What if work wasn't a curse to escape or a ladder to climb? What if it was a form of worship we can offer? In this message, Jonathan Schunker explores the future of work. From Genesis to Ephesians/Colossians, we explore God’s design for work, how the Fall distorted it, and how Jesus redeems it so we can serve wholeheartedly unto the Lord.
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[0:00] It's on. If I'm on, give me a whoop whoop. Once a youth pastor, always a youth pastor. Right. So great to see you all. And, you know, my wife and I are typically first servicers. So this is a treat. I feel like I'm breaking the rules. I'm staying out late, past my curfew. So good to be with you all at second service this morning. I'm really, really excited for what we have going on and the message today, and really excited for what the Lord's going to be doing. Now, how many of y'all are willing to be challenged this morning? All right, a couple hands. How many of y'all are willing to say, Lord, change me, impact me, transform me. If you are, come on, don't tell me, like, tell him, like, Lord, meet me, Lord, change me, Lord, transform me.
[1:03] Amen. So for those of you who don't know, I am Jonathan Shunker. I was on staff here, like Jacob said, and a few years ago, the Lord transitioned my wife and I into marketplace ministry, and I'll be sharing a little bit more about that. But my title today is Work Redeemed, the Future of Work. Now, I do want to let you know, I was very tempted to press on the next slide and all I was going to say was chat GPT and then the end.
[1:35] But I didn't do that for your benefit. But I will acknowledge, like, we're at work changing, work changing dramatically because of the rise of AI. However, I think it's our definition of work that's going to change, but the actual function of work and what God has given to us is going to remain and is going to stay the same. What we will need to do is adapt to whatever technology is kind of changing us, but the general ideal of work is still going to remain. And so because of that, I think this message is very applicable this morning. And more than that, this message is also like it really could be a three or four part series, but we're going to do a quick survey. So I'm going to be touching on some points that I could really go into in a much deeper level. We don't have the time for that. So if you have further questions, we'll be right back. Text me, call me, email me, and I'd be happy to chat further with you. So, the title of the sermon today is Work Redeemed, the Future of Work. Work Redeemed, the Future of Work. For all my note-takers out there, if you're a note-taker, give me a whoop-whoop. Great. All five of you, thank you. Well done. I appreciate it.
[2:56] Note-takers, we have four points today, okay? One is the beginning of work. What is work? What did God give to us? The beginning of work.
[3:09] Two is the current state of work. So where are we at right now? And what does that look like in our society? Three is the future, work redeemed, the future of work. And then four is where do we get this power? Because there's power that's released to us to work. There's power that God gives to us. And so we're going to be talking about that. And so if you're ready for some power, some fresh power in your life, get ready because that's what we're jumping into. So let's pray. While we're praying, I also want to let you know that our text today is going to be from Ephesians 6 and Colossians 3. All right, they're going to be almost sister texts, but we're going to jump into them. Before we do, let's pray.
[4:02] Jesus, thank you that you are king and you are good and you are loving and you have called us and you are changing us and transforming us. And this morning, Lord, would you come and would you land on our hearts again? Would you land on our minds again? Would you come and change us? Would you transform? Would you not leave us the same way, but make us more like you? Because what this world really needs is more of you, Jesus. Help us to look like you, act like you, think like you, love like you, and serve like you. And empower us today with your Holy Spirit. Amen. Oh, amen. All right. So, Ephesians 6. Let's jump in. Children.
[4:47] For anyone who has had children, you know they are indeed work, so this is appropriate. Children, obey your parents and the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with a promise, so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth. Fathers, do not exasperate your children. Instead, bring them up in the training and the instruction of the Lord. Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from their heart. Serve wholeheartedly as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they're a slave or free. And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him. Swing over to Colossians 3, 18-25.
[5:48] Again, very similar passage that Paul's writing. He says, Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not embitter your children or they will become discouraged. Slaves, obey your earthly masters and everything. And do it not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for human masters. Since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward, it is the Lord Christ you are serving. And anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs and there is no favoritism.
[6:33] There is no favoritism. Now, before we jump in, obviously, Paul is writing to people in the New Testament. This is after Jesus has died in the early part of the first century. And he is writing what was common at that time was indentured servanthood, what they call slavery. This is unlike the chattel slavery that we see that was probably in America and England and later parts of history. This was more a form of you are in debt, you work the debt off after 15, 20 years, you were then released to go live the rest of your life. You were not owned. In fact, some of these slaves were actually artisans. They were in high demand. They produced really incredible things. And then, of course, some of them were regular servants doing some of the other more menial tasks. And what's amazing is that Paul is writing to them, and he's writing to their masters. And it's been said that if they took what Paul wrote seriously, that the entire system of slavery would have been abolished. Because what he says is, masters, treat your slaves well. Think of them. Care for them.
[8:03] And truly, the outworking of that is what Jesus said is the Christian ethic of love your neighbor as yourself. So, if slave owners were to take this seriously, they would release their slaves, right? So, because of this and other passages, this is really what empowered Christian civil rights workers to help bring an end to the horrible practice of slavery. However, this is really important for us as well, because Paul writes sweeping statements here. He says, whatever you do, whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as serving the Lord and not people, as serving the Lord and not men. I mean, some of us, you maybe think your manager is like a slave driver. It kind of feels like you're stuck in perpetuity. And, I think his words are so important, but also I see a huge disconnect because Paul writes, serve wholeheartedly, work wholeheartedly. And you know what I see when I look around? I see a whole lot of people not working wholeheartedly.
[9:15] I see a lot of people struggling to serve wholeheartedly. And so today, that's what I'd like to speak to you about and share with you some of the things the Lord's laid on my heart. It's like, what is work and how can we work with all our hearts unto the Lord, for the Lord. So because of that, we're going to go back in the Bible to Genesis 2. You do not need to turn there. I'm just going to do a quick, again, we don't have time. I'm going to do a quick survey for you. But in the Bible, Genesis 2, it starts and it says that thus the heavens and the earth were completed and all their vast array. God finishes his work. He He rests from his work and on the sixth day, he creates man. So what we see is we have a picture of God and the picture of God is this. He's creating with vast amounts of creativity the world as we know it. He's creating not just a tree, but thousands of species of trees, not just an animal, but thousands of species of animals. Have you ever considered like no sunset that you've ever seen is exactly the same? No snowflake is exactly the same. Like God is not the God of sameness and uniformity. God is the God of creativity.
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