Work That Lasts
- Joe Venturo
- Feb 13
- 4 min read
“Work” means different things to different people. For some, “work” is the name of a place you go every day to earn your living. For others, “work” constitutes the whole range of activities in which you may engage on a daily basis whether you work a job, stay at home, or go to school.
Yet more broadly speaking, work can mean than just what you do. Everyone’s life is characterized by some sort of work—what we might call your “life’s work,” your legacy, your stamp upon this world. And it is by this all-consummating work that you will be judged or rewarded after you die and stand before God.
For what are you working? I do not mean what are you doing in your life, but what are you doing with your life. What is the broad, overarching goal or purpose for your daily tasks?
I Corinthians 3:13 says that “each one’s work will become manifest.” The context of this verse is the great Day when believers will stand before God, “and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done” (v. 13b). This passage is not talking about condemnation, for there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). Believers will never be judged for their sin. But their work will be tested, and the result of that test will be rewards for those who build their lives on the foundation of Christ and engage in lasting work.
But notice with me, please, a little phrase in I Corinthians 3:13: “what sort of work.” The fire will not test whether you did good deeds; it will determine the type of work that you did.
What sort of work are you doing? Not what is on your to-do list, but what is the nature of the work in which you are engaging?
Romans 2:8 teaches that only those who patiently persevere in well-doing will receive a reward. This verse is within a context that contrasts the judgment of rebellious sinners who persist in sin with the work of patient believers who endure in doing what is good. The Greek word for “well-doing” in this verse is singular, emphasizing more than just righteous actions. It stands for an orientation of one’s activity, a pattern of one’s actions.
What kind of work will last? What characterizes a life worth living? Ultimately, a believer’s overarching work is to bring glory and honor to God and to know Him (Philippians 3:10; Revelation 4:11). Everything you do should be centered around that goal. But I think there are three major subsets of this ultimate goal that Scripture presents as specific examples of how to glorify God and engage in work that lasts for eternity.
Because not just any work is eternal. Pushing for political change is temporary. Speaking out for social change brings only earthly results. No, the greatest Christian leader, the most successful Christian businessman, the kindest-hearted Christian individual, the most charitable Christian organization—if they are not engaging in lasting work, then they have missed the mark and are heaping up straw that will not survive the fire (I Corinthians 3:12, 15).
The first example of lasting work in Scripture is holiness, which basically means to be “separate.” It is eternally worthwhile to live “unstained from the world,” as James 1:27 puts it. Romans 12:1 is very clear on this: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Christians are people who live holy, transformed lives, and thus they are to live in obedience to God’s Word. (Click here for an article about sin committed after conversion.)
Is your lifestyle becoming increasingly holy?
The second example of lasting work in Scripture is edification. Believers will spend eternity in heaven with fellow members of the Body of Christ. The Bible teaches us to admonish and warn brothers and sisters who are going astray (I Thessalonians 5:14; II Thessalonians 3:15), to build up the Body through encouraging words (Ephesians 4:29), and to work generally to cause the church to flourish in righteousness and correct doctrine (Ephesians 4:11-16). Paul’s main exhortation to the Corinthian believers in I Corinthians 14:12 is “strive to excel in building up the church.”
Are you edifying the Body of Christ?
The last example of lasting work in Scripture is evangelism. The souls whom you win to Christ will spend eternity in Heaven. Your courage in telling them the truth may be the difference between them being punished in the eternal prison of Hell or enjoying the wonderful realm of Heaven. This was Jesus’ life work (Luke 19:10) and Paul’s life work (I Corinthians 9:16), and we are to imitate them (I Corinthians 11:1; I John 2:6). This is Jesus’ singular greatest command to His followers (Matthew 28:19-20).
Are you sharing the Gospel?
Step out of the daily grind for a moment and view your life from a bird’s eye view. What is it all about? What is the nature of your work? Maybe it is time for a re-evaluation.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Used by permission. All rights reserved.
