Work Matters: Connecting Sunday Worship to Monday Work
4.3
5
4
4
Learn how to work for the glory of God
Colossians 3:17 and 1st Corinthians 10:31 make it clear that that Christians are to be motivated to do their very best work whatever work they are doing to the glory of God. While everyone has a vocation many Christians donâÂÂt understand why their work matters.
The term vocation comes from the Latin word for âÂÂcalling.â The Scriptures are full of passages that describe how Christians have been called to faith through the Gospel (2 Thessalonians 2:14) and how God calls us to a particular office or way of life (1 Corinthians 1:1-2; 7:15-20). The doctrine of vocation is thoroughly biblical and was developed with its greatest rigor during the Reformation.
Out of the Protestant Reformation came what is known as âÂÂthe Protestant work ethic,â but this was not due to the pressure to prove oneâÂÂs worth to God, but rather emerged out of an understanding of the meaning of work and the satisfaction and fulfillment that come from ordinary human labor when seen through the light of the doctrine of vocation. The Reformation was the time in which the Protestant church enjoyed its greatest cultural influenceâÂÂin art, literature, music, as well as in social institutions. All of this was because the Reformers understood what the Bible has to teach about the doctrine of vocation. Recovering this doctrine is important to contemporary Christians because it will open the way for the Church and Christians to influence our culture once again through our work.
In his helpful book Work Matters Connecting Sunday Worship To Monday Work Pastor Tom Nelson helps clear away misconceptions and misunderstandings about the nature of vocation and work for Christians. Many Christians may feel that their work is drudgery, or may have even have made their work an idol. All Christians need to understand that because God has ordained man to work, He desires that all men do their work to and for His glory. Whether youâÂÂre a workaholic or weekend warrior, the doctrine of vocation has fallen on hard times in contemporary evangelicalism, and itâÂÂs time for Christians to bridge the gap between Sunday worship and Monday work by understanding what the Bible teaches about our work.
Pastor Nelson in Work Matters strikes a good balance between theological depth and practical counsel by outlining GodâÂÂs purpose for work in a way that will help Christians to make the most of our vocation and join God in His work in the world. If youâÂÂre tired of feeling that your work doesnâÂÂt matter, or you want to learn about how God views your vocation, read Work Matters. Reading Works Matters will help Christians to discover afresh what it means to do all their work for the glory of God. I recommend you read this book to discover the BibleâÂÂs perspective on work, because doing so will transform your workday and make the majority of your waking hours matter, not only now, but for eternity.
Title: Work Matters: Connecting Sunday Worship to Monday Work
Author: Tom Nelson
Publisher: Crossway (2011)
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Crossway review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade CommissionâÂÂs 16 CFR, Part 255 : âÂÂGuides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.âÂÂ
May 2, 2012
A good book on an important topic
In Work Matters: Connecting Sunday Worship to Monday Work, pastor Tom Nelson offers a new perspective on work, providing a look at GodâÂÂs purposes for work in a way that is both practical and theologically based. He helps readers to make the most of their God-given vocations and to treat their work as God intended, as acts of worship.
I really enjoyed this book and was truly blessed by it. Nelson gives a look at this important topic that is both refreshing and convicting. He is not afraid to debunk common myths nor to reveal his own shortcomings and he uses biblical accounts as well as modern-day stories to deliver his message. He covers topics such as why work is more important than we commonly believe and how to make the most of our âÂÂmundaneâ work and many, many more.
If you would like a fresh perspective on a healthy work ethic for Christians, I highly recommend this book.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received an advance reading copy of this book free from Crossway via netGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade CommissionâÂÂs 16 CFR, Part 255: âÂÂGuides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.âÂÂ
November 20, 2011
A good book on theology of work!
âÂÂThe worst of work nowadays is what happens to people when they cease to work.â This quote by G. K. Chesterton reveals the high regard in which this famous English writer held work. In his enigmatic style, Chesterton somewhat paradoxically praises work and the worker. Tom Nelson, pastor of Christ Community Church in Leawood, Kansas, also hold work in high regard. In his recently released book, Work Matters, Nelson embarks on a journey in which, as the book's subtitle suggests, he tries to connect Sunday worship to Monday work.
Nelson endeavours to explore work both theologically and practically. He wants the reader to perceive the profound honour of work due to its theological foundation as well as help the reader transform how he actually works.
Nelson explicates a theology of vocation by considering work in light of the meta-narrative of the Bible; creation, fall, redemption, and restoration.
Simply put, âÂÂTo be an image-bearer is to be a workerâ (22). Nelson maintains that God is a worker, and one of the most important ways we reflect His glory is through our work. We were created for this. However, as a result of sin, work has become difficult, disillusioning, and distorted. âÂÂWe must recognize that at this point in redemptive history, our work will not be all we want it to beâ (47). The futility of work is not the end of this story the author reminds us. Though sin has marred and maimed work, Christ's work of redemption encompasses what we have called 'the daily grind'. Nelson informs us of the positive and negative aspects of the gospel's effects on work. We are encouraged that âÂÂas new creations in Christ ... we are again able to do the work we were created forâ (58) and yet we are warned that without Christ âÂÂyour work will never be all that God intended it to beâ (61). Finally, the author touches upon a few ideas concerning the afterlife. Our work here on earth will be rewarded. And, writes Nelson, âÂÂif our daily work ... in some way carries over to the new heavens and the new earth, then our present work itself is overflowing with immeasurable value and eternal significanceâ (73).
I found this section of the book very encouraging as I considered my job and the daily work-a-day life that many of us live. These deep theological truths infuse our work with value, significance, and purpose far beyond the accumulation of money. These are the types of teachings which will indeed help us connect worship and work.
Though Nelson never leaves his theological and doctrinal moorings, he moves on to practical implications of the theology he has just demonstrated. Nelson covers topics such as the witness of our work, our sanctification through work, and common grace and our work. He also examines individual work issues such as contentment, calling, giftedness, and growth.
This was a helpful book written convincingly. It offers a solid theological basis for holding work in high regard and helps us see the inseparable connection between our lives as worshippers and our lives as workers. The truths in this book are fodder for continual application of truth from God to our lives as they are lived daily. For and educational and engaging look into vocation and its theology, I recommend this book.
November 15, 2011
Fitting God in Your Weekly Schedule
Being a christian means that you have to show good examples, christian values and morals during the week , not just in Church every Sunday Morning , How many of us can honestly say that we act like christians during our working weeks ?
Many of find getting up to work a dreary and mundane job , imagine what life would be like some would say if we didn't have to worry about going to work. I'm pretty lucky at the moment as Ive found work and study enjoyable as the topics Im learning and the place I work at is something that I love and enjoy.
Work Matters teaches us how to connect our working weeks with the stuff we learn on sundays , how to input God into your working week , who knows with the gifts that God has given you - you may be able to find a job that suits them as I know for me , I love reading and writing - they are my two passions . My jobs at the moment is working with children in a library which adds my love of children with reading. Then I took the opportunity to start writing for online magazines which lead to my site on Book Reviews. Following Gods calling on your life, can be scary at first but then if you follow and believe in him with all your heart - it can lead you places that you've never imagined possible as the verse "Through God who strengthn me , all things are possible". Impossible isn't even in God's vocabulary.
Work. For some this word represents drudgery and the mundane. For others work is an idol to be served. In either case, a biblical understanding of work as godly activity and a means of spiritual formation is lost.
Striking a balance between theological depth and practical counsel, Work Matters engages the theological basis of GodâÂÂs plan for everyday work. Tom Nelson explains how the fall has impacted vocation, how GodâÂÂs redemption touches every sphere of our lives including our work, and how what we do now is connected to what we will do forever. As Nelson connects Sunday worship to Monday morning, he gives readers practical tools for understanding their own gifts, so that they may better live in accord with GodâÂÂs design for work.
July 24, 2011
Welcome to Christianbook.com! Sign in or create an account
Cart
0 items
Checkout
We now accept PayPalfor ALL orders
