It’s your job to work me out of my job

Did you know that if you’re a believer (especially one at my church) it’s your job to work me out of my job?  I’m serious.  Let’s work through my claim by looking at I Thessalonians 1:8-9. But first, let me share a little bit of the situation surrounding this text.

Paul had started a church in Thessalonica, but shortly after its founding, he was forced to leave.  Since he had probably only been there a few months, he was very concerned about new congregation; he didn’t have much time to teach them many basics of the faith and because of that, he wasn’t sure if they would grow spiritually and toward maturity in his absence.  In an effort to see how things were going, he sent a friend named Timothy to check on them.  When Timothy returned, he was beaming.  Not only was the church still there, but it had grown and matured.  In fact, the church had been showing so much faith, love and hope that it had begun to evangelize the surrounding people.  Consider Paul’s words after he received the news from Timothy:

And now the word of the Lord is ringing out from you to people everywhere, even beyond Macedonia and Achaia, for wherever we go we find people telling us about your faith in God. We don’t need to tell them about it,  for they keep talking about the wonderful welcome you gave us and how you turned away from idols to serve the living and true God.

These verses teach us two things: one, that this new church had worked to spread the Good News of salvation through Christ; in Paul’s absence, they took it upon themselves to share God’s redemptive plan.  Two, Paul had tried to evangelize people around the church in Thessalonica, but they had already heard the Gospel from the people within Thessalonica!  The members of that church were pastors, every one of them, and they saw it as their responsibility to share God’s love.

So, did you know that it’s your job to work me out of my job?  It is your job to share your faith and impact our community, and other communities, for Christ.  It is your responsibility to tell the story of how God has changed your life in hopes that others will meet Him, love Him, and live for Him.  Just a thought.

P.S.  Please let me keep my job.  What would Allen eat if I can’t buy his hypoallergenic food?  How could I support Ginger and her gluten-free/dairy free dietary needs?  And for crying out loud, how would I be able to buy new, fancy-smachy Apple products?

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