Jump Start # 1012

1 Corinthians 16:10 “Now if Timothy comes, see that he is with you without cause to be afraid, for he is doing the Lord’s work, as I am also.”

  We talked about this verse yesterday. We looked at the aspect of being afraid. There is another thought that is worth looking into. It’s found at the end of this verse. Paul reminded the Corinthians that Timothy was doing the Lord’s work. Paul stated that he, too, was doing the Lord’s work.

I like that expression, “The Lord’s work.” We don’t hear that very often. Instead we hear, “This is what I am doing,” or, “this is the work of the church.” Paul and Timothy recognized that they were doing the Lord’s work. Give that some thought.

1. The Lord’s work, meant it was a divine work and God approved. It wasn’t Timothy’s work. It wasn’t the Corinthian’s work. It was the Lord’s work. Timothy was working God’s work. It’s easy to put the tag on something and call it the Lord’s work, when it really isn’t. We see that with the use of the word “ministry.” Put any word in front of it and all of a sudden it is connected to God, the church and is funded with church money. Bike ministry, children’s ministry, puppet ministry, pet ministry, prison ministry, single’s ministry, senior citizen ministry, couples ministry, inner city ministry, food ministry, entertainment ministry, worship ministry—there seems to be no end to the “ministry” concept. Just because the word “ministry” is used does not make it the Lord’s work. Timothy was doing the Lord’s work, because this is what the Lord did and this is what the Lord authorized. What was Timothy doing? He wasn’t cooking pancakes on Saturday morning, washing chariots for charity, engaging in a walk-a-thon. Nope. None of those things. Timothy was preaching. Preach the word is what Paul wrote him later in 2 Timothy. Jesus preached. Jesus told the apostles to preach. The Gospel is the power unto salvation. The Gospel was to be preached. Go everywhere preaching Jesus said. Preach to every person Jesus said. That’s God’s work. That’s what Timothy was doing. It was a divine work. It wasn’t the work of the church, it was the Lord’s work. Feeding a person, walking his dog, washing his car, and giving him a ticket to the circus will certainly put a smile on his face and possible make a friend, but it won’t save his soul nor get him to thinking Christ-like. Teaching the Gospel will.

2. The Lord’s work is the greatest work in the world. It is greater than keeping peace among the nations, keeping the economy rolling, or getting more kids to college. God’s work changes destinies and family futures. God’s work never ends. It is teaching and preaching. It is helping people with broken hearts and broken lives to come to the Savior. It’s getting people to recognize that their way didn’t work. It involves warning about wrongs. It involves challenging to do more. It deals with showing how to resist temptation. It involves every aspect of our lives: our families, our money, our habits, our dress, our language, our thinking, our priorities, our relationships. It involves how we handle wrongs. It involves grace and forgiveness. It involves teaching folks how to pray and study the Bible. It is about showing the truths of the Bible. It is about baptizing and worship. It is about getting people ready for Heaven. The Lord’s work—there is nothing greater.

3. We can play a huge part in the Lord’s work. God wants us involved. This work is not so important that God doesn’t include us. He does not say, only the experts are allowed to do this. Can you see what God has invited us to? When you go to a ball game, the coach doesn’t call a time out, run up into the stands, and ask you what you think ought to be done. Never happens. You pay the money for a ticket and you watch. You can cheer the team on. You can holler at the refs. But in the end, you have not been involved. You only watched. God’s work is not like that. Timothy was doing it. Paul was doing it. We can do it. God wants that. You are involved every time you teach. This may be in a formal class that takes place at the church building. It may be at the coffee shop where you are sitting with one other person. It may be through an email. It may come about my posting a Jump Start to someone, or sending them a sermon CD, or simply answering a question with a reference to the Bible. You do this when you invite a friend to come to services. You do this when engage in a conversation at work that has turned religious. You stand upon God’s word. You connect people to the Bible. You do this work when you teach your children at home how to live and how to be righteous. You are a part of this work when you contribute money on Sunday. This provides funds for getting the message out. Tools such as we use to send out Jump Starts, cost money. Printing costs. Making CD’s costs. Traveling to teach costs. Money given helps with the Lord’s work. In all that a church does, the Lord’s work must come first. It must be at the top of the list. This is why a church exists—to worship and do the Lord’s work.

4. The Lord’s work is timeless and lasting. I was reading an article yesterday, written in the 1880’s. That sure was a long time ago. The man who wrote that article is long gone. His words, his insights into the Bible, were still working, long after he quit. The Lord’s work is like that. It out lives us. It is greater than us.

Timothy was doing the Lord’s work. We need more Timothy’s. We need more who are interested in the Lord’s work. We need those who can teach. We need those who can invite. We need those who can preach. We need those who are praying for the Lord’s work. Much of what we do today will not matter fifty years from now. The Lord’s work that we do will. There are congregations and families that are walking with the Lord today because of the work that was done fifty years ago.

The Lord’s work—do your part. Get involved. Make a difference.

Roger