jesus, the worker
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me; therefore He has anointed Me. He has sent Me..." —Luke 4:18
As Jesus began His public ministry, His culminating work of our salvation, He taught us how to work. Jesus worked:
- in the synagogue (Lk 4:16). Begin your work at church.
- reading the Bible (Lk 4:16). Base your work on the Bible.
- anointed by the Holy Spirit (Lk 4:18).
- to bring the gospel to the poor (Lk 4:18).
- proclaiming "liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the blind and release to prisoners, to announce a year of favor from the Lord" (Lk 4:18-19). Jesus focused on freedom. So we should work for freedom.
- prophesying (Lk 4:24). Seek this gift of the Spirit above all others (1 Cor 14:1).
- while being persecuted (Lk 4:29-30). "Blest are those persecuted for holiness' sake; the reign of God is theirs" (Mt 5:10).
As disciples of Jesus, we imitate Him and work as He worked. We work through, with, in, and for Him. We are God's work, "created in Christ Jesus to lead the life of good works which God prepared for us in advance" (Eph 2:10, our transl). Accept Jesus as Lord of your work.
Prayer: Father, may I work not "for perishable food but for food that remains unto life eternal" (Jn 6:27).
Promise: "I determined that while I was with you I would know nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified." —1 Cor 2:2, our transl.
Praise: Jack, a public school teacher, quietly witnesses for Christ and prays for his students.
Reference: (For related teaching, order our leaflet, Job Performance for Jesus, or on audio AV 43-3 or video V-43.)
Nihil Obstat: Reverend Robert L. Hagedorn, February 7, 2002
Imprimatur: †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, February 12, 2002