"What Is Thine Occupation?"

WHAT is thine occupation?" (Jonah 1:8). This is a question that was put by a very frightened group of heathen sailors to a runaway preacher. The following questions were asked of Jonah when he was awakened from peaceful slumber in the bottom of a ship and brought on deck to give a report of his conduct.

"Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou?" (Jonah 1:8).

These are pertinent questions to be put to anyone, and they put Jonah on the spot. The last thing he desired, however, was to be put on the spot. In fact, he was running away from his occupation, from his respon­sibility.

Today we are living in a very frightened world. Perhaps we are not as afraid as these sailors were, but as we observe the breath­taking events that are transpiring around us every day, our hearts fail us for fear, and we may begin to ask questions.

Have we in the past been indifferent to the urgency of our message? Have we truly been preaching a complete message? Have we really become acquainted with the Source and the Author of our message, and do we know Him in all His fullness?

WTe may not be runaway preachers, but we may be sleeping-on-the-job preachers. Poor Jonah was both. We often hear the statement that a guilty conscience will not permit a man to sleep soundly and peace­fully. Jonah seemed to prove that this statement is without foundation. Peter, condemned to die, slept peacefully and could do so with reason, for he was in­nocent. Jonah, the runaway preacher, was guilty of refusing a message from God for a condemned city, but he slept just as well as Peter did. Jesus, of course, the Creator of all things, could sleep through a threat­ening storm. The Spirit of God can bring peace and rest to the man who has a clear conscience. But Satan also has the ability to give an opiate to a guilty sinner and put him just as soundly to sleep as the man who is innocent of guilt. Therefore, we should make sure of our source of peace before we lie down to rest.

Sins cannot be divided into little sins and big sins, but I think that they can be divided into two classes—the sins of omis­sion and the sins of commission. Jonah's sin was the sin of omission. He knew his duty. He knew where he should go. He knew the message that he ought to give, but he refused to do his duty, and en­deavored to sidetrack the responsibility by fleeing to another place. Cain and Achan and many others recorded in Holy Writ were guilty of the sin of commission. In the sight of God I wonder whether it makes much difference, for the source of both categories of sin is evil. Whether we commit sin or whether we omit to do the right thing, the result is the same.

Out of the many questions that were put to him, the one that brought Jonah to his senses was, "What is thine occupation?" It also brought from him a confession and a statement of his nationality and the fact that he worshiped the only true and liv­ing God. He realized that it was because of his sin of omission that the life of everyone on board the ship was threatened and also the destruction of the ship and its contents. So he suggested a way whereby they could save their lives, and they finally put his suggestion into operation by throwing him over the side of the ship.

Nevertheless, it is said to Jonah's credit that he went over the side of the ship and into the belly of the whale, praying. Re­gardless of the circumstances, that is a good state of mind and heart to be in. As far as Jonah was concerned, the ship was going in the wrong direction, and as far as God was concerned, the whale was headed in the right direction. That was toward Nin­eveh, taking Jonah right back to the call of duty. Jonah continued to pray.

Sometimes people speak lightly of the Moslem saying his prayers in very incon­venient positions and circumstances. For a Mohammedan to pray toward Mecca on a train following a very crooked track is very inconvenient, but at least he is con­sistent and carries on to the best of his ability, offering his prayers toward Mecca.

Jonah was consistent after he had made his confession to the Lord. He was in a very inconvenient place but he continued in prayer. And Jonah's prayer was answered. Eventually his feet were placed on dry land and he was headed again in the right direc­tion.

When God and the world put this ques­tion to you as ministers of the gospel, "What is your occupation?" what is your reaction? The doctor, when asked his pro­fession, is very happy to say he is a physi­cian. In fact, in the Orient today I find many claiming to be doctors who know very little about the medical profession. Nevertheless, they make very sure that everyone gives them that title. The public, however, knows that they are quacks and they them­selves know this to be true.

Often the preacher, perhaps because of false humility, is a little reticent to ac­knowledge publicly that he is a minister of the gospel. He may call himself a Voice of Prophecy secretary, or a district leader, or some other name, but if he is a minister in the truest sense of the word, he should never be afraid to acknowledge it before the world.

On the other hand, I have seen some who boasted of the fact that they were preachers and when one looked into their methods and their effectiveness, one would almost have to put them in the class of quacks also.

If we are truly ministers, let our lives wit­ness to our occupation so that others may see our calling in action.

A minister's occupation is a sacred call­ing. It is one that no man takes unto him­self. It is not something that he can choose. God is the one who does the choosing. The minister's desk is spoken of as a sacred desk. We should never lose sight of this fact. Every time we step up to the pulpit, we should recognize that it has been dedicated to the preaching of the Word, and may we never be guilty of preaching anything ex­cept the Word or of doing anything that would tend to lightness and frivolity and thus bring reproach upon the Sacred Word. The occupation of the minister is a sacred calling, and he who would accept it should live up to its high standard. People take for granted that he is a holy man.

Elisha, the farmer, who accepted the call of God, was spoken of as a holy man. He was called from being a successful farmer to the humble task of pouring water on the hands of Elijah the prophet. The call to the ministry will humble the man of God and he will gladly accept any position that will bring honor and glory to the God whom he serves.

Satan is ever on the track of the man whose occupation is that of being a mouth­piece for God. Jesus warned Peter of the treatment that Satan would mete out to him. He said that he would be sifted as wheat. The evil one constantly sifts men who are called to the sacred work of the ministry. If we are not careful, he will sift the minister of his love for others. He will sift him of his zeal and his convictions and of his enthusiasm. He will sift him of his prayer life and his consecration, but never of his selfishness. It is only the Lord that can empty the life of self and make us com­plete vessels worthy of the occupation of the ministry.

The occupation of the minister is that of a messenger. "I have a message from God unto thee" should control every waking thought of the minister. Paul said he had been entrusted with "the glorious gospel of the blessed God" (1 Tim. 1:11, R.S.V.).

It is a wonderful thing to be entrusted with things or matters of importance. I have often traveled on the train with couriers on government service. Recently I traveled a whole day with one. He and I were in a compartment by ourselves. When we would come to a station, I would get out and relax and when it was meal­time, I would go and have a meal. I noticed, however, that this young man never left the compartment. No one ever came to relieve him, so when it came time for the second meal of the day, I asked him whether he would like for me to stay by his bag while he went to the dining car and got something to eat. He replied that it was impossible for him to do so. I told him that I would take good care of his bags and that he could trust me. He told me that it was not a matter of trust. It was a matter of responsibility. Then he said, "If you desire to do me a favor, will you kindly go to the dining car and bring me a meal?" It impressed me very much that this man was so devoted to duty and to his call­ing that he dared not leave his post even to take a meal.

I have had the experience of traveling with large sums of money. One is never unconscious of that which has been en­trusted into his hands, and he watches it carefully. We have been entrusted with the most valuable possession in the world, the message of life and death. Do we sense our responsibility as Paul did when he called it "the glorious gospel of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted"? It is a marvelous thing that God should put such a priceless gift into our fumbling hands, but He does so that we might take it into the homes of the people, to the children in the homes and in the schools; to the youth of the world who are so puzzled today. He desires us to take it to the businessman in the office; to the farmer out in the field; to the laborer in the mill and on the road. He wants us to bring it to those who are ill and to the bereaved, to the shut-ins and to those in prison. We must take it to the throngs of earth. These are some of the reasons why He has entrusted this priceless gift to us.

What a wonderful occupation the minis­try is. It gives us the privilege of walking with God. What higher or more noble oc­cupation could anyone have in this world than that? But we must keep pace with God.

Frank Laubach, the great apostle of literacy to the millions of illiterate in the Orient, once in an address before a mis­sionary congress in Pennsylvania said:

I'm not afraid of the Communists, not afraid of the Catholics. I'm afraid of some of the Protestants who have neither fire nor vision—men here who begin to see why this might be hard, or unprece­dented, or premature if not properly surveyed, or too informal, or too big. The put-on-the-brakes type, the go-slow type alone can ruin God's program. Oh, ye of little faith, keep your foot off the brake. Let God do the braking if He doesn't want to save those souls. Who ever heard of God holding us back? He is impatient. He weeps over us as He did over Jerusalem. We have nothing to fear but fear; for we aren't good enough, hot enough, high enough, daring enough, far-visioned enough, for this splendid hour. Fear the way we are now. We aren't good enough for God. Is God satisfied with what we call Advance? Can you doubt that God's answer is: "No!"

Truly for the minister to keep pace with God and not lag behind and yet not run ahead is a wonderful thing, and if he is to be successful he must recognize this in his occupation. The occupation of a minister is that of a lighthouse keeper. He is to keep the church aflame for God.

We must remember that the strength of the church lies not in its organization or its finances—they are important—but the source of the church's strength is in its wor­ship and its witness. This is revealed in the courage and faith and character of its mem­bers. And it is the task of the minister to instill these attributes into the lives of those for whom he is responsible.

May God help us as ministers to review the significance of our occupation; make sure that we keep our tools sharpened, so that we may be an honor to our profession and an honor to God and to man.