Lord’s Day Meditation – A Labour of Love

God is not unjust to forget your work and labour of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister (Heb. 6:10).

Not that we are saved by doing good works. But these are “things that accompany salvation” (vs. 9). There ought to be a unique familial love among the people of God. It is an affection engendered by the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22), and an evidence of our common salvation. “By this all will know that you are My disciples,” Jesus says, “if you have love for one another” (Jn. 13:35). “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Gal. 6:1).

Notice how the writer of Hebrews emphasizes the character of God with a negative and an understatement: “God is not unjust to forget.” Of course not! Not only is the Lord neither unjust nor forgetful, His justice is perfect, and His record of our deeds is complete and absolutely accurate.

And what an encouraging reminder Hebrews 6:10 provides! To help God’s people is to show love to Him. The Lord’s close identification with believers is a frequent theme of Scripture.

• Paul (then known as Saul) learned of it on the road to Damascus. With a stabbing question, the glorified Christ described his persecution of Christians as what it really was, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” (Acts 9:4-5).
• Flaunting our Christian liberty to the detriment of those who are spiritually weak is described this way in God’s Word: “When you thus sin against the brethren and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ” (I Cor. 8:12).
• Christ’s familiar assurance in Matthew 25:40 relates to the coming Great Tribulation of prophecy, but it applies in principle today as well: “The King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren [i.e. helping and encouraging them], you did it to Me.’”

How can we give gifts to an unseen Christ? The answer is we honour and bless the Head by building and strengthening the body (Christ’s spiritual body, the church). Conversely, to harm the body dishonours the Head. Let’s not let up in faithfully serving the family of God. Notice vs. 11. “Show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope, until the end.” In the words of John Bode’s 1866 dedication hymn:

O Jesus, I have promised
To serve Thee to the end;
Be Thou forever near me,
My Master and my Friend.