Hope for the End Times Series
The Doctrine of Work
2 Thessalonians 3:6-3:18
This morning we come to the closing verses of 2 Thessalonians. Now remember this letter was written to straighten out some bad theology that was being taught to the church and apparently some of it was being falsely attributed to Paul as though he had written a letter to them.
So he is correcting this false teaching regarding the end times. And if you’ve been able to be here, we’ve discovered that we have hope because God is on the throne. There is such a thing as justice and God will see to it that everything is one day set right.
What good news that must have been to these early believers who are suffering persecution and being told that Christ has returned and they missed it and are now in the tribulation.
So Paul sets all of that straight and reminds them of how end-time events will unfold. And as we come to the last chapter, he is, as he always does, bringing them back on target. If Jesus hasn’t returned, then here is what you ought to be doing and how you ought to behave.
Now I told you early on, what we believe determines how we live. Notice in these closing verses what was happening because of false teaching.
Text
There were some in the church who had become disorderly. And these closing verses are directly addressed to that problem and how to solve it
In fact, it was not a new problem. Notice in verse 6 he mentions they had “received the traditions”. They had been given the truth. Down in verse 10 he mentions that he had given instruction about this problem at an earlier time.
But what specifically is the problem that is resulting in being disorderly?
We find the answer in verse 11
Apparently a segment of the church had decided they didn’t need to work. And by not working and paying their own way or expecting the church to take care of them was causing a fellowship problem.
There was disorder in the church. The word disorderly is a military term used to describe a soldier who is out of step. It speaks of rebellion and being unruly. It’s the same conduct mentioned in
I Thessalonians 5:14 where Paul says to "...warn those that are unruly..."
Isn’t it interesting that in a letter dealing primarily with very weighty doctrinal truths of the end-times, Paul has to deal with a menial subject like work.
One of the things you will find in your study of the Bible is that the Christian life is a very down-to-earth faith. It is a very down-to-earth way of living your life. It deals with practical matters. It deals with subjects that are very, very important.
And here is one of those subjects -- the subject of laziness. Are you lazy? Here’s how to tell:
• If your self-winding watch stops often, you’re lazy.
• If you have to save up energy to take a nap, you’re lazy.
• If you fall asleep at work and no one notices, you’re lazy.
A businessman drove down a country road where he saw 3 country boys lying under a shade tree. He got out and said, I’ll give $10 to the laziest man here. The first man jumped up and said, it’s me. “No, you’re not.” The 2nd man reached out his hand for it. “Not you.” The 3rd man said, sir, if you don’t mind, roll me over and stuff that in my pocket.
I heard about two highway department workers who got on site and realized they forgot their shovels. They radioed the foreman and asked him to bring their shovels. He said, be right there boys, and you can lean on each other ‘til I get there!
I’m sorry to say that many preachers have the reputation of being lazy. They say we only work Sundays! And then when we do work, we work too long!
A man stood staring at a tombstone in a cemetery for a long time. Someone asked him why. He said, look at what it says, “Here lays a preacher and a very diligent man.” “Yeah, so what?” “I’m just trying to figure out why they’d bury two men in the same grave!”
The Scriptures make it very clear here that laziness should never be a part of a Christian's life.
A Christian should not be a lazy individual. And yet it had become a big problem in the church.
One of the virtues in our nation for years has been our work ethic. We have been a nation marked by a very strong work ethic. It seems, however, that we are rapidly abandoning that mindset. I think that is in large part due to the fact that we have abandoned God and His Word. When God doesn’t matter, then morality doesn’t matter, and that’s what we’re experiencing now.
When God matters as God has mattered in our history, one nation under God, in God we trust on our money, when God matters then there is an authority to be honored. But when God doesn’t matter, then morality doesn’t matter because there are really no consequences outside ones self.
It’s interesting to discover that in cultures where God has been abandoned one of the basic virtues that disappear is work. People once worked hard because of the influence of Scripture and because Scripture is a reflection of the will of God. God is the authority and the Bible is the revelation of His will as that authority.
People once worked hard because they believed they were accountable to God and they were accountable to the revelation of God in Scripture.
Now that God doesn’t matter, and the Bible is ridiculed and removed, if not banned from speaking authoritatively on any subject, there is a kind of fearless immorality. And one of the things that’s going to disappear is the virtue of work.
Sinners are happy to think that they answer to no one, but to themselves.
So that’s what had happened in the church at Thessalonica. Complicating the issue was the culture of that day. Those with Jewish background believed that only those who studied Scripture like the scribes were doing worthy work. They separated the spiritual from the secular.
Those from Greek background believed that work was demeaning and belonged only to slaves. They had a superior attitude.
And there were some from the Thessalonian congregation that believed work was no longer necessary because Jesus was going to return any moment. As a result, they withdrew from work and became busybodies.
Now I think to put that in its proper context, we ought to think about what the Bible teaches us about work. What is a biblical view of the doctrine of work?
So before we get to the text, let me share some things with you in a general way about the doctrine of work.
Number one, God is a worker.
The work of God is described often in the Bible. The very phrase, “the work of God,” appears a number of times in Scripture. And you can categorically look at the work of God in many different facets. For instance, you can see the work of God in creation.
You can look at the work of God in providence. God is personally and intimately involved in every thing happening in the universe.
We might mention His work of controlling or sustaining. And we could observe His judgment. We can see His work in redemption. So suffice it to say, God is a worker.
Very closely related to that is that
Jesus is a worker as well.
He said in John 9:4, “I must work the works of My Father. I must work the works of My Father.” Whatever it is that God does, Jesus does. In fact, I think it safe to say that whatever God is involved in , Jesus is involved as well.
So God is a worker and Jesus is a worker. And I would add that the Holy Spirit is a worker also.
Now from that we can conclude that man, being made in the image of God, is to be a worker.
We bear the image of God, we are made in His image and His likeness. And we are commanded to labor, Exodus chapter 20 verses 9 and 10, we are commanded to labor six days and on the seventh day to rest. This is God’s design.
You say, “Well wait a minute, I thought work was a matter of the curse.” No. The curse changed the nature of work, but the curse didn’t result in work.
Adam and Eve had the responsibility of work before they fell. We know that from Genesis 1:26 where
God said, “Let us make man in our image according to our likeness and let them rule over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over all the earth, over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him, male and female, He created them.”
Then He blesses them and tells them to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth, subdue it, rule over it, over the fish, the birds, every living thing that moves on the earth. That’s work.
So man was given the responsibility to care for this creation. He was told in chapter 2 verse 15 to cultivate the Garden of Eden and to tend it. This is work.
So the fall did not introduce work. It simply changed its nature. Work neither began nor ceased with the fall. It just took a different shape. It went from being a righteous blessing solely to being a righteous blessing with a curse on top.
So that’s just a little brief sketch of work from an historic, Biblical viewpoint. And I think that is consistent with what Paul would have taught the believers in Thessalonica. He expected those who could work to do just that and take care of themselves because is honors God and it’s the way God designed us to function.
So here is Paul, addressing this issue of those who no longer wanted to work. They had become freeloaders; slackers.
They’ve already been taught the truth and they‘ve ignored it. So Paul comes down on them with both barrels as he instructs the church on how to deal with this problem.
And what he is emphasizing is the value of work as a witness to God. The Christian faith sanctifies work. Work is designed to demonstrate the nobility of man to show that he is created in the image of God.
And Paul is underlining the fact that work is a spiritual responsibility that we have to honor the Lord and to put His image on display.
So Paul gives six motivations here to work. I won’t have time to give you a lot of detail, but I trust they will be mostly self-explanatory. The first one is
1. Unity
verse 6
Here we have a very strong word. “We command you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.” He is speaking with authority based on the person at work and will of the sovereign Lord of the church. And this, by the way, is the third time he has addressed this issue of work, the third time in his two epistles.
And he is saying, “Stay away from those who are disorderly. “
You say, “That’s awfully strong to dis-fellowship someone because they won’t work.”
That’s not what he said. He said dis-fellowship them because they are disorderly. Now remember the word means to be out of step or be unruly.
At issue here is the fact they had been warned and taught and have ignored it and now it’s causing a fellowship problem in the church. The not working and sponging off of others are simple the outgrowths of the real problem.
The “tradition” he mentions is referencing what he wrote in the first letter, and in the first letter he goes back to something previous to that that he says he commanded them.
So we have at least three times, once when he was there, once when he wrote 1 Thessalonians, and once again when he writes the second epistle. Paul is saying, “I’m telling you things that I have already told you and you distance yourselves from these people.”
There was a spirit of rebellion at work here. And what Paul is saying here is if you want to be a part of the fellowship of God, there must be a respect for authority. You must follow the teaching of God or suffer the consequence of withdrawn fellowship.
The verb, to stay away from, or to keep away from, is used to refer to furling up the sails. The idea is to cease the operation, the fellowship, the involvement with dead beat persons who won’t work.
That’s a sin. That’s immoral. That’s an unacceptable behavior as he has pointed out on all those previous occasions.
So the first motivation to work is for the sake of the unity of the church.
There’s a second motivation. This one is more positive and it is the motivation of
2. Example
Verses 7-9
Here Paul uses himself as an example. Paul is simply saying remember how I acted among you. I was giving you an example. We didn’t act in an undisciplined manner, out of order, out of rank, unruly manner.
You know that, he says. You saw it. You know how you ought to follow our example. You know what that example is. We didn’t eat anyone’s bread without paying for it. We don’t take advantage of people.
How did he pay for it?
Verse 8
He doesn’t mean he didn’t receive acts of kindness, he did. He doesn’t mean that the servant of the Lord isn’t worthy of his hire. He said that. He doesn’t mean that those who are blessed by the teacher shouldn’t share with the teacher in all good things, because he wrote that to the Galatians.
But what he does mean is that he worked in order to provide for himself and to not be a drain on the people who were kind enough to care for him. And in doing so he provided an example.
There’s a third motivation.
3. Survival
verse 10
You better work, or you’re going to starve to death. Again, this is repeated instruction. This is not the first time they’ve heard this sermon. “When we were with you we used to give you this order.”
This must have been a big problem in the church going back all the way to the initial experience that he had in establishing the church in Thessalonica.
Why was it such a problem? Maybe it was philosophical. Work was beneath the dignity of the elite. Maybe they were super-spiritual. There’s no need to work if Jesus is coming soon. Whatever it was, now Paul says, “How many times do I have to tell you what I’ve constantly told you? If anyone isn’t willing to work, he’s not to eat either.” That is an axiom, a maxim. That is a spiritual law. You eat because you work.
First Timothy 5 says that no one is to be unfaithful in the support of his family or if he is unfaithful in supporting his family, he is worse than an infidel...worse than an unbeliever.
I always think about John 6 where Jesus fed 5,000 dinner but when they showed up for breakfast the next day, he refused to provide for them. He put his power on display but He didn’t create a welfare state with permanent free food.
Keep in mind that he's not talking about those who cannot work. He's not talking about people who are unable to work because of sickness or other reasons. He's talking about people who are unwilling to work. There's a difference between the two.
There's a difference between somebody who's not able physically to work, and a person who is quite physically able to work and yet they are unwilling to work.
It is one of the great blights on American culture that there are literally thousands and thousands of people in America who are quite able to work but they are not willing to work.
Welfare has become a mammoth problem in this country because there are too many people who have their hands out, wanting somebody to give them something and they are not willing to work with their hands and earn their own bread and their own keep and their own care.
Let me say something to you without any reserve: I want you to know that this world doesn't owe you one thing. Government does not owe you a thing. Don't you be brought up thinking that government owes you something. It's an amazing thing people are all the time talking about rights. What are my rights? I demand this. I'm supposed to get this. I'm supposed to get that. That's one of the reasons our budget has been in such a deficit mode for so many years.
We've been paying and paying out and everybody has their hands out. But if we went by the teachings of the Bible, we'd solve a lot of the unemployment problems.
Some of these deadbeats and able-bodied loafers in our society, if they got hungry enough they would go find a job and earn a little bread money.
And by the way, if you are a member of the fellowship of Trinity Baptist Church don't expect this church to keep you up, either. We will assist you when you have a need. In fact we ought to be the first place you look after family to assist you. But it is not our place to take you in as a dependent and support you.
If you don’t work, you don’t eat.
So, unity is a motivation, example is a motivation, survival is a motivation.
Here’s the fourth one.
4. Harmony
verse 11
When you don’t have any work to do, you just become a problem. There were some who did not work at all, and instead became busybodies.
Word had come, Paul says that, we hear, telling him that in spite of his teaching, in spite of how many times he had said to them, “If you don’t work, you don’t eat,” some were still not willing to work.
Perhaps Timothy has brought this report, or others traveling through those busy areas, trade areas. And the message came back to Paul, “There are people in that church who won’t work.” And consequently they are busybodies.
Instead of working, they were busybodies with nothing to do except wander around and cause trouble. That’s general the way it is, I’ve noticed.
People who don’t have anything to do for themselves wind up sticking their faces into things that are none of their business.
And it winds up destroying the harmony of the church. It’s irritating. It produces disunity. It produces discord.
So what is the solution to the problem?
verse 12
You need a job just to keep you out of people’s business. You need a job to keep you out of other people’s lives. You need work so that people can get a break from your presence. You understand that. You need some space. Settle down, he says, like we commanded you. Go home after work and enjoy a good meal and keep your nose out of everybody’s business. Eat your own bread.
And work in quietness. That means with a calm disposition. Stay with the job. Finish the task. Finish the assignment that has been given to you.
Be a faithful worker. Be an honest worker.
It’s embarrassing to talk to employers in our area and here their comments on the work ethic of people today. Won’t show up for work. Won’t do what they are told. Drag in late. Half-hearted work while they are there.
If you are an employee, make a hand. Be a hard worker. Be on time. If you are supposed to be at work at 8:00, don't come strolling in at 8:10 like it's a blessing for everybody that you showed up that
morning. Did you realize if you come in fifteen minutes late every day for a month and you make $12 per hour, in a month you steal $60 a month from your employer?
It's a poor testimony for a Christian to come sloughing in any hour of the day. Be on time and be honest. Don't take anything that doesn't belong to you. Don't haul things off that don't belong to you.
By the way, those of you that have hymnbooks, bring them back. Go to the bookstore and buy your own. Don't haul our hymnbooks off. That's dishonest.
There’s also a word to the rest in verse 13
That’s a comment to the good guys. The implication is obvious. They were sick of the deadbeats. They were sick of the people who wouldn’t work. They were weary with the lazy. They were tired of these people who stirred up strife and then mooched off the church so they could eat.
And the real danger was in becoming indifferent toward people who had real needs. So he reminds them, “ Don’t grow weary of doing good.”
There are always going to be people who would work if they could but they can’t. They don’t have opportunity, they don’t have ability. They’re always going to be people in profound need, always going to be widows, orphans, those who are sick and don’t become so weary of having to take care of the dead beats that you lose your compassion and your care for those who need it.
Don’t grow weary in doing good, always be eager to do good, do what is honorable. Don’t give up on the folks who do need you.
So unity, example, survival, harmony, a fifth motivation is
5. Shame
verse 14
Again he comes back to this concept of being thrown out of the church. And his appeal is to isolate the person in order to embarrass them. Bring shame on them. Literally it is a shame on a person who will not work.
We’ve lost the element of shame today, haven’t we? The word itself is distasteful. Literally in the Greek it means to “turn on yourself, to feel what you really are.”
The Bible declares that we should feel some shame about our sins.
Listen to Jeremiah 6:13-15 from The Message:
"Everyone's after the dishonest dollar,
little people and big people alike.
Prophets and priests and everyone in between
twist words and doctor truth.
My people are broken—shattered!—
and they put on Band-Aids,
Saying, 'It's not so bad. You'll be just fine.'
But things are not 'just fine'!
Do you suppose they are embarrassed
over this outrage?
No, they have no shame.
They don't even know how to blush.
There's no hope for them. They've hit bottom
and there's no getting up.
As far as I'm concerned,
they're finished."
God has spoken.
Properly understood, shame should always lead us to the Savior. Psalm 83:16: “Cover their faces with shame so that men will seek your name, O LORD."
There is one more motivation to work here and it is
6. Love
Verse 15
That word, admonish, literally means to speak to the heart of. He is saying to appeal to the heart of this individual. Remember, you’re dealing with a fellow believer and don’t regard him as an enemy to God, he’s not. Don’t regard him as an enemy to Christ, he’s not. Don’t regard him as an enemy of the church, he’s not. Simply admonish or warn him as a fellow brother. He is precious, he belongs to Christ. Christ dwells in him. He’s a temple of the Holy Spirit. You want to treat him as a brother. So the point is, in these last days, do right. Work hard, be dedicated, have a good testimony and be looking for the Lord. Jesus is coming one of these days, but whether He comes today or tomorrow, whether he comes in the morning or not you ought to work and do your work as if you are going to have 40 more years. That's the way you ought to live as a Christian.
Finally, notice verse 16-18
He's talking here about the unseen resources that every Christian has to help him deal with every problem that comes along the way.
First of all, the Lord's peace. God says you have His peace in everything that comes your way. In every problem that occurs, in every difficulty that may arise, you can have God's peace. Something even better than that. "The Lord be with you all." Not only His peace, but His presence.
When you go to work, the Lord will go with you. When you tackle that difficult problem on the job, you have the opportunity to talk to the Lord Jesus Christ himself who is right there with you and ask for His wisdom and His strength and His help.
Then finally, we have His grace. We have the Lord's wonderful provision of His grace, His unmerited favor. To know that whatever comes tomorrow, if Jesus doesn't come tomorrow, whatever need you have, God's all sufficient grace will be there to meet that need.
