Brethren, let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with God. 1 Corinthians 7:24
A young man named Fred who worked in a lumber mill came into contact with some Christians, who brought the Gospel to him. Within a short time, Fred was saved, and became very anxious to become the best Christian he could be. He became convinced that the lumber mill was not a good place for a Christian, so he left to find more suitable employment. He struggled financially for a few years until in desperation, he returned to the mill to ask for his old job back. Because he was a good worker, they gladly rehired him. Within a few weeks, he was able to bring several of his fellow workers at the mill to Gospel meetings, and had the privilege of seeing two of them saved. He realized that God had called him as a lumber mill worker and had work for him to do in the lumber mill. That is a good lesson for us to learn, as our text declares.
When God saved us, he made some major and wonderful changes in us. Not only did our eternal destination change, but so did our desires, habits, lifestyles, companions and ambitions. Life took on new meaning and direction, and we were delighted that we were able to do things that brought pleasure to the God Who we had disobeyed and ignored for so long. But how much of a change did God call us to? It is obvious that some people who are in ungodly situations must depart from those places when they are saved. For example, it is highly unlikely that God would have one of His children working as a bartender or a drug dealer. It is also obvious that God does not call everyone to be a preacher or a missionary or some other form of full-time worker. Nor does He call tradespeople to become business people, or professional workers to become labourers. At least, not all the time. And those He does call to full-time service still need to hold secular employment until they are ready to be commended to the work. Sometimes, God calls us to be His representatives in the very place where He found and saved us.
There are some groups of Christians (or who claim to be Christians) who would place rigid restrictions on where their members should work. Some would prohibit the earning of a university degree, or membership in a trade union, or work in specific industries. But what restrictions does God impose? We need to be careful to avoid involvement in illegal, immoral, or degrading. But sometimes God needs us to serve Him in places where we can’t see the purpose. In His wisdom, He places us, or leaves us, in places that serve His purposes. Perhaps there is somebody for us to be a witness to. Perhaps there is some training that He must put us through in preparation for serving Him elsewhere. Perhaps He needs to learn life lessons to refine our Christian character. We don’t know. But we should never despise the place where God sets us.
Our desire should be to serve our Lord the best we can. Our willingness should be to serve wherever He determines is best. -Jim MacIntosh