Monday Invocation | Lenten Series: Not in Vain

In the final verse of the fifteenth chapter, Paul exhorts his Corinthian readers to commit wholeheartedly to laboring in the Lord as they center the resurrection in their message. In urging the Church to be “steadfast” and “immovable,” Paul makes implicitly clear that to follow Christ is not an easy choice with sure outcomes. 

For the early Church, to “excel in the work of the Lord” was not a vague platitude. In refusing to bow to the gods of the Empire, they became increasingly perceived as radicals, and they often faced imminent danger, even death. Indeed, the early Church suffered extensively for its commitment to the poor, subversive Jewish Teacher they knew to be God incarnate.

For them, the recency of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection was of profound importance; this man had been God-made-flesh, living in their time and space, and his proclamation of a coming Kingdom was an affront to a brutally oppressive empire. 

Lent culminates in the weeklong remembrance of the Passion of Jesus. On Palm Sunday, we remember his triumphal entry into Jerusalem as crowds shouted “hosanna,” laying palm fronds along his path. On Maundy Thursday, we reflect on the washing of the disciples’ feet, the institution of Communion, and Jesus’ blood-soaked prayers in Gethsemane as his betrayal is realized. On Good Friday, we look to the cross, Jesus’s violent execution, and while we know Sunday is coming, we hold in tension our grief with our hope. 

On Sunday, the sun rises—the tomb is empty, and a familiar voice asks, “Why are you crying?”

The ritual of the season can make its originating events seem predictable, carrying us through the week as if Sunday was a foregone conclusion. Yet, for Jesus’s followers, the few days’ pivot from future king to imperial captive was hard to comprehend. The promise of a Messiah, a political and social liberator, was snuffed out. Saturday was the beginning of a new way of being in their world rather than the deep of night before the dawn.

Have you ever marveled at Jesus’s tenacity?

Scripture indicates over and over again he knew what was coming, and even then, he prayed “Your will be done.” He perfectly embodied Paul’s charge of steadfastness and immovability, excelling in the task before him, knowing that resurrection was to come.

In our day, the work before us can look quite different. Called to the pursuit of radical belonging, we aspire to seek justice, equity, and grow in our relationship with one another and Christ. Yet, none of this is especially easy, and none of it is assured as an outcome within our lifetimes. Through the power of Christ’s death and resurrection, the Spirit’s work within us, such steadfast commitment is possible, even though every one of us will fall short. We’re human, after all.

Following Jesus is work—it isn’t always easy, but we know it is possible, and not just by our own power. So ask yourself: As you commit to radical belonging and the generous, good news of Jesus, are you steadfast? Do you aspire to be immovable? Are you seeking the Spirit’s presence in all you do? You might not always “measure up” by human standards, but know this: Your labor is not in vain.

May Lent prompt reflection and recommitment to the work laid out before us.