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The Bible is a powerful book that has helped millions of people through difficult times. It’s full of wisdom, advice and guidance for how to live the best life possible. For this reason, what does the bible say about retirement? What are some biblical guidelines for retirement? How can we follow those guidelines so that our retired years are better than what we could have imagined? So these are the questions we are going to explore in this article!

Retirement is a time of life that can be both exciting and frightening. It’s the end of what might have been decades spent working for the same company, or in some cases, what may have felt like an eternity toiling away at one job. The article will describe some of the biblical approaches for retirement in an effort to make your post-career years better than you ever could have imagined.

The Purpose of Life

Colossians 3 verses 1-2 say that we are Christians who work. We should not just be passive and only do the occasional good deed, but instead, use our time on earth wisely to live for Jesus because of how quickly this life passes by.

The first verse in Colossians is about being dead to ourselves so that Christ can become alive within us; it’s a clear call for Christian responsibility as well as an invitation into active participation with God’s mission through faithfulness in all things – including at your job!

If you have a job, then know: You’re doing what was given to Adam when he worked alongside his Creator before sin came between them (Genesis 2). Your service will always help improve humanity while simultaneously piling up treasures in heaven.

What Does the Bible Say About Retirement?

Are you ready for when you retire? In the Bible, it says that we should be prepared to serve God even when we are retired. Although, The Bible is actually silent on what to do when it’s time for someone to retire but it talks a lot more about how people should live their lives before they reach that point – with wisdom and discernment.

Well, what are the few biblical guidelines for retirement in order to make our retired years better than what we could have imagined? Let’s see..

•  “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37 NIV) When you retire, remember to continue loving Him as much as possible so that what is important can be what he wants for your life.

• Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, and whether it be right. (Proverbs 20:11) Because we are what our deeds show, this means that what we do during retirement will be what people remember us for and what they judge us by in the end.
• “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor” (Exodus 20:16). It is also important to continue being honest and true even after you retire from your career, so as not to deceive those who depend on what we say for their livelihoods or just information in general.

• As the Bible says, there is no biblical principle that a person should retire from his work when he reaches a certain age. The Levites and their service in the tabernacle provide an example of this retirement at 50 years old or older. Those who have served as Levite men were to start serving with other duties after they reached fifty (Numbers 4:25-26).

• The older you are, the more important it is to serve God. No matter what age they may be, people should never retire from serving Him without getting permission first! The Bible has lots of examples where older people were faithful servants all their days: Anna was an elderly widow who ministered daily with fasting and prayer at God’s temple while Simeon served as a man of faith. Titus 2 encourages us by reminding us that old men are obligated to teach younger women how they should behave. Even if we’ve retired from our vocations (even “full-time” Christian ministry), we should never retire from serving Lord.

• The pursuit of pleasure is not a life worth living. Whether it be during one’s younger years, or their later days – the goal should always be to serve God first and foremost in all we do. Those who spend their older years solely focused on this finite aspect are robbing themselves from what could have been an eternity with Him had they repented early enough for sinning past that point (1 Timothy 5:6). The Bible says ” One’s older years are not to be spent solely in the pursuit of pleasure.” This means if you’re retired your primary focus shouldn’t just include golfing, social functions, or pleasurable pursuits alone; these things can make retirement more meaningful but don’t let them become your only goals because what you do in your retirement and what drives the decisions that come with it are what matters.

• The Bible teaches (Second Corinthians 12:14) that the parent ought to save up for their children. But by far, one of the greatest things to “save up” is your spiritual heritage so you can pass it on down in generations like a faithful prayer from an elderly family patriarch or matriarch has done before them. Prayer is perhaps even more fruitful as ministry outlet after retirement than when they were young and full-time workers because now there’s time enough for God alone.

• The Christian is never done serving the Lord; they only change addresses. As one reaches retirement age, it is not uncommon for their work to change in order to conform with the norms of society and what may be considered appropriate or expected based on previous experience. However, people who have spent years walking alongside God are able to share truths about Him that would otherwise go unheard by those around them because they’ve seen firsthand how He’s worked through all stages of life-whether old or young!

A psalmist prayer that we should say as we age: “Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare your power to the next generation, you might to all who are to come” (Psalm 71:18).

To read more about what retirement might entail and how retirees can make the best out of their days, keep reading!

The Book of Numbers 4 does not list any Levites over fifty. Numbers 8:25 tells us that for those on the other side of 50, they must retire from their duties. The point is not to say that we should all have a universal retirement age but rather just when our aging body performs less effectively at work varies among individuals and occupations; Moses was eighty-years old before he began his duties as Israel’s leader (Exodus 7:7).

Despite retirement, the Levites still found a way to serve. They continued working in different ways after they had retired; no longer with their old duties but instead by finding new challenges and helping others who are just starting out on this journey of service.

The verses in the Bible show that old people were still able to work after retirement. When that phase came, the Levites could still “assist their brothers in carrying out duties” (Num. 8:26). Unlike today, they did not retire and then do nothing but sleep all day; instead of retiring, these older Levites transitioned into different ways of serving their communities from assisting others in carrying out their duties at home or abroad as well as mentoring younger generations with wisdom and insight.

Like the Levites, we should not stop working in old age. We may need to give up our work position but still be a valuable and useful member of society by getting involved in various post-retirement activities; such as trade associations, civic organizations, boards of directors or licensing bodies and helping them out when needed. In addition – if it’s too late for that – we can invest more time with family members or other children who may need looking after as well! (Num. 6:24-27).

Old age is a time that many people look forward to. It should be filled with potential, but sadly there are those who never get the chance or opportunity due to when they reach it in life. There are opportunities for them now at this stage of their lives that may not have been available if reached any other point during theirs and others find themselves limited by regulations and societal expectations which prevent them from working as fully as desired because of their age-related restrictions.

It’s not uncommon for people to lie about being retired. Ian Rose writes ‘Why we lie about being retired‘ which explores challenges that come with retirements, such as the feeling of boredom or uselessness.

Based on above discussion, we can conclude following a few guidelines and recommendations which will help retired people live healthier and happier.

1. Spend your time with people who will have an uplifting influence on you, not those who bring down self-esteem and create discord among friends;
2. Keep a prayerful attitude and an expectancy of what God might do;
3. Seek to have peace among you, not strife or contention
4. Share what the Lord has given you with your children, grandchildren, relatives, neighbors who don’t have as much and those in need.
5. Give time generously for prayer even while at work;
6. Remember what the Lord has done for you and what He will do;
7. Be content with what you have;
8. Don’t be anxious about what is to come or what might happen.
9. Look forward in excitement to what God has promised, not backward in regret over what was left undone;
10. Retirement should be a time for new adventures, not a time to be bored.

There are many ways for Christians to stay active and serve the Kingdom of God in retirement. Some may retire from their jobs, but this doesn’t mean they should stop working altogether. They can volunteer at a church or do service work with other people who have retired too! Others might enjoy part-time employment where they still use some skills that were developed throughout their career while simultaneously telling others about Jesus Christ’s saving power over sin through faith.

It is important for all of us to remain mentally and physically active so we can continue serving our Savior well into old age – no matter what kind of job you’re doing now (or in your past) it will always be possible to make disciples as long as you never give up on Him!

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