God's Business

I heard a well-known Christian leader and author inform 250 successful Christian businesspeople and donors a few days ago that "your business is just a side business; you cannot ever lose track of the fact that your real business is God's business".I am not saying his name or organization because I do not want what I say to be construed as me picking on him, for I am not. His viewpoint is typical of what is said today in American evangelical Christianity, and his viewpoint probably comes from good and decent motives. But what he said is ludicrous, dangerous, and in need of correction.The notion that we have sort of two tiers to our lives - the extra-terrestrial level where all real spiritual work is done, and then the merely material where we do the "have to" stuff (you know, like run our businesses) - is unfounded in Scripture. I am happy to grant those who hold to this mentality that our business and marketplace efforts do not represent the entirety of our Kingdom identity. Indeed, God cares deeply for our families, our leisure, our church lives, our education, and our cultural endeavors (too). However, the notion that we have a "minor" business (the one we run for a paycheck) which is hugely inferior to the "big one (being God's business)", is simply untrue, or better, it is woefully stated.What exactly, may I ask, IS God's business? Is not God's business the redemption of this world? Yes, it is. And does not the redemption of this world include our businesses, our families, our endeavors, our cultural efforts, our finances, etc.? It isn't His side business, either. He is in the universe business, because after the Fall He covenanted to redeem the universe, and restore it to Himself. He is doing this in history, and in this glorious and eschatological process He has tasked us to work, maximize human dignity, chase our passions and dreams, provide for ourselves and our families, and grow the resources He has given us. The creation mandate is a mandate of growth, and few earthly venues provide more of a canvas for growth than our businesses.The speaker doesn't hate business. I know that. But his theology is either consciously wrong or poorly articulated. God's business is our business, and our business is God's business. We do not need to tier, prioritize, segment, or belittle anything. We need to work hard, live well, and in so doing, do the business of God.