The Workplace Christian Fellowsip – a summary is the last in this series of ‘’How can I be a true follower of Jesus Christ at Work’’.
As stated at the beginning and throughout the series, the Lord commands that we be His Ambassador and witness for Him everywhere. God is appealing to the world through us (2 Corinthians 5:20) and He expects us to be the salt and light wherever we are. We are to shine before others, that they may see our good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven (Matthew 5:13-16).
God has placed most of us in the workplace to fulfil our life purpose, He has equipped us with the skills, abilities, and experiences that we need to make a success of it. God did not stop there; He then also fill us with His Holy Spirit which gives us the supernatural ability to excel more than anyone else.
Our first responsibility is to ensure that we are in the right workplace that would enable us fulfil our destiny. The second is to ensure we are part of a group that can support us in the ministry. As you may recall, we learned the need for partnership from Daniel, Shadrack, Mishaek, and Abednego https://fmministry.co.uk/how-can-i-be-a-true-follower-of-jesus-christ-at-work-example-daniel-and-his-friends
Having found a group, the next step is to start meeting regularly, at least to pray. There are existing organisations with a focus on supporting Workplace Christian Fellowship such as Transform Work UK : Transform Work UK . You can also contact https://fmministry.co.uk/ for support in this area.
The Workplace Christian Fellowship – a case for the existence
Because the general tendency in the workplace is to keep faith private, there is need to make a case for the existence of Workplace Christian Fellowship.
All the advantages of the ‘Church’ such as effective partnership work, support of personal and spiritual growth, and leadership training are available through Christian fellowship in the workplace.
Other unique advantages of workplace fellowship are:
- Promotion of unity and diversity – bringing together people from a wide range of racial, economical, and intellectual backgrounds.
- Reaching the unreached – provides the opportunity to preach the gospel in practical ways to those who will not ordinarily attend a church meeting.
- Greater societal impact – the potential of reaching and changing those who make decisions that affect the general population.
- Effective stress relief – provides a unique opportunity to deal with stress through prayer, mentoring, pastoral and peer supports.
Research completed in 2020 by Eido Research in association with Transform Work UK and sponsored by Stewardship showed that Workplace Christian Fellowships are more influential in supporting workplace Christian ministry.
The majority of respondents also agree that they have seen a positive impact of the Christian Fellowship Groups on the organisation. You can read further analysis of the research evidence in the blog https://fmministry.co.uk/the-research-evidence-for-christian-workplace-fellowship
The Workplace Christian Fellowship – factors for success
The main factors necessary for the effectiveness of a Christian Workplace Fellowship were discussed and summarised below:
1. Leadership:
Jesus has given us the best example of how to lead. Three articles previously shared on the topic are:
David Drudd <https://sermongeek.com/2019/03/04/how-did-jesus-demonstrate-leadership-to-his-disciples/>
Michael Hyatt <https://michaelhyatt.com/the-leadership-strategy-of-jesus/>.
Eric Geiger <https://ericgeiger.com/2016/03/six-ways-jesus-led-his-disciples-after-the-resurrection/>.
In summary, Jesus’s leadership example illustrates that He was clear of His mission on the earth, He communicated this clearly to the people He called to follow Him. He then poured Himself into His disciples, building them up and encouraging them to fulfil and continue the mission after him.
We observed that Jesus led himself well and then worked at different levels with His inner circle, His disciples, and the multitude. He involved others and included them. Jesus served others instead of demanding they serve Him. He restored, challenged, and empowers others to give their lives to what matters most.
2. Organisational support
Organisational support is crucial to the success of the Christian Workplace Fellowship. The support must be reciprocal; that is the Christian Fellowship supports the organisation and organisation promotes and supports the fellowship. Both sides have a responsibility in maintaining the partnership win-win relationship.
Examples of steps to be taken by the Christian Workplace Fellowship to gain organisational support are:
- seeking recognition by the parent organisation rather than assuming the right of association.
- being prepared for the demand of openness from the organisation as the group should not be seen to exclude other employees.
- making every effort to limit fellowship activities to their staffing entitlement for breaks.
- membership producing quality work including attitudes of hard work, conscientiousness, and honesty.
- wisdom in knowing what to accommodate and when to make a stand for Jesus Christ in the workplace
3. Unity in the body
The Bible shows that we are united in Christ the moment we are saved in Him. Therefore, all that is required is for us to maintain it.
The Bible admonishes us to strive to overcome the many personal, secondary doctrinal, denominational, and cultural issues that may bring divisiveness to the body.
Therefore, we must strive to love and accept all whom Christ has truly saved. At the same time, we must be careful not to compromise essential biblical truth.
We must showcase this unity in the body through the outward expression of love. This may take different forms so long as it is recognised as coming from the Workplace Christian Fellowship.
The Workplace Christian Fellowship – Wisdom to witness
Being a witness for Jesus Christ in the workplace should be the main aim of every Disciple, and every Workplace Christian Fellowship. Wisdom is however required to avoid unnecessary persecution or damage to the witness of the gospel.
The ability to witness in the workplace depends firstly on the level of religious freedom available in the society and then the organisational policy of the workplace.
The Disciple’s anchor scripture for wisdom in witnessing is Matthew 10:16. Here, Jesus told His Disciples “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves’’.
This implies that we must develop discernment in our witnessing in general but this is even more crucial in the regulated workplace. This covers most health and social care roles where the balance of power and control over the recipient of a service must be considered.
The reality is that discernment in witnessing will become increasingly important as we approach the end of this age. Scripture tells us that the love of many will grow cold and more persecution will take place even in the so-called ‘Secular Nations’.
Suggested steps for the mission of witnessing in the workplace
- Pray daily for wisdom and faith to obey God in the workplace and for those you are in contact.
- Let as many people as possible in work know that you are a Disciple of Jesus Christ.
- Be excellent in your work, doing every task as worship to the Lord.
- Be an ambassador of Christ, being the salt and the light of the workplace both in word and character.
- Connect, make friends, and socialise with various people in the workplace
- Look out for opportunities to share your faith whilst listening to the Holy Spirit for guidance. Then act boldly in faith.
- Receive it joyfully when persecution comes.Wait on God for the deliverance from it and get ready for the promotion that is coming at the end of it.
For anyone in need of support from persecution; Christian Concern is an organisation in the United Kingdom that can provide support. You can email info@christianconcern.com or check out their website at
www.christianconcern.com
And that is the end of this series of blogs, praise God!!
Thank you
I would like to use this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed to the blog in one way or the other.
I appreciate your time in reading and your feedback over the months of writing.
My special appreciation for those who supported moral, financial, and spiritual support in prayers.
I look forward to your ongoing support as I may call on you for further feedback in writing the book to follow from the blog.
God bless you and let us keep growing in the image of our Lord Jesus Christ
Adesina