Preached at Markham Baptist Church, June 2, 2002

"Jesus is Lord". So goes the central affirmation of the New Testament. The very first creed of the earliest believers was the simple confession, "Jesus is Lord." They believed this so strongly, so steadfastly, that they proclaimed it with everything that was within them and they looked forward to the day when the whole world would acknowledge - where every knee would bow and every tongue confess what the early church knew to be a present reality - that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:11).

It is an emphasis that perhaps has been lost in the modern church. Certainly the modern evangelical church has placed such an emphasis on accepting and receiving Christ as Saviour that we have forgotten to make him Lord over all that we are, over all that we have and all that we do.

So for the next three weeks I would like us to consider the Lordship of Christ, not in some theoretical abstract way, but to think of His Lordship in three practical areas - our work, our home and our speech.

These are three areas of life in which our Lord has a great interest. Think about the first one this morning. Some may not believe that God is all that interested in our work. After all, it isn't all that spiritual - it's financial advisor, mechanic, stay-at-home mom, computer consulting, computer programming, dry cleaning, it's retail sales. We think that God is only interested in those areas of life that are deemed "spiritual". That would include worship, times we spend with church folk. Any kind of help that we can give to others. Those are spiritual activities and we think God certainly is interested in those things. But my work? That's secular and what does God have to do with that?

And we may say to God, "Okay, God you can have this day and this day, and this hour and this hour but as soon as I step over that threshold of the office, You are going to have to wait in the lobby because You just don't belong there. This is the secular world. And You just don't belong there." And God responds to us in Scripture, especially in our text today and says "Hold on there - I am intensely interested in your work. I want to be Lord over all of your life, especially your work life seeing as that is where most of your waking hours are spent!" So what does the word of God say about making Jesus Christ Lord over my work?

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as you obey Christ; not only while being watched, and in order to please them, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. Render service with enthusiasm, as to the Lord and not to men and women, knowing that whatever good we do, we will receive the same again from the Lord, whether we are slaves or free. And, masters, do the same to them. Stop threatening them, for you know that both of you have the same Master in heaven, and with him there is no partiality. (Ephesians 6:5-9) (NRSV)

Paul addresses Christians in the Ephesian church who are slaves. Just as quick word about slavery here. It has been estimated that in the Roman empire there were 60 million slaves. Over one third of the population were slaves. Slavery was universal. It was the way of life - built into the social and economic fabric of the age.

Some people get upset that Paul in his writings does not seek freedom for slaves. And that is true to an extent, he does not seek to outwardly transform the system. Nowhere does he say that slaves should launch a direct attack on their masters. No, the word of God is wiser than that - think of what direct attack accomplishes, it only perpetuates violence.

Instead, Paul seeks to transform it and God's word does try to transform the system from within. Paul says let the slave wholeheartedly obey his master and let the master be kind to his slave. Thus the whole system in which dishonesty, laziness and hatred were the norm would be transformed by willing service, integrity and love.

This is how Christ overthrew slavery in the Roman Empire. And this is how it happened in history. Eventually the transformation came through men and women who were devoted to the truth of God's word, people like John Wesley, George Whitefield and William Wilberforce.

So what do these verses say about modern day work and making Jesus Christ Lord of our work? Well to begin with, these verses tell us that our Lord is present in our workplaces. We cannot leave Him in the lobby when we ascend the elevator to our office. He does not stay in the car when we go to make that sales call. As difficult and as hard and as ungodly as our work places may seem, Jesus Christ is present there. What could be more ungodly than slavery? Yet Paul says, Christ is there.

In every verse Jesus Christ is mentioned. In verse 5 they are to be obedient as they would obey Christ, in verse 6 they are to be behave as slaves for Christ, in verse 7 they are to serve as if serving the Lord - knowing in verse 8 that they will receive a reward from the Lord.

This is the first principle in making Christ Lord of our work - we need to recognize that He is there. We need a clear sightedness to see Jesus Christ as present in our places of work. Can you see yourself cooking tonight's dinner as if Christ were going to eat it? Can you see yourself teaching your class of students tomorrow as if Christ were present in the room? As you accountants audit those books, as you secretaries type the letters, as you sales clerks serve your customers can you see yourself doing it in service to Jesus Christ? If you can you are on your way to practicing the Lordship of Christ at work.

The second principle is closely tied with the first - treat the other people in your work place - especially your boss like he or she was Jesus. This is what Paul says in verse 5:

"Slaves obey your earthly masters with respect and fear and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ."

Do you best to please your leaders Scriptures says. Approach them with a servants attitude and a genuine willingness to cooperate with them just as you would obey Christ.

Note how we are to obey our employers - with respect and fear and sincerity of heart. It is to be with respect for them as people who have been placed in authority over us.

It is to be with fear. Sometimes fear is a good thing. We need fear to keep us from rushing into harm's way, from getting too close to the edge of that cliff. And that is the fear that is mentioned here. It is not a fear of the boss, but a fear that we keep ourselves from following the way of the world. It is so easy to go along with the crowd - what we need is a healthy fear that keeps us from following the crowd and instead doing what our Lord commands here.

And we are to obey them with sincerity of heart - that is, it is to be genuine, not grudgingly. Instead, do your work from the heart. So we read in Ecclesiastes 9:10, "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might." Let your work come from the heart as you would obey Christ.

And in our hearts we may be saying, "You have got to be kidding! Do you know what my boss is like? That old so and so. I'm supposed to obey him, or her just as I would obey Christ?" Yes, I know it may sound crazy, but remember that Paul is dealing with slavery here. If anyone had bosses that should be hated they did. Yet Paul tells them to obey, and so should we.

Remember too that this is God's Word and I know that as we begin to take it seriously and obey what it says to us we will see Him transform our workplaces in ways we never imagined.

Tony Campolo tells of a time he was doing some mediating work with the union local of the United Steel Workers. And he tells of how things were not going well among the members of the union and how at one point the former president of the union, named Lefty Scumaci, blurted out, "You know everything would change if you guys would just treat one another like the other person was Jesus."¹ Campolo says that the whole atmosphere of the shop changed as that insight took hold of people and within a year people who had previously regarded each other as enemies were now talking to one another as friends. A place that once was described as a rotten place to work had become a place where care was being expressed and friendships made - all because people started treating one another as though the other was Jesus.

Here's the third principle. Practicing the Lordship of Christ at work means seeing the Lord as present there, treating those you work with, especially your bosses as though they were Christ and thirdly, doing your work with excellence knowing that you are working for Jesus Christ. This is the idea behind verses 6 and 7.

Obey them not only to win their favour when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord not men."

This is what we must realize - you do not work for your boss. You do not work for your customers, you do not work for the company who pays you at the end of the month. You work for the Lord, you are serving him in your work, not anyone else.

And so our attitude toward work must be one in which we are offering the best that we have - seeking to bring excellence to each task we are doing - not just when we know the boss is watching, or when we know the report we are writing will be read by the CEO but giving excellence at all times.

And again, this will have a dramatic effect for your workplace. You remember when Gorbachev was president of Russia he introduced sweeping changes to the communist society and part of that was a lifting of persecution of Christians.

Joseph Stowell tells of how he asked a Russian pastor why he thought Gorbachev had lifted the oppression from Christians in the Soviet Union. He replied that at the time the major problem facing Russia was it's faltering economy. Much of the trouble, he explained is due to absenteeism, alcoholism, and non-productivity in the work force. Gorbachev reportedly told Russian leaders, "Why do we oppress the very people who do not absent themselves from work, who are not alcoholics and who give us a productive day's work? We need their strength."²

What do you think motivated the Christian workers in Soviet Russia to perform their tasks under persecution and oppression? Only one answer seems to make sense. They wanted to achieve excellence in their work. They took Scripture and applied it to their lives. "Whatever you do work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord" Even in the midst of persecution and oppression, they realized they weren't working for the state - they were doing their work for the Lord. Their devotion to their Master was such that they could not imagine offering Him anything less than their best. And as a result of practicing the Lordship of Christ in their workplaces they brought glory to Him and their work places were transformed.

And wouldn't it transform our attitude toward work if we realized that what we were doing on Monday to Friday really mattered to God because we were working for Him. To be sure your work may be mechanical and repetitive but if we get hold of the idea that we are doing this work for God and no one else, the we are going to do it with excellence and then it is possible that someone will see Christ in us and through the work that we do their life will be transformed by His grace. The work you do will prove the reality of Christ in this world.

So what have we learned so far? Practicing the Lordship of Christ at Work means - seeing the Lord as present there, treating those you work with, especially your bosses as though they were Christ and thirdly, doing your work with excellence knowing that you are working for Jesus Christ. So you and I work for no on else but Jesus Christ. We do not work for the corporation, or for the person who signs your cheque. You and I work for Jesus Christ and you need to know that He pays well. This is what we read in verse 8 - the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does. Our Lord is not stingy but will reward everyone for whatever good he does. It may be materially, for it has been proven again and again that as we practice these Lordship principles, seeking to treat others as if they were Christ, seeking to give excellence in what we produce, that we will experience a level of success in business. The Lord may reward materially, but more, as I have tried to show, He will reward in transforming your workplace into a situation that will glorify His name. As you make Him Lord over your work you will experience His presence in your workplace and you will see Him doing works of transformation that you never thought were possible.

1.	Tony Compolo, Carpe Dieum, Dallas: Word Publishing, 1994, page 192.
2.	Joseph Stowell, The Dawn's Early Light, Chicago: Moody Press, 1990, page 25.