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When Jesus sent out His first disciples, He gave them warnings and encouragements. He warned them that they would face persecution and rejection. He warned them that if people hated Him, they would certainly hate them. But He also told them that He would send His Holy Spirit to be with them. He would be present with them as they went in His name. The task would be hard, but the need was great, and Jesus emphasized the urgency by using a vivid agricultural illustration. Matthew records the scene this way:
And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Matt. 9:35–38)
This is vital to remember today. There is much work to be done, and we, no less than Jesus’ first disciples, should be praying earnestly for laborers to enter God’s harvest. This is what the Apostle Paul did. He experienced all the hardships that Jesus described, but he also had the great joy of seeing a plentiful harvest—souls brought from death to life, churches planted and sustained.
So when Paul wrote to one of his own disciples, Timothy, who was at that time laboring in pastoral ministry in Ephesus, it is no surprise that he used precisely the same term that Jesus used. He referred to Timothy as a laborer or a worker, and he gave him this command: “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15). There was hard work to be done, and Timothy was engaged in it. But Paul wanted Timothy to be an approved worker. He was called to be a laborer who had no need to be ashamed. What did he mean? Quite simply, Timothy was to handle God’s Word with care and accuracy. Paul understood that when Jesus called for laborers, He was calling for those who would preach and teach the gospel—just as He was doing when He issued the command. But to do that well, they needed to competently handle God’s Word.
This is the great mark of workers who are approved by God. They are charged with handling the Word of God, which is “living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword” (Heb. 4:12). God’s Word is the instrument that God uses to do His work, and approved workers need to use that instrument well. When they do, their work is approved. They are wielding something powerful in the harvest field. They are wielding nothing less than “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph. 6:17).