Saturday, October 17, 2009

2 Thessalonians 3

Finally brothers, Pray! How simple, yet how important! Pray especially that the word of God may run and be glorified.

The Lord is faithful. Faithfulness looks like establishing you and keeping you from the evil one. It is directing your heart in the love of God and patience of Christ. I need that directing and that is what a faithful God does.

The protestant work ethic springs from the chapter. It is in other places in the Bible, no doubt, but you can't miss it here. If you don't work, you shouldn't eat. Period. The community of faith needs to reinforce this standard.

There are nuances in church discipline, in remedial action a church takes toward those who will not live according to Christ's teaching. This example is to disassociate as brothers, not enemies. The goal is to make them ashamed of their idleness.

No comments: