Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NASB)
Do you ever get tired or discouraged? Do you every feel overwhelmed and wonder what’s the point? The enemy may be telling you that what you are doing is useless. He may be saying, “Why continue? You might as well quit and do something else.” If so, 1 Corinthians 15:58 is just for you.
What does it mean to be “steadfast”, “immovable” and “always abounding”?
Steadfast. The Greek word translated “steadfast” means ‘seated’. Vine writes that it literally means ‘firmly seated’ but implies a fixed purpose of heart.
You will keep in perfect peace
those whose minds are steadfast,
because they trust in you.
Trust in the LORD forever,
for the LORD, the LORD himself, is the Rock eternal. Isaiah 26:3-4 (NIVUK)
To be steadfast is to be spiritually grounded. A steadfast person knows what he believes and cannot be “tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching”. We are to “hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering”.
Immoveable. A W Pink says that “immovable” is a word implying testing and opposition. Seek grace to say of all troubles and afflictions what Paul said of bonds and imprisonments: “None of these things move me.”
And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there. But none of these things move me. Acts 20:22-24 (KJV)
Abounding. “Abounding” is a translation of the Greek word perissos which means ‘to exceed the requirements, to superabound, to overflow, to be in affluence, to excel or to be in abundance’. It carried with it the idea of going beyond that which is ordinary.
The motivation for us is surely to remember that it is the work of the Lord: it is His work, His honour and His glory. A further motivation is to remind ourselves that our “toil is not in vain in the Lord”. I am thankful that whatever we do for the glory of God does not go unnoticed.