There is a type of godly ambition that is legitimate; the Bible forbids selfish ambition, but not ambition to please the Lord. Paul did not use the term “labor” in a negative sense but in the positive sense of loving what is noble or honorable. There is a central place in the Christian life for noble ambition or laboring to achieve. For every Christian should have a passion for what is excellent and honorable. From this passage three motivations of Paul’s ambition emerge: He labored to please God, to be presented gold, and to promote grace.