iWork
2 Thess 3:6-13
When Barak Obama was president, he gave a speech at the Georgetown Poverty Summit in May 2015 in which he said this about work: work gives “structure and dignity and a sense of connection to community.” Work is very important to the health and well-being of humans. God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden with the first command being to “cultivate it and to keep it” (Gen. 2:15).
In 2014, using the official definition of poverty, only 3% of working-age adults who were working lived in poverty. Based on U. S. Census information, in 2014, 61.7% of working-age people in poverty did not work and 26.6% worked only part-time or only part of the year. This lack of work among the poor, obviously, affects children. One-third of people in poverty are children and most of them live with parents who are working-age.
Certainly the clearest path out of poverty or to not fall into poverty is the old-fashioned ethic of work. The ins and outs of dealing with poverty on a national level is up to our politicians and that’s what the Democrats and Republicans like to argue over. But, the bottom line for Christians and those who desire to honor God through their lives is that we are created to work and called to work.
It was not long after Paul wrote the first letter to the Thessalonians that he was compelled and guided by the Holy Spirit to write a second letter to the Thessalonians. By the time he writes this second letter, there were Christians who had quit working. We do not know why they quit working. Some may have quit because they honestly thought that Christ was coming any minute and there was no reason to work. Others may have used the second coming as an excuse not to work – “Hey! Jesus is coming! Why get involved in work?”
Either way, we are looking at 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 where Paul tells those Christians to get off their couch and get to work. Because “idle hands are a devil’s workshop” and many of those Christians were getting involved in bad stuff. As we study through this passage, notice that these thoughts are given under a “command” in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not the government commanding us to work. It is not some political party that is commanding us to work. It is Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
KEEP AWAY – 3:6:
This unruly life is not according to the tradition which the church had received from the apostles. The word “tradition” literally means something that is “handed down” or “handed over.” In that sense, it can be used to refer to the Gospel message, or apostolic tradition, that is handed down from one generation to the next (cf. 2:15).
So, these “Christian hippies” in the city of Thessalonica were not living according to the expectations of Jesus Christ made known to us through the Gospel message. So, Paul says, “Purposely avoid them.”
FOLLOW THE EXAMPLE – 3:7-9:
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In all honestly, it is not just Jesus Christ that we are called to mimic or to imitate. Paul famously said, “Follow me as I follow Christ,” in 1 Cor. 11:1. Here, he tells the Thessalonian Christians they were to mimic Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy (cf. Heb 13:7).
Through labor and hardship, they worked night and day. “Labor” is hard work. I would presume that making tents (Acts 18:3), stretching leather, working with needles and so forth would be hard work, especially in the arms. “Hardship” is a synonym, emphasizing the exertion that must be used in the work. Paul was a hard worker, manual labor, night and day. Why? So they would not be a burden to any of the Christians.
IF ANYONE WILL NOT WORK, THEN DON’T FEED HIM – 3:10-11:
If anyone refuses to work, then he is not to be supported with food. Please observe that we are not talking about people who, for whatever reason, cannot work or they need some assistance. We are talking about people who refuse to work. The text says, “he does not desire to work.” If that is the case, Paul gives another command: “he is not to eat either.” That is a command: “do not let him eat.” In other words, do not let him eat from your work, from your hands, from your labor and hardship, if he does not desire, himself, to work!
They were acting as busybodies. There is a Romanian expression: “Do not stick your nose where your pot is not boiling.” Don’t be a meddler and that’s easy to do with people who have no work to do.
WORK IN QUIET FASHION – 3:12-13:
This is a command and an exhortation. This is now the third time that Paul has emphasized in this text that this is a command of Jesus Christ (vss 6, 10, 12).
Work in a quiet fashion and eat your own bread. “With quietness,” Paul says, “go to work and do your job.” And eat your own bread. Paul had just said that he didn’t eat other men’s bread without paying for it. Here, he says we need to work and eat our own bread.
The Bible commands us to work.
The oldest and most persistent command God has given man is to work. Provide for your own needs as well as those who, because of tragedy, need your assistance (see Eph. 4:28).
Paul Holland
