LABOUR IN THE LORD IS NOT IN VAIN

1 Corinthians 15:50-58 / Keywords 15:58

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labour in the Lord is not in vain.

 

15:50 I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. 54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”[h]

55 “Where, O death, is your victory?

    Where, O death, is your sting?”[i]

56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58 Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Footnotes

h. 1 Corinthians 15:54 Isaiah 25:8

i. 1 Corinthians 15:55 Hosea 13:14

1. Flesh and blood cannot inherit God’s kingdom. So how can we enter God’s kingdom then? The mystery is: we will all be changed in a flash at the last trumpet. The perishable will be clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. At that moment death will be swallowed up in victory. Where then is death’s victory and sting (55)? Death’s sting is sin, and sin’s power is the law. But thanks be to God, we have victory in and through Jesus Christ our Lord!

2. Paul concludes this powerful chapter on the resurrection with a “therefore.” What, therefore, should we do? We should stand firm in the gospel and not be moved or shaken by doubts or enemies (1,58). We should always give ourselves fully to the work of the Lord. Why? Because labor in the Lord is never a useless waste. “Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.” --C.T.Studd (1860-1931)

Prayer Father, thank you for the hope and promise we have in Jesus Christ our Lord. May our lives bring him glory, honor and praise. Amen.

One Word Therefore, live and labour for Jesus