Does Work Matter?
Teaching Notes
work
Noun activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result.
When you are actively engaged, you feel fully alive.
God was the first worker and was actively engaged in his work.
“Let there be light…” (1:3)
“Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” And it was so (1:6)
“Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so… and God saw that it was good (1:9-10)
“Let the land produce vegetation…and it was so…and God saw that it was good (1:11-12)
Let there be lights in the vault and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years…” And it was so…And God saw that it was good. (1:14,18)
“Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky….And God saw that it was good. (1:20-21)
“Let the land produce living creatures according to their kind…and it was so… And God saw that it was good. (1:24-25)
“Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky… (1:26)
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. (1:31)
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.” (2:1-3)
“Not only did God create something new but, equally important for our definition of entrepreneurship, he created something for the good of others.” - Jordan Raynor, Called to Create
“God is an entrepreneur. He leveraged His resources at great cost to Himself. He made space in the universe for us.” - Dr. Richard Mouw, President of Fuller Seminary
We were made for active engagement
“Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky… (1:26)
Sin distorts all good things, including our work.
“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground…” (Genesis 3:17-19).
Idle Work vs. Idol Work
“Fools fold their hands and ruin themselves. Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.” (Ecclesiastes 4:5-6)
TRUST
“You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’ But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth.” (Deuteronomy 8:17-18)
HUSTLE
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, and not for your human masters.” (Colossians 3:23)
REST
By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. (Genesis 2:2-3)
God was not only the first worker. He was the first rester.
Quick Assessment: on a scale of 1-10, (1- growth area; 10 - crushing it), how are you doing in these three areas?
Trust
Hustle
Rest
When we are cranking on these three elements: Holy Hustle.
God is still actively engaged.
“...for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” (Philippians 2:13).
Going Deeper Discussion
What do you look like “fully alive”?
How does understanding God as “actively engaged in His work” or being the “first entrepreneur” impact the way you think about Him?
When work gets distorted for you, which way do you go: idle work or idol work?
How do you rate yourselves in the following three components of “Holy Hustle”:
Trust: 0 - 10
Hustle: 0 - 10
Rest: 0 - 10
What do you need to do today to become more actively engaged?
Sunday Set List
WFC Lenexa + WFC Anywhere
Holy Spirit Come- Patrick Mayberry
Promise Keeper- Hope Darst
Make Room- Community Worship
All That I Needed- Mitch Langley
WFC Speedway
Great Things- Phil Wickham
Mercy- Elevation Worship
Living Hope- Phil Wickham
Egypt- Cory Asbury
Be sure to save our Spotify Worship Playlist, updated weekly with the upcoming Sunday’s set!