Exodus 20:9-10
Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work
Yes, we are to take the sabbath off from work, but these verses also say that we should work the other 6 days. This does not mean one must work at a place of employment for 6 days of the week. Anyone can find something productive to do, even at a home or an apartment. "Work" does not even have to be physical labor. "Work" can be writing a book, or making a website, or even studying for self improvement. If you are a home-school parent and you are spending time teaching your children, this can be considered "work". Just remember, "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might;" (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
If you are a business owner, you have probably gotten frustrated about the lack of work ethic people have these days. For children and young adults, the blame lies with their parents and the schools. Most people these days have not worked a hard day in their life until after they graduate high school. For adults that should be mature, the blame lies on them. Yes, they are probably in bad habits from when they were children, but they should spend time to break these habits.
Here are some scriptures about work ethic:
2 Thessalonians 3:10
...if any would not work, neither should he eat.
Romans 12:11
[Be] Not slothful in business;
Proverbs 19:15
Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger. if any would not work, neither should he eat
Proverbs 20:13
Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty;
Proverbs 22:29
Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings;
Proverbs 20:4
The sluggard will not plow by reason of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harvest, and have nothing.
Proverbs 10:4
He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.
Proverbs 10:26
As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, So is the lazy man to those who send him. (NKJV)
I have seen and heard many people who said they didn't seek to be rich and they were satisfied with their current meager possessions. We should be satisfied with what we have, and we should not desire to be rich. We should desire to please Him and not be lazy though.
I have also heard of people saying that their goal in working is to save up enough for retirement, so they can live comfortably and basically go on a vacation for the rest of their lives and be able to die, just before their savings are used all the way up. To those type, I will again point out that our Boss (Yahweh) told us to work 6 days a week. I will also point out that"a good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children". (Proverbs 13:22)
Yahweh is our King and Boss. If he tells us to do something, we should do our best to do a good job at it. If He tells us to work 6 days, we should work as we are working for Him. I ask myself all the time at the end of the day, "would my King be pleased with my work today?"
