Work or Toil?

For we are God’s fellow-workers; you are God’s field, God’s building. I Corinthians 3:9  NASB

Fellow-workers – For devotional impact, one can hardly improve on Oswald Chambers’ commentary on this verse (see April 23 of My Utmost for His Highest).  With typical aplomb, Chambers delivers a razor-sharp message.  A man or woman engaged in the work of the Kingdom without a full consecration to the Lord of the Kingdom finds that “there is no freedom, no delight in life; nerves, mind and heart are so crushingly burdened that God’s blessing cannot rest.”  This “work” is nothing but toil because it attempts to replace the sovereignty of the Almighty with the planning of noble men.  Once more we are delivered to Genesis and the negotiated arrangement of Havvah (Genesis 4:1), a planned solution to her experience of pain – planned without repentance, restitution and reconciliation.  It seems that wherever we stray, we don’t get far from the Garden.

Chambers rightly notes that God “engineers everything” so that our single goal is not to plan the work but rather to work the plan, His plan of discipling others whom He brings across our daily path.  The work which He wishes us to do is not what we concoct or imagine, but rather what He puts in front of us.  That’s what it means to assert that God engineers life.

While Chambers doesn’t mention it, we probably need to take a closer look at the Greek sunergos (fellow-worker).  Paul uses this word to express the joy and happiness that arrives unbidden when we join God in the effort.  We might easily recall once more that assignment given Adam in the Garden.  Avodah – the work he was to do – was accompanied by worship and service.  In fact, it was the homogenization of all three vital elements for the development of what it means to be human.  Far too much “work” is done without the essential mixture of these three – and work done in thirds inevitably turns to toil, the destructive erosion of humanity on the wheel of gain and necessity.

Sunergos is, of course, the combination of sun (with) and ergon (work).  Work in conjunction with, work as cooperative effort, work in harmony, work as an expression of unified endeavor.  God is not a sole proprietor.  One might legitimately ask if He is even an entrepreneur.  God is a company Man.  He is corporate through and through.  His objective is the blessing of all through the actions of a few.  If we operated according to that cosmic principle, we might find that a good deal of what we necessarily do is really unproductive toil.  If you discover that there is no joy, no peace, no happiness and no ability to delight in blessing others with what you are now doing, then the chances are pretty good that toil is your mantra and avodah has been sent to the recycler.

Chambers teaches us unwavering concentration on God – not on what we think He wants us to do, but on Him – and abandonment to wherever that leads.  Paul teaches us that the productive results are not up to us, but we will nevertheless inherit the by-products:  joy, peace and happiness.  It reminds me of that first labor contract, the one made with Adam.  Are you ready to return to tilling the Garden, or do you want to keep pounding sand?

Topical Index:  work, fellow-worker, sunergos, toil, Oswald Chambers, 1 Corinthians 3:9, Genesis 4:1, Genesis 2:5