It's Not My Job

How many times have you heard this one? Growing up in the 70's and 80's I was exposed to the height of labor unions. My mom, cousins, friends parents all were in some kind of union. Now, labor unions served their purpose, better wages and benefits, improved working conditions and so on. It seems that in protecting jobs, there became this attitude of "its not my job". If you start changing the toilet paper roll then I'll be out of a job, management will start to think that I'm not needed.

This works in labor unions but doesn't work with your relationship with God or with others. When it comes to our relationship with God, we have certain expectations and responsibilities. John Piper in his book What Jesus Demands From the World, tells of fifty demands from scripture. Jesus demands that we be different from the world in at least fifty different ways just as God gave the Israelites the law to expose sin and to set them apart.

You can read Dr. Pipers book (highly recommended) but for some of us fifty is a mountain. Then the question rises, what is God's job? Let me use the book of James to attempt to break it down: James 4:5-10 5Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, "He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us"? 6But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." 7Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

So what is the Lord telling us is His job? His job is to first give grace upon grace, His second is to exalt you. Our job as saints who sin is to continually submit to His will and humble ourselves before Him. Wow you mean if I humble myself that God will give me the riches of the world. Absolutely not!!! By exalt He means he will honor, praise or extol you just as in Zephaniah 3:17, 17The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save;he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love;he will exult over you with loud singing. The Lord celebrates when you are submitted and humble. The creator who created the universe and you loves you enough to sing and praise you when you are in humble submission.

But beware if you choose to do God's job and exalt yourself, then he will do your job and humble you. When you feel the conviction of pride, fear of man or trying to exalt yourself in the world, this would be a good time to say "it's not my job".