1 Corinthians 15:58

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Beloved brethren ... It is remarkable how frequently Paul used this term of endearment and affection. Not even the gross sins and mistakes of the sensual and carnal Corinthians could diminish his love for them nor his loving persuasion helping them to conform more perfectly to the will of Christ.

Be ye stedfast ... Paul expected Christians to be able to "take it." He wrote the Ephesians, "Stand therefore" (Ephesians 6:14); and the admonition is the same here. Through the ages, there has been no more necessary virtue than the ability to be steadfast amidst changing scenes and times, despite temptations and sorrows, and without regard to every "wind of doctrine" that creates some little stir among people.

Unmovable ... The Christian is to be unmovable not in prejudice, but in faith.

Abounding in the work of the Lord ... Far from advocating an easy way of salvation by merely believing, Paul demanded and encouraged that the redeemed should abound continually in the Lord's work. He commanded the Philippians to "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling" (Philippians 1:12). He established a pillar of truth, both at the beginning of Romans (Romans 1:5) and at the end of it (Romans 16:26), stressing the "obedience of faith." He, like every true Christian, would have been outraged by any notion to the effect that people are "saved by faith alone."

Your labor is not in vain ... What is done for Christ and his kingdom is work for God; all else is idleness. "Why stand ye here idle all day?" was the question Jesus burned into people's consciences (Matthew 20:6). They were not idle in the sense of doing nothing, but in the sense of not doing the only thing that mattered; and, alas, it must be feared that the same is true of many today.

In the Lord ... This expression, or its equivalent, appears 169 times in the writings of the apostle Paul; and by that fact, it may be claimed that this is the most important phrase Paul ever wrote, because he repeated it more than any other. Salvation is "in the Lord" and nowhere else. Every man should ask himself the question, "Am I in the Lord?" As to how this relation is established, the sacred Scriptures leave no doubt whatever. People are baptized "into Christ" at a time subsequent to their having believed on the Lord Jesus Christ and having repented and confessed his name (Acts 2:38; Romans 6:3; Galatians 3:27). There is no other way to be "in the Lord."

The conclusion of this chapter reveals it as a prime motivation of Christian service. It is unfortunate, in a sense, that its marvelous teachings are stressed almost exclusively at funerals.