ABOUNDING in the WORK of the LORD

SEPTEMBER 4, 2023

 Colossians 3:23

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters ….

1 Corinthians 15:58

“therefore...be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

I know that Labor Day is a secular holiday, yet I believe it is a holiday that Christians should easily embrace and celebrate. Not simply because we desire a day off, but because within the scheme of God’s creation, labor is one of the primary ways in which we express our likeness to God and our love for neighbor. As we participate in building a world in which human beings thrive and flourish across all areas of life.

In 1 Corinthians 15:58, we read “therefore...be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” Paul isn’t just talking about his own work, or that of those who assisted him in ministry. Labor within the Christian Community is not just about ministry, although its is about ministry. Christian labor is larger than ministry purposes. I feel that Paul is talking about the ordinary work of all the people that would have first heard the letter read in the context of worship, the wealthy and the poor, the powerful and the powerless. Our labor matters - within the Christian community, and as part of world, in both contexts work matters. Jesus’ resurrection anchors our lives within a  new way of taking up any type of work as one in the Lord and in the way of the Lord. 

Reflect on the teaching below in our contemporary Testimony about work and labor.

Our World Belongs to God  

Contemporary Testimony CRCNA

Our work is a calling from God.
We work for more than wages
and manage for more than profit
so that mutual respect
and the just use of goods and skills
may shape the workplace.
While we earn or profit,
we love our neighbors by providing
useful products and services.
In our global economy
we advocate meaningful work
and fair wages for all.
Out of the Lord’s generosity to us,
we give freely and gladly
of our money and time.

 

 

 

Let us pray to the Lord of all creation, from whom comes life and work and purpose.

Almighty God, when you formed us lovingly out of the dust of the earth, you breathed into us the breath of life and gave us work and purpose for living.

 

Through our work, you made us co-creators with you, shaping the world in which we live.

You gave dignity to our labor by sending your Son to labor with us.

 

By our labor, you enrich the world.

By our labor, we enjoy the fruits of creation.

 

By our labor, we find direction and purpose.

By our labor, our families are made secure.

 

For providing varieties of work and for blessing us by our labor:

We give you thanks, O Lord.

 

For those who plow the field and those who make the plow; for farmers and farm workers, for steelworkers and machinists; for those who work with their hands and those who move the earth:

We give you thanks, O Lord.

 

For those who tend the sick and those who seek new cures; for doctors and nurses, for scientists and technicians; for those who keep notes and those who transcribe:

We give you thanks, O Lord.

 

For those who think and those who create; for inventors and explorers, for artists and musicians; for those who write books and those who entertain:

We give you thanks, O Lord.

 

For those who work in offices and those who work in warehouses; for secretaries and receptionists, for stockers and bookkeepers; for those who market products and for those who move them:

We give you thanks, O Lord.

 

For those who inspire our minds and those who motivate us; for teachers and preachers, for public servants and religious servants; those who help the poor and those who work with our children:

We give you thanks, O Lord.

 

For those whose labor is tidiness and cleanliness; for janitors and sanitary workers, for drycleaners and maids; for those who produce cleaning products and those who use them:

We give you thanks, O Lord.

 

For those who sail the waves and those who fly the skies; for captains and attendants, for astronauts and deep sea divers; for those who chart and those who navigate:

We give you thanks, O Lord.

 

You bless us all with skills and gifts for labor.

You provide us opportunities to use them, for the benefit of others as well as ourselves.

 

Guard and protect those who labor in the world.

Bless the work of our hands, O Lord.

 

Look kindly upon the unemployed and the disabled.

Give health to the sick, hope to the bereaved.

 

Keep us from laboring only for greed.

Make us loving and responsible in all that we do.

 

Creator Lord, you are the source of all wisdom and purpose, you are the blessing of those who labor. Be with us in our labor to guide and govern our world. Give all men and women work that enhances human dignity and bonds us to one another. Give us pride in our work, a fair return for our labor, and joy in knowing that our work finds its source in you; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen