WEBVTT 00:00:00.460 --> 00:00:02.960 Some of you may know and some of you might not 00:00:02.960 --> 00:00:05.540 but Claire and I had the blessing of being able 00:00:05.540 --> 00:00:08.839 to move into a new house recently and that new 00:00:08.839 --> 00:00:12.660 house is actually an old house and Anyone who 00:00:12.660 --> 00:00:14.679 has moved into an old house knows that one of 00:00:14.679 --> 00:00:17.140 the many problems that comes with an old house 00:00:17.140 --> 00:00:22.620 is a vast number of insects and particularly 00:00:22.620 --> 00:00:27.100 ants surprisingly and So I had the pleasure of 00:00:27.100 --> 00:00:30.190 getting to call my first exterminator to my first 00:00:30.190 --> 00:00:32.850 house. And he came and he did the treatment. 00:00:33.609 --> 00:00:35.909 And I checked in with him after to give him his 00:00:35.909 --> 00:00:38.670 payment and to hear the results of his treatment. 00:00:39.149 --> 00:00:42.969 And he assured me that, yes, I did have an ant 00:00:42.969 --> 00:00:46.670 problem more than anything else. And he proceeded 00:00:46.670 --> 00:00:49.770 to tell me, though, that ants are a very interesting 00:00:49.770 --> 00:00:53.530 insect, that they're actually a model for how 00:00:53.530 --> 00:00:56.990 we ought to work. And he told me the story of 00:00:56.990 --> 00:01:00.070 this little sugar ant, the type of ant that you 00:01:00.070 --> 00:01:03.170 might find in your pantry. It's a very small 00:01:03.170 --> 00:01:05.989 ant. And he was watching this ant and it was 00:01:05.989 --> 00:01:09.370 carrying a carpenter ant. Carpenter ant is five 00:01:09.370 --> 00:01:13.230 to six times the size of this little ant. And 00:01:13.230 --> 00:01:16.250 he was working its way back to its den or its 00:01:16.250 --> 00:01:20.469 nest and probably preparing for a meal. And he 00:01:20.469 --> 00:01:24.469 watched this sugar ant as he dropped the carpenter 00:01:24.469 --> 00:01:27.170 ant. And he recognized that he dropped it. And 00:01:27.170 --> 00:01:29.510 he circled back around and he picked up the carpenter 00:01:29.510 --> 00:01:32.170 ant and he kept going. And he kept going and 00:01:32.170 --> 00:01:35.829 he kept going. And at some point he dropped this 00:01:35.829 --> 00:01:38.930 ant, walked a few more steps, and he fell over 00:01:38.930 --> 00:01:44.329 and died. This ant was a perfect model for how 00:01:44.329 --> 00:01:47.510 we ought to work. He did it with his whole being. 00:01:47.950 --> 00:01:51.909 Proverbs actually emphasizes this go to the aunt 00:01:51.909 --> 00:01:54.930 thou sluggard considered her ways and be wise 00:01:54.930 --> 00:02:00.150 the the writer of Proverbs agrees with my exterminator 00:02:00.150 --> 00:02:04.769 and Tonight we're going to continue our series 00:02:04.769 --> 00:02:07.489 on shepherding sermons issues of the heart and 00:02:07.489 --> 00:02:10.669 we're going to look at the issue of laziness 00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:13.759 Now, surprisingly, the main text I'm going to 00:02:13.759 --> 00:02:17.360 use for this is not from Proverbs. It's actually 00:02:17.360 --> 00:02:21.879 a passage in 2 Thessalonians. In 2 Thessalonians 00:02:21.879 --> 00:02:26.599 chapter 3, Paul is following up his first letter. 00:02:27.639 --> 00:02:29.800 And in the first letter, and now in the second, 00:02:30.199 --> 00:02:33.639 he's trying to give the people in Thessalonica 00:02:33.639 --> 00:02:37.780 a hope in their persecution. He's trying to teach 00:02:37.780 --> 00:02:40.240 them about the coming day of the Lord and how 00:02:40.240 --> 00:02:42.759 they are to look forward to it and in second 00:02:42.759 --> 00:02:45.719 Thessalonians chapter 3 He will actually challenge 00:02:45.719 --> 00:02:49.060 give a challenge to those who are idle people 00:02:49.060 --> 00:02:55.539 making excuses for not working and So let's turn 00:02:55.539 --> 00:02:58.199 to the text now and see what Paul has to say 00:02:58.199 --> 00:03:01.560 second Thessalonians chapter 3 I know the bulletin 00:03:01.560 --> 00:03:04.240 says through 6th of verse 11, but I'm actually 00:03:04.240 --> 00:03:08.270 going to go to verse 15 Now we command you, brothers, 00:03:08.469 --> 00:03:11.370 in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you 00:03:11.370 --> 00:03:13.629 keep away from any brother who is walking in 00:03:13.629 --> 00:03:16.569 idleness and not in accord with tradition that 00:03:16.569 --> 00:03:19.509 you have received from us. For you yourselves 00:03:19.509 --> 00:03:22.710 know how you ought to imitate us, because we 00:03:22.710 --> 00:03:25.849 were not idle when we were with you. Nor did 00:03:25.849 --> 00:03:28.389 we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, 00:03:28.509 --> 00:03:31.610 but with toil and labor we worked night and day, 00:03:31.930 --> 00:03:34.210 that we might not be a burden to any of you. 00:03:34.460 --> 00:03:37.219 It was not because we do not have the right, 00:03:37.639 --> 00:03:41.280 but to give you and ourselves an example to imitate. 00:03:41.939 --> 00:03:44.919 For even when we were with you, we would give 00:03:44.919 --> 00:03:47.620 you this command. If anyone is not willing to 00:03:47.620 --> 00:03:50.960 work, let him not eat. For we hear that some 00:03:50.960 --> 00:03:54.039 among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, 00:03:54.060 --> 00:03:57.240 but busy bodies. Now such persons we command 00:03:57.240 --> 00:04:00.240 and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do 00:04:00.240 --> 00:04:03.199 their work quietly and to earn their own living. 00:04:03.629 --> 00:04:06.370 As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing 00:04:06.370 --> 00:04:09.710 good. If anyone does not obey what we say in 00:04:09.710 --> 00:04:12.770 this letter, take note of that person and have 00:04:12.770 --> 00:04:15.590 nothing to do with him that he may be ashamed. 00:04:15.990 --> 00:04:19.750 Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as 00:04:19.750 --> 00:04:24.810 a brother. So, Paul is dealing with the Thessalonica 00:04:24.810 --> 00:04:28.970 Church, the church in Thessalonica, and he wants 00:04:28.970 --> 00:04:31.889 to... Deal with them with the coming day of the 00:04:31.889 --> 00:04:33.810 Lord and he's dealing with a particular group 00:04:33.810 --> 00:04:37.649 Who is being idle or being lazy or you might 00:04:37.649 --> 00:04:40.970 even have in your translation disorderly? He's 00:04:40.970 --> 00:04:44.529 giving this command that as Christians we are 00:04:44.529 --> 00:04:47.449 not to walk in idleness But we're actually meant 00:04:47.449 --> 00:04:52.490 to walk in the tradition that Paul gave the church 00:04:52.490 --> 00:04:56.149 Paul's command comes directly from Christ. It's 00:04:56.149 --> 00:04:59.470 not a you may consider or you may want to it's 00:04:59.470 --> 00:05:04.240 a you are commanded by Christ to not be idle. 00:05:05.319 --> 00:05:08.660 And this word idle is very interesting. It has 00:05:08.660 --> 00:05:12.139 several connotations to it. It's kind of a rare 00:05:12.139 --> 00:05:14.860 word in the New Testament. It's the word atokos. 00:05:16.199 --> 00:05:19.660 It actually carries primarily an idea of disorder 00:05:19.660 --> 00:05:22.839 with it. And not the type of disorder that your 00:05:22.839 --> 00:05:25.860 house might be in disorder after a long day of 00:05:25.860 --> 00:05:27.740 going in and out of it, where everything's just 00:05:27.740 --> 00:05:30.819 all over the place. But it's a military idea 00:05:30.819 --> 00:05:33.319 of stepping out of line, stepping out of rank, 00:05:33.819 --> 00:05:36.040 doing something you're not meant to be doing. 00:05:36.480 --> 00:05:38.839 Being somewhere that you're not meant to be. 00:05:39.459 --> 00:05:42.399 And accompanying that, it also carries the idea 00:05:42.399 --> 00:05:46.569 of being idle. And this is not just a general 00:05:46.569 --> 00:05:49.089 idleness. Say, well, I'm just not going to do 00:05:49.089 --> 00:05:51.269 that. I'm going to sit on my couch or on my chair 00:05:51.269 --> 00:05:54.389 and not do that. No, it's actually purposely 00:05:54.389 --> 00:05:58.230 refusing to work. It's purposely being lazy. 00:05:58.990 --> 00:06:01.449 And so I love how one commentator put it. He 00:06:01.449 --> 00:06:05.850 said the word here means rebelliously idle. That 00:06:05.850 --> 00:06:08.009 they were not doing what they were supposed to 00:06:08.009 --> 00:06:13.250 do and they were purposely wasting time. And 00:06:13.250 --> 00:06:16.050 Paul accompanies this with, this is against the 00:06:16.050 --> 00:06:19.329 tradition. Now, what tradition is Paul talking 00:06:19.329 --> 00:06:22.829 about? It's actually a tradition he mentioned 00:06:22.829 --> 00:06:26.990 in 1 Thessalonians in chapter four. When he was 00:06:26.990 --> 00:06:29.889 talking about brotherly love in 1 Thessalonians, 00:06:30.170 --> 00:06:33.709 he says, but we urge you brothers to do this 00:06:33.709 --> 00:06:37.350 more and more and to aspire to live quietly and 00:06:37.350 --> 00:06:39.689 to mind your own affairs and to work with your 00:06:39.689 --> 00:06:42.709 hands as we have instructed you. so that you 00:06:42.709 --> 00:06:46.050 may walk properly before outsiders and dependent 00:06:46.050 --> 00:06:49.810 on no one. So the tradition that Paul started 00:06:49.810 --> 00:06:53.529 in his first letter to the Thessalonian Church 00:06:53.529 --> 00:06:56.970 was that they would live quietly, that they would 00:06:56.970 --> 00:06:59.069 mind their own affairs, they'd be able to keep 00:06:59.069 --> 00:07:01.850 to themselves and not get themselves involved 00:07:01.850 --> 00:07:04.850 in business that they were not meant to be involved 00:07:04.850 --> 00:07:07.290 in. And that they were to work with their hands, 00:07:07.310 --> 00:07:10.120 they were to work hard. and they were instructed 00:07:10.120 --> 00:07:13.379 to do this. And this has a beautiful result. 00:07:13.759 --> 00:07:17.360 It helps them to walk properly before those outside 00:07:17.360 --> 00:07:20.319 of the church. And it means that they are dependent 00:07:20.319 --> 00:07:25.220 on no one but Christ. And Paul's tradition here 00:07:25.220 --> 00:07:27.800 actually goes back to the Old Testament. It's 00:07:27.800 --> 00:07:32.100 a tradition of not allowing excuses to distract 00:07:32.100 --> 00:07:37.379 you from idleness and daily work. The writer 00:07:37.379 --> 00:07:42.139 of Proverbs says in Proverbs 22 13 to 14 the 00:07:42.139 --> 00:07:45.120 sluggard says there is a lion outside I shall 00:07:45.120 --> 00:07:49.740 be killed in the streets and This seems like 00:07:49.740 --> 00:07:55.180 a reasonable excuse almost But this is an excuse 00:07:55.180 --> 00:07:57.560 for work because in the days of Israel Israel 00:07:57.560 --> 00:08:01.720 was a fortified city Lions were a very real threat 00:08:01.720 --> 00:08:05.319 on the open roadways or in the forest, but not 00:08:05.319 --> 00:08:09.699 in the streets of Israel. Israel was a safe haven. 00:08:11.420 --> 00:08:16.500 And so by making excuses in work, a person can 00:08:16.500 --> 00:08:21.160 actually cause chaos. Their excuses in work undermines 00:08:21.160 --> 00:08:23.720 their righteousness and it's a sign that they 00:08:23.720 --> 00:08:28.480 lack wisdom. This chaos would... of a lion could 00:08:28.480 --> 00:08:31.060 cause people to trample people to get home, to 00:08:31.060 --> 00:08:33.879 get to a place of safety. It might cause others 00:08:33.879 --> 00:08:36.879 to be lax in their work and keep them away from 00:08:36.879 --> 00:08:40.840 their work. And so laziness, idleness is not 00:08:40.840 --> 00:08:43.740 something that is just an individual thing. It 00:08:43.740 --> 00:08:47.340 affects other people. And now there are many 00:08:47.340 --> 00:08:50.220 excuses for work that we see in the modern day 00:08:50.220 --> 00:08:53.460 why people might not work. I was watching a video 00:08:53.460 --> 00:08:57.549 not too long ago of a financial guy. on YouTube, 00:08:57.610 --> 00:08:59.730 and he was doing an interview with this lady, 00:09:00.210 --> 00:09:01.809 and they were going through their finances, and 00:09:01.809 --> 00:09:04.450 he noticed that she was a young lady and capable 00:09:04.450 --> 00:09:08.149 of work, and she had very few responsibilities, 00:09:08.210 --> 00:09:11.870 but she was struggling to pay her bills, and 00:09:11.870 --> 00:09:14.309 she was falling further and further into debt. 00:09:14.830 --> 00:09:17.950 And when he really got into pushing her and challenging 00:09:17.950 --> 00:09:20.789 her, what it came down to is she did not want 00:09:20.789 --> 00:09:23.889 to work because her dog had separation anxiety. 00:09:26.250 --> 00:09:29.230 Do not disagree that dogs can have problems, 00:09:29.309 --> 00:09:31.210 and sometimes we need to be there for them as 00:09:31.210 --> 00:09:34.389 their owners and caretakers, but I think this 00:09:34.389 --> 00:09:39.009 is a clear excuse. Now, I can hear you laughing, 00:09:39.230 --> 00:09:41.529 and because it sounds preposterous, it sounds 00:09:41.529 --> 00:09:44.710 insane that a dog being separated from you would 00:09:44.710 --> 00:09:48.149 keep you from your work, but we actually can 00:09:48.149 --> 00:09:52.519 make the same types of excuses. Now I'm not trying 00:09:52.519 --> 00:09:55.679 here to take away from any real problem because 00:09:55.679 --> 00:09:58.539 I know there are many problems that we face as 00:09:58.539 --> 00:10:00.740 a church and we are meant to handle those together, 00:10:01.299 --> 00:10:04.759 but we are to be diligent in our work. And so 00:10:04.759 --> 00:10:07.600 we need to be careful that we don't allow depression 00:10:07.600 --> 00:10:10.840 to stop us from leaving the house. One of the 00:10:10.840 --> 00:10:13.960 best cures for depression is actually going to 00:10:13.960 --> 00:10:19.809 the gym, working, sweating. It can be almost 00:10:19.809 --> 00:10:23.190 80 % of people see an improvement in their depression 00:10:23.190 --> 00:10:25.909 when they go to the gym and have a regular workout 00:10:25.909 --> 00:10:30.110 routine. Work is good. Or maybe you have an excuse 00:10:30.110 --> 00:10:34.129 of anxiety at times that can flare up. In Greenville 00:10:34.129 --> 00:10:36.429 or Fountain Inn, the population is ever growing 00:10:36.429 --> 00:10:40.350 and driving seems more and more perilous. And 00:10:40.350 --> 00:10:42.230 so maybe there are certain days where you feel 00:10:42.230 --> 00:10:44.610 like, oh, I just, I can't make it into work today. 00:10:44.710 --> 00:10:49.460 It's making me sick. I'm too scared to go. or 00:10:49.460 --> 00:10:52.700 maybe there's an illness we struggle with and 00:10:52.700 --> 00:10:55.019 that illness, even though we could work to some 00:10:55.019 --> 00:10:59.480 degree, stops us from working. Now again, like 00:10:59.480 --> 00:11:02.279 I said, I know that there are some very real 00:11:02.279 --> 00:11:05.059 illnesses and there are some very real ailments 00:11:05.059 --> 00:11:09.379 that we face, but sometimes when we can deal 00:11:09.379 --> 00:11:13.090 with it and we refuse to, it... shows that we're 00:11:13.090 --> 00:11:15.610 being lazy. I know as someone who struggles with 00:11:15.610 --> 00:11:18.750 migraines myself, it's easy to use them as an 00:11:18.750 --> 00:11:21.610 excuse to slack off and work when really what 00:11:21.610 --> 00:11:24.750 I personally need to do is take a leave or take 00:11:24.750 --> 00:11:28.149 a Tylenol, drink a Coke Zero, and get to work. 00:11:28.909 --> 00:11:31.409 And it might not be my best work, but some work 00:11:31.409 --> 00:11:35.409 is better than no work. Now what might be another 00:11:35.409 --> 00:11:39.309 excuse for work? So anxiety, sickness, depression, 00:11:39.549 --> 00:11:44.029 sometimes sleep. is our ideal overwork. And it's 00:11:44.029 --> 00:11:46.669 not wrong to sleep, it's not wrong to rest. We 00:11:46.669 --> 00:11:49.789 know that sleep and rest is necessary for us 00:11:49.789 --> 00:11:53.950 as humans to keep ourselves healthy. But Proverbs 00:11:53.950 --> 00:11:58.590 26, 14 tells us, as a door turns on its hinges, 00:11:59.190 --> 00:12:03.250 so does a slugger on his bed. A door's natural 00:12:03.250 --> 00:12:06.450 home is on its hinges so it can open and close. 00:12:06.889 --> 00:12:10.009 When we're marked by laziness, we can be marked 00:12:10.009 --> 00:12:13.070 as someone who stays in our bed, who makes sleep 00:12:13.070 --> 00:12:19.769 our number one priority. And I know this desire 00:12:19.769 --> 00:12:22.370 to sleep can sometimes be a natural thing, but 00:12:22.370 --> 00:12:26.230 we must be reasonable with it. We must not oversleep. 00:12:26.590 --> 00:12:30.370 We must not over -nap as nice as a nice nap does 00:12:30.370 --> 00:12:34.799 feel. Now also in our society we can see a blanket 00:12:34.799 --> 00:12:39.639 just refusal to work and Paul pushes back with 00:12:39.639 --> 00:12:43.100 this idea and verses seven through ten by giving 00:12:43.100 --> 00:12:47.080 himself as an example for you yourselves know 00:12:47.080 --> 00:12:50.659 how ought how you ought to imitate us Because 00:12:50.659 --> 00:12:53.620 we were not idle when we were with you nor did 00:12:53.620 --> 00:12:56.759 we eat anyone's bread without paying for it But 00:12:56.759 --> 00:12:59.980 with toil and labor we worked night and day. 00:13:00.299 --> 00:13:03.440 We worked not to be a burden to any of you. It 00:13:03.440 --> 00:13:06.200 was not because we do not have the right, but 00:13:06.200 --> 00:13:09.539 to give to you and ourselves an example to imitate. 00:13:10.080 --> 00:13:12.639 For even when we were with you, we would give 00:13:12.639 --> 00:13:15.600 you this command, if anyone is not willing to 00:13:15.600 --> 00:13:21.320 work, let him not eat." The refusal to work is 00:13:21.320 --> 00:13:24.940 actually an anti -Christian concept. Paul proves 00:13:24.940 --> 00:13:28.340 this by his own life. He's not just being a commanding 00:13:28.340 --> 00:13:30.639 apostle here, he's not just giving an instruction, 00:13:30.740 --> 00:13:32.860 he's saying, no, I'm giving this instruction, 00:13:32.960 --> 00:13:35.360 I'm giving this command, but I already lived 00:13:35.360 --> 00:13:38.320 it out myself that you might follow it. And not 00:13:38.320 --> 00:13:40.840 just him, Silas and Timothy who were with him, 00:13:41.139 --> 00:13:45.210 it was the band of brothers. They had the right 00:13:45.210 --> 00:13:48.110 verse 9 tells us as ministers to the church to 00:13:48.110 --> 00:13:50.929 receive payment to receive food from the church 00:13:50.929 --> 00:13:54.009 But they did not take it so that they could be 00:13:54.009 --> 00:13:57.710 an example They worked night and day and they 00:13:57.710 --> 00:14:02.330 worked with their hands we know from acts 18 00:14:02.330 --> 00:14:06.129 3 that Paul was a tentmaker and Tentmaker was 00:14:06.129 --> 00:14:10.269 a very laborious job. It required going and gathering 00:14:10.269 --> 00:14:13.049 sticks and gathering hides and cutting the hide 00:14:13.049 --> 00:14:16.090 to the right shape and tanning it and then weaving 00:14:16.090 --> 00:14:19.129 hair together to create some sort of thread so 00:14:19.129 --> 00:14:21.509 that they could stitch the hides together and 00:14:21.509 --> 00:14:24.429 they had to create twine for tying the poles 00:14:24.429 --> 00:14:27.429 together so that they could build a solid structure. 00:14:28.009 --> 00:14:33.409 It was not a simple process. So Paul says that 00:14:33.409 --> 00:14:38.230 he was an example. He did not even take bread. 00:14:38.509 --> 00:14:41.230 Now, bread in the Roman Empire was interesting. 00:14:41.649 --> 00:14:44.149 In its central cities, Rome would actually give 00:14:44.149 --> 00:14:47.889 out free grain, or very cheap grain, so that 00:14:47.889 --> 00:14:51.230 people would not grow hungry. And so Paul could 00:14:51.230 --> 00:14:54.269 be saying here that he was refusing to take what 00:14:54.269 --> 00:14:56.730 they already had plenty of. Even what they were 00:14:56.730 --> 00:15:01.230 freely given, Paul refused to take it. But Thessalonica 00:15:01.230 --> 00:15:04.129 was not one of those main cities, so they probably, 00:15:04.309 --> 00:15:06.690 the church knew of this concept, but this was 00:15:06.690 --> 00:15:09.039 probably not what they had in mind. What they 00:15:09.039 --> 00:15:13.320 had in mind was something simpler. Food is necessary 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:17.620 for survival. So Paul was saying, even in the 00:15:17.620 --> 00:15:20.820 most basic need that I have, in something that 00:15:20.820 --> 00:15:24.120 I have the right for, I am not going to take 00:15:24.120 --> 00:15:28.779 food from you. And now if people walk opposite 00:15:28.779 --> 00:15:32.179 to this and they refuse to work, Paul says there's 00:15:32.179 --> 00:15:35.240 a consequence. If you're not willing to work, 00:15:35.299 --> 00:15:38.759 then you do not get to eat. Now Paul here is 00:15:38.759 --> 00:15:41.379 not saying if you cannot work or you're unable 00:15:41.379 --> 00:15:44.840 to find work He's again dealing with those who 00:15:44.840 --> 00:15:47.639 are refusing to work because they believe Christ 00:15:47.639 --> 00:15:50.519 is coming again and it might be a waste of time 00:15:50.519 --> 00:15:55.139 to work and So they are being purposely lazy. 00:15:55.139 --> 00:16:02.100 They're being rebelliously idle So they cannot 00:16:02.100 --> 00:16:08.240 eat And Paul, as he goes through this, even says 00:16:08.240 --> 00:16:10.940 there's a second consequence to this that these 00:16:10.940 --> 00:16:14.779 people should be cut off. They should not eat, 00:16:14.820 --> 00:16:17.539 so even we as the church should not come alongside 00:16:17.539 --> 00:16:21.080 them to feed them. If we see them being lazy 00:16:21.080 --> 00:16:24.279 and refusing to work, we should not invite them 00:16:24.279 --> 00:16:27.460 to our homes for a Sunday dinner or even as a 00:16:27.460 --> 00:16:30.659 church offer them food or money to go get more 00:16:30.659 --> 00:16:34.659 food. No, they're refusing to work. Now, Paul 00:16:34.659 --> 00:16:38.019 is not doing this out of anger or frustration 00:16:38.019 --> 00:16:42.700 or anything negative. It's actually to bring 00:16:42.700 --> 00:16:48.039 about church discipline, is so that they learn 00:16:48.039 --> 00:16:51.019 to be ashamed of what they're doing. And Paul 00:16:51.019 --> 00:16:54.840 even says in verse 15, that we are not to regard 00:16:54.840 --> 00:16:58.100 them as an enemy, but to warn them as a brother. 00:16:58.779 --> 00:17:01.460 So this consequence of not working so you're 00:17:01.460 --> 00:17:04.130 not eating, and you're kind of cut off from the 00:17:04.130 --> 00:17:06.730 church community that normally provides for you 00:17:06.730 --> 00:17:10.329 is not something that's out of anger or wrath 00:17:10.329 --> 00:17:13.509 or malice. It's simply so that they would see 00:17:13.509 --> 00:17:18.589 their sin and repent of it. Now Paul also addresses 00:17:18.589 --> 00:17:22.630 another type of idleness in this passage. Not 00:17:22.630 --> 00:17:25.890 just idleness in our daily work, but idleness 00:17:25.890 --> 00:17:30.450 in our busy work. Now if you are a student, whatever 00:17:30.450 --> 00:17:33.509 age, maybe you're in elementary school or you're 00:17:33.509 --> 00:17:35.529 like me and you're in seminary, you are probably 00:17:35.529 --> 00:17:39.210 familiar with the concept of busy work, or even 00:17:39.210 --> 00:17:41.769 in your job, where your boss or your teacher 00:17:41.769 --> 00:17:44.750 puts an assignment on your desk. Maybe it's reading 00:17:44.750 --> 00:17:47.369 or writing and you know it's just to fill time. 00:17:47.990 --> 00:17:51.109 Or maybe even to just meet some requirement that 00:17:51.109 --> 00:17:53.130 the state has set in place so that they can have 00:17:53.130 --> 00:17:55.839 funding. It does not have any meaning. It's something 00:17:55.839 --> 00:17:58.440 you've already covered. It's something that you 00:17:58.440 --> 00:18:00.740 might have even covered years ago and you know 00:18:00.740 --> 00:18:03.799 it like the back of your hand. It's just something 00:18:03.799 --> 00:18:10.480 to fill time. This is part of being a busybody. 00:18:11.599 --> 00:18:14.140 It's work, but it's work that's just filling 00:18:14.140 --> 00:18:20.140 your time. Paul lists a couple different types 00:18:20.140 --> 00:18:24.539 of busybodies throughout his letters. dealing 00:18:24.539 --> 00:18:28.259 with philosophers, philosophers were called busy 00:18:28.259 --> 00:18:32.200 bodies in the ancient Roman times because they 00:18:32.200 --> 00:18:34.779 were believed to be uncovering important things, 00:18:35.160 --> 00:18:38.259 things about how the world works and how reality 00:18:38.259 --> 00:18:41.380 exists and how we all came to be, but in reality 00:18:41.380 --> 00:18:44.059 they were just arguing nonsense with people all 00:18:44.059 --> 00:18:47.640 day. They were doing this to avoid busy work. 00:18:47.920 --> 00:18:50.640 They seem to be doing something important, but 00:18:50.640 --> 00:18:52.700 they are really just distracting themselves. 00:18:53.559 --> 00:18:56.839 I think this type of busybody is very dangerous 00:18:56.839 --> 00:18:59.559 for those who are in leadership, at our jobs, 00:18:59.940 --> 00:19:02.660 or even for those of us in ministry, because 00:19:02.660 --> 00:19:05.559 there are good things to be done. People need 00:19:05.559 --> 00:19:08.460 to be met with, and tended to, and cared for, 00:19:08.720 --> 00:19:11.839 and loved, but we can't forget the necessary 00:19:11.839 --> 00:19:15.259 work that we need to be doing. For ministers, 00:19:15.660 --> 00:19:19.480 it's an excellent thing. and we should be caring 00:19:19.480 --> 00:19:22.299 for people and loving people, but we also need 00:19:22.299 --> 00:19:24.920 to make sure our sermon is ready for Sunday morning 00:19:24.920 --> 00:19:27.680 because one of the most important ways to care 00:19:27.680 --> 00:19:30.160 for your flock is through the preaching and the 00:19:30.160 --> 00:19:33.960 teaching of the word. And so you have to be careful 00:19:33.960 --> 00:19:36.799 as someone that's in church leadership that you 00:19:36.799 --> 00:19:39.160 don't allow caring for your people to distract 00:19:39.160 --> 00:19:42.059 from the other duties that you have that also 00:19:42.059 --> 00:19:44.920 need done. Or if you're in leadership at your 00:19:44.920 --> 00:19:48.809 job, you need to not find the smallest detail 00:19:48.809 --> 00:19:51.650 to pick out and focus on when really there's 00:19:51.650 --> 00:19:53.690 five other things that need to be taken care 00:19:53.690 --> 00:19:58.529 of. Besides that, busy bodies can be people that 00:19:58.529 --> 00:20:00.549 distract others from their work. They don't have 00:20:00.549 --> 00:20:03.269 their own work, so they get involved in other 00:20:03.269 --> 00:20:07.470 people's work. Paul uses this in 1 Timothy chapter 00:20:07.470 --> 00:20:11.569 5, 13 when he's addressing widows. Besides that, 00:20:11.710 --> 00:20:14.210 they learn to be idlers going about from house 00:20:14.210 --> 00:20:17.609 to house and not only idlers, but also gossips 00:20:17.609 --> 00:20:20.650 and busybodies saying what they should not say. 00:20:21.470 --> 00:20:25.569 So a busybody can also be someone that is a meddler. 00:20:25.769 --> 00:20:28.190 They want to be involved in other people's work. 00:20:28.549 --> 00:20:30.990 They want to hear the gossip and spread the gossip. 00:20:31.309 --> 00:20:33.990 instead of being focused instead of living a 00:20:33.990 --> 00:20:37.170 quiet life in line with the traditions that Paul 00:20:37.170 --> 00:20:39.470 has given in his letter and in line with the 00:20:39.470 --> 00:20:42.210 traditions that we find even in the Old Testament 00:20:42.210 --> 00:20:46.710 and Proverbs. The consequences for a busy body 00:20:46.710 --> 00:20:49.069 should be the same as someone who makes excuses 00:20:49.069 --> 00:20:53.569 or refuses to work. They should not eat until 00:20:53.569 --> 00:20:59.289 they learn to use their time wisely. Now, Paul 00:20:59.289 --> 00:21:02.569 addresses a final way of idleness, and it's actually 00:21:02.569 --> 00:21:05.650 a type of idleness that helps us combat idleness, 00:21:05.890 --> 00:21:10.190 combat laziness. And verse 13, Paul says, as 00:21:10.190 --> 00:21:13.609 for you brothers, do not grow weary in doing 00:21:13.609 --> 00:21:17.690 good. Laziness in daily work and through busy 00:21:17.690 --> 00:21:20.990 work is actually a result in laziness in good 00:21:20.990 --> 00:21:24.950 work. And just like anger or fear or any of the 00:21:24.950 --> 00:21:27.089 other heart issues we have mentioned, laziness 00:21:27.089 --> 00:21:32.839 starts in the heart. And how do we know it starts 00:21:32.839 --> 00:21:37.140 in the heart? Because as Christians, the heart 00:21:37.140 --> 00:21:39.519 is where our Lord reigns. The heart is what the 00:21:39.519 --> 00:21:43.859 Lord changes. And Colossians 3 .23 tells us that 00:21:43.859 --> 00:21:47.700 whatever you do, work heartily as for the Lord 00:21:47.700 --> 00:21:50.839 and not for men. As Christians, if we're not 00:21:50.839 --> 00:21:53.519 being idle in good work, we're remembering that 00:21:53.519 --> 00:21:56.839 our work goes to the Lord. It is an act of worship, 00:21:57.119 --> 00:22:00.359 and it's done for His glory and not our benefit. 00:22:02.670 --> 00:22:05.430 And when our hearts aren't right, we fail to 00:22:05.430 --> 00:22:10.069 offer up proper worship to God. Also, when we're 00:22:10.069 --> 00:22:14.250 idle in good works, it's a sign that maybe we've 00:22:14.250 --> 00:22:17.390 forgotten our redemption, what Christ had created 00:22:17.390 --> 00:22:21.210 us for. Titus 2 tells us, for the grace of God 00:22:21.210 --> 00:22:24.089 has appeared, bringing salvation for all people. 00:22:24.190 --> 00:22:27.309 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly 00:22:27.309 --> 00:22:30.430 passions and to live self -controlled upright 00:22:30.430 --> 00:22:33.369 and godly lives in the present age, waiting for 00:22:33.369 --> 00:22:35.710 our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory 00:22:35.710 --> 00:22:39.369 of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who 00:22:39.369 --> 00:22:42.930 gave himself for us to redeem us from lawlessness 00:22:42.930 --> 00:22:46.849 and to purify us for himself, to be a people 00:22:46.849 --> 00:22:50.109 for his own possession who are zealous for good 00:22:50.109 --> 00:22:53.579 works. When we are redeemed by God and we keep 00:22:53.579 --> 00:22:56.579 that in focus and we keep that on our minds, 00:22:57.680 --> 00:23:03.559 we cannot help but work harder. How can you be 00:23:03.559 --> 00:23:07.819 lazy when you're focused on serving others, serving 00:23:07.819 --> 00:23:13.400 the people of God? How can you be lazy in your 00:23:13.400 --> 00:23:16.640 own work if you're focused on feeding those who 00:23:16.640 --> 00:23:21.059 do need to be fed? Or how can you be lazy if 00:23:21.059 --> 00:23:23.660 you're working for the King of Kings and the 00:23:23.660 --> 00:23:26.099 Lord of Lords instead of working for yourself? 00:23:26.519 --> 00:23:29.440 Working to gain the new house or the new car 00:23:29.440 --> 00:23:32.519 or maybe even to afford your daily Starbucks. 00:23:33.000 --> 00:23:35.140 Or as some of the young girls call it in the 00:23:35.140 --> 00:23:40.339 congregation, Starbys. Our work is to be something 00:23:40.339 --> 00:23:43.880 that is done for the glory of God. And it's something 00:23:43.880 --> 00:23:46.180 that will mark us out in the day of judgment. 00:23:47.099 --> 00:23:50.380 Matthew 25 tells us, then the king will say to 00:23:50.380 --> 00:23:53.339 those on his right, come you who are blessed 00:23:53.339 --> 00:23:57.259 by the father, inherit the kingdom, prepare for 00:23:57.259 --> 00:24:00.240 you from the foundation of the world. For I was 00:24:00.240 --> 00:24:03.140 hungry and you gave me food. I was thirsty and 00:24:03.140 --> 00:24:06.160 you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed 00:24:06.160 --> 00:24:09.519 me. I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick 00:24:09.519 --> 00:24:12.619 and you visited me. I was in prison and you came 00:24:12.619 --> 00:24:17.400 to me. We are not to grow tired and doing good 00:24:17.400 --> 00:24:20.599 works and serving others and clothing those who 00:24:20.599 --> 00:24:24.640 need to be clothed We need to not grow lazy in 00:24:24.640 --> 00:24:27.799 our daily means of grace The the means of grace 00:24:27.799 --> 00:24:30.480 are the tools that God has given us the strength 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:33.339 in our faith It's hearing the preaching of the 00:24:33.339 --> 00:24:37.259 word and being in daily devotions Proverbs sets 00:24:37.259 --> 00:24:40.400 the sluggard against those who are wise and we 00:24:40.400 --> 00:24:43.400 know that wisdom can only come from the true 00:24:43.400 --> 00:24:48.000 God. We should not grow lazy in our good work 00:24:48.000 --> 00:24:51.319 because prayer is an essential part of the Christian 00:24:51.319 --> 00:24:55.359 life and it protects us from laziness. Martin 00:24:55.359 --> 00:24:58.440 Luther has a beautiful quote. We must be careful 00:24:58.440 --> 00:25:01.720 not to break the habit of true prayer and imagine 00:25:02.140 --> 00:25:05.039 other works to be necessary, which after all 00:25:05.039 --> 00:25:08.019 are nothing of the kind. Thus, at the end, we 00:25:08.019 --> 00:25:11.440 become lax and lazy, cool and listless towards 00:25:11.440 --> 00:25:14.640 prayer. The devil who besets us is not lazy and 00:25:14.640 --> 00:25:17.319 careless, and our flesh is too ready and eager 00:25:17.319 --> 00:25:20.799 to sin, and is disciplined to the spirit of prayer. 00:25:21.539 --> 00:25:24.519 Prayer helps us to fight back against laziness. 00:25:25.000 --> 00:25:28.240 It helps us to not grow weary and doing good. 00:25:29.579 --> 00:25:33.009 And then finally, The other means of grace that 00:25:33.009 --> 00:25:36.269 helps us in our laziness is not neglecting, gathering 00:25:36.269 --> 00:25:38.369 together what we're doing this very evening. 00:25:39.230 --> 00:25:41.930 Hebrews 10 tells us, and let us consider how 00:25:41.930 --> 00:25:44.690 to stir up one another to love and good works, 00:25:45.109 --> 00:25:47.450 not neglecting to meet together as is the habit 00:25:47.450 --> 00:25:51.029 of some, but encouraging one another. And all 00:25:51.029 --> 00:25:54.509 the more as you see the day drawing near. So 00:25:54.509 --> 00:25:56.910 as we see that day drawing near that we talked 00:25:56.910 --> 00:25:59.910 about this morning or as the Thessalonians looked 00:25:59.910 --> 00:26:03.630 at the day drawing near We must not grow weary 00:26:03.630 --> 00:26:08.170 and doing good We must not be lazy laziness is 00:26:08.170 --> 00:26:11.910 a sin and it needs to be dealt with Idleness 00:26:11.910 --> 00:26:14.869 is not just doing nothing. It's avoiding what 00:26:14.869 --> 00:26:19.210 matters and Christ worked to save us So we must 00:26:19.210 --> 00:26:22.950 work to serve him and serve others Again, idleness 00:26:22.950 --> 00:26:26.269 is not just doing nothing. It is avoiding what 00:26:26.269 --> 00:26:30.230 matters. Christ worked to save us, so we must 00:26:30.230 --> 00:26:34.009 work to serve him and others. We must look at 00:26:34.009 --> 00:26:37.529 that old ruddered cross and remember the shame 00:26:37.529 --> 00:26:41.170 that Christ bore for us, the work that he accomplished, 00:26:41.490 --> 00:26:44.809 and be encouraged ever more to work for him and 00:26:44.809 --> 00:26:49.150 for his glory. Let's pray. Our Father, we thank 00:26:49.150 --> 00:26:52.130 you. for this word that you have given us, this 00:26:52.130 --> 00:26:55.150 command to not be lazy. Lord, we pray that you 00:26:55.150 --> 00:26:58.970 would give us the strength to work to your glory 00:26:58.970 --> 00:27:01.930 in all things, that we would not have ourselves 00:27:01.930 --> 00:27:05.190 in focus, but we would have your kingdom in focus. 00:27:05.970 --> 00:27:08.890 Lord, help us this evening to stir up one another 00:27:08.890 --> 00:27:11.450 in good works, to be an encouragement to one 00:27:11.450 --> 00:27:14.549 another as we go to fellowship. Pray all of this 00:27:14.549 --> 00:27:16.130 in Jesus' name, amen.