July 2, 2023

Work, Laziness, and Diligence

Anthony Gammage – Various Proverbs 

Sermon Quotes

Proverbs 6:9–11
[9] How long will you lie there, O sluggard?
When will you arise from your sleep?
[10] A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,
[11] and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
and want like an armed man.

Proverbs 13:4
[4] The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing,
while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

Proverbs 6:6–8
[6] Go to the ant, O sluggard;
consider her ways, and be wise.
[7] Without having any chief,
officer, or ruler,
[8] she prepares her bread in summer
and gathers her food in harvest.

Proverbs 22:29
[29] Do you see a man skillful in his work?
He will stand before kings;
he will not stand before obscure men.

Proverbs 13:4
[4] The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing,
while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied

Genesis 1:27-28
[27] So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

[28] Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Genesis 2:15
[15] The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.

Genesis 2:1–3
[1] Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. [2] And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. [3] So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

Genesis 3:17–19
…cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
[18] thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
[19] By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”

Proverbs 6:9–11
[9] How long will you lie there, O sluggard?
When will you arise from your sleep?
[10] A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,
[11] and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
and want like an armed man.

Proverbs 26:14
[13] The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road!
There is a lion in the streets!”
[14] As a door turns on its hinges,
so does a sluggard on his bed.

Proverbs 19:24
[24] The sluggard buries his hand in the dish
and will not even bring it back to his mouth.

Proverbs 13:4
[4] The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing,
while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

Proverbs 10:26
[26] Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
so is the sluggard to those who send him.

Proverbs 18:9
[9] Whoever is slack in his work
is a brother to him who destroys

1 Thessalonians 4:9-12
…But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, [11] and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, [12] so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

2 Thessalonians 3:6, 10-11
[6] Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us…[10] For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. [11] For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies

1 Timothy 5:8
[8] But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

Ephesians 6:6
[6] not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart

Proverbs 6:6–8
[6] Go to the ant, O sluggard;
consider her ways, and be wise.
[7] Without having any chief,
officer, or ruler,
[8] she prepares her bread in summer
and gathers her food in harvest.

Proverbs 21:5
[5] The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,
but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.

Proverbs 22:29
[29] Do you see a man skillful in his work?
He will stand before kings;
he will not stand before obscure men..

John 5:15–17
[15] The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. [16] And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. [17] But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”

Ephesians 2:8–10
[8] For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, [9] not a result of works, so that no one may boast. [10] For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Hebrews 6:10
[10] For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.

Proverbs 16:26
[26] A worker’s appetite works for him;
his mouth urges him on.

Proverbs 23:4
[4] Do not toil to acquire wealth;
be discerning enough to desist.

Genesis 2:3
[3] So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

Diligence means you apply yourself when you’re supposed to be working, and having the wisdom to stop working in order to do something else. Also, diligence is not discontent – it does not mean knocking ourselves out to better our circumstances, it means doing our work as well as we can, trusting God to bless our efforts in the calling he’s given us.
-C. John Collins