Leaving a Legacy that Lasts Forever - Teach Them to Work Unto the Lord, Part 1

If there was one thing that you could teach, if you could pass on to your kids, that would ensure their success in school, in their work, in any future job they ever had in life.

Would you want to know what it is? That's today. Stay with me. Welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. The mission of these daily programs is to intentionally disciple Christians through the Bible teaching of Chip Ingram. In just a minute, he'll continue our series, Leaving a Legacy That Lasts Forever. Whether you're at your first job or about to retire, Chip's going to help us change our view of work from a chore to an act of worship. Now, this is an issue we all have to deal with at some point. So would you take a minute after this message and share it with someone in your life? You can do that through the Chip Ingram app or by downloading the free MP3s that you'll find at LivingOnTheEdge.org.

Well, if you're ready, here's Chip for today's message. Teach them to work unto the Lord. Sixty to eighty percent of a person's waking hours on this planet is consumed with an activity called work. Now, that work can be at home, but it's work.

Now, think of that. If you're not sleeping or eating, sixty to eighty percent of your waking hours your entire life, you're doing this thing called work. And so I want to ask you to ponder three questions with me before we talk about what we want to pass on to those we love the most and whether that's who we're discipling or our men's group, our women's group, our kids, our grandkids.

Three questions to really think about when we begin to talk about this area of work. Question number one is how can you help those you love the most live above the daily grind? I mean let's go back to our little analogy where we say if you knew from this moment right now, 365 days you're going to die and you had 365 days and you knew people that you love, one of your kids, I mean one of your grandkids, your best friend, someone you led to the Lord, you know, some guys that you're in a Bible study with, these gals that you love and care and you know that sixty to eighty percent of their entire life is they're going to keep working after you die. How could you deliver them from the daily grind of get up, go to work, grab a cup of coffee, come in, go to eat some supper, do a drive through, watch a couple hours of TV, go to bed, get up, go to, I mean, and then wait for the weekend. That's how most people are living their life.

Can you imagine the gift it would be if you could pass something on where that would not be their experience? Question number two is why are the majority of Americans dissatisfied with their jobs? And I would say probably maybe well beyond America. But all the research is they're bored, they're unfulfilled, it's basically almost a paycheck or a necessary evil. Now there's great exceptions, you meet people and they say I'd do this if they didn't pay me, I love what I do, I was made to do this. But by and large the research tells us most people go to their job, it's a paycheck, I need the money, but I'm not waking up, there's not a lot of people going thank God it's Monday, it's Monday, I love it, Monday, ooh, right?

Most people are saying thank God it's Friday. Question number three, how can the place where we spend the majority of our waking hours be transformed from drudgery to delight? Can you imagine being able to pass that on to people? Now I'm not saying that every moment of every day as people are working, you know, it's just high-fiving each other in the halls or on the job site or, but I mean where they would sense a genuine I can't believe I get to do this, I was made to do this, I love to do this. Now there's pressures with any job, there's demands of any job, we feel overwhelmed at times, but where you could pass on some truth to those you love the most that they would from this point to the day they die actually do what God designed them to do, and it would produce a joy in them that's not reserved for the weekends, but would be what they do 24-7, what they look forward to, and it would produce a fruit and an impact in the lives of other people that they would go I can't believe, you mean, you mean other people are positively impacted by me like this? And here's sort of the second core value, the transferable concept is teach them to work unto the Lord, and so to do this I want to jump in and I'm going to go over a theology of work because I don't think we think very clearly or biblically about work, and it might surprise you, it is not a necessary evil, it's not bad, God instituted work before sin ever entered the world, and so what I want to do is talk about a theology of work, and then I want to get real practical again and say how could you pass on this truth in a way to those that you love the most? First of all then, work is a calling, not a job. That word calling is kind of interesting, you might hear someone say well what's your vocation? The Latin word for vocation is calling. Years ago, a hundred years ago or more, when people talked about your vocation it wasn't what you do to make money, it was what have you been called by God to do?

It was Martin Luther who said, you know, a shoemaker making a shoe for the glory of God using his skill is just as holy as a pastor preaching a sermon, and he used that illustration with many trade offs, but his point was we all have a calling, God made us and gifted us differently and when you do that for the glory of God it is just as holy as quote spiritual activity. In our culture today there tends to be two motives for a job or for work, and I'll play this out, let's say you have a nephew or a friend or someone that you're discipling or one of your kids or a grandchild that's ready to go to college and they're trying to figure out what should they major in, right? This is way big, what should I major in? I feel like I'm, or they're out of high school and they're, you know, what should I do? Should I go to college or should I get a trade job or should I go into business with a family?

What should I do? And here's sort of a parental response that we have learned from our culture. Well honey, I don't know, but we just want you to be happy. It doesn't really matter to me, I just want you to be happy in whatever you do because see life is really all about you. You see, we live in a narcissistic society and we want you to know that you are the center of the universe and the only thing that really matters, no matter how much money or you change your major seven times or if you figure out how to squeeze that four year education into six, we just want you to have fun in that dorm room to make lots of friends and grow up and be a wonderful, happy little, because that's how life will be later. Everyone is just going to be coming at the doorstep of your life trying to make your life work out for you. I want to tell you that the answer to the question, though very sincere and in earlier days I've said it myself, saying to our kids when they say what should I do with my life, the answer I only want you to be happy is not biblical, is not smart, is not wise and will not get them in a good direction. How much does an 18 or 17 year old know or 19 year old know about what's really going to make them happy or what's best.

The other extreme we have and Christians are more sophisticated in how we communicate this, but on the one extreme it's we want them to be happy. On the other extreme it's like in the real roll up your sleeves pagan world it's well what pays, son you got to make a living. You want to get ahead, get a good education or forget that. I'll tell you, here's where the job market is. Here's where you can make money. The goal of a job is money. Make lots of money.

Why? Because you need lots of money. Why do you need lots of money? So you can be successful. Why do you need to be successful? So you can have a big house. Why do you need a big house? So people will know you're successful and then you can have another house and you can buy these kind of cars and have a purse that has this design and wear a watch that says certain things and you got to have money. Why? So you can be fulfilled and you can be powerful and you can have it together and then you can take vacations. Where?

Wherever you want because money is the key to, I mean you got to make a lot of money. Well gosh dad I see a lot of people and they have a lot of money. They don't seem like they're very happy. Hey just don't give me all that. Quit talking back. You need to get a good job, a good education, make a lot of money because you're a reflection of me.

Don't you understand I'm vicariously living my life in subtle ways through you and your SAT scores are reflection on me and what college you go to is a reflection on me and because it's not really all about you it's all about me but I'm going to package this in a different way so you think it's really about you. And so we have communicated that work is about either making a lot of money or really being happy and I want to suggest that God would say it's about a calling. Those people that you love the most, kids, disciples, best friends, grandkids, Bible study partners, God has a call of what they should do and when they do what he made them to do they will have incredible internal joy and incredible external impact and with that then we have to begin to teach again that all work is sacred. All work is sacred. Jot down first Corinthians 10 31. He says whatever you do whether you eat or drink do all to the glory of God.

All work is sacred. Early when I came to Christ just right after high school I went to a college campus and there was a bricklayer with a high school education who was trained by the navigators and he had his own business and he would lay brick by day and he opened his home and had a discipleship ministry on this campus by night and after two or three years he began to help me and I was sort of slow spiritually and took me a while to get going and once I started to grow then I spent a summer there once and I needed a job he said why don't you work with me and then later he started another campus. His work was a tent making ministry and so this campus grew from you know three of us in the living room to 250 students on that campus then he went to another campus and said Chip why don't you come with me and we'll see if God will do this again.

I said okay so I want to learn. So I didn't have a job so I'm a hod carrier and that means you mix the mud and he liked to do it by hand for reasons I never did experience because I was the guy doing it by hand and then you had 14 bricks or 12 bricks and then we did a lot of foundations and so it was really really hard work and he was asked he had a line of people because he was so good. People wanted him to do their work and I remember we worked on a foundation and we worked for about you know a day and a half and one day he you know said Chip grab that line I grabbed the line and he took the line down and snapped it and he looked this way and took the line down this way and you know we had it up about this high three quarters of the way around on three walls and he looked and he just with his foot he just started kicking the walls down. I said Dave what are you doing man?

He said it's out and I can't remember the exact it was like out a half inch. I said Dave yeah I mean you're the expert but like a half inch is like I mean that is not making more he said that's not good enough for my work. So Chip you need to understand I'm not building this house for these people. I build houses for an audience of one and when my when I do my work it's not about what other people think. I do my work because this is my offering today to Jesus Christ and I will not give him less than my best. I'm not sure how I did it. I've done a lot of foundations.

I blew it on this one and he kicked him over he says clean this stuff away we're starting over. That was worth 10,000 sermons. I learned all work is sacred and for some of us especially in that sort of middle to upper class we have that we have bought a lie that if our kids don't go to college somehow you know they're not successful. Some of the best wealthiest and most successful people they're in my world right now none of them went to college. They got bored with college.

They didn't like school and so they just figured out how to start their own businesses and do what God made them to do and have a lot of fun and be very successful at it. We have sort of this white collar blue collar mundane tell you what everyone is made to do something different and the issue is not this little pecking order of status and money. The issue is helping those you love the most discover what did God make them to do and what we understand as we get older we really care about what our kids do when we're like in our 30s and 40s.

You get into your 60s and 70s you don't care what vocation your kids or grandkids have you care that they love God they have marriages they stay in they really care for one another and they still want to talk to you. It's right it's all about character. So what but you know how character grows is we need to make sure they do and we help them and coach them not to fulfill our vicarious make me look good but we want to help them fulfill what God made him to do. The third theology of work is that our work is to flow from God's unique design and purpose for our lives.

Purpose is the key word there. The work I'm called to do that you're called to do that those that you want to pass things on to are called to do. God has a unique design. Jot in your notes Ephesians 2 10. God has a unique design what your job we're going to learn a little bit later we'll talk about how is to help them discover the unique design or purpose God has for their life. Now Ephesians 2 8 9 many of you have memorized right for by grace we're saved through faith and that's not of yourselves it's the gift of God not a result of works lest any man should boast. Can I highly suggest that you go the next step and memorize verse 10 for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God ordained beforehand like from the foundations of the earth that we should walk in them.

We are not saved from our sin by our good works. We are saved by grace as we put our faith in the work of Christ on the cross but we're saved for good works and we are his workmanship that word workmanship we get our English word poem. It's the picture of craftsmanship of a tapestry coming together. It's a picture of a cabinet maker doing his finest work or a sculptor you are if you will and those you love they're on this sort of little platform of God creating a beautiful work you are his workmanship but now you're created in Christ Jesus unto a good work there's a good work that you're made for you're gifted for you're prepared for you came out of this family for you have the right height for you have the right personality for you have the right spiritual gift deposit in you for you have some baggage and hurts and pains that you've had to overcome that will fit you for this good work. God is going to use all things working together to fulfill you doing this good work he has prepared for you. Well guess what that's what he has for those we love that's what he has for that young guy coming over that group on Monday nights where we did a Bible study of that 20-something people God has that for my sons God has that for my grandchildren God has that for a group of women that you're meeting with and you know maybe going through a K Arthur or Beth Moore study God has that for the people that you care about at work that you find out they're a Christian and they're starting to ask you questions how do you pass on the things that matter most work is a calling all work is sacred and our work is to flow from our unique purpose. We are to co-labor with God in this vocation and you know what jot down if you would under this I love Paul's testimony it's first Corinthians 15 10 he really had this one down he says I am what I am by the grace of God he wasn't trying to be anybody else I am what I am by the grace of God and his grace did not prove vain toward me but I labored more than all of them there's responsibility yet not I but the grace of God in me in other words Paul understood that all my training under the mail all my baggage even as a Pharisee all my legalism all the blindness I had even my persecuting of the church you know what God is lovingly redeeming taking the worst of all my past realigning it and he had many many secular scholars think he was the brightest really the brightest brain of his century I am what I am by the grace of God that's my dream for those I care about most I want my kids to look in the mirror and say you know what now I've got a lot of struggles and but I am what I am by the grace of God and his grace did not prove vain toward me the Old Testament roots are Genesis 2 15 you have that in your notes where you see this picture of God placing Adam in the garden and there's no sin and he says look I want you to cultivate who I want you to rule I want you to work I want you to be a co-regent I want you to be a co-creator I want you to partner with me I am a creator you know what didn't God do some work for six days and he got a lot done so works not a dirty word he says I want you to get to experience because you're made in my image look here's this perfect environment now you work I want you to name things I want you to build things I want you to create things I want you to dream things that's how we need to see work it's to express our creativity to subdue to rule to develop to make beautiful and the two pictures biblical profiles are Adam that we've talked about and and again Paul and and if you don't mind I love to read I love the way Paul says this it's acts 20 verse 24 and this is one of those modern translations but I just love the way he says this he says but my life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned to me by the Lord Jesus in that great and then he understood his the work of telling others the good news about God's wonderful kindness and love now ultimately that if you're called to be a plumber or a builder or a software engineer or a stay-at-home mom if you're called to be a professional athlete or an artist or musician or a businessman or businesswoman then you will tell others about the love of God by actually how you do your work and by what you say but that calling is different his was into full-time vocational he was an apostle the New Testament command is Colossians 3 23 whatever you do now let's see what do you think that would cover I mean let me ponder this whatever gosh would that have to do with my hobbies yeah okay would that have to do when I eat yeah would that have to do with just when I go to church no well that is this just spiritual stuff quote whatever you do work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord not for men this is revolutionary can you imagine what would happen if you were the president of a company and everyone who showed up said hey I really appreciate you I know God put you in this place I don't work for you I work for God tell you what I don't leave early because I work for God I do my best because I work for God I submit to authority that I don't agree with because I work for God I want to keep improving I go home and read books about my job because I work for God I want to develop my gifts because I work for God can you imagine the difference that would make do you see the impact that has you know we're all we want to change the culture and we've tried it in lots of different ways you want to change the culture show up for work and work for God and be an awesome boss an awesome supervisor an awesome employee who loves people and does excellent excellent work and I will tell you what you'll change your world and change your culture have a good friend who we lived in Santa Cruz for many years and it's right on you know that song down by the boardwalk come on with it down by the sea anyway the boardwalk that song comes from there there's this huge boardwalk and then the big roller coaster and all this well I have a friend who his family owns all the concessions so they've got a zillion jobs and every summer campus crusade would come to do ministry I mean you know like 150 students from all over America and what he learned is and what a testimony to campus crusade these young college students were very committed Christians their work ethic and commitment was of such every summer he would after about three summers he said send all of them to my place okay what do you like to do good you and he would hire them all all summer and he said our prophets went up the attitudes went up they did ministry why were there he said was the greatest win-win in the world why because they understood they were called by God to be there whatever you do do it with all your heart as unto the Lord little application here and I want to ask you it says I and then in my notes I have your name so you know do not write I chip Ingram commit to discover God's calling for my life so I can impact my world and beyond that will not work for your notes you would probably go with like your name because right you track with me because if this isn't happening again if it's not happening in you you won't pass it on you can take these notes and these concepts and you can get the Bible study or you can go out for coke or a coffee with the Sun or disciple grandchild and tell them this and if it's not in you you won't pass it on and I don't care you know what your work never ends don't say well I'm retired okay from some vocation for a season but if you're breathing you're working you're doing things that are making creating modifying developing bringing beauty to life and so you do that unto the Lord now let me give you a four kind of specific ways that are real practical in general to develop this and those that you love to pass it on and then what I want to do is I want to take this very specifically in the second half of our time about how do you help those you love discover God's calling for their life but before we do let me give you four quick things that especially for those of you that might have kids that are still at home or you know you're in those earlier years number one give them a lot of jobs growing up we have too many parents working too hard too long that are very tired with children in front of television sets and video games going mom when supper ready your kids need to learn to cook and help out at 11 and 12 everyone needs to be able to make their own bed by at age five or six everyone needs to be able to handle and do their own laundry you know by the early teen or preteen years it was all that's my job look look here's your job is to impart and impact and develop your child to be responsible and learn to do work with a good now only way you do that you got to give them jobs and guess what it's a fallen world and they have flesh they don't like to do it right they don't want to feed the dog they don't want to take out the garbage they don't want to clean up the room you start from young you give them jobs and by the way it takes more time and it is a hassle that's why you're the mature one and they're the non-mature one of course it's easier to tuck them in bed and clean up the whole thing yourself you want them to learn to work at an early age you've been listening to part one of chip's message teach them to work unto the lord which is from our series leaving a legacy that lasts forever chip will be back with us in studio shortly to share some helpful application for us to think about we all want to leave an imprint on our families that'll last long after we're gone but what exactly do you want them to remember well in this series chip share some godly principles that will provide more for your kids than what money can buy hear what the bible teaches about enduring hardships making wise choices and discovering your purpose so whether you're a parent grandparent or mentor chip will help you share these lessons with the young people you love in a personal way to learn more about leaving a legacy that lasts forever or our resources visit Living on the Edge dot org that's Living on the Edge dot o-r-g well chip's back in studio with me now and chip before we come back with today's application you know father's day is just around the corner and you have a great idea for how we can encourage those men in our lives that we look up to absolutely dave i do have a great idea i think it's helping a dad be a dad my confession i didn't grow up in a christian home i got very little help being a dad being the father that my children need and so i've written a little book called the portrait of a father how to be the dad your child needs the father's role in the family is critical but i think men get overwhelmed we we don't know exactly how to do it in this little booklet i'll give you the four roles that god expects for a man to be a leader a lover a teacher and a priest and then very specifically how to do that you can read this in a little over an hour it's really small so it's one that you could get for three or four or five or six people and i think the team has discounted it because we want to get this in the hands of as many people as possible for father's day not just so they get a good gift but what we know is when a man begins to lead his family when he finally gets the confidence to know who he is to be and what he's to do it changes everything dave why don't you tell them how they can get this little book sure thing to order your copy of chip's book portrait of a father go to livingontheedge.org or call us at 888-333-6003 we hope this book will encourage every dad to be the man his kids desperately need him to be and as chip just said we've discounted this resource so you can get as many as you need for either your men's group or your entire church also if you want to give this as a father's day gift place your order by june 5th to receive it in time to get your hands on chips book portrait of a father call 888-333-6003 or visit livingontheedge.org app listeners tap special offers well now here's chip to share some helpful application for us to think about as we talked about work today let me do a very brief review because what i understand is we said some things that are diametrically opposed to what you've heard most of your life number one we are to work unto god i mean whether you are a plumber a construction worker a software engineer or a stay-at-home mom or a doctor you show up for work and your boss is god there may be a human person that's your supervisor but your real boss is god second is that all work is sacred when i prepare a message for god's people or you complete a business deal or diaper a baby or finish some plumbing on a construction project when i do it unto the lord and you do it unto the lord before god they are both sacred now what i understand is that even if you can get your mind around that we have been so trained to think of sacred kind of over here in this world and then the secular over here you know it's just a job just a paycheck get it done here's the deal if you think about work as a necessary evil the enemy has robbed you of eight to ten hours of every day of your life that you will absolutely squander because the goal will be to simply get it done if you change and by the grace of god realize this is a gift from god i may not want to do this exact job all my life but for today this is my job i'm going to do it unto him it's a sacred calling that changes your attitude that changes your perspective and it will change your performance and then you go to work and say god give me the grace give me the strength to literally be a light at the workplace and i will tell you what that change of thinking and that change of attitude and that change of performance will impact deeply those you work with and you know what he can give you joy in the mundane work of life now you may say i'm not sure i'm supposed to do this our next broadcast we'll talk about how to find the job you can love looking forward to that ship as we close i want to thank each of you who makes this program possible through your generous giving 100 of your gifts go directly to the ministry to help christians live like christians now if you found this teaching helpful but you aren't yet on the team consider doing that today sending a gift is easy go to Living on the Edge dot org or text donate to 741 41 that's the word donate to 741 41 or visit Living on the Edge dot org app listeners tap donate and let me thank you in advance for doing whatever the lord leads you to do we'll listen in next time as chip continues his series leaving a legacy that lasts forever until then this is dave dreary saying thanks for joining us for this Edition of Living on the Edge