Sermon Summary
In this message, Jimmy continues our series on God’s provision, teaching that from the very beginning in Genesis, God created every person in His image and placed us in the garden to cultivate it and keep it, inviting us to be His fellow workers in whatever domain He has given us, whether we make a little or a lot. Jimmy shows that God’s sovereignty and our effort are not in competition. Like Paul, we are what we are by the grace of God, and that grace empowers us to work hard under God’s leadership. He calls us to be faithful and diligent in the work in front of us, to examine whether fear, lifestyle or the need to feel valuable is driving us to overwork, to reject laziness and get-rich-quick schemes, to order the gaps in our days with purpose and to embrace a biblical rhythm of work and rest. The goal is not wealth but contentment and rest in God, sowing faithfully for His glory and storing up treasure in heaven.
Key Scriptures
Genesis 2:15 (NIV)
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
Proverbs 14:23 (NIV)
All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.
1 Corinthians 15:10 (NIV)
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.
2 Thessalonians 3:10-13 (NIV)
For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat. And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.
Philippians 4:11-13 (NIV)
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Instructions for Groups
Choose a few of these questions from the various categories to go deeper in the sermon and put the truths of Scripture into practice. You don’t need to answer every question. Select the ones that will best help your group engage with God’s Word and apply it to your lives.
Discussion Questions
Scripture Study & Deeper Understanding
1. Read Genesis 1:28 and Genesis 2:15. God gave Adam and Eve work to do before sin ever entered the story. What does this tell us about how God views work, and what does it reveal about the partnership He designed between Himself and people?
2. In 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul says he “worked harder than all of them” and in the same breath says, “yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.” How does Paul hold God’s grace and his own effort together? How does 1 Corinthians 3:6-9, where Paul calls us “co-workers in God’s service,” add to that picture?
3. Read 2 Thessalonians 3:10-13. Some in the Thessalonian church had stopped working, possibly because they believed Jesus was returning any day. What does Paul command them to do, and why do you think he connects being idle with being a busybody?
Encouragement, Challenge & Personal Testimony
4. Wherever God has placed you, whether you are a barista or a CEO, that place is your domain to bring His rule and reign. Where has God placed you right now, and how does seeing it as a partnership with Him change the way you think about your work?
5. Proverbs 23:4-5 warns, “Do not wear yourself out to get rich.” When you look honestly at how you work, what tends to drive you most: faith, fear, the desire for a certain lifestyle or the need to feel valuable?
6. Laura’s story showed how living simply, working diligently and giving generously “laid the soil” for God to do the impossible, and Bill Adams’ advice to “put hay in the barn” reminds us that faithful preparation carries us through hard seasons. Share a time when you were faithful in your part and saw God provide in a way only He could.
Putting It Into Practice
7. Jimmy said, “What you do in the gaps matters.” Think about the unstructured time in your week, whether that is remote work, retirement, evenings or time on your phone. Ask the Holy Spirit how He wants you to order those hours. What is one specific change you will make this week so you remain a worker in His kingdom?
8. Jimmy addressed both working too much and working too little, pointing to a biblical rhythm of six days of work and one day of rest. Which way do you tend to lean? What is one concrete step you will take this week, such as setting aside a full Sabbath, setting a boundary on work hours, walking away from a get-rich-quick habit or committing to serve somewhere?
Prayer
9. Listening to the Holy Spirit
We’re going to take focused time to listen to the Holy Spirit and what He wants to speak to us personally based on our time in Scripture and discussion. Let’s sit in silence for 60 seconds and ask the Spirit to speak to each one of us.
[After the minute of silence] What do you sense the Holy Spirit highlighting or speaking to you as we prayed?
10. Prayer Requests from Our Study
What prayer requests come up for you based on our Scripture study and discussion? How can we pray for you as you seek to apply what God has shown you?