Our Work as God-Reflectors
After years in school, each new generation faces the “Why work?” question. Even decades after graduation, many are finding little or no spiritually significant purpose in their work. The world will promote its own answers to this purpose-for-working question. But those following Jesus need to answer it within the context of their calling into the Kingdom of God. Working as an agent of that Kingdom requires a set of reasons for working that differ radically from those the world peddles.
In an earlier blog, “An Open Door for Churches,” I briefly described seven Kingdom-of-God reasons for getting up and going to work. This article will expand on the second of those: “Working Mirrors God.”
Pause for a moment on that word “mirrors.” When God said, “let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness,” what was his purpose in creating us to bear his image? What is your purpose when you look in a mirror? You are hoping to see a reflection, a reliable map of your face, a trustworthy image.
God also spoke of making us in his likeness. We have a family photograph in our hallway. Looking at that likeness reminds us of our daughter, sons, and grandchildren. So when God made us in his image and likeness, he wanted anyone who sees us to form right ideas about what he, the invisible One, is like.
In the Old Testament, the Genesis 1 word for “image” is usually used for idols. Many idols were set up in heathen temples to represent the “god” behind them. Such images were sinful because they deceitfully distorted original reality. The undistorted truth? God had initially placed those made in his image in his heaven-earth temple. As N. T. Wright says in The Day the Revolution Began, “. . . creation itself is understood as a kind of Temple, a heaven-and-earth duality, where humans function as the ‘image-bearers’ in the cosmic Temple, part of earth yet reflecting the life and love of heaven.”
In Christ, we image-bearers are also given the high privilege of serving as temples. Our bodies house the Spirit of Christ. Think of that! The Light of the World makes himself at home in each of us. And so God calls us to become lighthouses—temples with light streaming out of us. The image of God and the light of Christ in us serve the same purpose: each reflects for others something of what he is like.
But how does that actually happen in a workplace where most people are busily ignoring God? Is imaging God on the job even possible? Can his light penetrate in a profit-obsessed, ambition-centered, self-seeking environment? “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (Jn. 1:5). But how?
You have just clocked in for a day’s work. When you entered your workplace, you did so as a Kingdom-of-God lighthouse. Let’s look at some situations your work might put you through:
Amy, usually an enthusiastic and contributing part of your team, has rather suddenly become abnormally quiet and withdrawn. You notice that and begin praying for her. When an opportunity opens, you ask her gently if she might be facing a difficult time outside the workplace. Then you listen attentively to what she says. You have just reflected a God-quality: compassion.
Your coworker, Mac, shares your cubicle. His habit of finishing sentences for you annoys you greatly. You have spoken to him about it two or three times, but he continues trying to put words in your mouth. Maybe, you think, you ought to request a transfer. But then, realizing that God has forgiven you again and again for the same shortcoming, you drop your mental charges against Mac and stay put. Whether or not he gets it right away, Mac has just experienced forgiveness—the kind that originates in the heart of God.
As a welder on a construction crew, you are currently working on a bridge. This new steel span will replace an old wooden one which is becoming unsafe. When completed, the new bridge will allow traffic to flow safely between two cities, which in countless ways need to interact with each other. While on the job one day, you suddenly realize how your work provides glimpses of God’s work. He, too, made a way across a body of water when crossing it became essential for the well-being of his people.
To your great surprise, your boss stops by to thank you for completing a report, for which you’ll be getting a promotion. Why surprise? Because you neither did the research nor wrote the paper on it. Your coworker, Rachel, had done the heavy lifting on that project. She is now out on maternity leave. But rather than take the credit, you tell your boss the truth. Honesty like that does not come from this world. Your boss has witnessed a reflection of the Source of integrity.
You had scheduled a Zoom session with your team but forgot to mark it on your calendar. So they all show up, but you don’t. They wait more than a half hour for you to come online, then finally decide to end the session. Later, when they ask you where you were, you don’t make up some excuse but frankly admit your failure. How does this reflect the sinless Jesus? When you humbled yourself by confessing your fault, you imaged the Jesus who took the low place to become one of us.
To what might we compare our roles as Christ-followers in the workplace? We, through our work, are like the mirror in a telescope, gathering and focusing God’s light for those around us. We are like portable lighthouses, streaming his light into the dark places all around us. So we both gather and reflect the Light of the World. We are, Jesus said of his followers, the light of the world. The world depends on us for light.
No, this life of reflecting God, serving as his image-bearer, is not glamorous. It comes at the cost of laying down our lives for others, just as Jesus did for us. Literal lighthouses often stand in dangerous, lonely places. But they are placed there intentionally and strategically.
In what ways does your work allow you to image God?
