We Do Have Work to Do

We have work to do
By: Dr. Danny Purvis

Despite the fact that I was an English major in college, I was never enamored with the grammar part. I wasn’t that good at it and I never really grasped onto the more complex aspects of grammar. In fact, to this very day I would have a very difficult time explaining what a gerund is or how to avoid a split infinitive. But that doesn’t mean I don’t understand the power grammar has to keep us from misunderstanding our own language. It is to our detriment if we do not examine grammar while reading God’s Word and understanding what God is communicating to us via His Word. Many times…if we get the grammar wrong we often get the meaning wrong.

Even the most innocuous parts of language have tremendous impact on our understanding of doctrine and God’s principles. Prepositions are my favorite. Generally speaking prepositions are short…often monosyllabic words that on the surface do not seem overly important. In fact, many times our brains will simply gloss right over these words. But we do so to our own detriment. Take the two words “for” and “from”. They share three of the same letters and so we rarely take notice of the impact they have. But we need to. For example…we do not work “for” our salvation…but we do work “from” our salvation.

In other words, God is crystal clear throughout all the Bible that salvation is a gift of God bestowed upon whom He chooses to bestow it. See, I just ended a sentence with a preposition…which is not grammatically correct. But I digress. Salvation is a gift given by a benevolent God borne simply out of His grace. We do not deserve it. We cannot earn it. We cannot work for it. In fact, in Romans Paul writes that if we did work for salvation then salvation would not be grace but it would be a debt God owed us because we did the work. No different than the paycheck we work for each week at our job. No worker has ever looked at their paycheck as an act of grace by their employer. They rightfully look at it as something being owed to them because of their work.

But while we are not expected to nor are we able to work “for” our salvation…one other thing is equally true. We are very much expected to work “from” our salvation. This idea is communicated to us throughout the entirety of Scripture. God saves people…then He puts them to work. And in case we have any doubts about that…I don’t how God could have made this any clearer than He does in Ephesians 2:10. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works”. We are created in Christ (saved) in order for us to do good works. He puts us to work. It is just that simple.

Why else would He give us gifts unless He intended for us to use those gifts for the furtherance of His kingdom. Peter writes. “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s grace” (1 Peter 4:10). There are several givens in this all important verse. It is a given that each Believer has at least one gift. The reality is that He gives us multiple gifts. It is a gives that we are to simply…use it. It is not enough to have it. We must use it. It is a given that the gifts belong to Him…and we are simply stewards. Good stewards as the text tells us. Which means if we are not using them…then we are bad stewards. And it is a given that by using them, we are helping to disseminate the very grace of God.

God saved us to provide us the opportunity for us to live eternally with Him in the bliss of heaven. But…that only happens when we die. What about before that? Before that He has work for us on this planet. That work is rightly referred to in Scripture as service. First, it is service to God Himself (Colossians 3:23). But it is also service to others. God Himself actually allows us…desires for us…to take part in His kingdom work. That alone is mind boggling to me. I don’t know about you, but I would have a hard time trusting someone to help me change my tire. But God gives us the ability, the desire, and the power to work and serve in His name to take part in His redemptive plan on this planet.

And there is perhaps no better avenue to do this than in your local church. Where are you serving in your local church? How are you serving in your local church? Are you serving in your local church. The church is an interesting organization. While, yes, there are certainly paid staff…the VAST majority of the work must be done by the congregation. Ephesians 4:12 tells me that one of my primary jobs as a pastor is to prepare God’s people for works of ministry (Ephesians 4:12). And every single job in a local church is ministry. All of it is designed to make it possible for the Gospel to be proclaimed. Even most “mundane” or behind-the-scenes job makes it possible for the Gospel to go forth.

So…just ask yourself some questions. What am I doing in service to God and to others in my local church? How am I helping to make it possible for the Gospel to be proclaimed? How am I using anything that I have, to do the good service God commands of me in His Word? If you are struggling with answers to those questions…I have a piece of advice for you.

Get to work.  

-Dr.Danny Purvis