard, but very few of us actually know what it means. So what I've done is I've baked down a very, very basic understanding of it from a Christian mindset. Because you could remove Jesus from the idea of ethics and still have them. It's basically a moral framework or pattern. But who's approving it? Who's coming up with it? It would be society. Well, Christians, we don't care about what society says. We care about what God says. So when God comes up with a pattern for living, we take note of that. So the Christian ethics are the Christ principle of honor and action and of God-worshiping manner and behavior. In other words, there's a God-worshiping way that we should live. It actually worships God with the way that we handle our daily life. Your thoughts, your actions, your interactions with other people, the way you handle a job. That's what specifically we're going to go after, is work. Because this is the Christian work ethic. Because there's a lot of things that this could apply to. But we're going to deal specifically with work. And whatsoever you do, in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him. Listen, Paul says it again. And whatsoever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not unto men. Boy, we could just take that one scripture and it would transform many of our lives. Whatever you do. You see, there's things, as I've been preparing this message this week, I have been deeply convicted. This is just a very uncomfortable message. Because there are certain areas of my life where I have demonstrated a very high work ethic. And I could easily look at myself compared to other people and go, you know what, I'm fairly impressive here. These other people aren't giving any effort into these things. And look at me, I am working very hard. However, what does God do? He points at a few other areas that other people may not see. They're not as public. And He goes, well, what about that? Well, I mean, are you expecting perfection in all these areas? Yes. You represent me, whether the blinds are closed or not. It doesn't matter. So every dimension of our life needs to come into agreement with what we are going to explore here. In all thy ways, acknowledge Him. Some of your ways, a few of your ways, you can acknowledge Him. All your ways. That means every corner of your life, every nuance, every angle. All your ways, you acknowledge Him and you show forth the fact that you know this matters to Him. Whether, therefore, you eat or drink or whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God. That means, without exception, every corner of your life is under the glory of God. The three works that, you know, we're going to explore this. This isn't what the message is on, but this is sort of an overview. Our daily physical labor for bread. Now, when we typically are thinking about work, in a classical, secular sense, this is what we're talking about. In other words, I'm going to work today. Most of you aren't thinking that that person means they're going to go into their prayer closet. Or that they're going to abide in Christ. Or that that means God's doing some great work. We know what it means. It means someone is going and earning a living. There's somehow, as we say, our daily physical labor for what? For bread. We need to survive in this life. And if you don't work, you don't eat. Where did I get that line from? If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. That's a good classic Paul statement. Which is really strange, because we as Christians are so paranoid about work. It's like, oh no, we as Christians don't work. Where do we get this stuff from? You see, we have this real huge mix-up on the topic of work. And that is that if you were trying to work your way into heaven, it doesn't work that way. That isn't the correct way of working. However, did you know that there still is work for us to do? I have a whole message, and I don't want to steal the thunder from it, but I gave it a few months ago. It's called The Work of a Believer. We have a job to do. And that is, our job is to believe in God. That's our job, is to abide in Him. But that's our spiritual work. We actually have a physical, practical, daily work that we must do as well. And here this is New Testament. And Paul is making it clear. If you do not work, neither shall you eat. And what kind of work is he talking about? We know what kind of work he's talking about. So don't super-spiritualize Christianity to mean that it's an absenteeism from actual real-world labor. That's what our generation wants. We're sluggish. We want it on our terms. We want it easy. And as a result, we try and even use our Christianity to excuse ourselves. Then here's another work, our daily believing work for God's glory. This is what we mean by, Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that you believe on him who he hath sent. You believe. Your job every moment of every day is to trust the word of God. Even if the natural realm entirely stands up against it, you say, but I believe my God. That's your work. But it's your spiritual work. It's the work of your soul. You are constantly standing. This is the great labor of the Christian life. I believe my God. But what about this? What about this? Did God really say? Yes, He said it. I believe it. He has revealed his word and I stand on that word. Unflinchingly. Unmoved. And then we have God's work for us, in us, and through us. Of course, this is the great saving work. This is the work of grace. So when we talk about the gospel of grace, this is it. It's the work of God. And so when we are saved by grace and not by works, what are we talking about? We're talking about God's work. We cannot accomplish what God can accomplish. Therefore, we must yield to it and say, God, do your work in me. And so, three different works. There's a practical, real-world work for bread. And then, there is a believing work of the soul. For what? For this, to take place in you. So these are three different works and we'll explore each one of them. God works. I know that it's a funny-looking thing grammatically, but it basically means Jehovah God actually does work. Okay? Not that, you know, faith works. You know, that type of thing. Have you tried it? It works. It's like, oh yeah, and if you ever try God, He works. This means God actually sort of has a career. Okay? And He goes to work. And His work is to rescue you. He's literally standing in the gap to make sure that you are saved to the uttermost. And on the seventh day, God ended. Listen to this. His work. What's He working for? He's God. Which He had made and He rested on the seventh day from all. What? His work, which He had made. His work, as it says in Deuteronomy, is perfect. His work is honorable and glorious. Can that be said about our work? Isn't that an interesting statement? Whose work are you supposed to be doing? You're about the Father's business. You ever thought about that, that the Father has a business? And He's like, yeah, I'd like you to work for me. You're like, what? What kind of laborer should you be in the Father's business? Well, His work, let me go back here, is perfect. His work is honorable and glorious. Okay? So let's start measuring our work next to it. But before we do that, I want to explore a little further and give sort of an idea of how God works. Does God have an ethic by which He works? Isn't that an interesting statement? Does He have a pattern? Does He have a behavioral model by which He works? Yes, everything God does has a nature to it, has a pattern to it, and He is limited. I know that sounds funny to say God is limited. But He's the one that put the limitation on Himself. He cannot violate His nature. He cannot tell a lie, for instance. Can't God do whatever He wants? He cannot violate His nature, and He's a truth-telling God. God is truth. Therefore, He cannot be lie. All right? So therefore, the same thing is true about the way He works. There is a pattern by which He works. God has a work ethic. Isn't that a strange thought? We need to adopt God's work ethic. But if you don't know God's work ethic, it's sort of hard to adopt it. God is not a man that He should lie, neither the Son of Man that He should repent. Hath He said, and shall He not do it? See, when God says He's going to do something, you'll see right there, He does it. Isn't that an interesting thing? Imagine comparing us with that. You know how many people I deal with on a daily basis that say they're going to do something and don't? It is a disease in our culture. A disease. If you're one of those people, I want God to convict you so deeply today. I'm sick and tired of that behavior in the church of Jesus Christ. Yes, we can expect it out there. But we're the church of Jesus Christ. You say you're going to do something, you do it. Why? Because that's God. That's the way He behaves. Or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good? Boy, what a standard. Yeah, that's Christianity. It's the extension of God's behavior on earth in and through yielded believing lives. The 11 Ethics of Godly Work. If He starts a work, He finishes it. I want you to realize this is profound. Because you'll realize that we have work ethics. Like my granddad, my mom's dad, he was a hard-working farmer. And he would always look at our generation, the generation after my mom's generation. Like the grandchild generation, if you will. And he was just disgusted with my generation and down. He's no longer alive. But it was just like, what's going on in this country? No one knows how to work anymore. He's like, if I have a dirty dish in the sink, you know what I do, Eric? No, granddad, what do you do? I clean it. If something needs to be done, you do it. He spoke with a little deeper voice. Dish in the sink, I clean it. That's more actually him. I was giving him too high of a pitch. He was a huge, strong guy too. If he starts a work, he finishes it. Who does this? God. There is no cessation, no miscarriage, no abortion, and no abandonment of his work. And I want you to realize, if you transcend these truths into culture, you begin to realize this is how God works. He doesn't miscarry. He doesn't abort. So don't try and say that he is doing that work. That isn't the work that God does. When he starts something, he finishes it. This is proven throughout scripture. Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. That concept of will perform it means brings it to completion. Will completely satisfy what he is committed to do. Jesus saith unto them, my meat is... And I took out a little in John 4, 34. However, there was a short list of things that his meat is. And I will finish it. You'll notice, I'll come back to John 34. I'll put in what the dot, dot, dots are. So don't think I'm trying to rob you of something. But I want to emphasize something. Jesus saith unto them, my meat is to finish my work. I forgot the two in there. Oh, no, I did. My meat is to finish his work. Whose work? God's work. He worked for his father. He was about his father's business. And so when his father gave him an assignment, he's like, hey, my entire purpose here, what moves me in my depths of being is that I am going to finish the work that I've been given. God finishes his work. Number two, he does his work with joy. Well, first of all, you know, finishing the work, finishing the job. Could you imagine, there's a few employers in here that are like, okay, I'm going to give this message to a few of my guys. Every employer wants to have people that know how to finish the job. Okay, but look at this one. He does his work with joy. Wouldn't that be nice? Not just someone who gets the job done, but all morose and rude. How about a guy who does it with joy? A little song in his heart. I want this guy working for me. This is God. In thy presence is fullness of joy. Wherever his presence is, there is fullness of joy. Is his presence in you? You're in his presence. That's the whole gospel. You're in Christ. Where's Christ? He's at the right hand of the Father. And at the right hand of the Father, it says, are pleasures forevermore. And in his presence is fullness of joy. This is how we live as Christians. With a fullness of joy. These things have I spoken unto you that my joy might remain in you and that your joy might be full. What is God out to do? To accomplish? You see, he's making it clear that he has joy. You see that? That my joy might remain in you. We always skip that. We're talking about him getting his joy in us. Do you realize that he had joy? He was rejected. He was despised of men. He was a worm and no man. He says, oh, that you would have my joy in you. Do we want his joy? Yeah, we do. Because no matter what he faced, he was above the situation. It's like the equivalent of being an eagle above a storm. The storm could still be taking place, but guess what? The eagle had strength in its wings to rise above the storm. Is there a storm? Yes. Are you under it or over it? Over it. It's joy. It's triumphant. It's a perspective that lifts you above, no matter what you're going through. And now I come to thee, and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in them. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross. This is his great work. He's literally not just moved by joy and full of joy, but there's even a greater joy before him. This is our work ethic. It's God's work ethic. We are filled with joy in the process, and there's even a greater joy that is set before us as we do our work. Despising the shame and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Whom having not seen ye love, in whom, and I emphasize in whom, because I wanted you to understand, in Christ, though now you see him not, yet believing, you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Who are you in? What's your position spiritually? You should be in Jesus Christ. Well, in him, we are to rejoice with joy unspeakable. I mean, most of us would be fine with joy that we could describe, but joy unspeakable. I mean, this is exciting stuff. Okay, number three. God is compliant and submissive to his boss. I know that sounds strange, but this is the Christ model. Okay, to think of God having a boss is a really awkward thought, but when you realize that Jesus literally submitted himself unto his father's business and his father controlled him, what his father was doing, he did. What his father was speaking, he did. He took his orders. Not my will, but thine. Oh, boss of bosses. This is the attitude that he took towards his work. What would happen in our lives if we took this attitude towards our work? He is compliant and submissive to his boss, accepting the most difficult tasks without question. Now is my soul troubled, and what shall I say? This is Jesus. Father, save me from this hour. Listen to his conclusion. But for this cause came I unto this hour. Am I supposed to ask my father to save me from this? It was for this whole purpose that I went to work. I'm here to do his bidding. I'm not going to cower before a challenging task. I work for my God, and his ethic is my ethic. I'm here to finish the task. I'm not going to shrink away just because it's difficult. Jesus Christ, that's the way to do it. I delight to do thy will, O my God. Yea, thy law is within my heart. Could you imagine us having that attitude when we went to do our daily work? I delight to do thy will. I delight. What a strange attitude. That's the God attitude. Let's get it inside the Christians of today. Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish the work. Remember that finish the work line that I gave you earlier? I put that dot, dot, dot. Well, look what's in between. My meat is to do the will of him that sent me. Okay? What do you want, God? My meat, my satisfaction, my sustenance of soul is that I do what you ask of me. Well, that's a Christian too. This is how Jesus behaved. He was setting a pattern. This is the God work ethic. I can of my own self do nothing. As I hear I judge, and my judgment is just, because, listen to what he says, I seek not my own will, but the will of the Father which has sent me. You know how many of us try and change our job description to be easier on us? We, instead, should seek the benefit of the one who is assigning it to us. What can I do for you? How can I do it better for you? I seek to do the will of the one who sent him. For I came down from heaven not to do my own will, but the will of him that sent me. Number four. He stays alert, focused, and on task. Sober-minded always. He does not grow tired or weary. Doesn't that get you tired or weary just thinking about it? Constant. Constant sobriety. Constant attunedness. Constant sensitivity to what's actually happening around him. There's no point for dullness. Never. This is the biblical model. This is the God model. Could you imagine God taking a nap and missing out on what's going on in your life? And you're like, God, I just got hit by about 20 arrows here from the enemy. My life is destroyed. He's like, oh, boy, how did that happen? All I did was take a snooze for 10 minutes. God does not grow tired and weary. God is constantly alert to your situation. You could be very thankful for that. What he's asking is there be a constant attunedness in your own life. And he cometh unto the disciples and findeth them asleep and saith unto Peter, What? Could you not watch with me? In other words, Jesus was watching. He was vigilant. He was watchful of what was taking place. Could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you enter not into temptation. But the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Jesus is watching, but what happened to Peter, James, and John? They did not have the sustenance of soul to do the work alongside of Jesus. They were too weak for it. Well, welcome to our state. We can't do it either. This is what is being set up for. They need the cross, which is what followed. This is Gethsemane, the night before the crucifixion. Peter, right before this, is saying, I will die for you. I will follow you. And Jesus is like, you can't hold up my work ethic. You don't have what you need. You need me imparted to you. And that's what he did. His great cross work wasn't just the purchase of forgiveness. It was the purchase of Pentecost. The purchase of the endowment of Christ's very life in his saints to now perform that which only Christ can perform. This is it. Watchful and alert. So I've broken these up into two subcategories. This is the stay alert, focused, and on task. Sober-minded always. He does not grow tired or weary. So let's talk about watchful and alert. Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary, the devil, is a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour. There needs to be a constant attentiveness to our soul. How does this affect the way we do our operations during the day, our business? We're constantly alert. We're constantly sharp. We're constantly sensitive to the needs of those around us. We're constantly watchful of our soul. That we're not compromising. We're watchful of our integrity. That we're not doing things that would actually cause the name of Jesus Christ to be slighted. We live above reproach. Constantly watchful. Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. Therefore let us not sleep as do others. Now this is talking about spiritual sleep, before you panic and think that you cannot go to sleep again. But let us watch and be sober. This is a state of soul. There's a constant guardedness, a constant watchfulness. There is never a time to unplug from God. Well, it's a Friday night. I need to unplug. You can't be plugged into God constantly. You need to be plugged into God constantly. There is always an alertness and always a sharpness in the human soul. I'm sorry, in the Christian soul. Tireless and unflagging. And let us not be weary in well-doing. For in due season we shall reap if we faint not. The word is akikio from the Greek. It means weariness, tiredness, flabbiness. You do not give sway to this at all. There's that constant bait knocking on the door of your soul to say, Oh, aren't you tired? Aren't you feeling just weak right now? Just relent to it. Submit to it. Go into a comatose, drugged out state. That's the way we are. When we're sleeping, when we're vegging, we're tuning out. And as a result, the enemy is able to come in and work on our souls. No way. We're not ignorant of his devices. Let's not grow weary. Let's not faint. But ye brethren, be not weary in well-doing. Do not give any space to akikio in your well-doing. Not an inch of it. And he spoke a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray and not to faint. That's just exhausting. Not to faint. You should not. This is Jesus talking. You should not give an inch to this akikio stuff. This tiredness, this weariness of soul. Do not allow it in. God's work ethic, right here. Pray without ceasing. Doesn't that get you tired? Pray without ceasing. There's never a time to disconnect from God. And that's what it's talking about. It's not talking about just saying, in the name of Jesus, Amen. In the name of Jesus, Amen. Constantly, all day long. It's basically saying to enter into a communion with God and to remain in that communion with God. If you are at a job, is there a time to pick up your cell phone and start texting someone? Stay tuned. Stay focused. You have a job to do. Do not allow distraction in. You are here to finish your work and finish it well. God's work ethic. You can be very glad that he doesn't have a beep in his pocket when he's trying to deal with your issues. You're like, just a second over here. And then he's all distracted while he's texting his buddy somewhere. And meanwhile, your life falls apart. God is focused and he will finish the work in you. He is not distracted. He's tireless and unflagging in his commitment to see us through. It's an incredible statement. Number five. He controls his tongue. This is proven all throughout the Bible. God does not say everything. He just says what needs to be said. There's these great stories. And all it says is, and the Lord wrought a great victory that day. Is that all you're going to tell us? It's three men against an entire army of Philistines and that's all we get. And the Lord wrought a great victory that day. How did it happen? Give us details. And then right when we don't want details, that's when he gives us details. And this person beget this person. We're like, you know what? I don't care about that. God says exactly what his saints need. And those genealogies, as I was teaching you guys this semester, are extremely important because they prove the canonicity of Jesus Christ. We can stand on the rock of confidence that he is actually, in fact, the Messiah of God because of his genealogy. It's one of the key reasons. He controls his tongue. He was oppressed and he was afflicted and yet he opened not his mouth. He's doing his great work, right? Now, many of us, when we're doing our great work, what are we doing? Muttering and complaining. We're doing everything. We're talking up a storm. Now, there's nothing wrong with talking. Don't get me wrong. But it's not a controlled tongue. You need to realize that as you do your job, you do it with the right attitude as well. He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. This is one of those classic things that I got convicted of this week. I've already been convicted of this. But there was a time... See, I'm very gracious with people. Actually, people are not that challenging for me compared to things. Things that don't work. Really, bad directions and things that don't work. I remember this sign in downtown Denver when I was driving through and it still makes me mad when I think about it. It's like, stupid sign. How in the world are you supposed to know to turn there? It needs to have an arrow that goes like this. And every time I'd get there, it's like, they're still missing the arrow. Bad directions. Bad signage. Okay, Eric, don't allow the flesh to take hold of you because of a bad sign or the fact that crazy blind will not stick into its little metal holder. Who made this thing? And guess what? There's a little witness that might be standing on my ankle looking up at daddy going, how does daddy handle this situation? Daddy needs to handle that blind the way God would handle that blind. He opened not his mouth, but has silenced a lamb unto slaughter. If any man among you seemed to be religious and bridles not his tongue, but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is vain. A bridled tongue is one of the outward symbols that your life is contained and controlled by the Spirit of God. Your tongue must be bridled to the Spirit of God. Number six, he seeks another's wealth. This is gonna be a really bizarre one for you. Talk about turning the American system on its head. He seeks another's wealth. He works not for applause, notoriety, and or promotion. He treats others as more important than himself. Laboring for another's profit. This is one of my sub categories of this one. Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth. That's talking about profit or well-being. So I'm not trying to build a financial system around this. I'm not proposing that we change into a socialistic government. This is an attitude of individuality in a soul before God. To say my life is not as important as every life around me. And I will give of my life and my energies to serve the highest good of those around me. That's Christ's attitude. Follow me on this. This is what Christ did. He came, and guess what? He was the king of kings. And what did he do? He spent all of his wealth for us. He redeemed us with his blood. It's extraordinary. He did not seek his own, but every man, Jesus in this case, another's wealth, and that wealth was ours. Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit, says Paul, but the profit of many, that they may be saved. What's Paul's work? The father's business. What's the father's business? Everyone outside of you. He's saying, do you see him? There's a dying world out there. Are you working for me? Are you working for yourself? If you're working for me, then you start to seek everyone else's profit. That they would be built up and strong even if you are tread down, even if you are crucified and you die. If they gain life because of it, so be it. Love seeks not her own. So if you know 1 Corinthians 13, you'll recognize this, but oftentimes we have a long list, and we don't focus on a specific thing, but this is actually an attribute of what love is. Love seeks not its own. So when you go to work, I want you to realize you're not just working for your own bread. You're working for the benefit of the kingdom of heaven and his glory, and those around you. That they would see his glory. That they would behold the one and only who can rescue their soul. Okay, this is a second sub-theme. A foot washer, a servant of others. For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself unto all. I'm sorry, I've made myself servant unto all that I might gain the more. So Paul, just like Jesus, took on the God work ethic. He literally became a servant unto all. What's the attitude? I take the lowest position. The more mature you get in the kingdom of heaven, the lower position you take. Everyone around you is more important and more valuable than you. Does not mean you don't have value in heaven. That's your attitude that you take to the job. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant. This isn't just Paul. This is Jesus. We know that. But we don't oftentimes want to attribute this to an actual pattern. Because if that's a pattern, we need to follow in it. That's right. It's Christianity. Jesus is Christianity. His life was the pattern. I know you can't follow it. We are always like, well, he was God. I can't do that. Yeah, but who's living inside of you? Or how about I say it this way? Who should be living inside of you? The one who fulfilled the perfect pattern. Let him take this body. Let him live in and through you. That's Christianity. Number seven, he ceases labor and rests only at the appropriate time. This is really interesting because we had this other one, which is tireless, unflagging. And then we have this other dimension to God, where he rests. Isn't that strange? A little awkward. It's like, well, if you're going to work all the time, then work all the time. I don't like this double standard here. That God is suddenly ceasing from labor and resting. Well, this is the key point. He ceases labor and rests only at the appropriate time. You see, we want to cease labor and rest at the most important time for us to be still laboring. That's how the flesh works. Take a break. Let them go. They don't need you anymore. Just come on. Get away. You need some me time. It's the very moment when the truth of God is in the ascendant that you are needed to rise up and keep pouring out. Thus, the heavens and the earth were finished and all the host of them. And on the seventh day, God ended his work, which he had made. And he rested on the seventh day from all his work, which he had made. He knows when to rest. Luke 8. Now, it came to pass in a certain day that he went into a ship with his disciples. And he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth. But as they sailed, this is really strange, he fell asleep. God, the one who never grows dim and tired and is always noticing what's going on, what are you doing? He falls asleep. And there came down a storm of wind on the lake. And they were filled with water and were in jeopardy. And they came to him and awoke him saying, Master, Master, we perish. I don't know what you're doing sleeping. And then he arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water and they ceased. And there was a calm and he said unto them, Where is your faith? What a strange response. Instead of thanks for getting me up, I had no idea what was going on. He was resting in faith. He knew it was time to close his eyes. It's really fascinating. Jesus knows when to close his eyes. Gethsemane, guess who's wide awake? Jesus. Guess who's fast asleep? Us. Peter, James, and John are all out cold when Jesus says, This is the time. Lest you enter into temptation, stay awake and watch. And guess what? This is the time where he's like, Hey guys, follow my example. Let's go to sleep. But it's, you know, winds and rains are starting to come up. I know. Fall asleep. Watch what happens. You trust your God. Follow God's lead. He only did what the Father was doing. You can see the Father saying, Go to sleep. We'll teach them a lesson. And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this? For he commandeth even the winds and the water, and they obey him. And he cometh unto the disciples and findeth them asleep. We could say, And he comes unto us and finds us asleep. And saith unto Peter, or unto us, What, could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher. Okay? Now, we know what's happening here. This is literally resurrection day. But where has Jesus been the past few days? See, most of us think of it as just being one day. But he was actually in the earth three days. So, there was this high Sabbath and then you had the normal Sabbath. Right? And so, where has Jesus been? What's he doing? He's laying on his back in a grave. We got, you know, World War Impossible here against all the powers of hell and you're sleeping? Jesus knows when to cease from labor. He said, It is finished. And then what did he do? Went to sleep. Not the way we usually look at it. But that's exactly right. And then guess what? On the first day of the week, who rises again to do some more work? All right, let's get to it, guys. Number eight. He does his work right. He does everything with unparalleled excellence. He is the best in his field. Sort of hard to argue that, isn't it? We're talking about God. Well, how does that transcend to you? Do it right. If you're going to work, do it with excellence. Why? You represent God. What does he do? He doesn't do a shabby product. He does everything well. What of his creation work? Here's a little summation for you of his creation work. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. Is that your manager looking at your work? Whoa, it's good. And your manager saw all that you had done and noticed that it was very good. And whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. And in every work that he, which is talking about King Hezekiah, began in the service of the house of God and the law and the commandments to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and he prospered. You see, you might not be the most talented one. You might not have the highest IQ, but you can do things well. You can do things with your heart. You can do things with all the energy in your being and say, we're going to do this well for Jesus Christ and be the little drummer boy that plays his best for the newborn king. That's our life. We're Christians. Do it well. Follow the pattern of your king. He created the heavens and the earth, and it was good. It was very good. I don't know how many I gave you there, but it was good. Number nine, he is marked by perfect integrity without spot or blemish. Perfect integrity. There's no time for lying. There's no time for cheating, fudging the books, fudging the numbers. It's accurate. Why? Because it represents God, and he does not lie. He is without spot or blemish. Nothing to be held against him. If every single one of us was lined up before that bright, hot searchlight today, I bet people could find a blemish somewhere, a spot. Well, here's my desire. My desire is for you to be clothed in the blood of Jesus. This is stiff standards here. And to realize if you're in the blood of Jesus, the enemy has no accusation against you, no lever to hold over your soul. But underneath that blood, here's what we state. Please purify me. I know that the enemy has no hold on me, but may I live above reproach in this generation that if they do an expose on my life, hidden cameras all through my home, if they have some hidden camera on my pen that I'm always signing papers with, and they can read all my contracts, they can read all my correspondences, they've somehow tapped into my email, they see the way I treat my wife and the way I treat my kids, that they would say, there is no spot or blemish in this man. Remember what Pilate said about Jesus? I find no fault in him. You see, the Passover lamb is always examined, and Jesus was examined by Pilate. And guess what? There was no fault in him. Would have been a lot easier if Pilate had found a fault, believe me. Pilate would have loved to have found a fault, because it could have cleared his conscience. But he could not find a fault in him. God is not a man that he should lie, neither the son of man that he should repent. Hath he said it, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? For as much as you know that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. How did he do his work? With perfect integrity. The fact that he was without blemish, without spot, the entire gospel rests upon that. You know, when you have these young people that are looking for excuses for how they live in their pre-marriage years, it's just like, I think that's extreme. When people say we need to live, you know, all uprightly and pure and all these things. Who do we represent? May we be able to come before our God the same way he came before the Father and how he laid down his life for his bride. His bride has hope because he was without spot or blemish. He was the pure and spotless sacrifice. May it be said of us, underneath this cloak of righteousness is a very real work that God wants to do in us to purify us and to make us right. We have the benefits of the blood of Jesus. Don't let the enemy talk you out of that. However, underneath this blood, God is wanting to do a very real work of changing us and reforming us to reflect his nature. Number 10, he is persistent and will overcome every obstacle in order to complete the job. How many of you, you start doing a job and it starts getting difficult? This one convicted me this week because there's certain jobs. So I'm not that mechanical, okay? That's sort of an understatement. So Leslie will give me this honey-do list and there's some things on there that she knows are a little difficult for me and I'll try and have a good attitude. I want to have the God work ethic. But if I start running into challenges with some of these things, it's sort of like, yeah, this doesn't work. Yeah, it's not going to work. They didn't give me the right part. Yeah, the directions are bad. In other words, I find a reason why, ah, it's just not going to work because I'm feeling insecure and doing the thing anyways. All right? So who gets nailed on this one? Me. Now there's other things you cannot stop me. When I get going, I'm going to finish the task and that's why I could easily justify myself as, hey, that doesn't describe me. But if it describes me in one area, it describes me. All right? I want you to allow these things to describe you, even if it's in one small area. Don't justify it. I'm not going to ask you to come up and just shine light so everyone can see your weaknesses. That's, I guess, what I get to do. That's sort of unfair. Maybe I should have you come up. Maybe we could all commiserate together. But God will overcome every obstacle in order to complete the job. Could you imagine having that attitude? Nothing will stop me. If this is assigned to me by God, if this is important, it gets done. It doesn't matter what it takes. And then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith, be it unto thee even as thou wilt. What does that scripture have to do with it? This is talking about the Syrophoenician woman. She is coming to Jesus saying, please hear me, you're the only one that can heal my daughter. He doesn't even acknowledge her presence, doesn't even say anything. So she keeps crying out. Pretty soon Jesus says, I didn't come for you. I came for the lost sheep of Israel. And she says, please. She falls down, worships him, does not let go. She will not stop even though there's a huge obstacle in front of her. And what does Jesus say? How great is thy faith. You see, she was going after the obstacles. There is no obstacle that can stand in the way. When God is assigned a task, we do not back down. We will see it fulfilled. I don't care how difficult it gets all the way through it. Luke 11. And he said to them, which of you shall have a friend and shall go unto him at midnight and say unto him, friend, lend me three loaves. For a friend of mine is in his journey, in his journey has come to me and I have nothing to set before him. And he from within shall answer and say, trouble me not. The door is now shut and my children are with me in bed. I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, though he will not rise and give him because he is his friend, but because of his importunity, which means his tireless knocking. It's not because he's a friend that he'll get up. It's because of his tireless knocking. There is nothing that stops you. This is a work ethic. You have a job to do. You need to get that bread. Guess what? You will knock until you get it. And he will rise and give him as many as he needs. And I say unto you, ask and it shall be given you. Seek and you shall find. Knock and it shall be open to you. Most of us don't apply that to our work ethic. And I want you to realize this is God's work ethic. He has obstacles all the time. He will finish his job. He will get it done. Number 11, he gives attention to detail noticing the small things. The cause which I knew not I searched out. You know, how many of us go to our job and we just do what is asked of us? You know, which is a good, noble thing to do, but how many of us notice the small things that could also be done in the process? How many of us take initiative to go above and beyond? Job is living a good life, but there is need out there. And what does he do? The cause which I knew not I searched out. Why are you doing that, Job? You know, if there's something that you need to tend to, let it come to your door. Instead, what does he do? I know there's causes out there. I have been made strong by God. I am going to go out and spend my strength on those that need it. How would your job look if you took that attitude towards the business? What is the job that needs to be done? The cause in this world that I'm in that still needs answering, that still needs a solution. Seek it out. Do it. For the Son of Man has come to seek and save, what? That which was lost. Well, that which was found is easy. It's right in front of you. You just do that which is easy. Jesus came to seek and save that which was lost, which means he had to go out and find them. Are you willing to look for the small things and to attend to the small things and to do them with excellence? How think ye, if a man has a hundred sheep and one of them be gone astray, does he not leave the ninety and nine and goes into the mountains and seeks that which is gone astray? And if so, be that he finds it. Verily I say unto you, he rejoices more of that sheep than of the ninety and nine which went not astray. This is just God's ethic. This is what God does. He looks for the little things. Otherwise, he wouldn't have found you. Aren't you glad he notices the small things? God gives great attention to detail. He's not just putting a blanket of salvation over the world and saying, yeah, that should take care of it. He's going in because he knows the dynamics of soul and he knows what is necessary in his faith that must be born within them. It is a real believing, but to do that, they must have the gospel, which means he moves upon us to go to them. He is sending forth. He has a business and he attends to the smallest details. There are little insignificant ones in other nations right now. They don't have the privilege of hearing this gospel. So what's he doing? He's giving attention to the small things. And he's moving upon us to give attention to the small things too because if we don't give attention to the small things, guess what? That little boy on the other side of the world will not be tended to. And God's not happy. That's not the way his operation works. He hears a squeak in the machinery over there in Liberia. Someone needs to fix it. Where is the oil? And he'll take your body and squeeze a little oil on that to make sure that the machinery is running as it ought. And the king shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as you have done unto one of the least of these, my brethren, you have done it unto me. God notices the least, the small things, the little details. Disorder in Thessalonica. But we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly. Okay, you're gonna notice I'm going to emphasize the word disorderly here. This has to do with everything we're talking about here. What Paul was referring to in Thessalonica, which is the reason he wrote this epistle in the first place, was that there was disorder. People were not working properly. They had freedom in Jesus Christ and as a result, everything was falling apart. They were not functioning as they ought to function. And so he calls it disorderly. As you will see, he'll define it as we move forward. But you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly. He actually says withdraw from them. Okay, so there's serious stuff going on here. And most of us don't realize that our disorder in the way that we work, Paul would literally say, Church of Jesus Christ, withdraw from them. Because of the way you work. Isn't that unbelievable? And not according to the tradition which he received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us. For we were not disorderly among you, nor did we eat anyone's bread free of charge, but worked with labor and toil night and day. That we might not be a burden to any of you. Not because we do not have authority, but to make ourselves an example of how you should follow us. For even when we were with you, we commanded you this, if anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. Now you know where that came from. This is the context. He's saying we got some people who are not working. As a result, they're not eating. You actually should withdraw from them. They are improperly handling the life of Christ. For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busy bodies. Now those who are such, we command and exhort through our Lord Jesus Christ that they work in quietness and eat their own bread. But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good. Do not give space to any acacio in your doing of good. And if anyone does not obey our words in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with them. What do we do in the body of Christ today? Could you imagine? I have to separate from you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you. Now listen, listen to how it finishes. That he may be ashamed, yet do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother. This is not some type of disease that is saying they don't have Christ. It's saying that they are not functioning as they ought. We cannot allow this blemish to remain in the body of Christ without reproof. This is serious stuff to God. Isn't that an extraordinary thought? So here's my encouragement. Let's get our acts together. Let's come to Jesus and say, I think I have a flaw here. I have no clue how to work. Allow him to teach you because he's the one that's supposed to live in you and he's the one with this great work ethic. You might not have inherited this from your parents, but you can inherit it from God. He would love to take your hands and teach them how to be his hands. He'd love to take your feet and make them his feet. He'd love to take your mind, your heart, your lips, every aspect of your being and train it to function the way he intends it to function. A message to Garcia. Some of you have... I'm not going to read the message to Garcia. It's an essay that was written. I don't know what it was. What, a hundred years ago or so? Maybe a little less than that. Maybe it was in the early 1900s. But it's this classic message that was passed around. You know, the military used to give it to all their recruits. And it's world famous. I mean, one of the most read publications of all time. But it's called A Message to Garcia by Elbert Hubbard. I'm just going to give you a quick overview of it. The historical setting of the essay was on the onset of the Spanish-American War in 1898. As the American army prepared to invade the Spanish colony of Cuba, they wished to contact the leader of the Cuban insurgents, Calixto Iniguez Garcia, who controlled the plains of the Cato and sought the help of the United States in overcoming the Spanish hold over Cuba. The American officer heralded in the essay was Andrew Summers Rowan, a West Point graduate of 1881. The essay celebrates the initiative of Rowan, who is assigned and accomplishes a daunting mission. He asks no questions, makes no objections, requests no help, but accomplishes the mission nonetheless. Rowan, in many ways, is a poignant picture of what has gone missing in the work ethic of the modern laborer. Okay, now, it would be worthwhile for you to read this. You could just Google it. A Message to Garcia. It'll deeply convict you. The way that Rowan, Andrew Summers Rowan, responds to this impossible task that he gets. Take this to Garcia. Here's what most of us would say. Who's Garcia? How do I get to Garcia? I have no clue how I'm going to pull that off. I could die. Uh-huh. But guess what? Your commander has given you an order. What are you here for in the military? You're here to fulfill the duties that you're commissioned to do. And if that means your life is spent in the process, so be it. What do you think Christianity is? We take our commission and we do it without grumbling, without complaining. We do it well, with excellence. We carry a message to Garcia daily in our life. However, most of us have not been groomed for this. And so, what I'd like to introduce you to is the world's worst workforce. Okay, now, I'm going to go through. I don't remember how many different aspects it is. It's somewhere around 10. Different workers. They all have names and they have a job that they're given. And I will show you how they respond to that job. As we go through this, you are going to see yourself more than a few times in this list. And I want you to realize if you're seeing yourself, allow God to show it to you. Don't squirm and try and look at the person next to you and say this is them. Allow God to show you who you are in the way you're working. And I would like as the body of Christ today for us to rise up and say, Dear Lord Jesus, make us as we ought to be. I don't want this in the body of Christ. The slacker. Job description. Hey, dig this hole. What do you think this guy is going to do? The slacker asks, when is the drop dead date for the hole to be dug? And even though he has nothing else to work on, he will not get to digging the hole until the last possible minute. And undoubtedly, the slacker will be late in getting his final shovelfuls out of the hole. The slacker does not work with either excellence or timeliness for he has trained himself to give the least amount of labor possible into a job and to always start working at the point when there is no more excess time allowed for delays, oversights, or flubs. If you're always waiting to the last minute, guess what? You'll always do a poor job because now you have no time if you have any obstacles. If there's any challenges, if things don't go perfectly, guess what? You just have to get it done and you're almost inevitably late with it. The slacker. Slacker's everywhere today. Get the slacker out of you. Allow God to come in and kick it in the teeth. You don't need any more of that. The butterfly, a.k.a. the flitter. I've seen a few of these in my day. Job description. Hey, deliver this pizza. The butterfly has everything else in his mind but the job at hand. He flits. The butterfly is interested in being cool, far more than he is in getting the job done right. During the staff meeting, he is texting his girlfriend about how much he hates his job while the boss is describing the new rules for delivering the pizzas. When he is delivering pizzas, he's on his cell phone with his buddy while his manager attempts to call him to avoid a delivery. The butterfly is nothing more than a colorful nuisance. He is absent-minded, distracted, and otherwise checked out and thusly constantly demonstrating disrespect to those who are employing him. The complainer. We could also call him the thumb banger. Job description. Hey, hang this picture. Let's see how he handles it. The complainer doesn't struggle with willingness. He struggles, rather, with attitude. As long as everything goes smoothly with the picture hanging, then everything is wonderful. But if it so happens that the stud finder batteries run out, the drill's chuck key goes missing, the drywall screws are nowhere to be found, or the picture ends up being crooked, all goes south. This happened to me the other day. That's why this illustration made it into this. I was trying to hang a picture and those four things stood in my way. And I found myself doing a little grumbling. So God added this story to the list. Thank you, God. For the complainer is a red-faced griper, always ready for a good, juicy grumble. He is rife with a short fuse. He has a penchant for frustration and an amazing knack for finding opportunity for irritation in every little challenge presented. The poor victim. Job description. Hey, buddy, change the light bulb. The poor victim. The victim turns everything into a sad story. No matter what happens, no matter if the light bulb is easy to fix or hard, and no matter if it's a 60, 70 or 100 watts, the victim is somehow, someway, always the victim. Every job is a burden. Every request is unjust. And every command is too harsh. Even the easiest jobs turn into soap operas. And yet another sad story that can be pulled out someday in the future with a phrase like, let me tell you the time my boss tried to purposely kill me by giving me a 100 watt light bulb to stick in a 60 watt fixture. The victim. The mediocre. Job description. Hey, could you clean the kitchen? The mediocre has a motto. Always do the bare minimum. And no more than that. Cut corners on the job, do just enough to make it look good enough on the outside, even if it falls apart 15 years earlier than it should. Buy the cheapest materials, hire the cheapest labor. The goal is to get the job done, not do a good job. Let me read that line again. The goal is to get the job done, not do a good job. You see any difference between those two? A lot of us are just trying to get the job done. But what is our goal? To do it the way God would do it. How does He do it? He does a good job. You know what good is even from? God. To do a God job. Do it the way God would do it. Aren't you glad He's not making you, creating you? And He's just like, you know what? He just sticks a, you know, a little dot on your nose. He's like, you know, I'm tired today. So you come out and everyone's like, what in the world is going on with you? He's like, I don't know. You know, God obviously just wanted to get the job done. In cleaning the kitchen, He doesn't add spit and polish to the fixtures. He doesn't clean under the bread box. He doesn't make sure the glasses are polished upright. He only wants the job to be done. The mediocre is not a true worker because in his heart, he hates work. He only does work because he's more afraid of the consequences of not working than he is of the work itself. He's not a worker. He hates work. He's only doing it because he has to. He's afraid of the consequences that come if he doesn't do it. The dozer. Job description. Hey, buddy, could you be the night watchman at the bank? I don't know why we picked this guy. He's the wrong guy to pick. He's the dozer. We didn't know that though. That's the problem. The dozer seems to have one thing on his mind, dozing. He lives with 10 pound weights tied to his eyelids. There is a heaviness in his eyes and it never seems to go away. There is a blur, a cloud in his thinking. He is nearly incapable of seeing what needs to be done and responding to it without intense prodding and threats of job loss. If you were inclined to rob a bank, his would be the bank you would want to rob for he is certainly not going to be alert enough to see you on the surveillance cameras. Lest you enter into temptation, watch with me. Watch. It's a term for being a night watchman basically. Stay alert. Stay watchful for there is an enemy who is prowling about not seeking to devour your soul. You must be watchful. The litigation lawyer aka the man of a thousand excuses. Job description. Hey buddy, could you shovel the walk? Litigation lawyer is full of every conceivable argument for why he isn't the one to do the job. Supposedly this poor guy twisted his ankle last month and is still a bit sensitive to snow boots. His brother is getting married next week and he needs to write up a speech for the reception. His version of the Christian religion doesn't allow for any works of this sort whatsoever. He didn't get a wink of sleep last night and it would surely be a liability risk for him to be out on the ice so early in the morning. The litigation lawyer is always looking for the loophole in the system. Any way he possibly can avoid, he can to avoid any real world work. The opera singer. Me, me, me. Job descriptions. Hey, could you clean the toilets? The opera singer is all about me, me, me. If it doesn't benefit him, then there is absolutely no interest and no energy supplied to the task. This guy has one singular question on his lips and that's what's in this for me? If he doesn't get stock in the company and increased benefits, then he's not cleaning the toilet. This guy is a self-proclaimed celebrity. The world revolves around him. And if he doesn't get a big fat bonus when he's not getting, then he's not getting down on his hands and knees to clean a toilet. Good luck getting this guy to work. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and he expects everyone to do his bidding. The uncertain. A.k.a. the man of a thousand questions. Job description. Could you file these papers? Our hearts go out to the uncertain. This guy has no confidence in his ability to get the job done. He has not a scrap of risk-taking moxie. Not a speck of initiative in his briefcase. So he asks questions to his superior all day long, every day. And not just a few questions, but thousands of questions. Small questions, medium-sized questions, and big questions, questions, questions, questions. And suddenly, a filing job that should have taken 15 minutes of the uncertain's time now takes 5 hours of both the superior's time and the uncertain's time. Of course, asking proper questions is a virtue in getting a job done well. But this is something altogether different than a virtue. These are questions asked out of the fear of failing, the fear of not doing something perfectly, the fear of bumbling. The uncertain needs some guts to actually grow up and get the job done even if he doesn't do it perfectly the first, second, or even third time. The abortionist. How many of you are interested in being that one? We'll find out. Job description. Hey, could you write this article? The abortionist is one who can't seem to ever finish a project. They promise, they reassure, and then they get upset that people don't believe them when they once again promise that the job will get done. But even after all their assurances, in the end, the project still lies unfinished. The abortionist specializes in unfinished business. It's not really that they kill the process through poor workmanship, but rather, they terminate the project through lack of follow-through. They may mean well, but they can't seem to ever get the job done. Don't get me wrong. They do get some things done. But the lion's share of their promises go unmet. The lion's share of their projects are miscarried through lack of remembrance and follow-through. The abortionist over-promises and inevitably under-delivers. The 11 ethics of the Christian soul. We went through God's ethics. And now we're going to parallel these with yours. We've dealt with God's system of work, the way He does His work, and then we dealt with the way we are supposed to go about our daily business of earning money to buy bread, which is what that list was. It's an application, or maybe I should say, a contrast to God's behavior. But now, let's look at this and how it affects our spiritual life. Because if all we're talking about is our work in the real world type of situation, earning bucks for bread, and we're not Christians working rightly in our soul, you want to know how to work correctly in the real world out there and to earn your bucks for bread? It's to be changed on the inside and to learn to work right in your soul, to manage your every thought, your heart condition before God. And so let's apply God's work ethic to the Christian soul. If God starts a work within us, we must remain confident He will finish it. It's an issue of faith. Our God began a good work. He will complete it in us. It's important. It actually is a very significant thing in how you approach your daily life. When God begins something, He convicts you, for instance, today. He says, we need to work on this. Do you know that that's a God work? Do you know that He will bring it about to completion? If you are interested, He will change you. He will correct these things. You're not just subject. You're not just a victim. Poor, poor you. You have the Savior of the world. You have the mighty Redeemer who looks and seeks to save you to the uttermost. Number two, we labor in His kingdom with joy for every task, big or small, easy or hard, paid or unpaid, whether for applause or derision, and whether unto life or unto death. That's how we work for our God. Three, we are compliant and submissive to the Word of God and to the leading of the Spirit of Christ Jesus, and we accept the most difficult tasks without question. Four, we stay alert, focused, and on task, sober-minded always. We do not grow tired or weary, and we give no space to lethargy in our souls. Five, we control our tongue, only speaking that which edifies others and that which glorifies our King. We seek the spiritual and practical profit of those about us. We work not for applause, notoriety, and a promotion. We treat others as more important than ourselves. Seven, we cease from labor and enter into rest at God's bidding and are always willing to sit at His feet as Mary and listen to His Word even if everyone around us is bustling about and busy. This is quite the seeming contradiction. Mary of Bethany is sitting at Jesus' feet, and Martha, what's she doing? She's working hard. However, there's a time when your work is to be seated at the feet of Jesus. That is your work for the soul. And so, this is one of the great challenges we face because yes, we want a work ethic, but we want a work ethic harnessed by God. If He says, go to sleep in the boat, you go to sleep in the boat. If He says, stay awake in Gethsemane, you stay awake in Gethsemane. You follow His lead. You are harnessed by your employer, if you will. What your God wants for His business, He gets. And He says, silence. I want you to be still and I want you to sit at My feet. Well, I'm not getting anything done. People are going to think that I'm a slacker. No. You follow Me. It only matters what I think. You see, we can sense a slacker. We can also sense someone who is dead serious about Jesus Christ. And Jesus Christ will call people to actually leave the business of this world and to walk in faith. But usually it's someone who has already proven that they're a hard worker in this world. George Mueller, he literally walked away. Did that guy not work? He worked harder than probably any of us. But he worked the work of faith as his primary. He prayed for provision for a thousand orphans. And guess what? It always came. Well, that's a different sort of work. And guess what? You follow the lead of your provider. You follow the lead of your father in his business. And he will always take care of you. But you must learn his ethic in how you do that work. Whether it is in the business world out there, in politics, or if it's the business of the ministry of Jesus Christ and how you handle the gospel or how you handle your own family. Eight, we must do our work, our study, our spiritual preparation, our praying, our serving, our preaching, our evangelizing, et cetera, with excellence and do everything as an act of thanksgiving unto our King. Nine, we must be marked by perfect integrity without spot or blemish in our conscience, in our behavior, in our attitudes, or in our actions. Number 10, we must be persistent in faith until the realities of heaven have reached this earth and transcend this natural realm. 11, we must not overlook the small things but rather give special attention to the little people about us. Remember, God doesn't overlook the small things. When you're at work in the business world, you notice the small details. You do them right. You dot every I. You cross every T. When you're dealing in God's business, you notice the small people. And you notice the seemingly small issues. Things that are important to God are important to you. And if He says, you see that person? Everyone else is ignoring them? They're important to me. You give them the attentions that I am giving them. Romans 12, 1 through 2, I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And being not conformed to this world, but be you transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. That you may work as God would work. You submit yourself as a living sacrifice. God, you do whatever you want with this. Could you imagine? That's what a slave is. A good slave would be one that literally says, you tell me what to do, Master. You know what he's called? He's called Master. He's called Lord. And we are slaves to righteousness. We have ears that are pierced, saying, my ear is for you. And when he commands something, we say, yes sir. And we do it. And we do it with excellence. And we do it with all our energy. Even if we die in the process, we do it for his glory. One final thought. As we begin to take on this great job of representing the King of Kings, I want you to do this the way God carried the job. How did Jesus carry his job? Was he high and mighty? If there's anyone that should have been high and mighty, pompous, arrogant, and proud, who would it be? Jesus. Sent of the Father, conceived of the Holy Spirit, fulfilling the Messiah test to the letter, to the dot. I mean, this is the guy. How does he do it? He comes as a servant. He comes and takes the lowest position. Are you going to represent the King? You want to represent him well. So, what do you do? Should you be all cocky in your position of being a gospel-tear? Sure, you represent the King, but if you're going to represent the King well, you need to represent him the way he is. And he will put you in the lowest position. He will even close your mouth and say, take it. Take it. But they're mistreating me. They don't realize I represent you. Take it. Be silent. Show honor. Love them. Go wash their feet. Go wash their car. Take care of those around you. You serve them the way Christ serves you. You have a job to do. You need to be about the Father's business. So, when you're about the Father's business, in every moment, in all things that you do, you do them in the manner that God does his work. Who do you represent? God. So, work as God works. How do you do that? By the work of Christ within you. You know what grace is? It's that. How do you work? By grace. How are you saved? By grace. How are you supposed to fulfill the high calling? By grace. It's his work in you, through you, for his glory. Yield to it. Say, God, I need your grace. He says, I've just been waiting for you to ask. He wants to take over your life and make it work correctly, the way he works. Let's pray. Again, that website is www.ellerslie.com For Ellerslie Mission Society, this is Ben Zorns, cheering you on as Christ cultivates his set-apart life within you.