Some believers treat their faith as a leisure interest.  They go to church if they have time and are not too tired; they get caught up with the enthusiasm of others.  They are often reluctant to give their time and money - and only give if they think they will have enough to meet all their own personal needs as well.  They are certainly not the first to offer themselves for hard work.

The three women in today's verse were not like that at all.  They were people who had a reputation for giving everything for the sake of the Lord, His gospel and His people.  They did not work in order to gain God's favour, but were active because the Lord had put it into their hearts (Acts 20:35).  And they were careful to put their effort into tasks which pleased the Lord and were for His glory.  In short: they accepted that the Lord was their Master and that it was their responsibility to put all their effort into serving Him, His kingdom and His church.

Their hard work was not to get God to love them more, but to express the joy and privilege of being saved and included in His kingdom. They worked hard for the Lord because they loved Him very dearly.  'Loving God' means putting everything we have into our relationship with Him.  Deuteronomy 6:5 says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength."

There is something wrong when people, who say they love Jesus, are not willing to work hard in the Lord.  Perhaps this verse is a helpful challenge to well-meaning but practically lazy believers who have de-prioritised working for Jesus as the external hallmark of their Christian faith.  Perhaps this could be a pivotal thought which will drive us to seek and serve the Lord in a fresh way.