The laborers of the Lord
(Matthew 9:35-38)
Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages, teaching in the synagogues, preaching the gospel of kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them because they were suffering and wandering like sheep without a shepherd.
1. Those who will Reveal His Compassion
The teachers of the law and Pharisees, who should have served them as their shepherds, failed to provide them with daily bread and heal their wounds. As a result, people saw God as wrathful, cold and indifferent. Upon witnessing this despairing reality throughout all the towns and villages, the Lord made a determination to raise up laborers who would reveal His compassion.
2. Those Who Have Received His Compassion
The Lord spoke to His disciples, saying, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” The disciples who understood the Lord’s compassionate heart towards people prayed for His request. However, the Lord did not bring workers from outside. He called workers who had hearts aligned with His own among the disciples who were praying for workers to be raised. This is true. Being a worker of the Lord is not someone else’s affair. Anyone who has received the Lord’s compassion can be used as a worker for God.
3. Those who Serve the Church
Many individuals perceive becoming a worker of God as something unrelated to themselves. Consequently, they thoughtlessly criticize those have become God’s workers and may even attack their weaknesses. They hold the misconception that church workers should serve them, while they themselves should be served in the church because they are not workers. However, the truth is that there are no designated workers before God. Every believer who has received God’s compassion becomes a laborer in the church, as the one who reveals His compassion.
May 14, 2023
Overseer Sung-Hyun Kim
