St James' Church

Our work and career can either be a spiritual stumbling block or a vehicle for the Lord’s glory. And on which side it will grow to be will depend on your beliefs and the daily choices you make.

A few thoughts can be helpful. One blessing of the Protestant Reformation is the focused teaching on one’s ‘vocational calling’. In the Institutes of the Christian Religion (1536), Calvin noted that God has prescribed appointed duties to men and styled such spheres of life vocations or callings. He distinguished two callings: a general calling to serve God and a particular calling to engage in some employment by which one’s usefulness is determined.

If so, in what way do you sense the call of God in your work?

Another question to explore is the mission of spreading the gospel through your work. This is relevant in our current Singaporean context where for many of you, your work brings you in touch with people from various cultures, many who are not believers. Some are traveling extensively. Encountering various cultures will also challenge your faith. It will either weaken it or make your faith more robust. This is not unlike how early Christianity spread through slaves and servants dispersed in the Roman world. The issues raised in the New Testament letters describe the very real and immediate challenges which the early believers faced. 

Keeping both the sense of calling and mission will help to bring your faith into your work. I am aware that this is often easier said than done as some of you may be encountering more demons at work and in your heart while at work than the presence of God. Therein lays the challenge of following Christ and taking up the cross daily. This includes cultivating a ‘missional’ perspective, where going beyond survival, you set your heart to make a difference and see your colleagues not just as workers, but as persons created in God’s image and called in Christ.

I can only speak as a pastor and observer in this area. I am glad that my long-time childhood friend, Philip Chang, is speaking on this subject this morning. Very much a ‘man in the world,’ I believe his life and career experiences can inspire us to make a difference for the glory of God out there.