Welcome to ECB's weekly sermon podcast. ECB is
an international church in Bangkok, Thailand,
with dozens of nationalities worshipping together.
We invite you to connect with us from wherever
you are through our website ecb .asia or our
mobile app. And now we pray that you are blessed
by this week's sermon. We have been studying
the book of Colossians since the beginning of
July. And today is session six of the series.
Will you join me as I pray? Lord, when we open
your word, so often it feels as if you wrote
it just for us. Thank you for being so personal.
I'm asking you today that we'll be the same.
Speak to our lives no matter where we are in
our journey. And the things that you have envisioned
for us today, we welcome them. And will you use
me in your power and in your grace? I pray in
Jesus' name, amen. In this session six, we're
going to be talking about peace at work. And
the question, obviously, is do you have peace
at work? Or do you have anxiety, stress, and
depression? What we'll discover in this study
today is that peace at work has very little to
do with work itself. And it has much more to
do with the way you see yourself and whether
you have peace within you. Your context becomes
secondary. What we've discovered so far in the
book of Colossians is that the apostle Paul explained
to the first Christians in the first century,
this was the first generation of Christianity,
In the history of the world. And as he writes
to these Christians in the city of Colossae.
He tells them look. You have to understand that
when Jesus saved you. He transferred you from
the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light.
And at that moment he reconciled you completely
with God. All your sins 100 % forgiven. Paid
by Jesus himself. So you don't need. To live
in fear. In fear of rejection. You don't need
to try to help Jesus save you. No. He did it
all. You just need to be rooted in him. And let
his grace. And his peace. Just be in your life.
So be rooted in Jesus. Experience his grace and
his peace as a recipient. Because once you're
able to experience it as a recipient. You will
discover that grace does not stop with you, flows
through you. And what Jesus wants is for you
to experience his grace and his peace in you
and through you into your relationships, as we
discovered last week, also into your home life,
and as we will discover today, also in your work
life. What was the challenge that the Colossians
were facing? That causes the Apostle Paul to
have to write all of this content to them about
this topic. Well, to understand the context,
we have to go back to understand the historical,
cultural context of the church of Colossae. The
Colossians were mainly Gentiles that lived in
the Roman Empire. And even though there were
some Jews in the community as well, this was
not a Jewish city. And part of the Greco -Roman
world, it was shaped by the social structures
that they had already created. This is what we
studied last week, the concept of pater familias,
where there was a very hierarchical order that
was based on power, control, and fear. And this
permeated the way the family life worked, but
also the way society worked. And within this
social structure, there was a legalized system
of slavery that was one of the economic engines
of the Roman Empire. There's a word the Bible
used to describe this group of people in the
sector of society. It's doulos. Servant, bondservant,
slave. Perhaps you have heard this word doulos
in some ministries. Some ministries use that
name as the name of their ministry. This is where
it comes from. It's the word doulos, servant,
slave. But this group of people... Was a large
sector of the Roman Empire. It is estimated that
between 10 to 20 % of the Roman population. Were
doulos or slaves. And the way people enter into
this category. Was either through the conquests.
These were prisoners of war that were brought
into the Roman Empire. As the empire was expanding.
Or there were people that were in debt. and enter
into these arrangements where they gave the ownership
of their lives to a master, and now that master
had all the legal power over their lives, whether
it be temporary or for life. Because most slaves
had the opportunity to buy their freedom. And
this slavery, in contrast to some other modern
contexts of slavery, was not linked to a particular
ethnicity or caste. Anybody. Could become a slave
in that sense. Even a Roman. But there were some
also that became slaves because of their crimes.
And this was their punishment. And they would
be slaves for life. There was no way out. And
all this sector was so large that through some
studies it's considered that Italy itself was
perhaps 30 % of the population were slaves. And
therefore these doulos, they were under the authority
of the master or the Lord. And the word the Bible
uses for this is the word Kyrios. Now that is
also a word that you might find in some ministries.
There are some publications called Kyrios. It's
because this is the word that the Bible uses
to describe the concept of master. And it's used
for God as the Lord. So every time that we pray,
oh Lord. In Greek, you will be using this word,
Kyrios. And it was the word for the master who
had legal ownership of the slave. So there was
Kyrios and this slave relationship. Now, we know
because of ancient writings how all of this thing
worked. And there were... into these categories
that spread out all through different professions
in the financial system of society. So you have
laborers and forced labor on the one extreme.
These were people working on agriculture, on
the fields, on the mines. And then you have people
working at home. They were taking care of cleaning.
They were taking care of the kids. Then you have
more skilled professionals. You had teachers.
You had people working in finance. You had people
working in the medical field. And then you have
even higher positions, people that were working
on administration of big, large properties. And
all of these different sectors were populated
by the workforce of the doulos. If you look at
some of the writings, you will find something
like this. With Aristotle, for instance, on the
4th century before Jesus. Because the Greco -Roman
world laid the foundation for the New Testament
time. And this was the mindset that permeated
the way Christians, the first Christians, the
world was like. Look at what Aristotle says.
The first and smallest parts of a household are...
Master and slave, husband and wife, father and
children. And that's why, as we are reading Colossians,
you notice last week that it's addressing all
these hierarchical orders in society. Then, you
also have the attitudes that you know that people
were going to have in society towards each other.
And the attitude that many people had towards
the slaves is not something that you have to
guess. It's actually documented. Some of these
people wrote about it. Aristotle wrote about
it himself. And he says this, some men are by
nature free and other slaves, and that for the
latter, slavery is both expedient and right.
In other words, for some people, their place
in society was meant to be a slave. That's where
you belong. That is your position where you were
born for. So for some, slavery was not just a
temporary thing. It was your destiny. Now also
the way they thought of some of the slaves is
very interesting. A slave is a living tool just
as a tool is an inanimate slave. You're just
a tool. That's all you are. And there's another
writer that writes about this. His name is Varo,
and that's now from the first century. Now we're
talking about the time of contemporary to the
Colossians. And look at what he says. Slaves
are the speaking tools. Oxen are the bellowing
tools. And carts are the silent tools. You are
just a talking tool. That's all you are. You
have no rights. I have power over you. I'm your
master and you're here to serve me. So just do
what I say. You are just a tool. And even though
in the time of the Roman Empire, in the time
of the early church, the concept of slavery as
an economic legal system was so embedded in Roman
culture that... Not about to really question
the structure of it, but some people start questioning
the way people were treated. And we do have one
of the rarest quotations about this in a letter
that another person wrote. His name is Seneca.
And what he writes is this. Look, yeah, there
are slaves, but they're also human beings. They're
slaves, but they also share the same breath,
the same life, the same death. They are people,
like we are. And he was just making a comment.
He was not advocating for the end of slavery.
But it was Christianity that challenged this
order of legalized slavery that eventually became
the foundation for the complete abolition of
it. So the attitudes that you can see building
into this give us completely the background for
understanding Colossians. Because Colossians
and the letter of Philemon, as we noticed, came
hand in hand. Now, I know that some of you have
not been in the previous studies. We covered
some of this in session one. But let me just,
for your sake, give you a little summary of the
background. Because the Apostle Paul was in Rome
in prison when he wrote this letter that we are
studying now. And the way this came up... was
that he's in prison and he meets a guy called
Onesimus who was a slave who had escaped from
his master. And Onesimus now is there with Paul,
hears the message of the gospel, now believes
in Jesus. And Paul finds out that the master
of this Onesimus slave was a guy called Philemon
who was a friend of Paul. So this guy was a Christian.
Who attended a church in this town of Colossae.
And Paul knew the founder of that church. Who
was Epaphras. And Epaphras comes to Rome to visit
Paul. And tells him everything that is going
in that church of the Colossians. So Paul says,
you know what? Onesimus, you have to go back
there. Connect with that church. I'm going to
send a letter to Philemon. But I'm also going
to send a letter to the Colossians. And he decides
to send Tychicus with the letters and with Onesimus
and then they go. So at the core of what's going
on in this church of the Colossians was a relationship
among masters and slaves. One of them Philemon
and the other one Onesimus. So now you can start
imagining how Onesimus was thinking of himself
as he has escaped his master and gone all the
way to Rome. I imagine, I just can't imagine
the Apostle Paul talking to Onesimus because
right now, based on the studies of psychology,
psychiatry, and counseling field, We understand
much better what are the struggles that people
have that have come out of human trafficking,
have come out of slavery, or are the descendants
of slaves. And there's an emotional dimension
that works in their lives that now we understand
better. And there are some of these tendencies
that you start hearing. If you are just a tool,
you're useless. Imagine hearing things all the
time. That's why you can understand the language
now when Paul writes to Philemon and he says,
hey, formerly Onesimus was useless to you, but
now he has become useful. You see the language
of just these tools? That's what they are. And
he says he's useful now both to you and to me.
This Onesimus that escaped, now he came to know
Christ. He is your brother in Christ now. So
now you will have to start thinking of him differently.
Perhaps the reason he was separated from you
for a little while was that you might have him
back forever. Yes, Paul, I want him back forever.
That's his place. But what he means is no longer
as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear
brother. He is very dear to me, but even dearer
to you, both as a fellow man and as a brother
in the Lord. What? Onesimus, my brother, he's
just a talking tool. That's all he is. What are
you talking about? Can you start sensing how
revolutionary the message of the Apostle Paul
is to the social order? The attitudes that the
Greco -Roman world had towards these people and
the system that had built the economy, Of the
empire. Was rooted on this mindset. If I were
to ask Onesimus. Onesimus who are you? I am just
a living tool. A talking tool. And who do you
serve? Well my owner of course. And what is your
goal in life? My goal in life? Survival. I am
just trying to survive. That's all. Get to the
next day. And hopefully one day gain my freedom.
That's it. Therefore you can understand. What
we now understand with the study of psychiatry
and psychology. Is the idea that undermining
all of these functions. There was an internal
world that the person was wrestling with. Feelings
of low self -worth, anxiety, insecure attachment,
PTSD, which is the post -traumatic disorder.
Imagine if they had become conquered and brought
as captives and now they are slaves. Can you
imagine all the trauma that they came from? Internalized
inferiority. Yes, I am my role. That's all I
am, a tool. And you start feeling like that.
That's all you are. Dissociation, social withdrawal,
shame, loneliness, all of these different things
going inside the person's heart. That's why the
three main challenges that they are facing is
this identity crisis, thinking that I'm just
a tool. The value crisis, thinking that I'm not
good enough, maybe I deserve to be in this position.
And the hope crisis. Life has no meaning. There's
no purpose. I am just breathing and surviving
day by day. These were the people that became
Christians in the first century. And now the
gospel is reaching them, not only so that they
can die and go to heaven, but now the apostle
Paul wants these Colossians to experience God's
grace. And what else? In the place of all that
woundedness that the social structure has created.
That's why the Apostle Paul will take time to
write to these Christians in Colossae, but not
only then, but in other places as well. If you
look at this map, this is the Roman Empire during
the time of the Apostle Paul. You can see some
of the arrows for some of his missionary trips.
But here what I want you to see in all of these
arrows that I put in there, if you go from your,
let me see, your left, and you see the area of
Galatia, then you have the area of Colossae,
then the area of... Philippi, and then all the
way to the other side in Athens and the Greek
area, you have Corinth. And the Apostle Paul
writes to all of these Christians in all of these
places about this concept. Do you have peace
at work? And because the social economic structure
was this, He's going to say something to all
of them. And before we get into Colossians itself,
I want you to see what he tells each one of them.
To the Corinthians first, starting on that side
of your screen, he's going to address the issue
of status. And he says, look guys, were you a
slave when you were called to follow Jesus? Then
don't let it trouble you. Although if you can
gain your freedom, do so. Yeah, it is better
to be free than to be a slave, so work for it.
But if you are a slave, don't worry about that,
because that is not who you are. For the one
who was a slave, when called to faith in the
Lord, is the Lord's free person. So you are truly
free in Christ. Your circumstances do not determine
who you are. But at the same time, the one who
was free when was called to follow Jesus is Christ's
slave anyway. So you may be free, but you still
have a master and you are still a slave to that
master, except that that master is Jesus. So
he addresses these people and he starts addressing
their status because the way they think of themselves
has to change. Not only the slave, but the master.
Both of them have to redefine who they are. And
the role in their society is not who they are.
Who they are in Christ is who they are. So you
were bought at a price. Do not become a slave
of human beings. If you are free, don't sell
yourself into slavery. No, you are already free
in Christ. So he simply addresses these things
to help them understand, yeah, the social structure
is complicated, but who you are is not. You are
a doulos and you have a kyrios. Jesus is your
Lord. He is your master. And because he is your
Lord and he is your master, you are a servant
whether you are legally free or not. So you have
to start thinking about yourselves from that
perspective. And that's what he tells the Corinthians.
Now, what does he tell the people there on the
other side in the churches of Galatia? He addresses
the concept of hierarchy in this new community
in the church. And he says, look guys, now that
you have come to know Christ, you are a new community.
Jesus is our master. And because this is true,
in Christ Jesus, you are all children of God
through faith. Now you are one family in Christ.
For all of you who were baptized into Christ
have clothed yourself with whom? With Christ.
Now you belong to him. You are rooted in Jesus.
He is your Savior. He is your Lord. You are his
child. Now you are his servant. Therefore, when
we're talking about our community, there is no
Jew and Gentile, slave, free, male, female. No.
We don't function in that hierarchy that your
social system has created. No. I mean, there
are still Jews and Gentiles. There are still
men and women. I mean, they still exist. But
in the body of Christ, they're not hierarchies.
Because we are one. In Christ Jesus. Therefore.
That is who we are. And now to the Colossians.
He's going to focus. On helping them understand.
Their attitude. Towards their work. Both. To
the one that is. The doulos. And to the one that
is the curios. And he's going to address both
of them, and he's going to tell them, this is
what you need to keep in mind. If you want to
experience God's peace, regardless of what your
social status is, regardless of what your circumstances
are, this is what you need to be focused on.
And now, I really want to know what he tells
them. Which is very interesting. Last week when
we were doing this study, we looked at Colossians
and then we looked at Ephesians. And what he
told them about the family unit, marriage and
parenting was almost identical. And now when
you read Colossians and then you look at Ephesians
again, he almost repeats the same thing word
by word. It's fascinating. And once you see the
map, it makes sense. Ready to know what he tells
the Colossians? So here we go. Chapter 3. Slaves,
obey your earthly masters in everything. Do it,
not only when their eye is on you and to win
their favor, but with sincerity of heart and
reverence for the curious. The curious. The Lord
Jesus. If you have not invited Jesus into the
realm of your life, and if you have not realized
that actually He is the Lord, then the first
things that you need to do if you're going to
experience God's peace in your life at work is
to realize That Jesus needs to be invited into
that space. So that everything that you are doing.
You are doing it for whom? For him. Not for Philemon.
You're not working for Philemon Onesimus. You're
working for Jesus. And the other thing Onesimus.
Don't do what everybody else does. You know all
the other people that work for this guy. Do it
that way. When he walks by, oh, let's work because
he's watching. Show yourself busy, you know.
And so with you, you are working for the one
that sees you all the time. So what you are going
to do is that you are going to work with your
heart in everything you do. Yeah, but he doesn't
deserve it. Yeah, he doesn't, but he does. And
you're working for Jesus. And also, whatever
you do, you will work at it with all your heart.
Not halfway. Not just another day surviving.
No. You will do everything that you do with all
your heart as working for the Lord, not for man.
Because you know what? You may not have any legal
rights here in this Roman system. But in the
kingdom of Jesus, that Philemon is your brother.
And you're going to be together forever in the
new kingdom. And when Jesus comes back, you're
going to be glorified. And you will receive something.
You know that you will receive an inheritance
from the Lord as a reward. Philemon. Onesimus,
you guys need to change the way you are thinking
about your lives and your work. Onesimus, do
you realize that you will receive an inheritance
from the Lord? That the way you are serving him
here and now has eternal impact? What do you
mean? What inheritance? What are you talking
about? He doesn't say. He doesn't explain. So
I'm not going to try to tell you what he didn't
say. But, can you imagine a guy that was told
you are just attacking tools, so shut up. Just
do what I say. You have no rights in this place.
To hear the Apostle Paul is addressing me? Nobody
addresses me. I'm just like a fly on the wall.
And he's writing a whole section to me? Wow.
He's telling me that he's not my master, but
he's my master. Oh, I feel a little bit better
now. He's telling me that I'm going to receive
an inheritance. I cannot even own land in my
own place here, but I, oh, the way I serve Jesus
here now has impact in eternity. Now you got
my ear. Remember, It is the Lord Christ Jesus
you are serving. He never said that you are just
a talking tool. You are his child redeemed by
the blood of Jesus. So if you want to experience
his grace and his peace in your work, yeah, if
you can be free, great. But the problem is not
your external freedom. The problem is your attitude
of your heart. And that is where you need to
invite Jesus. To transform and to heal. So that
you can experience his peace. Flowing through
you in whatever you do. Whatever you do. Now
Philemon I want to talk to you too. Both of you.
Because look. If you choose to do the wrong thing,
then there's consequences. You will be repaid
for your wrong, and there's no favoritism. So,
do what is right. But for you, Philemon, the
curious here in this relationship, I have something
to tell you. Masters, provide your slaves with
what is right and fair. Because you know that
you also have a... Master in heaven. You think
that you are the man here. That you are the curious.
It's like no. You have a curious. And that's
Jesus. So he is your master. And if he has given
his life for you. To give you what you needed.
You need to treat. Those working for your estate.
With what is right. And what is fair. Because
you're also. A slave serving a master. And whatever
you do, work at it with all your heart because
it is the Lord Christ Jesus. You are serving
not your investors. Wow. And Paul, you addressed
the slaves before you addressed us masters. He
is redefining the whole picture. No wonder. They
were not experiencing peace at work because they
were trying to simply imitate the social structure
that they had inherited rather than change their
mindset and embrace their identity as people
who belong to a new kingdom, the kingdom of Jesus.
And here you have it. You can now understand
how revolutionary this was. And how eventually
it did become the foundation for the abolition
of slavery. For the Roman it was simple. I am
the master. I own you. I have power. And my job
is to subdue you. And to govern you. You have
no agency. You are just a slave. And now Paul
comes and redefines that mindset. He says not
so. That way. Actually, there's only one master
in this relationship. His name is Jesus. He is
the Lord that both of you are serving. So if
you have a master -servant relationship, what
you need to remember is that you master, you
do what is fair and right for the person working
for you. Because you're accountable to Jesus.
But the person working for you, you work out
whatever you're doing with all your heart because
you're also accountable to Jesus. And this is
how it works in the kingdom. And until we get
it, we will never be able to experience grace
and peace at work. Because look, I understand.
The contrast is just astronomic. It's just so
unimaginable for their time in history. Now when
Onesimus comes back from Rome and comes back
to the Colossians, if you ask him, Onesimus,
who are you? Well, I'm a servant of Jesus. And
who is your master? Well, Jesus, no offense.
Philemon. But Jesus is my master. And what is
your goal? Well, I already learned from Paul.
Eternal impact. I am looking for that inheritance.
I know what I do now has that impact. Complete
transformation. I know I'm not a slave, nor are
you. At least, of people. But do you realize
that you and I are doulos of Aquirios? You are
a servant, whether you realize it or not. And
you have a Lord and his name is Jesus. And if
you are not going to align your identity with
the Lord in whatever you do, you will be able
to start identifying with Onesimus so much. Because
the way you will start thinking about yourself
and your function and the emotions that are going
to be inside of you will be nothing of grace
and peace. You will be able to identify with
all these things. Let me just ask you. Are you
in the middle of an identity crisis where you
feel like, you know, I'm just nothing. I'm just
a position. I do not feel seen or heard. People
don't treat me like a person I am. Did you feel
invisible? Hmm. What about this? The value crisis.
When was the last time that you tried to convince
yourself that you are good enough because that
nagging feeling, I'm not good enough. I'm not
good enough. Have you been struggling with that
feeling? How about the hope crisis? Waking up
one day before you go to work and you think,
what's the purpose of life? Another day at work.
What's the meaning of all of this? Are you feeling
hopeless? Like you are just in survival mode?
You see, you don't have to be onesimus and be
in that social context to start struggling with
all of these things. How about the other stuff?
Do you feel low self -worth? Do you feel anxiety?
When was the last time you had an anxiety attack?
At work. Do you feel insecure attachment, your
ability to establish meaningful relationships
always suffers? Are you struggling with stress,
with internalized inferiority, with dissociation?
Are you withdrawing socially, feeling shame or
loneliness? Welcome to Onesimus' world. I don't
mean his cultural world, his internal world.
And this is where Jesus wants to meet you today.
Because you and I need to understand the same
thing that Onesimus had to understand. That so
far you've been blaming your context. You've
been blaming your boss. You've been blaming your
parents. You've been blaming your country. But
what if the secret to experiencing God's peace
and grace. Has nothing to do with that. But everything
to do with inside. And the way you think of yourself.
And the way you let Jesus align your identity
with his. Is the secret. For that grace and peace
to start outflowing from you. Wouldn't that be
a game changer? That's why. I want to read this
again, but not from Onesimus' perspective, but
from my perspective here today and now. Will
you read it aloud with me? Whatever you do, work
at it with all your heart as working for the
Lord, not for man, since you know that you will
receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.
It is the Lord Christ Jesus you are serving.
It's like, boom, boom, boom. It's like, it hit
me everywhere, you know? It's like, really, you
have to say that? I think that we all need to
have a little time of truth here. Who are you?
Well, I, I'm an architect. I work. No, no, no.
That's your job. That's your title. Who are you?
Well, you know, I don't know. I just graduated
from college. No, no, that's your degree. Who
are you? There's only one answer to that. I'm
a doulos of Jesus Christ. I'm a servant of Jesus.
That's who I am. Redeemed by his grace. I belong
to him. I belong to his kingdom. He's my king.
And I live here to serve him. Who are you? Do
you see yourself as a servant of Jesus in everything
you do? Even the work you hate? Because that
is the beginning of transformation. The peace
will come from aligning ourselves with the Lord.
And one of the funny things is that we have the
tendency to link our identity to what we do.
And that doesn't escape any of us. In my own
journey, I remember that the way it clicked.
It was just in the transition when ECB invited
us to come to work here from Dallas. Because
I had been working in Dallas for 18 years in
our church there. And I had a very specific role.
I was the senior pastor of our church. And when
I was going to come here, it was not to be a
senior pastor. It was to have a supporting role.
And I remember that when I started feeling compelled
that this was something that was... God was calling
us to do, what I started wrestling in my prayer
was, but God, I'm a senior pastor. How am I going
to go to a place and not be a senior pastor?
This feels like a downgrade. And it happens that
during that time I was reading Philippians, when
the Apostle Paul, again, talking to us, Says
your attitude should be the same one as Jesus.
Who did not consider to be equal to God or something
to hold tight to. But he took the form of a servant.
A doulos. And when I was reading that. It hit
me. I'm not a senior pastor. That was my role.
I'm a servant of Jesus. What freedom. That was
easier to do. It's like I'm not letting my identity
go. I'm just changing functions. Roles. Titles.
But in the kingdom of Jesus. He moves you around.
Your job is just temporary. But your identity
is not. But it's easier said than done now. It's
like. Going through that, it was really an emotional
place where God had to meet me there and it had
to click in my heart. Today I can say positions
don't matter. Titles don't matter. What matters
is that I am where God wants me to be, doing
what he called me to do because he is the master
that I'm serving. And I had to learn that. But
you know one of the times in which we feel the
crisis the most? It's when you actually lose
your job and you have no job at all. If you have
no job, then what are you? A loser? Unemployed?
No, that's not your identity either. If you are
in that stage in which you are transitioning
jobs, there's something I have to tell you. It
is very common for people that are in that space
of transition to have this wrestling. And there's
this very simple book called Still Looking. It's
written by a Christian from testimonies of Christians
that had to go through this transition of losing
their job and all the wrestling that they went
through. And one of the things that they discover
is that the process you go through emotionally
is very similar to the process of grieving. First
you go through denial. It's like, no, this cannot
be happening to me. To anger, it's like, I can't
believe they did this to me. Who do they think
they are? To bargaining. God, if you give me
a job, I'm going to start tithing 50 % of my
salary. To depression. Keep rejected. Nobody's
going to hire me. I'm in my 50s now. I'm not
competitive anymore. To acceptance. Lord, you're
the one I work for. If you haven't provided a
job for me yet, that's fine. I know you care
for me. You give to me at the right time. So
as I wait, just strengthen me. Very different.
If you are in that journey, remember who you
are. You are not your job. You are not your title.
You are a servant of Jesus Christ. First thing.
Second thing. Whom are you working for? Are you
working to please people and impress people?
Are you working for your boss? Or are you working
really for Jesus? Because when you are working
for Jesus, suddenly everything gets redefined.
Next time that you try to do something crooked
or underhanded, you know that Jesus is watching.
And the Holy Spirit is going to convict you and
you're going to start feeling like, you know,
even if you cover your ears, still there. You
are serving somebody else. Have you made the
transition? Perhaps today is the time to come
to God and say, God, I've been blaming my boss
and I feel so upset with this guy. But today
you have told me that you are my boss and I had
never even thought. That I'm working for you.
That never crossed my mind. I thought that working
for you was, you know, helping with the children's
ministry on Sunday at ECB. But my job? Who is
really your boss? And the third question is,
what is your goal at your job? To get the next
promotion? Hey, better paycheck? Oh, that's good
and cool, especially if you give some of your
resources to do our ministry here. But you know
what? That is not what is our goal. A servant
has only one goal towards the master and it's
to do everything I do to please you. Everything.
And here, As servants of Jesus, we are living
for kingdom impact. Not for career impact. Kingdom
impact. And therefore, it's a time for us to
come to God and say, God, I had never even thought
about how you want to use my career. My retirement.
How you want to use my time for kingdom impact.
I have not even asked you about that. And now
it hits me. I'm your servant. My career is yours.
I want to use it for your glory. Lord, would
you lead me? That's why I love a story I want
to share with you. There's an actor in the U
.S. Famous because he has a brother that is also
an actor. So he's a family of actors. His name
is Stephen Botwin. And today he's a Christian,
but he wasn't a Christian. He didn't grow up
in a Christian home. He was an actor in Hollywood
pursuing his career as an actor. And as he tells
his story, he says, you know what? My life before
Christ was focused on making money and existence
of self -absorbance. It was all about me, money,
money. And I was making a lot of good money in
my career at that time. Lots of movies and contests
that he was doing. But he says, we moved to this
house. And somebody recommended this cleaning
lady that we hired to work for us. So there she
would come to clean our house. Do you have a
maid at home? That cooks for you? That cleans
your house? That was his case. Just a maid. But
he started noticing something. This maid, every
time she came to clean, she would sing. But every
time that she would sing, all the songs that
she was singing were songs about this guy, Jesus.
And because Stephen was not a Christian, he didn't
believe in all this nonsense. One day he talked
to her and said, you know, I see you happy all
the time singing these songs, but I can't help
but notice that all of them pretty much talk
about Jesus. I'm just curious, do you have more
songs in your repertoire that do not talk about
that? And at that moment, she looked at him and
she started laughing. Like laughing. And she
tells him something that he will never forget.
You think that the reason why I come here is
to clean your house? She was a servant of Jesus.
She was not there to clean houses. She was there
for Kingdom Impact. Her name, Augusta. And one
day, Stephen's wife comes and says, you won't
believe what Augusta just told me. She told me
that the reason why she's coming here is because
God told her that one day you and I are going
to become followers of Jesus. And we're going
to have our own ministry. Now the one laughing
was Stephen. That's ridiculous. We'll never become
religious people. Kingdom impact. You know what
the last thing he says in his testimony? Today
my life is God's life in me. To what he wants.
Do you think that you are in your office. To
work for them. Do you think that you are taking
that airplane. That flight. To attend a business
meeting. Could it be that if Jesus is really
your Lord. He has bigger plans. And kingdom impact
may mean that he is going to put you with someone
in that flight. So that you can meet them in
their time of need. Because they have never met
someone who loves Jesus. Could it be. That you
are not there just to clean houses. I think the
answer is yes. What Paul tells us. Is that whatever
we do. We're doing it for our true master. And
we're going to do it for kingdom impact. And
when it clicks in the heart. That is when the
grace and peace of Jesus will start flowing through
you. Into everything you touch. And one day there
will be someone that will praise God. Because
you were in their lives. In that job. Because
Jesus had placed you there. And they could see
in you something that they saw in no one else.
Jesus in you. So I would like to conclude this
study by just telling you a couple of things.
First, remember, we have a new master, a new
attitude, and a new purpose. And that is the
secret of peace in our work. So, if you are in
this context, I want to remind you that we are
going to offer a course that is just eight weeks.
It's called Resolving Everyday Conflict. And
it's to equip you to know how to engage with
difficult people. Yes, at work. Or at home. And
how to deal with conflict in a godly way. This
is going to be coming soon. We are going to offer
it here. Sundays. When the registration is open.
Go and register for it. It will equip you. To
be someone. That is a blessing to your team.
Also. If your work is affecting your marriage.
And all the stress you are. Is affecting your
home. Remember. We have the marriage course coming.
At the end of the month. So go for that. We'll
equip you. Also. To deal with these things. So
the bottom line question, is Jesus the Lord of
your career? Because if you have not invited
him to be the Lord of your career, now is the
time to do it. Lord, we rightfully call you that
because that is who you are. Our master. And
we live for you. If we have been wrestling because
we have not invited you to really be the Lord
in our work. To be the Lord of our careers. Today
we acknowledge that and we repent for it. No
wonder we have not peace. Because we have inherited
a worldview that is different from yours. And
today we're asking you Lord. Help us see through
your eyes. Yes, it will be great to have a different
environment at work. But Lord, today we understand
that it's not about the environment outside,
but the environment within. Would you let your
peace govern our hearts and bring the healing
that we need. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. If
God is calling you to support our ministries,
you will find giving options on our website.
And remember to join us next week. God bless
you.