Who's Your Boss?

When someone asks you who’s your boss, you’re probably tempted to answer with the name of your direct supervisor. It might be a surprise to you to consider Jesus as your boss in the marketplace.

Peter alludes to this in 1 Peter 3:15. He begins the Scripture by telling believers to sanctify God in our hearts. Sanctifying God in our hearts means that we should designate him as holy, or revere him. Reverence for Jesus allows us to keep him first, honoring him as Lord so that we also honor him as our boss. And not just our boss when we’re in church, but at home and work, too.

Jesus understands and respects leadership, and we should try to follow his example. During Jesus’s earthly ministry, he submitted himself to God. In Luke 2:49, Jesus even says that he is about his Father’s business. This shows us that the Son recognizes the Father as the boss.

We also see this concept of authority with the story of the centurion in Matthew 8. The centurion, a leader himself, understands and submits to Jesus’s leadership and ability to heal his sick servant. And Jesus, moved by the faith of this centurion, heals his servant by verse 13.

As we can see, authority also submits to authority. We submit to God as our authority, but when we tell him no or not right now, we essentially tell God that we are our own boss, our own Lord, and that we are in control. When we do not submit to God, we represent ourselves that day instead of representing our leader, Jesus. But we should represent God and always be willing and ready to work for him. As marketplace ministers, we glorify him in everything we do. He is our eternal boss that transcends any building.

Today, remember Jesus is your boss. Ask yourself how you can live, work or study differently because you know who you work for.