Authenic Discipleship in Christ through Reflective ChristianitySeries Books.
Work as Worship Series
Work as Worship: The Family Business of the Kingdom
The Great Disconnect For too long, a wall has been built where God never intended one to exist. We have divided our lives into "sacred" and "secular," believing that God is present in the sanctuary on Sunday but absent from the office, the factory, or the kitchen on Monday. We treat work as a necessary evil, a curse to be endured, or merely a paycheck to fund our "real" lives.
The Work as Worship series exists to tear down that wall. It reclaims the biblical truth that work is not a distraction from spiritual life—it is the very arena where spiritual life is proved.
The Theology of the First Worker This series anchors its premise in the very beginning. Before there was sin, before there was a Bible, and before there was a church, there was work. Genesis reveals God as the first Worker—shaping, separating, planting, and building. Because we are made in His image, we are designed to work.
Adam’s assignment in Eden—to "work it and keep it"—was not a punishment; it was a privilege given in paradise. Work is the "family business" of the Kingdom. The series teaches that the Fall in Genesis 3 brought "thorns and sweat"—making work difficult and frustrating—but it did not strip work of its inherent dignity. The curse touched the ground, not the purpose of the laborer.
The Carpenter and the Call Central to this series is the person of Jesus. He did not arrive as a king on a throne, but as a carpenter with calloused hands. For thirty years, the Son of God honored the Father not by preaching, but by shaping wood, fixing what was broken, and engaging in the ordinary commerce of daily life.
Therefore, the series argues that there is no "spiritual" hierarchy where pastors are closer to God than plumbers. Whether one is a CEO, a mother changing diapers, or a janitor, every task done "as unto the Lord" becomes an act of worship. As Paul instructed, we are to do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, making the desk, the field, and the home holy ground.
The Mission: No Benchwarmers This series is a call to action. It confronts the "spectator Christianity" that plagues the modern church. It argues that the Kingdom of God is not a cruise ship where we are served, but a battleship where every hand is on deck. We are saved for good works, prepared in advance for us to walk in.
Ultimately, this series reframes our view of eternity. Heaven is not depicted as an endless retirement of cloud-floating, but as the restoration of our original design: to reign and to serve. We are practicing now for the eternal work we will do in the New Creation, where the curse is gone, but the joy of purpose remains forever.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Three Essential Books
Here are the three books that best explain and apply the Work as Worship theology:
1. DIGNITY OF WORK
This is the theological anchor of the series. It traces the concept of labor from the first garden to the final city.
• The Premise: It dismantles the sacred/secular divide by showing that "work came before sin". It explores how the Fall introduced "thorns and sweat", but how Christ—the Carpenter—redeemed physical labor as a way to glorify God.
• Key Insight: It reframes the "household economy" (parenting, provision, hospitality) as frontline ministry and emphasizes that our work is a "testimony" to the world. It teaches that we are not owners of our careers or talents, but stewards managing God’s assets.
• The Goal: To help the believer see their daily grind not as a waste of time, but as "training for reigning" in the eternal Kingdom.
2. CHRIST’S KINGDOM: NO BENCHWARMERS
While Dignity of Work provides the theology, this book provides the motivation. It challenges the passive "consumer" mentality of modern believers.
• The Premise: It uses the metaphor of a team to argue that in the Kingdom of God, "the bench does not exist". Every believer has a role, a gift, and a calling that is indispensable.
• Key Insight: It applies the "10,000 Hour Rule" to spiritual life, arguing that discipleship requires the sweat of discipline, practice, and endurance. It warns against "cheap grace" that saves without transforming, reminding readers that faith without works is dead.
• The Goal: To mobilize the church from the pews to the playing field, ensuring that believers understand they were saved for service, not just for safety.
3. CHRISTIANITY, NOT A SPECTATOR SPORT
This book (often paired with Christ's Kingdom: No Benchwarmers) attacks the "consumer Christianity" that plagues the modern church, moving the focus from individual discipline to collective mission.
• The Premise: It argues that the Church was never meant to be a "spectator event" where a few professionals perform while the rest watch. Instead, it defines the Church as a "mission base" where every member is a minister with a specific assignment. It rejects the idea that a believer is merely "saved to sit" or "wait for heaven".
• Key Insight: It emphasizes that "inaction is not neutral". It frames the Kingdom of God as a "family business" where every member has a role to play, and hoarding one's gifts is a failure of stewardship. It challenges the "priesthood of the believer" to move beyond theory, asserting that if the whole body does not work, the mission suffers.
• The Goal: To transform the church from an audience into an army. It seeks to mobilize believers to see their daily environment—neighborhoods, workplaces, and schools—as the arena where their specific function in the Body of Christ is enacted.
