The Sacredness of Secular Work: 4 Ways Your Job Matters for Eternity
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- Create Date：2024-01-04 09:22:02
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Jordan Raynor
- ISBN：0593193091
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Summary
From a leading voice in the faith and work movement and author of Redeeming Your Time comes the revolutionary message that God sees our daily work—in whatever form it takes—with far more value than we ever imagined。
Does your work matter for eternity？
Sadly， most believers don’t think so。 Sure， the 1 percent of the time they spend sharing the gospel with their co-workers matters。 But most Christians view the other 99 percent of their time as meaning very little in the grand scheme of things。
But that’s not how God sees it。
Jordan Raynor， a leading voice in the faith and work movement and bestselling author， offers a revolutionary message about how our daily jobs—from baristas and entrepreneurs to stay-at-home parent and coaches—have intrinsic and eternal value。 In The Sacredness of Secular Work， he reveals unexpected ways our work matters， not just for the moment but for eternity。 In these pages you’ll see how
• your work can physically last into heaven
• your job can be an ingredient for God’s eternal pleasure
• your vocation can reveal heaven on earth
Combining research， Scripture， and storytelling， Jordan Raynor proves that work， in its diverse forms， is one of the primary activities that brings God delight。 This biblical perspective will set you free to pursue your passions and skills and—perhaps for the first time—experience the Creator’s delight in the work of your hands。
Does your work matter for eternity？
Sadly， most believers don’t think so。 Sure， the 1 percent of the time they spend sharing the gospel with their co-workers matters。 But most Christians view the other 99 percent of their time as meaning very little in the grand scheme of things。
But that’s not how God sees it。
Jordan Raynor， a leading voice in the faith and work movement and bestselling author， offers a revolutionary message about how our daily jobs—from baristas and entrepreneurs to stay-at-home parent and coaches—have intrinsic and eternal value。 In The Sacredness of Secular Work， he reveals unexpected ways our work matters， not just for the moment but for eternity。 In these pages you’ll see how
• your work can physically last into heaven
• your job can be an ingredient for God’s eternal pleasure
• your vocation can reveal heaven on earth
Combining research， Scripture， and storytelling， Jordan Raynor proves that work， in its diverse forms， is one of the primary activities that brings God delight。 This biblical perspective will set you free to pursue your passions and skills and—perhaps for the first time—experience the Creator’s delight in the work of your hands。
Reviews
Kevin Anselmo
，
I read an advance copy of The Sacredness of Secular Work by Jordan Raynor。 Really fantastic！ There is this notion that fulfilling the "Great Commission" means we have to be in jobs as missionaries in other countries。 While missionaries do admirable work， most all professionals' work matters for eternity。 This book provides perspective that will encourage you in as you go about your work。- Kevin Anselmo， author of Reframing Career Success - Picture Your Significance at Work from a Christian Persp I read an advance copy of The Sacredness of Secular Work by Jordan Raynor。 Really fantastic！ There is this notion that fulfilling the "Great Commission" means we have to be in jobs as missionaries in other countries。 While missionaries do admirable work， most all professionals' work matters for eternity。 This book provides perspective that will encourage you in as you go about your work。- Kevin Anselmo， author of Reframing Career Success - Picture Your Significance at Work from a Christian Perspective 。。。more
Julie Vasquez
，
This book is a treasure for Christians questioning the value of our secular work， in light of our faith。 That includes:t- Young adults choosing a （starting） career path wondering how you can be all-in on your faith， while pursuing secular work。 t- Middle-aged adults wondering whether they have spent their time well or need to pivot。t- Older adults lamenting that they did not accomplish more and reflecting on how they left dreams on the table。We are created with eternity in our hearts and long fo This book is a treasure for Christians questioning the value of our secular work， in light of our faith。 That includes:t- Young adults choosing a （starting） career path wondering how you can be all-in on your faith， while pursuing secular work。 t- Middle-aged adults wondering whether they have spent their time well or need to pivot。t- Older adults lamenting that they did not accomplish more and reflecting on how they left dreams on the table。We are created with eternity in our hearts and long for eternal things。 It can be difficult to see how our secular work matters from that perspective。 But Jordan masterfully applies theological teaching from N。T。 Wright， Skye Jethani and others， to clarify our thinking about the present day in light of eternity。 Rather than waiting room to be raptured away from earth away from earth， we are preparing to rule with Christ in a re-created world with peace and abundance。 There， we will experience joy， peace， and abundance in our work， as we were created to do before the Fall。 Therefore， Jordan argues， our work in this lifetime is a preparation for Eternity。 More than that， secular work gives us the opportunity to interact with people who believe differently than us， more than if we were cloistered in a religious environment。 That alone makes it a rich mission field to embrace。 In fact， by doing our work with excellence and integrity， and treating others well， we bear witness to the character of Jesus。 The book is easy to read and apply， with plenty of signposting to mark key takeaways， not to mention fun “Easter eggs” like Disney， Hamilton， and Taylor Swift references to make you smile。 I highly recommend it as a gift to anyone that needs a reminder that God is with them and values their work — especially as a gift to yourself。 。。。more
Dan Cox
，
“Once you understand how 100 percent of your time matters for eternity and not just the 1 percent when you get to explicitly share the gospel， it makes you come fully alive。 And fully alive people attract the lost like craft coffee attracts hipsters。” （p。 xviii）As someone who grew up in a church where the work of pastors and missionaries felt like it was valued far more than any other kind of work， this book really hit home with me。 I appreciated how Jordan challenged that notion in his latest b “Once you understand how 100 percent of your time matters for eternity and not just the 1 percent when you get to explicitly share the gospel， it makes you come fully alive。 And fully alive people attract the lost like craft coffee attracts hipsters。” （p。 xviii）As someone who grew up in a church where the work of pastors and missionaries felt like it was valued far more than any other kind of work， this book really hit home with me。 I appreciated how Jordan challenged that notion in his latest book， and did so with catchy analogies like the one above。 If you thought the Great Commission was the only commission…think again！ Dive into The Sacredness of Secular Work to hear a compelling case for why your job matters even when you’re not sharing the gospel。 I’m glad I did and I’m confident you will be glad as well。 。。。more
Michael McFall
，
This is definitely a book worth reading。 Overall， it is a critique of how many contemporary American churches treat the Great Commission as the only commission given to Christians。 I don't completely accept some of the foundational distinctions and propositions -- as they seem to be a bit too quick and sometimes it seems like strawman attacks being made。 But it is easy to read， sometimes challenging， and worth reading。 This is definitely a book worth reading。 Overall， it is a critique of how many contemporary American churches treat the Great Commission as the only commission given to Christians。 I don't completely accept some of the foundational distinctions and propositions -- as they seem to be a bit too quick and sometimes it seems like strawman attacks being made。 But it is easy to read， sometimes challenging， and worth reading。 。。。more
Aimee Alexander
，
This book is challenging， clever， extremely researched， and filled with classic Jordan Raynor humor。 Read it as a Berean， and you may come out surprised。 Read it， also， with patience。 Many times a question arose in my mind， and eventually Jordan addressed each one at some point in the book。 I will be chewing on this for quite some time。I encourage other believers to pick up this book and let the Spirit lead you， through your knowledge of God's Word， into a deeper understanding of why your work m This book is challenging， clever， extremely researched， and filled with classic Jordan Raynor humor。 Read it as a Berean， and you may come out surprised。 Read it， also， with patience。 Many times a question arose in my mind， and eventually Jordan addressed each one at some point in the book。 I will be chewing on this for quite some time。I encourage other believers to pick up this book and let the Spirit lead you， through your knowledge of God's Word， into a deeper understanding of why your work matters to God and how you can glorify Him and serve His Kingdom through your vocation。 。。。more
Anthony Sowri
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Raynor raises a very important point: not everyone is going to be a full-time "paid" pastor， missionary， or evangelist。 That is not the same as those who volunteer or do mission-based work in addition to their jobs/careers。 So what is left for the 99% who don't get paid to be in full-time ministry？ Also， if everyone was paid to be in full-time ministry， who would fund the church？ It's a chicken and egg scenario。 And Raynor explains why the work we do is not insignificant， simply because it's not Raynor raises a very important point: not everyone is going to be a full-time "paid" pastor， missionary， or evangelist。 That is not the same as those who volunteer or do mission-based work in addition to their jobs/careers。 So what is left for the 99% who don't get paid to be in full-time ministry？ Also， if everyone was paid to be in full-time ministry， who would fund the church？ It's a chicken and egg scenario。 And Raynor explains why the work we do is not insignificant， simply because it's not "preaching the Gospel"。 Rather， all work （albeit， ethical work） is significant because we are called to do good work， for the kingdom， wherever we go。Raynor talks about who built the church and where they came from: they started in their vocations and many stayed in those jobs/careers to help fuel the growth of the church。 Raynor gives a deep explanation of the Great Commission and how it has been oversimplified over the years， bringing it back to the root of what Jesus called people to， and how we should live our lives daily。 What Raynor doesn't do is try and tell you what you should be doing with your work， but rather HOW you should work， whether you are a CEO or a cashier。 It's the same instruction that Jesus gave to those whom he encountered during his ministry。 HOW you do your work is important and Raynor explains through the biblical text why that is crucial and how it translates to eternity because that has a lasting impact in communities in addition to preaching the Gospel。 。。。more
Lucky
，
A book that I wished was written when I was out of college over 10 years ago。 I have always felt unprepared and disconnected in how to value and make a Gospel impact within my non-ministry work after being part of a full-time ministry that singularly focused on the Great Commission right after college。 In this book， Jordan Raynor has helped me to see clearly how my secular m work has intrinsic value in itself and how my work will last for eternity。 Deeply theological and practical， this book is A book that I wished was written when I was out of college over 10 years ago。 I have always felt unprepared and disconnected in how to value and make a Gospel impact within my non-ministry work after being part of a full-time ministry that singularly focused on the Great Commission right after college。 In this book， Jordan Raynor has helped me to see clearly how my secular m work has intrinsic value in itself and how my work will last for eternity。 Deeply theological and practical， this book is must read to Christians in non-ministry settings so they can invest in eternity through the work where God has placed them。 。。。more
Jennifer Grashel
，
Jordan Raynor hits it out of the park again。 The Sacredness of Secular Work continues the discussion started in Called to Create and Master of One with a reminder that all work done for the glory of God is sacred。 With his usual combination of sound scriptural basis and practical examples， Jordan guides those of us who aren't in traditional vocational ministry through how our work still has kingdom significance。 And who doesn't need that affirmation？ The book goes from chapters on the "The Unabr Jordan Raynor hits it out of the park again。 The Sacredness of Secular Work continues the discussion started in Called to Create and Master of One with a reminder that all work done for the glory of God is sacred。 With his usual combination of sound scriptural basis and practical examples， Jordan guides those of us who aren't in traditional vocational ministry through how our work still has kingdom significance。 And who doesn't need that affirmation？ The book goes from chapters on the "The Unabridged Gospel" and "Half Truths About Heaven" that will either start you thinking or have you jumping up and down cheering 。。。 to more challenging sections on eternal rewards and， perhaps my favorite chapter title ever， "How to Make Disciples in a Post-Christian World Without Leaving Tracts in the Break Room"。 If you're looking for a good read on the theology of work， or really just theology， get a copy of this book。 Go do it now。 。。。more
Amie B
，
Every living adult should read this， what you do for work matters so much more than most people can even begin to realize， and Jordan is a great guide in this book to help you do just that！
Susan
，