For centuries, “Kingdom work” was synonymous with the stuff pastors do – preaching, sacraments, general church-running… This was the “eternal” work done for God, and the province of a small minority of God’s people who were “ordained” to the role. “Secular” work was what one did for money, not an equally important embodiment of Jesus’s ministry of restoration. But such a limited view of work-that-matters (and the idea of ordination) has come mainly to limit the church’s imagination and ignore the gifts of the majority of the people of God.
In this episode we examine Paul’s exhortation to “do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Col. 3:17) as a challenge the traditional definition of “godly work,” and take up again the biblical vision of vocation – the idea that everyone is called to a meaningful role in the project of salvation.
Perhaps it’s time we start formally ordaining people to all kinds of roles in the world, one of which might even be leading a congregation…?
This is a sermon that was originally presented at Canvas (a Presbyterian church in Irvine, CA), November 9, 2014. To learn more about Canvas, click here!
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