Out of the Backseat

 

“Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” –1 Cor 15:58b (NIV)

 

A man was driving along on a rural road one summer day when he saw a car with a flat tire pulled over on the shoulder. Beside the car stood a young lady looking in dismay at what was left of the tire. The man decided to be a Good Samaritan, like the one in Luke 10:30-36, and pulled over to help. He became hot, and the sweat made the dirt cling to his clothes and skin.

 

The woman, who had been watching him, spoke up as he was finishing: “Be  sure  to  let  the  jack  down  gently, because  my husband is sleeping in the backseat of  the car!” Cute story? Sure…but not when you apply it to the church! Sometimes we’re a little too content to be napping when we ought to wake up, climb out of the backseat, and help change the tire!

 

That’s certainly how Paul concludes 1 Corinthians 15. In this chapter he presents a systematic argument for the reality of the coming bodily resurrection. The certainty of our future resurrection from the dead— guaranteed by the past resurrection of Christ—leads to at least four sweeping principles that affect all of life: (1) truth is stronger than falsehood, (2) good is stronger than evil, (3) love is stronger than hatred, and

life is stronger than death.

 

Based upon these immutable truths, Paul concludes with the very timely exhortation of v. 58. In the first half of the verse, he says to be “firm” and “immovable,” that is, to be well-grounded in biblical truths (like our future resurrection) and stable in our faith. But that doesn’t mean we’re to be stagnant or apathetic, for he quickly adds: “Always give yourselves fully to the work of the  Lord.” God  wants  us  to  voluntarily  and  continually  be pouring all of ourselves into His service. And then comes the reason: “because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (v. 58b).

 

In other words, get and stay out of the backseat, because no effort in service to God is ever wasted! No resource spent, no time invested, no sacrifice made for Him is useless! Of all the things  we  could  do  in  life—including  “sleep  away”  the opportunities to serve—what else could we do that’s never wasted?

 

For Discussion: Why do some“stay asleep in the backseat”rather than pitch in to help “change the tire” (the world)? Discuss how implications of the future resurrection (cf. 15:32) and key words in v. 58 address those reasons: “always,”“give  yourselves,”“fully,”“work  of  the Lord,”“labor,”“not  in vain.”