“We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain” (2 Corinthians 6:1).
In an earlier letter to the church at Corinth, Paul the Apostle offered the following illustration: “…we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building” (1 Corinthians 3:9). Here now in 2 Corinthians chapter six, Paul will build upon that concept with a similar labor analogy: “We are workers together with God…” (ERV).
Paul was a fellow worker with God in the sense that he worked in cooperation with God to fulfill His agenda. This does not mean that God needed Paul to accomplish His purposes; instead, God was pleased to employ Paul as “…the agent I have chosen to carry my name before Gentiles, kings, and Israelites” (Acts 9:15 CEV).
In a similar manner, we are also “…workers together with Him…” in the sense that God has graciously allowed us to partner with Him in the work He seeks to do. One source makes a connection between the role of God’s people as co-laborers with Him and our responsibility to serve as ambassadors for Christ…
“The picture of ambassadors for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20) is especially helpful in understanding the nature of being workers together with Him. An ambassador can rightly be described as working together with his king. Yet, the ambassador himself has no power or authority or agenda on his own – it is all bound up in his king. The king delegates power and authority to the ambassador and reveals his agenda to the ambassador, and then the king expects the ambassador to fulfill that agenda.” (1)
However, it is possible to squander the resources that God has made available to us in fulfilling this responsibility to serve as ambassadors and fellow workers together with Him. Thus, Paul encouraged the Corinthian Christians “…not to receive the grace of God in vain.” You see, there is a sense in which God’s grace towards us may become ineffectual to some extent if we fail to utilize the talents, skills, abilities, and opportunities He has given us in His service.
2 Corinthians 6:1 utilizes the word “vain” to express this idea. When used in this context, the word “vain” corresponds to something that is destitute of spiritual wealth or to those labors, endeavors, or actions that result in nothing of real value. (2) We’ll talk more about the grace of God in order to illustrate the importance of acting upon it next.
(1) David Guzik 2 Corinthians 6 – Paul’s Resume’ © Copyright – Enduring Word https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/2-corinthians-6/
(2) G2756 kenos https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?t=kjv&strongs=g2756