At one
time, here in America, people for the most part did not necessarily have to
worry about
whether
or not their employer might require them to work at a time that might
conflict
with a worship service. Sometimes, we'll even hear from those who grew up
during
the 1950s
era and before about how businesses were closed on Sundays and that the
churches were packed during the Sunday Morning services (not to mention that
our economy was in a lot better shape during those days, with the exception of
the great depression, than it is today).
But at
present, what a change from sixty years ago, and not for the
better. Now, businesses are open every day of the week, even 24/7
and those seeking employment, including even Christians feel as though they are
faced with a dilemma when the work schedule required of them seems to conflict
with the hours during which they normally attend church.
The Lord
knows that we need incomes in order to pay off necessary expenses including
food, clothing, utilities, rent, mortgages, transportation,
occasional repairs on appliances and vehicles, to be able to provide
for our families, and in some cases to pay our way through college, and to pay
off medical bills and any other debts we may have acquired. But the
scripture clearly tells us that we are not to habitually neglect the meetings
with fellow followers of Christ. (Heb. 10:25) There are times when it may
not be possible to attend worship services when traveling, or there may be days
when we have a dire emergency that needs immediate attention and which prevents
us from making to church, or there may be some days when we may find ourselves
too sick attend a service, but neither our jobs or careers should ever at
anytime keep us from attending worship services with fellow believers on a
regular basis.
It all
comes down to this: What really comes first in our lives and how much do
we trust the Lord to meet our needs. Our livelihoods may be a means, and
is often the case, through which God does provide for us. But do not think for
a moment that God is limited to only using your current job or your
present career to provide for your needs.
Jesus said: "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 life more
than meat, and the body than rainment?
Behold,
the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into
barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than
they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
And why take ye thought for rainment? Consider the lilies of the field,
how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin...Wherefore if God clothe
the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the
oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore
take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink?
or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?...for your heavenly Father knoweth
that ye have need of these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Mt.
6:25-33)
Granted
there are those within certain occupations most critical
to our society such as law enforcement, firefighting, emergency
response, hospitals, the military, etc. which need to operate every day of the
week and every hour of the day and as for those of you within such occupations
who might not be able to attend a Sunday Morning service, there is always the
option of going to a church that has Sunday evening services or mid-week
services, and for the sake of those who might not be able to attend Sunday
Morning services, every church should offer those options, otherwise, it will
be difficult for those who might want to attend and contribute to a church on a
regular basis, to be able to.
Unless
there is another great spiritual awakening in our society-one which will cause
us to earnestly and sincerely seek out the Creator of heaven and earth, and
which will take us back to abiding in His precepts, to trusting in the
authority and sufficiency of His scriptures, and bring us to confess that we
have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, (Rom. 6:23) and that we need
to repent of our sins and submit ourselves to the very Savior, Christ Jesus, who
gave Himself as a permanent and lasting sacrifice for our sins and
transgressions and who rose from the grave so that any placing their trust in
Him for the forgiveness of sins will be saved, those days in which men had
a much higher reverence for the Lord God who made Heaven and Earth than they
do to day, and for a Sabbath day rest, on which most work ceased so
that people could enjoy the benefits of that day of rest and to gather together
to give worship to the Lord and to be instructed in His ways may never return,
due to the fact that there are too many employers who worship their wealth
rather than the God who empowered them to acquire it, too many consumers who
cannot stand to wait one day to acquire the purchasing of items that are not an
immediate need, and which, which then has given cause for those greedy for gain
to compel people to work hours during which they might otherwise be assembling
with the saints to worship the Lord.
Fellowship
with other saints is vital to the spiritual growth of a Christian. Often
times, if a professing follower of Christ neglects the assembling of the saints
too often, their growth in the Lord may become stagnant, and the next thing to
come is that they may begin to neglect scripture reading, praying on a regular
basis, and then their priorities become less heaven centered and more centered
on the things of this present and their manner of thinking may become less
spiritual and more carnal, and less influenced by heaven and more under the
spell of this present world system. And because it is a command in
scripture to meet on a regular basis with fellow saints, even it is not
possible for some of us to be able to attend Sunday Morning services, we should
still attempt to seek out those places of fellowship that hold worship services
that do not conflict with our work schedules.
And
unknown to most, there is a provision in the 1964 Civil Rights Act that
requires employers to make accommodations for religious practices unless they
can demonstrate that any accommodations requested of them by their employees or
prospective employees would cause undue (ongoing) hardship on the
business. When either looking for a job, or if your current employer
requires that you work during hours that may conflict with a church service you
normally attend, you should always attempt to seek out some sort of a
reasonable arrangement with them. If your employer or
prospective employer refuses, they may be committing a crime. But I
do not see how allowing employees time off to attend worship services
can be that much of an imposition in most cases.
Excessive
taxations and overregulating by our government puts a far greater
hardship on businesses than workers taking time
off for church or other religious observances.
But if we
allow our place of employment or livelihood to keep us from church, then we
have
allowed
that to supersede the Lord in our lives, and we show ourselves to be trusting
more in our livelihood or place of employment to provide for our needs rather
than God. We have made our God, who is of limitless power out to be a God
who is limited in His ability to provide for us. And if we let the threat
of a job loss or the loss of a career cause us to disobey our Maker, have we
not then submitted to cowardice and given a way victory we have in Christ over
to the powers of darkness in this world and which hold the world captive with
sinful seductions?
If you
are faced with the threat of a job loss because of your faith and devotion in
Christ, it is because
your
employer is competing for your loyalty and even though your employer may be a
vessel through which you receive a salary, remember that the earth is the
Lords' and everything therein (Ps. 24:1) and who is able to give much more than
your employer, and if you happen to be self-employed and even own a business,
but fear the loss of a livelihood on account of taking time out for God, have
you not then made money your master rather than the God who provides it?
Has not wealth become your strength rather than the God to whom you owe your
prosperity?
And even
if you have to give up your current job or livelihood on account of
your faithfulness to the Lord, He has promised a reward in return for what you
sacrifice on behalf of the Kingdom that exceeds what you might be required
to sacrifice, (Mt. 19:29, Mk. 10:30) and that should be enough to sustain
and strengthen your faith. That is not saying that all of us will have to
be faced with that possibility of having to choose between our job and our God,
but if it comes down to it, we need to be prepared and willing to lay that
aside for His names' sake, for in doing so, we are demonstrating to the world,
how much our God means to us, and how grateful we are for what He has done for
us and still does for us. Perhaps in doing so, it may cause some to
wonder what it is about our God that would lead us to give up so much for His
Kingdom, and to the point that they may too want to be followers of Christ.
The jobs
and the careers we have and the livelihoods that we acquire need to be in
cooperation with the laws of the King. They should not attempt to
compete with His place in our lives, nor require us to violate His
precepts. For more information on the provision of the 1964 Civil Rights
act regarding accommodations for religious needs in the work place, type
in the following link on your web browser:
Regulation
1605 contains information what is required of employer regarding accommodations
for the religious beliefs of their employees.
Scripture
references:
1.
Hebrews 10:25
2.
Matthew 6:25-33
3.
Romans 6:23
4.
Psalms 24:1
5.
Matthew 19:29
6.
Mark 10:30
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