Book Review: God at Work: Your Christian Vocation in All of Life (Author: Gene Edward Veith, Jr.)
Leonard Winardi

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Gene Edward Veith, Jr. is the Culture Editor of WORLD Magazine and the Executive Director of the Cranach Institute at Concordia Theological Seminary. He is the author of 14 books, including Loving God with All Your Mind and Postmodern Times

Veith attempts to explore the doctrine of vocation and to apply the doctrine in a practical way by describing the purpose and how to find one’s vocation. This book addresses specific vocations and problems common to them.

The reader of Cross Point will benefit from this book which brings different perspective on vocation. Unlike Os Guinness’s popular book The Call, which emphasizes what one should do as a Christian worker, citizen, or parent, this book emphasizes on what God does in and through our vocations. In this sense, vocation is not another burden placed upon us, but a realm in which we can experience God’s love and grace.

Book Summary

His view on vocation is dominated by Luther, which emphasizes on what God does in and through our vocations. Veith wrote that “vocation is not just a matter of law … vocation is a matter of Gospel, a manifestation of God’s action, not our own.” Further he quoted Luther that our vocations are masks of God for delivering His blessings. That is to say that God works through means. In His spiritual kingdom, in which He brings sinners into the life of faith, God uses His people and common blessings to call, convert, and sustain the people in faith. In His earthly kingdom, God works through natural laws and His people to bring about His providence and blessings.

Based on his exposition on the book of Romans, Veith concluded that God and only God has the authority and elects one to serve on one vocation. All vocations are God’s instrument for delivering God’s providence. Furthermore, each vocation has its own limit and responsibility. Not everybody is called to be a police that can capture and shoot criminals. Veith directs us to understand the purpose of our life and the importance of faith before addressing the practical questions of how to find our vocations.

Veith refers to Ephesians 2:8-10 in describing our purpose in life and the relationship between faith and works. He said that our relationship with God is established by our faith. Our works will not better our relationship with God. However, by virtue of our creation, our purpose in life is to do good works, which God Himself prepared for us to do. In other words, we serve God through our faith and serve our neighbor with our good works. Veith emphasizes that we must first consider those in needs as our neighbors when choosing our vocation.

We need to be asking what God called us to do rather than asking what we must do to find out our vocation. Instead of asking, what job or career should I pursue, one should ask what is God’s calling for me in my current job, family, church, and country. Veith believes that our vocation is not for our choosing but rather of a divine will of God. Our freewill will be part of God’s divine plan to direct us to our vocation. God determines to what family, community, and country we were born. God also determines how the world evolves and affects us. These elements in turn determine our talents, passions, and personalities. Finding our vocations then has to do, in finding our God given talents and personalities.

With this assumption, vocation contains in itself an element of time and space. Vocation or God’s calling changes or progresses with time. For example, when we were little children, our calling in the family is to be a child. As we grows up and have children of our own, our calling in family changes that is to be a good parent while being a good child to our parents. Our vocation is not one single occupation. We are God’s instrument in our workplace, family, church, and country.

Conclusions

The doctrine of vocation is a theology of the Christian life. As Christ has said in Luke 9:23, “if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up the cross daily and follow me.” This does not mean just to martyrdom; nor is it just occasional thorn in the flesh that Christians must put up with. The cross needs to be borne daily and not only for the clergy but also for all Christians. The doctrine of vocation is a theology of how we conduct our daily and ordinary life.

Our daily life need to be understood in the context of our vocations. We are called to these three institutions – family, church, and country – these are ordained and established by God. Our place of work in businesses, universities, hospitals, and manufacturing plants are influenced by our calling to our family, church, and country. Therefore, not only we need to seek out our God given talents and personalities, but also study the context of our time to find God’s calling for us.

The book is very well written summary and in more understandable language on Wingren’s Luther on Vocation. Critics might disagree with Veith on his doctrine of free will, the significance of faith, and the insignificance of the prayer of unhelpful Christians. However, he argues that by seeking God and having faith the Christians in Luther’s time were liberated and reformed the culture.

Leonard Winardi is a PhD candidate in Materials Science and Engineering at UAB. He is also pursuing a MPA degree from the same university.

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