Christian Labor

~ 3 W’s of Christian Labor ~

 

Workers for His Name ~ “Beloved, you do faithfully whatever you do for the brethren and for strangers, who have borne witness of your love before the church. If you send them forward on their journey in a manner worthy of God, you will do well, because they went forth for His name’s sake, taking nothing from the Gentiles. We therefore ought to receive such, that we may become fellow workers for the truth” (3 John 5-8).

 

Witnesses for His Truth ~ “And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, ‘which,’ He said, ‘you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’ Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, ‘Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?’ And He said to them, ‘It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth’” (Acts 1:4-8).

 

Watchers for His Coming ~ Jesus said, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is. It is like a man going to a far country, who left his house and gave authority to his servants, and to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to watch. Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming — in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning — lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!” (Mark 13:35-37).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

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Work Hard!

  ~ Are These The Last Days Of Earth As We Know It? ~

 

The Unknown Time ~ Jesus said, “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming” (Matthew 25:13).

 

“Jesus said to them, ‘My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.  Do you not say, “There are still four months and then comes the harvest”? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest’!” (John 4:34-36).

 

Christian Response  ~  Time is short so work hard for His kingdom while there is still time.

 

Pre-Christian Response  ~  “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.  But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left.  Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.  But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.  Therefore you also be ready” (Matthew 24:36-44a).

 

Are You Ready?  ~  There is only one way!  Jesus said, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up [and He was on the Cross], that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

 

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.  But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God” (John 3:14-21).

 

Decision Time!  ~  What are you going to decide?  Are you headed for eternal torment or eternal great joy and satisfaction?  It is the most decision anyone can make while alive on this planet. 

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

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Labor Correctly

 ~ Characteristics of Effective Labor for God ~

 

Scripture  ~  “Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus.  This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John” (Acts 18:24-25).

 

Apollos Is A Good Example  ~  Notice four key aspects of his ministry:

First, notice that he was “an eloquent man” – he used language effectively.

Second, he was “mighty in the Scriptures” – he knew the Word of God. 

Third, “instructed in the way of the Lord” – he had received good mentoring. 

Fourth, “fervent in spirit” – he was proactive rather than laid back.   

 

Summary  ~  These four factors will go a long way towards the goal of being “a good minister of Jesus Christ.”

“If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed” (1 Timothy 4:6-7). 

 

Comment  ~  This post is about serving God effectively in whatever role He has given you.  These factors are not limited to Pastors, Preachers, or Teachers. 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

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Walk and Work

~ Are You Laboring In The Best Work? ~

Walking With God (one path)  ~  Example: “Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah.  After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters.  So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years.  And Enoch walked with God” (Genesis 5:21-24a).

Working With God (one object)  ~  Example: “But the people said to Saul, ‘Shall Jonathan die, who has accomplished this great deliverance in Israel?  Certainly not!  As the Lord lives, not one hair of his head shall fall to the ground, for he has worked with God this day.’  So the people rescued Jonathan, and he did not die” (1 Samuel 14:45).   

Always Praying (in the Spirit)  ~  Jesus said, “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.  For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth.  Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:34-36).

“Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power, that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12). 

Always Rejoicing (in the Lord)  ~  “We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed.  But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings; by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things” (2 Corinthians 6:3-10).

Always Abounding (in the work)  ~  “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58).   

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

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