Labor Day
Labor Day is a national holiday in the United States dedicated to the “working man.” It has been celebrated annually as a national holiday since 1894 on the first Monday in September. This day of rest is often celebrated with picnics, barbecues and fireworks displays.
Yet, for the Christian, there is a Labor Day coming we have not yet celebrated. It will occur on judgment day.
Revelation 14:13 says, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on...that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them.” A place of eternal rest is prepared for God’s laborers upon the judgment day.
Sadly, not all people will enjoy this eternal rest though. Entering into heaven will depend upon how we lived on this earth. According to the Apostle Paul, “...we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10). Those citizens who reject Jesus Christ, the king, will not be rewarded.
For that reason, we should remind ourselves of what Paul wrote in the conclusion of his resurrection chapter of 1 Corinthians 15, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (v. 58).
Have you been laboring in God’s kingdom? Retiring in heaven requires preparing for it on earth!
Think about it.
September 2007