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Bulletin 163 Date : 11th May 2009
God at Work

Those amazing words of Jesus, where he stared Simon Peter full in the face and announced to him, “You are the Rock, and on this Rock I will build my Church” (Matthew 16:18), must have left Simon Peter shocked and awe-struck. Not only did Jesus see in Simon Peter something which he had failed to see in himself, but the very idea that the future of Christianity would rest on the shoulders of this impulsive and error-prone individual would have been beyond imagining. But it’s true. Jesus invariably sees in each of us more than we see in ourselves and is the one who, if we let him, will enable us to fulfill our God-given potential in the work of the kingdom.

But, do we see this potential in the folks who worship in church week by week – in those who sit next to us in the pew and who struggle with the deeper issues of life just as we do? Do preachers and other church leaders simply look down from pulpit and categorize those in front of them as ‘people in the pew’? If so, that’s what they will remain, rather than blossoming into people who have the potential to win many more souls for Christ as was John Wesley’s desire for the Methodist people.

God is indeed at work in every one of his followers and is seeking, with the cooperation of the church, to bring everyone to their full potential. Sadly, we have tended to think that, if a person shows signs of God’s calling on their life, that calling can only be expressed in terms of becoming an officer holder in the church, a Lay Preacher or, better still, a ordained minister or Deacon. These roles are vitally important but by no means the only avenues which people can explore. The church is not always so good at recognizing that the ordinary members of the church are in fact at the forefront of mission most days of the week – either in their place of work, their community or their homes. There has never been a ‘Faith and Worship’ course for young Mums, pharmacists or surgeons and yet, these people are constantly in a position where they can share their faith and demonstrate kingdom values in the way they live and through the work that they do.

Recently, the Methodist Church has released a comprehensive set of resources entitled ‘Faith and Work’. These downloadable resources can be found on www.methodist-nd.org.uk/section.php?section=faithwk. I’m heartened that the church is now making strident efforts to equip ordinary Christians to stand up for their beliefs in a strongly secular world. It doesn’t matter how you define work as neither of these resources think of work as purely confined to the professional classes.


Also, Alpha International has launched a new course entitled ‘God at Work’ (www.godatwork.org.uk) based on a book of the same name by Ken Costa, a long-standing and experienced Investment Banker who is also chair of Alpha International. The course is not specifically about sharing faith in work situations (which Ken admitted he is not very good at) but how to live out an authentic Christian life in places where the world would have us live by a different set of standards.

So, is it time for churches to reconsider the amount of time and effort they put into equipping ordinary members of the church in becoming ‘mission-minded’? As I heard J. John say recently, “The church is about WORSHIP, WELLBEING and WITNESS, but over 90% of our effort goes into the first two”. Is it time for us to cooperate with God in building his Church upon ordinary people with ordinary skills but with a heart for mission?

Here are some hot issues which people face every day and could be explored in sermons:-

1. Honesty in the workplace
2. Dealing respectfully with people of other faiths whilst remaining true to our own convictions
3. The Christian view on military action
4. How we should look upon high-earners like football or pop stars
5. Being good stewards of God’s world rather than plunderers