[A ‘Tuesday Challenge‘ originally prepared for the congregation of Horley Baptist Church during January 2025]
As 2024 disappears into the dusty archives of time and last week’s resolutions are rapidly following the same fate, what can we do to usefully fill the next 11 months before Christmas comes around again? It is said that idle hands do the devil’s work so how can we work for God instead? The apostle Paul shared some ideas:
And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers
Ephesians 4 v11 [NKJV]
As a young Christian, I found these words written by the apostle Paul to be somewhat unsettling. I wanted to serve God but none of these callings matched my personal ambitions or what I considered to be my skill-set.
Most of my upbringing was in a denomination where there were few, if any, paid church employees; each independent church would be led by older members of the congregation who were gifted (or otherwise) in the various functions of church activity. Young men growing up in the church would be expected to prepare for leadership by preaching, teaching Sunday school and increasing their involvement in other church duties.
Preaching, pastoral activities and teaching did not appeal to me and I managed to avoid them, albeit with a certain sense of guilt. It was with some relief that I moved to a denomination where many of the activities could be delegated to members of the church’s staff. However, this in turn led to a sense of being no more than pew-fodder.
Do you ever feel that your skills are of limited value to the church? Are you uncomfortable letting someone else make most of the effort?
The Old Testament includes several accounts of where people used their secular skills in the service of God. In the book of Exodus we read about the construction of the Tabernacle:
Then Moses summoned Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the Lord had given ability and who was willing to come and do the work
Exodus 36 v2 [NIVUK]
When Solomon was building the Temple he sent for Huram who was a skilled worker in bronze.[1] Later, in the records of the rebuilding of Jerusalem in around 444BC we see that building walls and repairing gates were also works of service to God.[2] In each case, those engaged in the work not only had God-given skills but also the willingness to use them in his service.
Our modern churches need maintenance and it is not always appropriate to commission paid professionals to do it on our behalf. More importantly, the Church as the body of Christ needs maintenance in terms of prayer, both global and local, and sympathetic relationships, supportive generosity and a willingness to be involved.
In another letter Paul, who had a secular occupation in addition to being a leader of the early church, expanded on his thoughts about gifts, skills, and talents:
There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
1 Corinthians 12 v4-6 [NIVUK]
It is interesting to see that the names of those who were involved in the work on the Tabernacle, Temple and rebuilding Jerusalem have been recorded in Scripture. Our names may not be recognised by future generations but God has his own records, and that is what counts.
References:
[1] 1 Kings 7 v13-14
[2] Nehemiah 3
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Contributed by Steve Humphreys; © Steve Humphreys
Food for thought, Steve. Thanks, and Happy New Year.