Design Of Work In Timothy Keller's 'Every Good Endeavor'

Another statement that the book makes is that God stands apart from all other things in the special relationship of creator to creation. And the creation of humankind is the highpoint of all God's work of making and forming.

Creation was also not an accident. Plantinga writes the creation was simply an act that was “fitting” for God and he states "the whole difference between construction and creation is…that a thing constructed can only be loved after it is constructed; but a thing created is loved before it exists”. The chapter concludes by discussing the creation of man in the image of God and as such, we should offer praise to Him.

2Alexander, T. D. (2008). From Eden to the New Jerusalem: Exploring God’s Plan for Life on Earth (p. 7). Nottingham, England: Inter-Varsity.

God does not hold Himself distant from His creation, but He embraces it; He walks with it. He engages with that which He created. The story of Creation shows that the author of it all is personal, intimate, and cares about what He created. Act one gives us a glimpse of how the world was supposed to be; a beautiful, intimate, God –in –the –midst life of perfect satisfaction with the absence of sin. However, this all crumbled in Act two when Adam and Eve decided to disobey God and take their lives into

Albert Wolters, in his article “Fall from Creation Regained: Biblical Basics for a Reformational Worldview,” describes the whole curse of sin in the human existence by the sequence creation-fall-redemption and argues that only God can redeem this currently “worldly” creation corrupted by evil as an external “parasite” in the God´s perfectly-created earth. In the first part, Wolters explains that the original plan of God was to make earth to be very good, but then the original sin corrupted this holy world affecting “creation as a whole.” (53) This was way, sin corrupted human behavior. However, the consequences of fall extend further human behavior because sin also corrupted the non-human things like the arts, science,

I love the relation Keller provides of how God creating the earth was work, and that Adam was commissioned to work, and we still are commanded to fill the earth and subdue it. The idea that subduing the earth means that though what God created was good, it was still undeveloped. Meaning that it is still our job to work and take care of the creation of God as we work as His representatives. We get to continue Gods work here on earth as we find our skills, gifts, and abilities through working for Him as He works through

Cole goes on to explain that we are created to work as well. (Cole 10) He explains that God was the great worker from the beginning. When he created the earth, He worked for six straight days creating His masterpiece. He then goes on to say that even Adam and Eve were workers. Once God put them both on the earth, he gave them dominion over everything and told them that they were to take care of everything in the garden. God gave them strict instruction on what to do in the garden, and what not to do. Of course, this ultimately led to the fall of man. Cole then goes on to say that Cane and Abel were the same way. They were both given dominion over a garden and ultimately cared for it, therefore making them workers just like God as well. He then goes on to show how mans sinful nature will ultimately cause death for those who do not accept Christ and his salvation. “He likened his cultural context to that of cut flowers.” (Cole 10) Cole mentions this alliteration because it is extremely accurate. He goes on to talk about how even though after you cut flowers from the roots, roots being pure and sinless christianity just like Adam and Eve had, the flower will continue to bloom, only for a while. After that short time is up, the flower shall

Chapter 3 starts off by saying, "work is our design and our deginity; it is also a way to serve God through creativity, particularly in the creation of culture." What does this mean exactly? I think God wants us to realize our capabilities to transform his original creation into the beautiful thing ever, I think he was us to cultivate the very thing he created for us. Keller believes that Genesis 1:28 has an impact we as a generation, society, and culture have yet to understand, God could of filled the Earth with as many human begins as he possibly wanted but he wanted us to create that which he created and thats such a beautiful picture. "God owns the world, but he has put it under our care to cultivate it." He wants us to use the worlds resources

For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10 NIV.

We come into greatness not by trying to make ourselves great, but through our service to Jesus Christ, because apart from Him all work is meaningless (Keller, 128). Keller does a great job of explaining how work should not own you or be what your identity is wrapped in because it then takes a form of "salvation” for some people. Through Jesus Christ we have a new identity, and when we allow our identity to be based on our works it only sets us up for disappointment and unfullfillment.

This is a reminder that God is totally in control. We labor with telling others about Him and the love He has for us using different methods, but it is God who will take what we did and turn it into something else. We do nothing without His help and intervention. This scripture also tells us that we are to labor and be faithful, but the results are His and His alone. As with agriculture whether you are a farmer or tend to livestock. The farmer does everything possible to make a good crop, but it is God who makes it fruitful. God works through us so that His goodness and grace can be revealed to others. Agriculture can be seen as a promise God made to us through Adam and Eve that He would provide, but that we would need to work in order to reap the benefits of being His sons and

God chose to create the universe and Creation reveals the handiworks of God. Exodus 25 verse 8 reveals that it was God's desire to be among His people. The Tree of Life was placed in the Garden of Eden so that man can enjoy the fullness of life. When man sinned and broke God's law, man lost the right to the Tree of Life.

In Genesis 2:2 we find that the Bible uses some interesting words as it now makes reference to the seventh day. God is said to have "by the seventh day...completed His work" and "He rested." When one works, energy is spent and when one rests, the body is recharged in a sense to begin working again. Psalm 121:4 says, "Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. So why is He described as working and resting? The Hebrew word "melakah" is translated into English as "work" and when referring to men, it's the result of labor(1). The word translated as "rest" is the Hebrew word "shabath" which means to cease(2). Said another way, "by the seventh day" God ceased creating His work.

God gives us His economic plan in Genesis. He is clear on His rules and His intent from the beginning of His word. God created the earth in an orderly fashion with a purpose, and He created man in His image for a purpose. God commanded man to tend His creation. The Cultural Mandate tells us God’s intent for man is to have dominion over all of the earth, be fruitful and multiply, Genesis 1:26-28 (NIV). Work was also a part of God’s plan for man. Before sin entered the world, man worked, but work was more pleasurable and less painful before sin. After the “fall,” man’s work became hard. There may not be a choice about the work an individual must do, but there is a choice about the way an individual does the work (Lundin, Christensen, & Christensen, 2000, p. 37). Based on God’s plan, an individual’s employment can provide for his family, bless others, increase wealth, and contribute to society and the economic system.

Humans and everything on this earth come from God and God, being God, is involved in His creations is the foundational doctrine for the entire Christian community. The bible directs us to this truth as God is speaking the earth and everything in it into existence, exhibiting there was nothing until He spoke, “And God said let there be light”. God then created man from the dust of the earth, and “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and the man became a living being” (Genesis 1:1-2 NIV) (Genesis 2:8 NIV). In this essay I will explain how the doctrine of the Word of God impacts and affects the career choice I have made in become a Clinical Christian Counselor, made in the image of God.