What we can Learn about Work from the Apostle Paul: The Apostle Paul gave instructions to Christians on how to do their jobs.

His instructions to servants in Colossians in 3:23 and Ephesians 6:7 apply not just to servants but to all types of work and both include the instruction to do one’s job for the Lord and not for men.

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters” Colossians in 3:23

“Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people” Ephesians 6:7

It is, of course, one thing to talk about workplace principles and another to actually apply them. Those who merely talk about them are called consultants. Those who apply them are called successful. Paul did not only talk the talk; he walked the walk.

When Paul wrote to the Galatian church, he was concerned they were being taken in by false religious leaders who were preaching a different gospel to them. In appealing to the Galatians, Paul revealed how he performed his job:

For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.

Galatians 1:10

Paul is saying he is not doing his job for men but for God, and because he is not doing his job to please men, they can trust the gospel he is preaching. One of the blessings that comes from doing one’s job for the Lord is that it frees one from the self-interest of seeking the approval of others.

The blessings do not stop there. Playing to an audience of One not only purifies our work, but it elevates our performance. It enables our work to take wing and fly to heights it could never achieve when pandering only to human expectations. And this was what we can Learn about Work from the Apostle Paul. GS