Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. (Colossians 3:22-24, ESV)
At the press conference before the 2025 Open Championship at Royal Portrush Golf Club, Scottie Scheffler said, “I love to be able to provide for my family out here playing golf… but if my golf… ever affects the relationship I have with my wife or with my son, that’s gonna be the last day that I play out here for a living.”
I suspect Scheffler’s statement made some golf purists uncomfortable because, in elevating his family, Scheffler impliedly diminished the importance of professional golf. Christians, though, rightly applauded Scheffler for affirming the importance of being a good husband and father.
But while Scheffler’s statement addressed the relative importance of professional golf, it did not address its purpose. Professional golf should not be more important to a professional golfer than their family, but what is the purpose of professional golf, and what should be the primary motivation for those who play it?
The scripture above brings some clarity to this issue. Paul says to servants in Colossae that they should do their work “sincerely,” meaning they should do their job for the purpose for which it exists, to serve, not just to be seen serving or win favor with their masters.
Professional golf exists to entertain its fans. It’s a form of entertainment, similar to the music or movie industries. Martin Luther, in his Doctrine of Vocation, would say that God meets people’s need to be entertained through the work of the professional golfer. Professional golf is a form of service, and like any other legitimate job, it is a calling from God.
For a professional golfer, then, doing one’s job “sincerely” means playing professional golf not to get rich or famous but to entertain those who watch it.
Arnold Palmer was beloved because of how he played and connected with fans, embodying the purpose of professional golf. Conversely, many fans naturally recoiled against golfers leaving the PGA Tour for the LIV Tour because they wanted “to build generational wealth.”
We know instinctively that professional golf doesn’t exist to make professional golfers rich but to make its fans happy.
Of course, this devotional is not ultimately about Scottie Scheffler or the PGA Tour but about you and me and what should motivate our work. As a trial lawyer, doing my work sincerely means working so justice is done on the earth.
For a doctor, it means working so people can be healed. And for every other worker, it means doing their job for the reason that the job exists. If we truly recognize our work as a calling, to do our job for any other reason is to do our job for the wrong reason.
When we do our work, not for the acclaim, the money, or fame but sincerely, we are on the road to being able to one day say, like Jesus, “Father, I have glorified You on the earth by completing the work you gave me to do” (John 17:4).
Prayer: Lord, help me always to do my job sincerely so I may glorify you in the work you have given me to do. Amen.