How God Calls Us to a Life of Daily Purpose

Introduction

The average member of the work-force will spend around 90,000 hours of their lives working.

Several studies internationally have shown that between 35 to 40 percent of people feel as though work they do is pointless. With the heightening of our cultures disdain for work and the even more aggressive hatred that it has for the idea of a “stay at home mom”. It is quite easy to find yourself sucked into that same discouraged mindset. And this poses an issue for us, doesn’t it? How could you and I possibly find encouragement if 90,000 hours of our lives are pointless, and even more so, how is there any encouragement for the wife who’s entire life is devoted to keeping the home?

The Westminister Shorter Catechism questions one and two ask:

Q. 1. What is the chief end of man? A. Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever. 1 Cor. 10:31; Rom. 11:36; Ps. 73:25-28.

Q. 2. What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him? A. The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him.

So, since we are to glorify and enjoy God, what do the Scriptures say about this topic that consumes so much of our lives?

The question I hope for us to ask and answer today is this: “Is the work I do pointless?”

For a few moments this evening, I want to speak on, “How the Gospel Calls Us To A Life of Daily Purpose.”

And we will do that as we look in the book of Genesis and highlight the call of God for mankind to take dominion of the world for His glory. Now, that’s not necessarily a word we use very often, so I would like for us to take three steps tonight which will be. (1) Dominion Defined, (2) Dominion Disoriented, and (3) Dominion Delivered.

Dominion Defined as (point A)

A. Cultivate Where God Has Placed You For His Glory (1:26-28 & 2:5)

In Genesis, we see that man is ordered to do the work of “tilling” the ground. This is the assignment of cultivating the Earth, which is an interesting thing. Cultivation has the shares the word “cult” within it which is a term associated with or defined as worship. As Adam is called to cultivate the Earth we find, that as the Genesis accounts, and early human civilizations play out, that where there is agricultural cultivation, there are communities, or cultures forming there.

this term may seem as though it is just digging in the ground to plants some beans and peas, but it’s far more significant than that. It is worshipfully working, harnessing the potential of the Earth for the glory of God.

S.R. Hirsch, a OT Exegetical Scholar said this, “Subdue the Earth in Genesis 1:28 refers to the general acquisition and dominion of “property” by which mankind engages in “the mastering, appropriating and transforming the earth and its products for human purposes” (Hirsch 1989, p. 35).

Because of this are called to work productively where God has placed us. Genesis 2:5 seems to place emphasis on there being no man to till the ground. This is interesting because God doesn’t bring His creation to a close until He placed mankind there for the purpose in mention.

What does this mean for you and I? Well, the attitude of the world today is to hate work rather than to rejoice in it. If you love it, you’re an odd work-aholic or no life. The reality is that as believers, we are the only ones who can only have a good view of work because we have a Creator who has sanctified and blessed it. God has you where you are, doing what you’re doing for a purpose and He has called us to strive to do our best, to make contributions, to grow and learn for His glory.

So Dad, who is doing back breaking work in the hot summer heat. Or Mom who is going nuts with a house full of kids who need bathing and you feel overwhelmed by the mountain of tasks before you tomorrow, you both can honor Christ in your work.

But how?

B. Work As Faithful Representatives of God Made in His Likeness

Our actions in this world and dominion over it should serve the purpose of the One who put us here. God has placed us on Earth as His representatives, so, wherever He has put us we are to do the task that we have given to the best of our ability as the Lord’s representatives. How are we to represent Him? In Genesis 1 we note a few things concerning Him that would be perfectly applicable to our daily lives. We should work with wisdom, care, authority, and community. I want to focus on those first two and then we’ll move on for the sake of time.

We are to work with wisdom.

As we look in Genesis 1, we saw God’s wisdom on full display as He creates in accordance to His own pleasure, and we see that where He says, “Its good”. In Genesis 1:28 we see God instructing Adam to subdue and have dominion over the creatures of the Earth. Surely there is no way he could work with fish, birds, tigers, snakes, slugs, and deer in an ignorant manner. No, he had to have wisdom to work where God had placed him.

And so we must learn how the world operates, which requires knowledge in all areas.

We are to work with care

Robert Chisolm said, “Subdue" (kavash) applies to cultivation (farming), domestication (shepherding), even mining, "making use of all the economic and cultural potential associated with the concept of 'land,”

This doesn’t give us the authority to destroy the Earth or to rule it harshly. God opens that up in the law where there were seasons to let the land rest. But we have seen men do the opposite today. We have farmed land so hard that vegetables and fruit are losing their nutritional value and animals have gone extinct. This is not the result of politicians but of men not laboring for the glory of the Lord as His representatives and this is an issue we will address as we see point 2.

Dominion Disoriented

A. The Corruption of Fallen Man

In the Garden, God has placed Adam there as prophet, priest and king and he fails to preform his duty and falls into sin against God and now he is under the dominion of sin according to Romans 6:8-14 “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”

So what does this mean? Well, man continues his work of dominion after the fall, but now his works are marred by sin and sinful man no longer works for the purpose of glorifying God.

This is what Augustine called, “Libido Dominatur” or “lust for rule”. Instead of Godly work, mankind now uses dominion over the Earth in an ungodly way for their own glory.

Ex.) Cain acted as his father Adam did by exercising rebellious independence against God believing that he would worship God according to his own terms and what does he do in his anger over the fact that God doesn’t accept his worship but his brothers instead? He exercises dominion over his brother and kills him for his own selfish purpose. Now, we are given dominion over all creation, but there are two things we never seen under Adam’s rule and that is God and other men. Yet Cain in his rebellion tries to do both.

After Cain’s banishment he goes on to exercise dominion by being fruitful and multiplying, by building citites and more in Genesis 4:16-24. Yet we notice his grandson Lamech coming along and he decides he’s going to pervert marriage. Now, scholars believe that this is also linked back to the dominion thing. That Lamech is thinking that by having more wives and more children that he will have more power for himself. This is just another example of fallen man taking God’s command and perverting it by deciding to work by their own preferences and for their own glory.

We see this today, don’t we? Men violating women for self-pleasure, or women destroying their own children for the sake of convenience. We see it in the work force as well.

And in the midst of all of this rebellion of Adam and sin we wonder if Godly work on this Earth is lost forever and then we look at Genesis 3:15 and God provides the promise of the Deliverer Genesis 3:15

Genesis 3:15 (NKJV)

And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.

Dominion Delivered

The Absolute Dominion of Christ

Matthew 28:18 NKJV

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.

Ephesians 1:19–23 (NKJV)

and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

In the Gospel’s we see the promised Messiah has come ending the dominion of sin and death for His people. Adam was the Prophet, Priest and King and he failed in guarding that temple of God on Earth which was Eden; where he was supposed to minister as the Priest, defending the Holy Sanctity of Eden, abandoning his role as the prophet as he is silent in declaring the Word of God against the serpent, and forsaking his place as King where he was to kill that Serpent and cultivate the Garden for His God.

But where Adam has fallen, Christ the second Adam has not. The Lord comes declaring the Gospel as the faithful Prophet, He comes fulfilling the whole Law as the faithful Priest, and He comes conquering all things as King taking all power in Heaven and on Earth as He rises from the dead. And now we have more in Christ than we ever lost in Adam. Christ is presently seated at the right hand of the Father and, as Psalm 110 tells us, He will reign making all of His enemies a footstool.

Now, this is an absolute dominion over all things, not merely the spiritual realm. In Ephesians 6:12 Paul says...

Ephesians 6:12 NKJV

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

and Christ has claimed to have absolute rule, not only in the heavenlies, but over all things as well. What is it that these dark forces are using? Do you and I preach to open air or to walls? No, these dark forces work among fallen men and the wicked atrocities and agendas that come from their mind and our Lord, the great King who has all dominion will conquer them all.

I want to quickly give you two points as to how He currently reigns.

A. The Mandate Redefined

Matthew 28:18-20(NKJV)

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Christ, being the One reigning with all power, has sent forth His gospel and He will draw His people to Himself. And how is He doing that? Through the Church. Ephesians 1:20-23 tell us of the unlimited scope of His reign but we also see the inseparable condition of Christ from His body from the Church. He is sending forth us, His people, to cultivate the world Spiritually, not through our power, clever devices, or schemes but through His gospel which will be successful. And as He saves His elect we notice point 2

B. Man’s Conduct Reoriented

For us to separate the intertwined effects of the Spiritual and physical would be gnosticism. So, as Christ saves us, He changes how we see the world, He changes our desires, He changes our affections. He makes our lives about His glory. And because that is true, we who have been brought to life in Christ, are the only ones who can truly exercise dominion in the world for the glory of God. Why? Remember, the lost man takes dominion, but he does it by his own rules for his own glory. But you and I who know that we have been placed here as representatives of God, we now go forward to every sphere of life and work for the glory of the Lord.

1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV

31 Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

So, as the sweat beads on your brow and a tidal wave of emotion screaming that the live you live is pointless, look to Christ and behold His glory. Look to Christ and behold the promised One who has bought you that we may be a priesthood that may offer up our very lives to the glory of God!

Conclusion

So how does this apply to you? Let me show you.

Since God has placed us here to work for His glory, that means that everything that is not inherently sinful can be an avenue to cultivate for God’s glory.

That means that those nice meals that you make for your spouse, your children and grandchildren have meaning.

That means that the wood work that you do, the blankets you make, the gardens you tend to have purpose.

It means that the final’s you studied so hard for, the sports that you play, and the chores you do have purpose.

Beloved, what you do matters because it glorifies God!

Benediction: Numbers 6:24-26

Numbers 6:24–26 NKJV

“The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’