In the beginning, before sin and the fall, Adam had a job. He was told to work and keep the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:15). Before sin entered the picture, his work was without sweat, toil, or hardship. It’s hard to imagine a perfectly satisfying, soul-fulfilling, and struggle-free work environment, but that’s exactly what Adam and Eve had for a time. We don’t know that kind of relationship with our work, but as Christians, we still desire to work faithfully for the Lord in whatever “job” he’s given us.
There’s a sense in which our work is a daily reminder that things are not the way they should be. We live and work under the curse our first parents ushered us into. It is by the sweat of our brows that we provide for our families (Gen. 3:19). Our co-workers, bosses, and customers can be hard to love. And as much as we want it to, our work wasn’t designed to fulfill us the way only Jesus can. Whatever challenge you face at work today, God desires that you honor him with how you use your head, heart, and hands.
How can you faithfully steward the work God has called you to? It begins with a heart that desires to make God look good before the people you serve. Here are 20 Bible verses to begin your study. Consider printing them off and keeping them close by while you’re on the job.
20 Bible Verses About Faithfulness in Your Work
- Psalm 90:17 (ESV)
Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands. - Proverbs 3:3–4 (ESV)
Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man. - Proverbs 16:3 (ESV)
Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established. - Proverbs 22:29 (ESV)
Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men. - Proverbs 28:20 (ESV)
A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished. - Matthew 6:33 (ESV)
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. - Matthew 25:20–21 (ESV)
And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more. His master said to him, Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master. - Luke 9:62 (ESV)
Jesus said to him, No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God. - Luke 16:10–12 (ESV)
One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? - 1 Corinthians 4:2 (ESV)
Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. - 1 Corinthians 15:58 (ESV)
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. - Galatians 6:9 (ESV)
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. - Ephesians 6:7–8 (ESV)
rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a bondservant or is free. - Colossians 3:23–24 (ESV)
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. - 1 Thessalonians 4:11–12 (ESV)
and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one. - 2 Thessalonians 3:13 (ESV)
As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. - 2 Timothy 2:15 (ESV)
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. - Hebrews 3:5 (ESV)
Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later. - 1 Peter 4:19 (ESV)
Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good. - Revelation 2:10 (ESV)
Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.
The Christian’s great vocation
Do you desire to display God’s goodness at work? John Piper wrote, “Work is one area where we show the world that Christ is our greatest treasure. Such an aim is not forced: it emerges from the Christian’s ‘great vocation’—beholding the glory of Christ” (2 Cor 3:18).
No matter your vocation, your greater calling is to belong to Christ and reflect him in your workplace. We do this day by day, project by project, customer by customer, and degree by degree, as we seek to be increasingly transformed to resemble the Lord Jesus Christ. We can’t do this in our own strength; we need the Spirit’s help to work it out one day at a time. This is what faithfulness on the job looks like. Lord, help us live it out!
For him,