Labor Day: A Christian Perspective

Labor Day: A Christian Perspective

Dr. Benjamin Dean, director of the CIU Business and Organizational Leadership program

By Benjamin P. Dean, Ph.D.

Director, Business and Organizational Leadership Program 

Labor Day officially recognizes the contributions workers make in building our nation's economy. The day also recognizes the significance of work itself in creating a productive and healthy society. For believers in Jesus Christ, this holiday especially honors the human efforts of individuals as persons uniquely created in the image of God.

The first examples of work recorded in the Bible were those of God Himself: “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” The quality of that work was both creative and excellent. In addition, a central theme of the Protestant Reformation emphasized the biblical perspective that all moral and lawful work reflects an inherent dignity and worth that God has infused into every vocation.

Students and graduates of CIU’s rapidly growing Business and Organizational Leadership (BOL) program serve God by applying Kingdom principles in their workplace and by leveraging their unique God-given talents, skills, and experience to transform human society. BOL students are being equipped to create and operate successful business enterprises, to lead and fully develop people, and to form and build mission-capable teams and organizations.

Three key characteristics set CIU’s program apart from similar programs at other colleges and universities. One distinctive derives from CIU’s longstanding emphasis on global mission. A second consists of the program's ethical and values-based perspective. A third distinctive focuses on practical skills that can immediately make a valuable contribution in any workplace. In whatever work BOL students and graduates may immerse themselves, they will be well-prepared to serve a broad array of companies and organizations, both in the United States around the world.

Celebrating Labor Day invites us to remember that it is God who makes possible the creative and productive work we do in all fields of human endeavor. We can respect the sacredness of God’s own work of creation, as well as the value and dignity God has infused within all labor for His glory and the building of His Kingdom.