At Work & Economics 101

Why Faith, Work, and Economics?

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IF WE believe we’re made in God’s image to be creative and are called to use our talents, how then should we work?

IF WE believe we are called to practice justice and mercy, then how do we apply these virtues in the world of work and economics?

IF WE believe that through our work we can join in God’s purposes in the world, then what economic environment would provide us the most freedom to live that out? 

Let me ask you a “trick question.”  If Adam had never sinned, would he and his prodigy have just stayed in the garden?

No – even though the garden was perfect, it wasn’t finished.

The grand narrative of the Bible tells of God’s plan to take mankind from the garden to the city of God. This city is the new Jerusalem where we will live forever with him.  This was always the plan, both before and after the fall.

Work plays an important part of our journey from the Garden to the City. It was what we were created to do.  Often the Bible refers to this work as stewardship. However, today we often have a very restricted definition of this idea of stewardship.

The Disciple’s Study Bible defines stewardship as,

… a way of living that involves one’s daily activities, values and goals for life, and the use of all possessions. It begins with God and His plans for creation and purposes for humankind. The steward is God’s responsible representative and manager of all creation.

We need to embrace this larger view of stewardship, what we call “Stewardship with a Capital S.”

At the Institute for Faith, Work & Economics, we want to awaken Christians to the strategic role their work plays in God’s loving and redemptive narrative in the world.

By rediscovering the Biblical doctrine of work and by viewing economics through this lens, Christians, through their work, will have a positive, sustainable impact in their communities, the nation, and throughout the world.

We’ve been exploring how to integrate faith and work. Now, moving forward, we’ll also begin talking about how we can integrate our faith into a Biblical view of economics.

In other words, we’ll be discussing a Biblical view of economics in the context of faith and work.

Discovering such a view is crucial to our carrying out our roles as stewards in God’s story for us.

Why do you think it’s important to integrate faith with work and economic views? Leave your comments here.

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Further readings on At Work & Economics 101

  • At Work
  • Economics 101
Gifts, Talents, & the Path to Flourishing

By: Dr. Anne Bradley

4 minute read

It is astonishing that we enjoy any of the luxuries we take for granted every day. God, in his perfect…

  • At Work
  • Economics 101

Mike Rowe, famous for his show “Dirty Jobs,” recently stated, “Good work implies the existence of bad work. Bad work suggests…

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