In this  passage in 2 Timothy 2:3-7, Paul has used   the  examples of soldiers and  athletes to show us how Christians need to endure  for the  Gospel if  they  want to be  “An Approved Servant of the Lord.” The  third  example in this  passage is that of a hard working farmer.

Farmers  must  toil everyday if  they are  going  to be successful  in  farming. John MacArthur writes the  following, “Hardworking is from a  Gr. verb meaning  ‘to labor to the point of exhaustion.’ Paul is  urging Timothy not to be  lazy  or indolent, but to labor intensely with a view to the  harvest.” Paul also reminded the  Colossians  that  he, along with us, need to be  striving in the Lord’s work (Col. 1:28-29)

The farmer, as well as the  soldier and the  athlete  must  not  take any  shortcuts in their labor. Just  like the  farmer we must be laboring in the  Lord’s harvest. We must be  found sowing, planting, plowing and monitoring  our work. The  farmer is one  who is  devoted to  his work at all times. So it is  with the  Christian.

Paul told the  Galatians “we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper  time if we  do not give up” (Gal. 6:9) We must  put all our efforts into  learning  more about God’s Word and  not be  lazy in our study  of the Bible. We must  work  hard and believe that God  will help us. We must have a heart of  humility in our lives.  If  we labor like a “hardworking farmer,” we will see   the results in our lives that  the Lord  wants. We will be ones  who know what  we  believe and why.

 

Larry Miles , is one of the  Co-Editors of Word and Work. He attends the Cherry Street Church of Christ in New Albany, IN and has  been preaching part-time at the Mackville Church of Christ, Mackville, KY.