In our ever increasingly competitive job market how can we confound our unquenchable drive for success with humble gratitude and labor not in vain? How can we live an ethical life amid a “hustle culture” that demands we monetize our every living breath and action and compare ourselves against others who do? How can we labor, but not in vain or in self-idolatry?
Ambition, success, prestige, or money will never bring us the inner peace that only knowing Jesus Christ can. As a college student and Christian graduating in a month amid a pandemic-induced global recession, I’ve questioned the importance of my drive for academic achievement and career success. Is this desire all vanity? How can Christians pursue a meaningful career that does good? The monotonous emptiness of a corporate job serving to enrich stockholders and corporations haunts my dreams. So how can us young adults manage the path our career takes in a way that glorifies God? How can we strive for success without vanity while not becoming complacent?
Ecclesiastes 1:2-12 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun? One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.
Is striving for academic achievement and career success all vanity? Not if we strive to let God lead our paths and glorify Him. His ways are higher than our ways. His knowledge is higher than ours. God will never mislead us or forsake us.
Psalm 127:1 Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.
Colossians 3:23-24 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.
1. Walk Worthy of the Vocation Wherewith You Are Called
Whatsoever we do we must do it as we’re working unto Him. We must make God our focus instead of objects like money that perish. Therefore be ambitious but remember our worth comes from Christ and not material objects.
1 John 2:15-17 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
Ephesians 4:I-8 therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,2 With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism,6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
1 Corinthians 12:7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;9 To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:11 But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
Our Almighty Father has given us not only spiritual gifts, but a calling.
2. Seek the Kingdom of Heaven Not Riches
Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Remember that gain is not godliness. The goal in life is to learn to walk in Jesus’ commandments and statutes and become sanctified. That is done by obeying God, trusting Him, and loving Jesus Christ with all our heart all our soul and all our understanding. Through this process we are set apart not to walk after wordly ways but to have the word in our heart and walk after Jesus Christ’s ways.
“So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen (Matt. 20:16).” The blessed apostles who served God and not mammon were penniless, persecuted, imprisoned, Lazarus the greedy rich man burned while the beggar was carried to Abraham’s bosom, Jesus overthrew the moneychangers from the church and fed the most needy in society.
Jesus said, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God (Mark 10:25).” It’s easy to feel unworthy in this consumerist age, but followers of Christ are not meant to live easy, carnally attuned life.
We are meant to seek the kingdom of heaven first as the disciples of Christ who knew that life was more than raiment did. After all, we carry nothing out of this world. Do not try to gain the world while losing your soul.
Matthew 16:25-26: “Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
Timothy 6:5-11: “Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.6 But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. ..For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
John 6:27, 32-35, KJV: 32 “27 Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.”
Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. 34 Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.”
Psalm 94:6-10, KJV: “They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches; None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever: That he should still live for ever, and not see corruption. For he seeth that wise men die, likewise the fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their wealth to others.
Poverty and struggle isn’t a lack of blessing. It’s easy for those who have it to say money does not matter, but if we look to the Bible and the apostles, we see that the most spiritually blessed were materially poor.
The Bible tells us that the wicked may triumph and be materially rich on earth, but by walking in sin and disobedience they will not obtain the treasure of heaven. The Bible is firm in its condemnation of greed, of moneychangers, and wealth that comes from corruption and exploitation. It warns that wealth can be corrupting as people use it to sow desires of the flesh.
The Bible condemns the worship of the rich and oppressive class, and oppression of the poor.
“But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats (James 2:6, KJV).” It even calls on the wealthy in power to give fairly to workers.
Psalm 94:3-4, KJV: “Lord, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph? How long shall they utter and speak hard things? and all the workers of iniquity boast themselves?”
James 5:1-8: “Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten. Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
3. If You Are Materially Privileged, Use it to Give Cheerfully
- Colossians 4:1: “Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.”
Those who are materially rich, are to not only walk in God’s commandments and statutes but to give to the poor cheerfully, and not live a hedonist life of excess.
- Matthew 19:20-21, KJV: “And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.”
- 2 Corinthians 9:7-9: “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work: (As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever.”
- Deuteronomy 24:19-22, KJV: “19 When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field, and hast forgot a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not go again to fetch it: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow: that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hands.20 When thou beatest thine olive tree, thou shalt not go over the boughs again: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow. 21 When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow. 22 And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land of Egypt: therefore I command thee to do this thing.”
“It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35
4. Every Honest Job Can Be Done Unto God
Vanity is becoming corrupt by seeking the pursuit of glorification of the self or riches at the expense of Godly values. Vanity is gaining the world while losing your soul. What it is not, is the lifelong pursuit of knowledge. The pandemic has exposed who the true “essential workers” are — it is the laborers who stock our pantries, the workers who are exploited through poverty wages that haven’t kept up with a 167% rise in inflation over the past 50 years.
Bringing glory unto God is not the same as bringing glory unto ourselves through a capitalistic rat-race of competition for prestige and riches. We are to lay ourselves for the treasures in heaven not on Earth. And seek the kingdom of heaven first, instead of raiment. Jesus Christ is the bread of life. God knows our needs and He will not forsake us. He kept the people of Israel who trusted in Him fed through the wilderness for 40 years without so much as their feet swelling up until they reached the land of milk and honey.
Matthew 6:19–24: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. .No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
Matthew 6:25: “Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?”
John 6:35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
We can pursue whatsoever honest vocation we are called unto with integrity and goodness while seeking God’s face above all else — not prestige or riches. Christians are to walk after the spirit, after the kingdom of heaven first because Jesus is the bread of life. We are called not to distract ourselves with earthly lusts and covetousness. We are not to worry about anything but trusting God.
5. Success Isn’t Money or Prestige, It’s Growing in Our Journey With God
It’s about what we do with what we have and whether we do it while growing in our spiritual journey with God — whether it’s to provide for a family, help those in need, etc. as a worker, academic, or a professional.
Luke 21:1-4, KJV: “And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all: For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.”
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