II Thessalonians 3:1-18
And we have confidence in the Lord about you, that you are doing and will do the things that we command. (v. 4) Paul has real confidence in the Thessalonians – in this case, confidence that they will follow his teachings (commands). Earlier I posted about the “third-person compliments” (I Thessalonians 1:9) that he had paid to them and in a later epistle (II Corinthians 8:1-5) he commends them for their generosity when he is talking about contributions toward the faithful in Jerusalem. What a great relationship he has with them!
In verses 6-12 Paul returns to two items he has mentioned previously – their imitating him and his working among them so that he was not dependent on them for his food. Every time I read his words about his disciples’ imitating him, I ask myself if I can say the same thing – “Imitate me!”. Although that should be something that we can easily say, I find it awkward and quite humbling to think of writing or saying that. And as for idleness, I just want to say a word about our staff. They are working tirelessly on our behalf these days, especially David and Kelly. Personally I would also put Todd in that category, but mostly I see the work that he is doing that the rest of you don’t see. In addition there are a number of volunteers who are putting in many extra hours. We are facing challenging times; I am proud of our church’s response! GLORY!
Slava Bohu!
I totally agree about the work that they all do, on our behalf and for people in our community! Paul talks about the importance working to feed ourselves and I think of those now who by no fault of their own are without employment and scrambling to do this for their families often with no available childcare. We see this now, but it also occurs for some without a pandemic. But Paul’s chastisement was for individuals that the church members knew personally were unwilling to work. Without knowing the person and their circumstances, we cannot assume that they are unwilling.
I have read elsewhere that many of the Thessalonians were unwilling to work because they were expecting Jesus’ return to come very soon – why work??!!