Grace Is Not Opposed to Effort: What 1 Timothy 4 Teaches Christians About Spiritual Growth at Work

In 1 Timothy 4, Paul gives Timothy an instruction that has been sitting with me lately: “Train yourself for godliness.”

The word train is what catches my attention. Paul compares spiritual formation to physical training, and the analogy feels intuitive. We don’t become physically stronger simply because we want to be stronger. We lift the weight, run the miles, eat right, and keep showing up. Over time, that training changes us.

The Christian life works in much the same way. We may sincerely want to become more patient, more loving, more faithful or more like Christ, but desire alone does not form us. At some point, we have to arrange our lives around the person we are hoping to become.

Dallas Willard captured this distinction in a line I come back to often:

“Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning.”

That distinction matters.

As Christians, we believe grace is a gift. We cannot work hard enough, behave well enough or accomplish enough to earn God’s love. Our standing with God is not the result of our performance. It is rooted in what Christ has already done for all of us.

But grace does not mean passivity.

Paul does not tell Timothy to hope godliness will develop over time. He tells him to train for it. There is effort involved in following Christ—not effort to earn God’s favor, but effort to participate in the work God is doing within us.

That training happens through prayer, Scripture, worship, service, generosity, solitude, community and the other practices that continually reorient our lives toward God. But I also think we can miss another important training ground: our work.

For most of us, work occupies a significant portion of our lives. It is where our patience is tested, our pride is exposed, our ambitions are challenged, and our relationships are stretched. In that sense, the workplace gives us opportunities every day to practice the person we say we want to become.

Patience is trained when a coworker frustrates us. Humility is trained when someone else receives the recognition. Integrity is trained when the shortcut would be easier. Grace is trained when someone makes a mistake. Trust is trained when the promotion doesn’t come or the career plan changes. Love is trained when we have to work alongside someone we find difficult.

These moments may feel like interruptions to our spiritual lives, but perhaps they are part of them.

Later in 1 Timothy 4, Paul tells Timothy to practice these things and immerse himself in them “so that all may see your progress.” I find that word encouraging.

Paul doesn’t say perfection. He says progress.

Following Christ is not about arriving at some point where we never get impatient, never struggle with pride and never respond poorly. It is about continually being formed. Over time, there should be evidence that the training is doing something in us—that we are becoming more patient, more gracious, more courageous, more loving and more like Christ. That includes who we are at work.

Grace means we never have to use our careers, accomplishments or performance to prove our worth to God. But that same grace frees us to fully participate in the work He is doing within us. We don’t accidentally become more like Christ. We have to train.

What that training looks like will vary from person to person. A good question to start with, though, is “Am I arranging my life—including the way I work—in a way that is training me to become more like Him?”