AVOID IDLENESS

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us. For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”

We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat.

2 Thessalonians 3:6, 10-12

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

The Christian life is not a life grounded in complacency. Not even close.

It shouldn’t take long for any disciple to learn this because here’s what Jesus tasked all His followers with, what we know as The Great Commission:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20

Note here how every one of Jesus’ demands is an action word.

Go and make disciples of all nations.

Baptize those newly made disciples in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Teach the new disciples to obey everything that Jesus commanded.

You can’t go and make and baptize and teach by just sitting around doing nothing. And since Jesus promised He is with His believers until the end of the age, why would we want Him to see us not willingly carrying out what He asked us to do?

Perhaps we need to do a little self reflection on how we spend our time, critically assessing how much of it we invest in being obedient to Jesus’ commands. After all, how can we teach others to obey what He has commanded if we aren’t willing to do it ourselves?

Friends, this is why the scriptures speak out against the matter of laziness and general lethargy in life for they couldn’t be further from where we’re expected to be as Christians.

As we see from our continued study of 2 Thessalonians, chapter 3, the Apostle Paul shows concern on this matter as he writes to his brother and sister believers in the church of Thessalonica. Look again at his words here:

In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us. For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”

We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat. Vv. 6, 10-12

Here, we find Paul warning the Thessalonian Christians to be intentional about who they associate with, specifically steering clear of anyone who is “idle and disruptive” while refusing to live in accordance to the Lord’s standards. Those standards were a part of the teaching that Paul and his fellow missionaries brought to the Thessalonian believers when their church was being established.

The message is very clear here.

Avoid idleness.

Why?

Because our behavior and views tend to be impacted by the company we keep. Over and over again through the ages, it has been shown that there is power in influence, both good and bad.

Hang around people who are lazy and you can be sure you will see your motivation dwindle. Soon, you will find yourself becoming more and more like those you choose to be around. This is at the root of Paul’s warning for the Thessalonian Christians needed to be active for the cause of the Gospel, not sitting around and basking in the light of their gifted, gained salvation.

Now, the words of Paul found in 2 Thessalonians isn’t the only place we find the Bible warning against a lazy lifestyle. The Book of Proverbs, the main book of wisdom in the scriptures, offers these verses:

Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth. Proverbs 10:4

A sluggard’s appetite is never filled, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied. Proverbs 13:4

Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the shiftless go hungry. Proverbs 19:15

Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing. Proverbs 20:4

Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.

How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?

A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest—and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man. Proverbs 6:6-11

And then, as if these passages weren’t enough, we find Jesus Himself sharing the following parable in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 25:

“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.”

“The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.”

“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.’”

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’”

“The man with two bags of gold also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.’”

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’”

“Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’”

“His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.”

“‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’” Vv. 14-30

The point here is that you have to put in effort to get a result. Hard work produces positive results. Doing nothing produces nothing in return.

Jesus has called us to action, to go and make disciples while baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey all He has commanded. With this, He expects a return on His investment in everyone who believes in Him. All Christians are expected to carry on the Gospel work Jesus began and indeed is at the heart of. And we need to remember that one day all who are in Christ will be called to account for what we have or haven’t done. This is clear in the parable and no one should want to be like the third servant, the one who was "wicked and lazy". 

We won't be if we are obedient to the scriptures and avoid idleness.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.