<p>15:58- see on 2 Cor. 8:7.</p><p><i>Therefore my beloved brothers, be steadfast, unmoveable- </i>&quot;Beloved brothers&quot; is the language of endearment, and given their known weaknesses, could only have been possible because Paul believed that they would ultimately be changed from their weaknesses. All the angst about separating from apostate brethren dissipates once we accept that since we cannot condemn baptized believers, we are to rejoice in the reality of resurrection meaning both moral and physical transformation. The sure hope ahead ought to inspire stability; nothing, no false teaching, no temptation, no depression at failure, should be able to move us away from that hope.</p><p><i>Always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labour in the Lord is not in vain- </i>We are to be &ldquo;always abounding in the work of the Lord&rdquo; Jesus, knowing it is never in vain. And yet it is the work of preaching which has just been defined as not being in vain (:14); the more abounding labour is in the work of preaching&nbsp; (:10). Preaching is the work of the Lord Jesus in that He is working through us to do His saving work, and therefore we ought to be constantly active in His cause. Paul's preaching ministry was proportional to the grace he had received, and in this he saw himself as a pattern to us all (1 Tim. 1:12-16). He makes the connection even more explicit in his argument in 1 Cor. 15:10 and 58: &ldquo;His grace which was bestowed upon me was <i>not in vain</i>; but I <i>laboured</i> more <i>abundantly</i> than they all&rdquo; is then applied to each of us, in the final, gripping climax of his argument: &ldquo;Therefore, my beloved brethren, be <i>ye</i> steadfast, unmoveable, always <i>abounding</i> as Paul did in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your <i>labour</i> is <i>not in vain</i>&rdquo;. Paul says that God&rsquo;s grace to him &ldquo;was not in vain&rdquo;, in that he <i>laboured </i>more abundantly than any in preaching. Yet within the same chapter, Paul urges us his readers that our faith and <i>labour</i> is also &ldquo;not in vain&rdquo;; the connection seems to be that he responded to grace by <i>labouring </i>in preaching, and he speaks as if each of the Corinthians likewise will not <i>labour</i> in vain in this way (1 Cor. 15:2,10,58). He clearly sees himself as a&nbsp;pattern of responding to grace by preaching to others.</p>