The first element in a symmetrical life is _work_.
Three-fourths of our time is probably spent in work. Of course the
meaning of it is that our work should be just as religious as our
worship, and unless we can work for the glory of God three-fourths of
life remains unsanctified.
The proof that work is religious is that most of Christ's life was
spent in work. During a large part of the first thirty years of His
life He worked with the hammer and the plane, making ploughs and yokes
and household furniture. Christ's public ministry occupied only about
two and a half years of His earthly life; the great bulk of His time
was simply spent in doing common everyday tasks, and ever since then
work has had a new meaning.
When Christ came into the world He was revealed to three deputations
who went to meet and worship Him. First came the shepherds, or working
class; second, the wise men, or student class; and third, the two old
people in the temple, Simeon and Anna; that is to say, Christ is
revealed to men at their work, He is revealed to men at their books,
and He is revealed to men at their worship. It was the old people who
found Christ at their worship, and as we grow older we will spend more
time exclusively in worship than we are able to do now. In the mean
time we must combine our worship with our work, and we may expect to
find Christ at our books and in our common task.
Why should God have provided that so many hours of every day should be
occupied with work? It is because