1. Being a Christian in work is being testimonial.³³¹ Following Jesus Christ in our work means testifying to the gospel because Jesus did and He calls on us to do the same.³³² From the Holy Spirit we receive the heart, wisdom, and strength to work testimonially.
2. Working testimonially means believing in the importance of testimonials. Faith in God and acceptance of Jesus make a world of difference and make a difference in the world. Our testimony makes a difference in our workplaces.³³³ If we doubt this, then we misunderstand the difference that the gospel makes in the world. If Christians in their work were not different from non-Christians, then being a Christian means nothing.³³⁴ We are a blessing to others in our work if we enable others to see and experience something of Jesus Christ.³³⁵ Following Jesus has visible consequences for our work.
3. Working testimonially means believing that we can be witnesses at work. The workplace is the perfect place to testify aboutJesus. Our behavior maybe for our colleagues the only Bible they will ever read. That’s why we do not live inside a “bible bubble”. It is precisely in the workplace, with all the temptations, pressures, and uncertainties, where we can show what following Jesus means.
4. Working testimonially means testifying in our work. Testifying in our work does not mean talking about our faith all the time; it means demonstrating our faith in who we are and what we do. If colleagues we work with closely do not know that we are Christians, then this is a missed opportunity; a missed opportunity to show how wonderful and powerful God is and what faith in Him really means.
5. Working testimonially means working according to the principles of God’s Kingdom. Even if our work does not get us heaven on earth, we can show something of heaven on earth through our work.
6. Working testimonially means that we are transparent enough in our work to allow something of God’s light to come through. Our work reveals our close connection with Jesus Christ, the Light of the world.³³⁶ We don’t advertise good works, but we do show them to “sell” the gospel.³³⁷
7. Working testimonially means being role models. In our work, we may convey through our exemplary behavior the example Jesus gives us. If we are His representatives, then we represent Him in our actions. If Jesus is an example to us, then we may follow Him by being an example of His image to others.³³⁸
8. Working testimonially means ensuring that others have nothing bad to say about us because this could prevent them from having a pure view of God.³³⁹
9. Working testimonially means working in such a manner that non-Christians can respect us for our Christian faith,³⁴⁰ if at all possible, appreciate us for our Christian beliefs, and, ideally, be converted to the Christian faith.
10. Working testimonially means seeking out situations where there is darkness and destruction.³⁴¹ We can only be a shining light in dark places. We can only be salting salt in places where there is decay.³⁴² We are not called to withdraw from our work and isolate ourselves from society to live purely and blamelessly.³⁴³ For God, making a difference in the world is more important than to keep our hands clean. We must be careful, however, not to seek out situations where our light is extinguished or we ourselves become depraved.³⁴⁴ The darker and more malicious the workplace, the more god-fearing and godly people are needed there. Praise be to those who continue to bear witness to God in a dark and malevolent work environment.
11. Working testimonially means believing that God can work anywhere. If we think that our workplace is too secular, too hostile to the faith, and too full of greedy, hedonistic, and self-centered people, then this may be exactly where the cross of Christ stands. God’s grace can bring reconciliation and justice to any workplace; to any factory, office building, boardroom, or shack; to any casino, coffee shop, or brothel.
12. Working testimonially means realizing that ideal workplaces do not exist. Some workplaces are more challenging than others to be witnesses of God. But even in such workplaces, we can still be faithful witnesses of God, both in the quality of our presence and our work.
13. Working testimonially means sharing successes and setbacks. By sharing our success with others, we offer them the opportunity to admire the goodness of God. By sharing our setbacks with others, we offer God the opportunity to help us through the others.
14. Working testimonially means speaking openly about God.³⁴⁵ God creates opportunities in our work to speak about His gospel, so let us then speak openly about Him. At work, we are not ashamed of our faith.³⁴⁶ When people ask what motivates and inspires us in our work, we are open and testify about who God is and what God means to us.³⁴⁷ In doing this, we must realize that the more we speak about God, the more others will scrutinize whether our behavior is consistent with what we say. We disgrace the name of Christ when we speak much about Him but neglect our work at the same time.
15. Working testimonially means not being different at work for the sake of being different. Witnessing is not about being different from non-Christians, but about being in the Other and strongly desiring that everyone else believes in the Other as well. Our difference from non-Christians is that our ultimate responsibility is to God, not to shareholders, customers, or anyone else. Our mission, our exalted and holy purpose, is redemption by and reconciliation with God, and not making a profit or satisfying human needs. For our work, experiencing the newness of life means integrating redemption and reconciliation into our work.³⁴⁸
16. Working testimonially means seeing everyone in our work as God’s creation. Christians are distinguished by how they see and treat people they work with. The fellow human being is not a being that is primarily looking for pleasure and happiness. The fellow human being is God’s creation with a soul. Nor is the fellow human being an instrument, obstacle, means of production, expense, or source of money.
17. Working testimonially means not pretending to be better at our work than others are. Being a Christian worker is not about competing to be better than non-Christians. The goal is not to be better, but to be saved by grace and thereby do good. Therefore, our work is not better than others’. It is through God’s grace that we are even aware of our wickedness.
18. Working testimonially means not opposing other believers or unbelievers. Every human being is created in God’s image. We can learn about God from every human being in our work. If we think this is not the case, we are arrogant and misguided in placing ourselves above other persons.

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Questions

1. Which Bible verse about testimony do I find particularly appealing and provides guidance for what working testimonially means (to me)?
2. To what extent do I agree with the above summary of what working testimonially means?
3. Are there any missing elements in the above list of what working testimonially means? If so, which ones?
4. How would I personally describe what working testimonially means for Christians?
5. How would I describe concretely what working testimonially means for me?
6. To what extent do I subscribe to the idea that testimony is an important characteristic/virtue for Christians in their work?
7. To what extent do I subscribe to the idea that testimony is an important guideline/principle for the behavior of Christians in their work?
8. To what extent is testimony an important virtue and principle for me in my work?
9. How do I experience the importance of testimony in my work?
10. Do I work to bring about testimony? Do I do so wholeheartedly?
11. To what extent can I work testimonially in my work?
12. How often have I recently brought testimony to my work?
13. How testimonially do I do my work? How does it show?
14. To what extent do I use testimony as a principle for my behavior in my work? Could I illustrate this using the decisions I have recently made in my work?
15. When I look back at my working life, could I say that I have increasingly become more testimonial in my behavior?
16. To what extent do people I work with think I act testimonially in my work? What have they said to me about this?
17. To what extent do I think God thinks I act testimonially in my work?
18. How can I become and act more testimonially in my work? How would I do this concretely?
19. Which elements of working testimonially am I going to bring more of in my next working day?
20. What am I going to say in a prayer to God about working testimonially?