Plantinga's last chapter on vocation and the Kingdom of God seems like a somewhat painful flashback to our Prelude course at the beginning of last semester, except with more enthusiasm and much more willingness to condemn than the author of the Prelude packet (were they the same?). Perhaps I have no right to judge what he writes in return, but unfortunately, this blog demands my thoughts, not a cookie-cutter, noncommittal answer.
Plantinga makes a distinction between a "good"citizen of the Kingdom of God and a "prime"citizen. Before anything else is said, Plantinga is already grouping the citizens of God by a scale of passion. If we are not passionate about bringing about God's Kingdom, then we are not prime citizens at all, but neither are we simply good citizens either. Perhaps I like things a little too black and white for the average taste, but I feel as though Plantinga is inadvertently accepting complacency in the Kingdom.
It seems as though Plantinga has gotten rather sloppy in his writing, taking less care to filter out dangerous phrases. I found it difficult to focus on the rest of his chapter simply because I was so distracted by his blatant labeling of others: "Let's call a person who accepts Jesus' commission a good citizen . . . let's call a person who accepts this commission with enthusiasm a prime citizen."
Something I did appreciate (when I wasn't grumbling and finding fault in everything Plantinga had to say) was his redeemable idea that vocation, job, or whatever term he used to discuss work done in some sort of occupation, was less about what you do, but rather how you do it. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as if working for the Lord, and not for men." Christians are called to do whatever it takes to further God's Kingdom. There are no "good" or "prime" citizens; there are simply those who take up the calling and those who don't. A Christian is suited for every job, anywhere. Whether a CEO or a doctor, a writer or a trashman, they are fully equipped to do their work as joyfully as if it had always been their dream to be there. This enthusiasm comes only from the comfort of the idea that God can use anyone, anywhere, for His glory. I loved Professor Adriana's (was it Professor Paulo's?) reminder of Joseph; even if he wasn't in a position he wanted to be in (who does want to be a slave?), he work as if working for the Lord, resisting temptation, using his talents not for his own benefit, but for the benefit of others. Soon, God had him second only to Pharaoh, a Hebrew ruling the Egyptian people. What a shocking change! A rags to riches story made possible by God's strength and might and compassion.
"Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord."
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