In the final section of his letter to the Thessalonians, Paul gives some advice to the idle and disobedient. This section may rightly be titled "Godly Discipline." In his first letter, Paul had something to say of those in the congregation who would not work, 4:11f., 5:14. This problem might have been compounded by the belief that Jesus was about to return. At any rate, Paul again addresses this problem.

v6. Paul gives firm directions on the issue of idleness. His directions are "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ." Those who are "idle" act against the teachings of Jesus and therefore, Paul confronts their idleness (sloth), cf. Eph.4:28. They refrain from doing any work and therefore, as unemployed members of the church, do not contribute to the support of their Christian community. In fact, they are probably drawing on its financial resources.

v7-9. Paul is able to point to his own example as someone who supports himself financially while performing his gospel ministry. Although he pays his own way, he could rightly look for financial support cf.1Tim.5:17-18, yet for the sake of the gospel he earns his own keep as a tent maker. Paul has every right to look to the church for support, but he works at his living to set an example for his mission churches.

v10. Paul gives a summary of the work-ethic which was part of the tradition, or "sound teaching", which he had taught the Thessalonians when he was first with them. The translation, "if a man will not work, he shall not eat", misses the point somewhat. A free translation might go something like this, "if a person refuses to work, then don't let him eat."

v11. There is a group in the church, whom Paul knows well, who are "busybodies instead of busy." Not only do they live off others, they meddle in the affairs of others. They disturb the church with their mistaken views about the second coming of Christ.

v12. These members of the church, who exist on the bounty of others, must from now on exist on the fruit of their own labors. They must "settle down", calm down, in the sense of not going overboard with their second coming speculation.

v13. Addressing the majority of church members, Paul encourages them to act rightly. Most likely he is thinking of their behavior toward the idlers. The church should resist developing a handout mentality.

Work is an essential element of the human condition. We were created to work. Adam and Eve were to tend the garden - to order the creation for the benefit of all, to "subdue" and to "rule" it. The only change in this creation ordinance came with the entrance of sin. Work is now cursed with frustration, and in this age it will always be so. "By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground."

From the beginning, God reveals that work is a noble activity, yet it is not always seen this way. The ancient Greeks saw any form of manual labor as destructive of the human psyche. The hands-on type of work was something best done by slaves.

Although the Bible doesn't really give us an economic system for modern society, it does give us principles we can use to shape and test our work-ethic. So, let's see whether we can draw some Biblical principles from our passage for study, principles we can apply to our present circumstances.

The Bible encourages the application of our effort, energy, intellect and abilities, toward the ordering and ruling of God's creation. Industriousness is encouraged, it is seen as a virtue, while sloth is seen as an evil, Rom.12:11. As Jesus puts it, "a laborer is worthy of his hire."

Paul commands the members of the church at Thessalonica to "keep away" from the idle brother. What he means by this is that they should break fellowship with this brother. This follows Jesus' words in Matthew 15:15-17. They should treat the person as they would "a pagan or a tax collector". A similar idea is found in 1 Corinthians 5:5 where Paul uses the phrase "hand this man over to Satan." It doesn't mean abandon the person, rather it means to break fellowship with them so that they will recognize their sin and be brought back into full membership of the Christian community.

Paul financed his mission from his own work rather than relying on the generosity of his new converts. Yet, on a number of occasions, he pointed out that he had every right to ask for the funding of his ministry by the new churches. The simple reason being that work is a much wider activity than just commerce. A poet writing poetry is just as industrious as a farmer harvesting grain. Both are working and their effort should be rewarded equally.

1. Why should the idle not be idle?

2. Discuss the morality of accumulating the product of our own work and the removal of that product by government for the purpose of redistribution. (ie. is tax "theft"?).