Work is Worship
Most of us tend to spend a good majority of our lives at work. As a matter of fact, according to some studies, it is estimated that the average person will spend 90,000 hours or more at work throughout their lifetime. That’s a lot of hours!
And if you aren’t retired and are working right now, I think it’s fair to say that we spend more time working in a normal week than we do doing anything else. If you factor in the time spent getting ready for work, the commute to and from work, and then having technology that constantly keeps you connected to work, it can sometimes feel like that is pretty much all we spend our time doing throughout an entire week.
But even with work being such a huge part of our lives, for many of us, there can be a real disconnect between work and worship. We can easily see Jesus being a part of our worship on Sundays or when we are reading our Bibles, praying, or serving in a ministry. However, we don’t often think about Jesus being involved too much in our work outside of the church.
In this blog post, however, I want to show you that there is not as much of a disconnect between work and worship as you might think. Actually, from what I see in Scripture there really isn’t a disconnect at all. They are very much intertwined together and were designed by God to be that way.
CREATED TO WORK
In the creation account of Genesis, we see that we were created to work.
26 Then God said, “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, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” 27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
(Genesis 1:26-28)
One of the things we see here is that God created humanity to rule and reign over creation, to have dominion over it, and to bring it under control.
In verse, 28 God told Adam and Eve to “subdue the earth” which means to subjugate or to bring under control.
Then God told them to “rule over the fish, birds, and every living creature.” The Hebrew word translated “rule” means to have dominion over.
In other words, God created the world and everything in it, and then He put humanity in the world He had just created in order to rule over His creation and bring it under control.
But how? How were they supposed to do that?
Well, in Genesis 2 we get a closer look at what God was doing when He created humanity.
15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
(Genesis 2:15)
In other words, God created humanity to work! Please note that this is before sin entered the world. Some of us might think that work is a part of our lives as a result of sin in this world, but work is part of God’s original design for humanity.
WORK IS WORSHIP
The word that is translated as “work” in Genesis 2:15 is interesting for a couple of reasons.
First, it means to prepare or to cultivate.
God put Adam in the garden to take the raw materials God had just created to develop them and to use them to make things, to produce things, to create things, to invent things. He was to take His Creation and develop it further.
So this helps us to see what our role in work is as well. We too are to continue to make things, produce things, create and invent things as part of our design.
The other thing that is interesting about the word “work” (Gen. 2:15) in Hebrew is that it shares the same root word for “worship.”
So, we get the idea that Adam was put there to work in the garden as a way to worship God, his Creator.
Worship is not just singing, listening to a sermon, reading your bible, praying, or participating in a church ministry. Our work is an expression of worship.
GOD AS A WORKER
When looking at the creation account, we also see that God invented, created, made things, and shaped them into this world that we live in (Genesis 1). I don’t know about you, but to me, that sounds like work. As a matter of fact, look what we are told in Gen. 2:2…
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.
(Genesis 2:2)
So as you can see, God is a worker. The creating, inventing, and shaping God was doing at the beginning of time was work.
So, God Himself is a worker, and humanity was made in God’s image (Gen. 1:27). Therefore, here is what I want you to notice:
If God is a worker who creates, invents, and shapes things, and we are made in His image then when we work, it is a reflection of Him as our Creator…it speaks of Him…it reflects Him and His glory.
In other words, work is worship. This means that our work is an act of worship that He uses through us to bring glory and honor to Himself.
MINISTRY WORK VS. SECULAR WORK
In the church world, you can sometimes get the idea that the work of being a missionary or a pastor or something like that is a special calling. In other words, we get this idea that there is a special kind of work. There is a calling that some have in their lives to do the work of ministry and missions, but then there are others who work secular jobs and don’t have a calling regarding their work.
However, in Exodus 35, God is giving instructions about the building of the Tabernacle, and we are told that God took two people (Bezalel and Oholiab) and filled them with the Holy Spirit not to be pastors or missionaries, but to be expert craftsmen (Exodus 35:30-35)!
This was a Spirit-empowered calling from God on their lives and as they entered into this work, it was an expression of Him and His Life through them. Their work was an act of worship.
So, what we see is that calling is not just for those in church ministry or missions. Calling is for everyone and the work God creates for us to do.
THE IMPACT OF SIN ON OUR WORK
Though work is a part of God's design, the introduction of sin in Genesis 3, known as the Fall, made work more challenging. As a consequence of sin, God pronounced that work would be marked by toil, difficulties, and frustrations.
Sin did not introduce work into the world; instead, it made work harder. It affected not only individual experiences of work but also the broader systems and structures in which work takes place.
As a result, even those who love their jobs can experience moments of frustration and difficulty. We all face periods when creativity wanes, deadlines loom, conflicts arise, and physical demands become exhausting.
Sin has certainly affected the work we were created by God to perform.
REDEMPTION OF WORK THROUGH JESUS
The good news is that God is redeeming our work through Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross. Through His redemptive work and His grace that we receive by faith, He restores our ability to engage in work as God originally intended.
As new creations in Christ, we are guided by the Holy Spirit into the work in which God has called us. We receive the power to perform this work, using the talents, gifts, and abilities God has given us.
This work is not just about toil; it is about cultivating, creating, inventing, building, developing, instructing, and fixing—activities that add value to the world. Through our Spirit-empowered work, we become agents of transformation, bringing light and life to a dark and broken world.
Regardless of your profession, whether you're a teacher, construction worker, office employee, plumber, salesman, firefighter, law enforcement officer, stay-at-home parent, or any other role, your work has value and significance. It's not merely a means to pay bills or a path to retirement; it's an opportunity to partner with Jesus as He expresses His Life through you and brings glory to His name.
WORK IS WORSHIP MEANING
Understanding the connection between work and worship transforms our perspective on our daily labor. Our work is not separate from our faith but an integral part of it.
As you allow Jesus to work through you, guiding and empowering you, your work takes on new meaning. It becomes a channel through which Jesus brings value to the world, a light in the darkness, and a way to draw others into God's love and grace.