What is Your Occupation?

How would you answer the question: ‘what was Jesus’ occupation?’ If you said “carpenter,” you are wrong. When I was bi-vocational (a government administrator by day and a biblical counselor by night), I was never quite sure how to answer ‘what is your occupation?’ Generally, I found it less confusing to say “I work for USDA.” While it was the job that occupied most of my time (and the source of my salary and benefits) my biblical counseling and teaching occupied most of my attention. Even when Jesus’ occupation was carpentry, what do you suppose occupied His attention?

“Occupy” means in use, busy, engaged, employed, engrossed, and hard at work. The word “occupy” was used only once by Jesus, in the parable of the pounds (money). The master called his servants and gave them each ten pounds, and said to them, occupy till I come [take care of my business] (Lk. 19:13).

Those who followed Jesus had to change their occupation—the fishermen became fishers of men! And Luke tells of two men who claimed they wanted to follow Jesus, but were otherwise ‘occupied’ with family matters (9:59-61). In rebuking these 'wannabe' disciples, Jesus reveals the intensity of His command for total occupation. "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me" (Luke 14:26). Jesus insisted on total occupation.

Doesn’t Jesus deserve our complete attention—fully engaged, engrossed, and hard at work to know Him and do His work? “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me [fully occupied] cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:27). Do you ever get to the end of your day and realize you were so preoccupied with the details of your life you were not occupied with Jesus?