Six Days Shalt Thou Labor

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The four day work week and retiring early is in the vogue.  But is that really the best pathway for life?

God commands … not suggests … to work six days.   You might say it is a like Father, like son thing.

Exodus 20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

Exodus 20:11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

If you have figured out how to make a living in such a way that you can retire early from working for your own needs, good for you.  Maybe the Lord has need of your talents.

Moses effectively had three careers.

1. He started out as prince of Egypt, on the way to the throne.  He realized that he was called to help the Hebrews.
2. That led to a banishment where he was a shepherd for forty years.
3. God called him at the burning bush at the age of eighty.  He went back to Pharoah, was instrumental in helping liberate the children of Israel, crossed the Red Sea, received the Ten Commandments, and brought the children of Israel to the brink of the promised land.  His third career spanned forty years.

At the age of 120 this was his testimony.

Deuteronomy 34:7   And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated.

In a culture that is obsessed with youth, in some cases, using some diabolical means to obtain that, consider the example of Moses.   His life spanned three careers and he was going strong at 120.

On the other hand, scripture gives us an example of a man who quit working as was obsessed with “me, myself, and I.”

Luke 12:16 And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:

17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?

18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.

19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.

20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

He retired early and his life ended early.  God called back the talent since he would not use it for the purposes of God.

Some of you who have lived long enough have probably seen at least one example of this.  I know I have.  Someone retires early and a few years later that person is dead.

I get it.  You work hard for many years and want a little break.  But perpetual days with nothing to do is not good.

Six days shalt thou labor.  Surely, your talents can be used somewhere.

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