When I’m in my normal life in the country where I live, it’s easy to measure “success.” I’ve created measurable objectives that tell me if I’m doing the work that I believe I’m called to do. But when I’m outside of my context and away from what I typically consider to be my work, I am faced with a new set of questions: Am I accomplishing what I am supposed to while I’m stuck in this other Arab country? Sure, I am staying busy with language coaching and regional projects and having occasional online conversations with Arab friends, but all of us can easily slip into a religious mindset: Am I doing enough?

In one of our conversations, my friend Hanan mentioned to me that there were some things in her religion that she had to do, and other things that were optional but recommended. I asked her to explain the difference. She told me,

There is a difference between sunne and fard. Fard is something that we have to do, like prayers. If we don’t do it, it’s wrong. Sunne is something I should do, but I don’t have to. It’s on a lower level than fardSunne consists of everything that the prophet (peace be upon him) did. It’s good for us to do it. If it’s written in the Qur’an or hadith as a command, we know it’s fard. But God sent the prophet (peace be upon him) so that Muslims would know how to deal with every situation. The sunne, for example, says that when I drink water, I should say bismilllah (in the name of God), take three small sips, and say alhamdulilah (praise be to God) when I finish. Or when I eat dates, I should eat an odd number. I don’t have to, but that’s what the prophet (peace be upon him) did. If we want to get closer to God, we have to do the sunneIt’s like bonus points at school – like homework that you don’t have to do, but you do it because you want to be smarter and better than others.

People in Jesus’ time also had questions about the works that they should do. They asked Jesus, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” (John 6:28). It’s like they’re saying, “We know there are a lot of good things we should do, but what must we do to earn God’s favor?” What is sunne and what is fard

Jesus’ answer was straightforward. “This is the work of God–that you believe in the One He has sent” (6:29). Jesus’ statement of the gospel rings clear. It’s not about the things you should do to get closer to the Kingdom or must do to earn God’s favor. This answer didn’t satisfy the crowd. Doing good works was so deeply engrained into their thinking that they asked Jesus to prove Himself by showing a sign: “What work do You perform?” (6:30). 

Strike two – wrong question again. Neither of their questions received the type of answer they were hoping for. I, too, often ask the wrong questions.

My version of “What must I do to perform the works of God?” sounds like, What am I supposed to be accomplishing while I’m stuck here?”  Being in the place I least expected during the strangest time in my lived history, I easily wonder why I’m here and what I have to do in order to get home as soon as possible! 

My version of “What work do You perform?” can sound like, “What are You going to do to prove Yourself to me?” I don’t ask that question directly, but it comes out in my sighing and my wishing I was elsewhere and my living in the future or the past.  

So today, I’m asking a new question. Rather than striving to figure out what I must do or even what I should do, I seek an answer to this question: “Jesus, what are You doing around me right now, and how can I join You in Your work?” I recognize that I’m not a slave to works. I’m freed to follow Jesus in doing the will of the Father: “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me” (6:38).

My work is to believe in Jesus – and to join Him in what He is already doing around me. Today, I am praying:

  • What are You doing in this nation and how can I join Your work?
  • What are You doing in the lives of language learners and how can I join Your work?
  • What are You doing in the lives of the people who are reading this post, and how can I join Your work?

Today, join me in asking the Lord what He is doing in the lives of the people in our circles of influence – and how you can partner with Him in that work. Pray, too, that Muslims will recognize that their works – whether they are sunneor fard – are insufficient to gain eternal salvation. Pray they will embrace the gospel: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).

A Question of Works
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