Today marks an important day in the life of our church. It’s the completion of a goal that we’ve been working at for nearly fifteen years. Today marks the preaching of the whole canon of Scripture in just under fifteen years from this pulpit. If I’m honest, though, today marks the accomplishment of one goal the admittance of defeat in regards to two other goals I put together nearly fifteen years ago.
For those of you who have been with us for a while, you know that we’ve approached preaching through books of the Bible at what I’ve labeled an A, B, and C level approach. An A-level approach would be looking at the book in broad strokes, as we went through the book of Numbers in six messages, whereas a C-level outline would involve preaching through the book at a greater level of detail, as we went through Galatians in fifteen messages, for example. And my original goal was to preach through the Bible three times over forty-five years, preaching each book at an A, B, and C-level. At the time I was twenty-one years old, and it made sense. Forty-five years of ministry, preaching through the Bible in fifteen year segments, and calling it a day when I was sixty-six years old all made sense. The math worked.
However, after working through certain books, I think I’ve realized that some books simply weren’t meant to be preached at a C-level. A fifty-five message series through the book of Job could be a bit wearying. At the end, maybe we would find ourselves identifying a bit with Job’s suffering if we spent that many weeks in can’t. There’s no doubt wisdom in recognizing that certain books are simply better preached through at a broader level. So, today is an admittance of defeat in the face of one goal and a celebration in accomplishing another, but perhaps both of these should lead us to rejoice and thank God.
In all seriousness, I do trust that this fifteen year project has been a helpful one for the church. I know for me that I find myself treasuring certain books of the Bible like Ecclesiastes, Ezekiel, and Revelation that I may well have chosen to avoid preaching were it not for a commitment simply to preach through the canon. And I can still remember exciting conversations we’ve had as a church as we went through our study in Galatians, for example. This has been life-changing, I hope, for us as a church and a constant reminder that we want to be a community of believers who are continually being shaped and reformed in light of the Scriptures.
One of the most practical helps for us as we commit to preach through the books of the Bible is that it forces us to preach, think about, and apply topics that we otherwise wouldn’t discuss. I know, for example, that no one was itching to preach on the topics covered in Song of Solomon, but after Tom’s series through that book, we’re thankful he did. A commitment to preaching expositionally through the Bible simply forces us to preach texts and ideas that we simply never would have spoken from the pulpit if we didn’t have that commitment. And that is why it is fitting that this run of preaching through the canon of Scripture concludes with 2 Thessalonians 3:6-18.
The reason I say that is because 2 Thessalonians 3:6-18, I think, speaks to some important lessons for how a church, a community of believers, needs to function together. Things we need to think and do in order to live our lives together in a God-honoring way are given to us in these verses. However, if you just gave me the topic of what are the key things we need to think and do in order to live our lives well together as a covenant community of believer, I probably wouldn’t come up with what Paul lays out in these verses. But that would be because my mind is not vast enough to envision what the Lord knows we need. Therefore, this morning, I want us to look at 2 Thessalonians 3:6-18 and see in these verses some essential elements for a group of believers who are seeking to walk well together in a covenant community. And the first of these I want to note is that:
I think you can see with this point alone why I would not have thought of these points in coming up with an “Essential Elements for a Covenant Community” lecture. The need for individuals or family units in the church to work in order to provide for themselves simply doesn’t rise to the top of my thoughts very quickly when considering such a topic. However, I think we agree that this is crucial for the peace, well-being, and growth of the church.
It seems that Paul writes this section to address a situation in which some in the church weren’t working to provide for themselves and were perhaps trying to live off of others’ means. So, Paul dives right in to addressing how to handle these brothers who live this way. He tells the church in verse 6, “Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.”
Now, one the one hand “idleness” is probably not the best translation here. Most agree that a better translation would be something like “disorderliness.” That is, here are some living in a way that is “out of order” or “out of step” with how they were taught by Paul. But when we consider in what way their lifestyle was “out of order” or “disorderly,” it’s fair to conclude that they likely weren’t working in a way to provide for themselves.
I mean, if all we had was verse 6, and “idleness” there was translated “disorderliness,” then we wouldn’t know what these men were doing to behave in such a disorderly manner. But when you consider the rest of these verses, I think the picture begins to form. In verses 7 and following, Paul contrasts the example he provided with how these “disorderly” brothers were living, and he mentions how they were not disorderly but toiled and labored, working night and day in order to provide for themselves so that they might not be a burden to anyone. He mentions that in the short time while they were with the Thessalonians, they laid down a command: “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” (v. 10). And he explicitly says in verse 11 that some walk in “disorderliness,” adding, “not busy at work, but busybodies” before explicitly commanding them in verse 12 to “work quietly and earn their own living” [literally, “eat their own bread,” which means “earn their own living,” I think].
Now, the reason Paul takes up this point is because a basic aspect of proper Christian behavior in the world is having a good work ethic. If someone doesn’t work, you can see how this would put a strain on the Christian community. It would mean that those who do work and earn would bear the burden of not only providing for themselves but having to provide for this one as well and those dependent on him. This disrupts the peace of the community, which is why Paul, I think, explicitly mentions the Lord giving them peace at all times in every way in verse 16.
And this isn’t a case of someone being unable to work whether they’re disabled or simply unable to find a job, though putting in effort to do so. Paul specifically mentions those unwilling to work in verse 10.
Work is not a bad thing. It’s good. It’s right. It’s a means ordained by God. We were made to work. Now, working after the fall is hard. We work and sweat. We work and get tired. We work and our work isn’t as productive as we’d like. But work is not a part of the curse. It’s part of God’s design. And the ideal in the church is that the covenant community of believers is made up of individuals and family units who work to provide for themselves so that they won’t be a burden to others in terms of being dependent on others in the church.
So, though it is not something we might think of in our top ten list of essential elements for walking well together as a church, one fundamental aspect of a covenant community is that the members are willing to work so that they might provide for themselves and not unnecessarily burden the rest of the church.
But the fact that there are some doing this among the Thessalonians leads us to a second element, namely:
Notice what Paul says the Thessalonians in the opening verse of our section: “Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition you received from us” (v. 6). That is, Paul does not write this section addressing the disorderly ones but addressing the rest of the church. He’s telling them how to respond to these disorderly brothers, and he tells them to keep away from such brothers.
And this is repeated even more strongly in verses 14-15 as Paul writes, “If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.” The idea seems to be that they shun this brother in the sense of walking with him as if all is well, but it does seem that if indeed they come into contact with him, they use the opportunity to warn him that his living is out of step with the Scripture, he needs to repent, and if he doesn’t repent, he is endangering his soul.
Now, from where we sit, the harshness of this shunning could be missed. Think for a moment about the setting in Thessalonica. Paul brought the gospel to these individuals, and a number heard the Word and believed, but many others didn’t. And those that didn’t persecuted Paul so that he had to leave the area. Then, these unbelievers persecuted these new believers, and it left Paul concerned about them, wondering what was becoming of this group of new believers who started their Christian lives facing persecution. And he heard, thankfully, that they were actually growing in faith and love in the midst of persecution.
But what this means is that they had become an ostracized group. That is, Thessalonica had nothing like cultural Christianity. To be a Christian was to become the enemy of society at large. But at least they had their little group of fellow believers. They had their church family.
Now imagine what you would feel if this group began shunning you, letting you feel the full weight of not walking in step with the Scripture and with the church? You see, this was a harsh punishment. Having nothing to do with one who is already seen as an enemy of the society at large would be devastating.
So, why is Paul advising such a harsh consequence for this brother’s sin, especially while telling the Thessalonians to regard him as a brother, not as an enemy? Well, the answer is that Paul is advising this because he is concerned about this brother’s soul. He wants him to become “ashamed” (v. 14) for his sin so that he might repent. This is tough love, isn’t it? But don’t be deceived; it is love.
To comfort someone in his or her sin as if everything is okay is to help make their road to hell a smooth and easy one. That is unloving. Paul wants drastic action taken so that drastic repentance might result so that this one might not be condemned. I don’t think Paul delighted as he imagined the pain and distance this brother might feel as the church shunned him. But he knew that if that pain resulted in repentance, then it was well worth it.
We must remember this as a church as well. I know we’ve seen it many times in the Scripture, but it is worth mentioning again, what’s even worse than an individual in the church committing adultery is a church saying nothing to that individual about it. Let us not fall into some sappy sentimentality that says that the most loving thing to do is whatever causes the least conflict and rather love one another enough to run after one if he’s running after sin. Let us be willing to taking difficult stands against brothers and sisters we love if they’re endangering their souls precisely because we love them so dearly. This is a crucial component of the church walking together well as a community. Without it, the church will destroy its witness and itself.
And this point really leads us to the next:
The church must be a people who are one-another oriented. You simply can’t function well as a church if each individual or each family is simply looking at for himself or themselves only. So, this point is complementary to the first, isn’t it? On the one hand, we work and provide for ourselves so that we might not burden others. We take care of ourselves. But at the same time, we’re always looking out for others, asking how our decisions might help them and encourage them and build them up.
Notice how Paul does this in verses 7-9. He writes, “For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate.”
So what Paul is saying is that when he came to Thessalonica, he had the right to come to them and ask them to support him while he was there, providing for him food, shelter, etc. Paul mentions this a lot. He notes that “those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel” (1 Cor. 9:14) to the Corinthians. He tells Timothy that elders who rule well should be considered of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching (1 Tim. 5:17), which is clearly in regard to financial provision because he goes on to say, “The laborer is worthy of his wages” (1 Tim. 5:18). So, Paul knew he had the right to tell them that he was bringing them spiritual benefit and had every right to receive financial benefit from them. But he didn’t.
Instead, he chose to work, as he notes, “with toil and labor we worked night and day” (v. 8). They didn’t take anyone’s bread without first paying for it. Paul provided for himself, probably through tent-making. Why? After all, it obviously put a great burden on him to do so. I mean, he toiled and labored night and day. The answer is given in two parts. First, Paul says in verse 8, “that we might not be a burden to any of you.” He didn’t want anyone to have to carry the burden of feeding him or the like. And second, he says that it was “to give you in ourselves an example to imitate” (v. 9).
Therefore, when Paul got to Thessalonica to bring the gospel to them, he made a decision to work and provide for himself, at great costs to himself, because he was considering others. He made his decisions in light of thinking first about how this might affect others. Would he heap unnecessary burden on them? If so, he’d work night and day. Could his hard work help give them an example to imitate? If so, he’d work night and day.
You see, this was the fundamental problem with these disorderly brothers. They weren’t considering others. They weren’t considering the burden their decision not to work placed on those who loved them and didn’t want them to go without food.
This is the heartbeat of a Christian community: when making decisions, we look out for others. Our preferences can take a back seat; that’s okay. We might not get as much glory; that’s okay. We might have to work a little harder; that’s okay. As long as we can edify our brothers and sisters in Christ, then we are delighted. A body of believers like that declares loud and clear to the world that we are Christ’s disciples.
Now, don’t forget the previous point. Looking to edify others sometimes means we make hard stands. It sometimes means that we say, like Paul said, “If you don’t work, you don’t eat.” But it all things at all times, it means we’re looking outward—as individuals and families—asking how it is that we can edify others. Our decision-making always involves asking how what we do can and will affect and edify others.
You can see then to this point how this text is interwoven with a community focus. We work so that we might not unnecessarily burden others. We make hard stands against our brothers because we love them enough not to let them endanger their souls. We even allow their edification to be a priority in our decision-making. This text is a text concerning the community. It reminds us that the Scripture’s call to holiness is not merely a call to us as individuals but to us as a corporate body of believers, the church. We live the Christian life together.
But the corporate nature of our call to holiness can also be risky. That’s why I want to note one more point Paul is concerned with in verse 13. I’ll say it this way:
In the midst of telling the church to shun those walking in a disorderly manner, telling the disorderly ones to do their work and earn their own living, and pointing to his own example, he writes to those in the church who were doing well and says in verse 13, “As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good.”
Now, why would he write that? Perhaps it’s because it can be hard to keep doing good when others around you are disobeying and putting extra burden on you. I mean, imagine you’re working hard, your brother is unwilling to work, and you care for him enough that you’ve tried to make sure he has food, clothing, etc. After a while, you can be tempted to say, “Well, why am I working so hard if he’s not?” Paul’s answer, “Don’t grow weary in doing good.” Don’t allow others’ disobedience to dissuade you from doing what is good and right.
Or imagine they’ve been caring for these brothers who were unwilling to work, and they’re tempted to grow cynical of anyone in need, so they say, “I just don’t know if I’m ever going to give food or money to anyone again who appears in need. People don’t have simply because people aren’t willing to work.” But that’s not always the case, is it? Don’t let the disobedience of some turn us into hard-hearted cynical people. Don’t let the disobedience of others, even in the body, lead you to start simply looking out for yourself, matching their selfishness, or wanting to fight for the same worldly things they’re chasing. That can happen in a church body, but it shouldn’t. And one way to prevent it is to remember that Paul’s call to us, even when others around us have disobeyed is, “You . . . do not grow weary in doing good” (v. 13). Remember these first three points and live them out in your life, even when others don’t.
Now, we’ve walked through these verses, but there’s still the benediction in verses 16-18, isn’t there? And I know we can be tempted to skip over these things, especially when we realize that Paul ends every letter he writes saying, “Grace be with you,” in some form, even as he does here. Familiarity can lead us to move on past such phrases.
But the idea of having peace with God and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ being with us is a crazy idea apart from the gospel isn’t it? We are enemies of God by nature. We are sinful rebels against our Creator by nature. And Paul ends this letter speaking of them having peace with God and being recipients of Christ’s grace. How? The answer is that in these brief benedictions, Paul is reminding them of the gospel, its effects, and the hope that is theirs because of the gospel.
He’s reminding them that the Lord gave us peace with himself by sending his Son to pay the penalty for our sins by dying on the cross and that his grace is with us because by faith we’ve been united with the one who died for us and was raised on the third day. So, implicit within this benediction is, I think, an exhortation to Paul to make sure that as a community of believers we are always gospel saturated. We work not to be a burden to others, remember that Christ paid our penalty for us. We do the hard work of taking difficult stands for the salvation of our brothers, remembering that Christ did the hard work of laying down his life for us. We ask how we might edify others in order that we might demonstrate the example of Christ who humbled himself by taking on flesh and being obedient to the point of death for our sakes. We find the strength to keep on doing good even when others aren’t by remembering that we’re doing good before one who has declared us righteous through our faith in his righteous Son.
Therefore, as we come to the table this morning, we come, remembering the gospel and delighting in it. And there is no better way to visibly declare that we have heard this word from 2 Thessalonians 3:6-18 and receive it. Therefore, let us come. Amen.