Let’s go ahead and take our Bibles and turn to the passage just read, 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12. This is a short, but potent passage of Scripture. 

Last week, we looked at a pretty difficult passage of Scripture dealing with sexual purity, 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8. Next week we’re going to deal with issues concerning eschatology and the return of Christ (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). And sandwiched between those two texts is this short passage on love and hard work in the church community. Paul exhorts the church to love diligently and work diligently in the church.

I was talking with our elders a few weeks ago, and we were discussing the tone and the topics of 1 Thessalonians. And I told them that 1 Thessalonians is an invasive book. Paul gets all up in our business with his instructions. And that’s especially true in the last two chapters of the book. 

We saw that initiated last week at the beginning of chapter 4. Paul transitions from some of his theological reasoning and encouragement in chapters 1-3 to more practical matters in the back-half of his letter. He triggered that with his statement “finally” in verse 1. Only a preacher says “finally” and then goes on for another two chapters. Well after Paul says “finally,” he starts to get really practical… uncomfortably practical… with the Thessalonian church and with us. First of all, he deals with sex and sexual purity, which must have been a big struggle in Thessalonica. But now he deals with two other topics: 1) love and 2) hard work. That’s the title of our message today: “Love and Hard Work.”

So, let’s do this. Go ahead and take your notes and write this down as #1. Let’s keep our notes simple this morning. Paul gives three clear instructions in this passage, and these need to be applied in our church, just as much as they were in Thessalonica. Here’s the first instruction. Paul tells us to… 

Paul’s instruction to the church:

1)   Love deeply (4:9-10)

The key word here in verse 9 is the Greek word: φιλαδελφία. 

9 Now concerning brotherly love

“Now concerning brotherly love,” says Paul. φιλέω means “to love”; ἀδελφός means “brother.” φιλαδελφία means “brotherly love” or what some commentators call “mutual love.” 

When William Penn set up the new colony of Pennsylvania, he wanted it to be free of the inter-denominational squabbling that was so common in the other colonies. He wanted it to be a place where “love” was prioritized above doctrinal divisions. So, he named the capital city of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, the city of “brotherly love.” So, we, as Americans, are familiar with this word φιλαδελφία. 

But in ancient Greek and Jewish writings, φιλαδελφία was only ever used for blood brothers and sisters. You wouldn’t speak of φιλαδελφία among friends or affinity groups. This word was restricted to nuclear families (parents, children, siblings, even grandparents and grandchildren). 

But that all changed with the Apostle Paul. Way before William Penn used this word for his colony, Paul hijacked that term, and used it to describe how love should be shown in the church. Paul used it to describe the familial bonds that are present in the church. And unlike Penn, Paul wants φιλαδελφία to be exercised within the church as an expression of doctrinal convictions not irrespective of them. 

Paul wants the church to love Jesus and follow Jesus; and as part of that following, they are going to love and serve fellow followers of Jesus Christ. And that’s exactly what the Thessalonians have been doing. Paul says,

9 Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. 

That’s an interesting statement right there “taught by God.” That means that they are either students of the Word, and have been faithfully following the Scriptures. Or it means that the Holy Spirit has been pressing hard into them and teaching them and prompting them to be more loving towards each other. I think it’s probably the latter in combination with what Paul taught them. 

Paul says you have been “God-taught” in these matters, and you are excelling at them. In fact, they have been so successful at loving each other that they are examples to other churches in Macedonia. 

10 for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. 

They’ve been examples to the Philippians. They’ve been examples to the Bereans. And they’ve been examples conceivably to the other churches in Macedonia that have been spawned since Paul came through Thessalonica and planted their church. And yet even in that, Paul says at the end of verse 10, 

But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more,

It’s as if Paul is saying, “You’re doing great, Thessalonians! You love one another! You are doing such a great job of this, it’s even being told to us by the other churches in Macedonia. But, don’t get cocky! Keep it up! Do it more and more.” Paul doesn’t want them to rest on their laurels. He wants them to keep it up! 

Remember that quote that I gave you last week concerning sexual purity? “Success is not final. Failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.” “You’re doing good at brotherly love, Church in Thessalonica! Good for you! Now keep doing it. And do it even better!” I would like to think that Paul would tell us something similar here at Verse By Verse Fellowship. “You are doing good, church. Now keep doing it.” That’s what he tells the good church at Thessalonica. 

Now this whole dialogue might strike you as strange in Paul’s letter. Because Paul just got done talking about purity and sex in verses 1-8. Why transition from sexual purity to brotherly love? Well let me hazard a guess. It makes sense to me because verses 1-8 are very limiting. “Don’t do this. Don’t do that. Keep sex pure. Keep sex in house, literally, between a married couple. Don’t spread your sex outside the home, and don’t wrong your brother in this matter.” 

So, the best thing that you can do as far as brotherly love is concerned in the area of sex is only “make love” in the context of a heterosexual, marital union. Don’t spread that around. But as far as “brotherly love” (φιλαδελφία) goes, Paul says, “You can spread that around all day long.” In fact, you can do that more and more and more. Love each other in that way generously and copiously. Love each other in that way profusely. That’s why God gave us the church. That’s one beautiful aspect of being part of the body of Christ, that we can show brotherly love to one another, even between sexes. 

And by the way, ladies, please don’t be put off by that term “brotherly love” as if it’s a gender-specific term. It’s not. It’s “brotherly/sisterly love” in the church. The family of God in the church should be full of love like a family is full of love. Paul says it this way in Romans 12:10, “Love one another with brotherly affection (φιλαδελφίᾳ). [And] outdo one another in showing honor.” 

Now, let’s talk practically here. This is practical already, but let’s drill down even further. How do we love deeply our brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus? How do we show φιλαδελφίᾳ in the church… in our church… in San Antonio, Texas? Here’s a few suggestions for you. I’ll give you three. Write these down. 

How can we show φιλαδελφίᾳ in the church?

1) Do a kindness for another person in the church every week 

Every week! I would say every day, but I know some of you have three screaming kids at home, and that might be an oppressive burden for you. I don’t want this to be oppressive or a burden. I want this to be a good way for us to put into practice 1 Thessalonians 4. “Do a kindness for another person in the church every week!”

And to that you might ask, “Okay, Tony. Can you be more specific? What kind of kindness?” Well, send an encouraging text to someone. Some of you could do that every day or at least every other day. Commit to pray for your SG members and send them a text letting them know that you are praying for them. Bring a meal to a family that just had a baby or who has been in the hospital. Help someone move! 

Here’s another way to show φιλαδελφίᾳ in the church:

2) Ask for a kindness from another person in the church regularly 

Now that might sound a bit counterintuitive, but let me explain. Benjamin Franklin believed that the best way to build goodwill in a community is to ask someone to help you with something. And in doing this, people will actually start to like each other. It’s called the “Ben Franklin effect.” And it’s been verified in research. Because when people ask you to do something for them, then you are more inclined to ask them to do something for you. And that sense of reciprocity and obligation is actually good. It can be abused, sure. But most of the time, it’s not. It builds community and goodwill. It’s a kind of relational quid-pro-quo.

Let me illustrate, if I ask you to help me move, then you are going to be more inclined to ask me to help you move. And so, we’ve exchanged a set of goods. My sweat for your sweat. My muscles for your muscles. And then afterwards, we can reminisce with each other about the silly things we talked about when we moved each other. And we can talk too more openly about the junk in your house that you are keeping and the junk in my house that I am keeping. Everyone got it? But somebody’s got to start that relational dynamic. If I don’t ask you, and you don’t ask me… if we stay isolated from each other or if we’re afraid to impose upon another person, we never get the relationship started.

And that leads me to the third application.

3) Don’t isolate yourself

The Bible says, Proverbs 18:1, “Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment.” When Adam was alone in the garden of Eden, this place of beauty, tranquility, and sinlessness, God said it’s not good that man should be alone (Gen 2:18). If you read Genesis 1-2, everything was good, good, good, good, good! And there’s only one thing that God says was “not good” in that place of paradise—Adam’s aloneness. And if that was true for Adam in paradise, how much more would it be true for us here in the post-fall era. 

I recently read Ben Sasse’s book, Them. Ben Sasse is a U.S. senator from the state of Nebraska. And Sasse talks in that book about the oppressive Chicago heat wave in 1995 that killed 739 people. And he talks about how little media-coverage that event got even during the heat wave was happening almost 30 years ago. And that’s because most of the death involved people living in isolation from other people. Nobody checked on them. They didn’t have any family around. They didn’t have a community of friends. 

In fact, the dominant category of deaths involved elderly men, men who lived in isolation from other people. And Sasse talks about how the deterioration of community groups and families in America helped cause that crisis. 

So, don’t isolate yourselves, Christians. We need each other. We need φιλαδελφία in our church.

Go ahead and write this down under #2. Paul’s instruction to the church is to Love deeply, but also to…

2) Live quietly (4:11a)

Now this second point requires some unpacking. Paul says at the end of verse 10. 

But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more,

That is love one another (that is φιλαδελφία). And as a continuation of that sentence, Paul writes…

11 and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, 

Now what does that mean? “Live quietly” and “mind your own affairs.” This is a pretty remarkable statement here, because Paul did not live a quiet life. He was a bold witness for Jesus Christ. He went all over the Roman Empire to preach the gospel… loudly. So why would he tell the Thessalonians to “live quietly” here? In fact, the way Paul says it here is curious. He says “aspire to live quietly.” Some have paraphrased this statement as follows: “make it your ambition to have no ambition!” or “seek restlessly to be still.” What does Paul mean by that?  

Well here’s what I think Paul is saying. He’s saying, “Don’t be a busy-body.” In fact, that’s exactly the problem that Paul addresses elsewhere. Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 3:6–12 to this same church, “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… For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.” And that’s why Paul talks about working hard and supporting yourself in verse 11 and 12 of our passage. 

Ostensibly there were a group of people in Thessalonica who were part of the church, but instead of working hard and taking care of their families they were idle and being supported by the church. And they weren’t just “not working.” They were working at the wrong things… going about the church gossiping and stirring up problems. They were getting involved in other people’s affairs, but their own house wasn’t in order. So, Paul’s says, “stop being idle.” “Stop being a busybody.” Instead, live quietly. Work hard. Take care of yourself and mind your own affairs. 

And part of this quiet living and minding your own affairs is #3—working diligently. Write that down as #3 in your notes:

3) Work diligently (4:11b-12)

Look at the end of verse 11.

and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one. 

Actually, this is part of verse 10 and verse 11. Paul’s connecting all of these things together in one sentence. Paul says, 

But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, 11 and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.   

All of that is one sentence in Greek. And all of this, I believe, is controlled by that statement about “brotherly love” in verse 9. How can we love our brothers, practically? Well, one of the ways we do that is by living quiet lives and minding our own affairs (verse 10). Another way we do that is by working hard and providing for ourselves… not being dependent on anyone or being a burden to the church. This gives us a good testimony towards outsiders according to verse 12. 

Now why would Paul have to address this issue directly? What was going on in the church that caused him to say, “Get to work, church!” “Stop being idle busybodies, and instead get busy working and providing for yourselves.” Well, I don’t know for sure, but I’ll give you a few theories on what may have been going on in the church. And then I want to talk application for our church. 

So, here’s one theory. The passage immediately following this passage is a passage about the Lord’s coming. And Paul tells us that the Lord will come like a “thief in the night.” And it’s possible that some of the Thessalonians were so fixated on the Lord’s return and so obsessed with it, that they had stopped working and just began sitting around waiting for Christ’s return. It’s possible that the church got caught up in a kind of “rapture-fever” that led to idleness and rampant speculation about Christ’s imminent return. 

And if any of you think that that theory is a bit far-fetched, I’ll just tell you that that scenario has played out repeatedly throughout the centuries. Most recently some of you might remember the crackpot, Harold Camping, who predicted that the end of the world would take place on May 21st, 2011. Do y’all remember that? How’d that work out for Camping? And some of his followers actually quit their jobs and waited anxiously all day for that failed prophecy, despite the fact that Jesus clearly states that no one knows the day and hour of his coming (Matt 24:36).    

That whole scenario has played out repeatedly in history especially among Jehovah’s Witnesses and other cults and fringe Christian sects. There was even some “apocalyptic fever” in Martin Luther’s day. 

People were sure that the Pope was the antichrist and the end of the world would happen in their lifetime. This is about 500 years ago, by the way. And Luther got caught up in that at times. But Luther reportedly said, “If I knew that tomorrow was the end of the world, I would plant an apple tree today!” Now what does that mean? There’s some debate about whether or not Luther said that, but for the sake of argument let’s assume he or another reformer said it. Why would they say that? What are they trying to show us? 

Well, I think they are trying to say that work… planting a tree, building a table, making a sale, teaching a class, caring for kids as a housewife, painting a house, engineering an earth-mover… those tasks are good in and of themselves. Work is good, even if we don’t bear the fruit of our labor in our lifetime. Even if we never eat the apples of an apple tree, it is still good and God-honoring to work.

And I sense Paul is saying the same thing here. “Yes, Jesus is coming back, Thessalonian church. Jesus is coming back for us and that’s great. Get to work!” Jesus is coming back for us, and we should be vigilant and watchful of his coming. Jesus makes that clear in his Olivet Discourse (Matt 24-25). We “run the earth and watch the sky.” We stay busy with our tasks, and when Jesus comes, he’ll find us working. And that’s good. 

Now there’s another theory behind this text that possibly the Thessalonians lost their jobs or their income as part of the persecution they were enduring. If you remember, Paul said earlier that the Thessalonians were trusting Christ through deep affliction (1:6; 3:2-3; etc.). And part of that affliction may have been a loss of income or steady employment. And they may have been required to do more manual-labor type of jobs than they were accustomed. That’s why Paul says, “work with your hands, as we instructed you.”  

It’s possible that the Thessalonians were being blackballed in the marketplace, and so they had to work with their hands as a matter of last resort. Leon Morris in his commentary on this passage said, “It is noteworthy that in writing to people in a Greek city he says work with your hands, for Greeks despised manual labour; they saw it as an occupation fit for slaves. But the Christians (like the Jews) did not hesitate to insist on the dignity of manual work (cf. Eph. 4:28).” 

Coincidently, in his book The Benedict Option, Rod Dreher talks about this. He asks what are we going to do as Christians if nurses are no longer allowed to be nurses unless they perform abortions? What are Christian doctors going to do if they are forced to perform sex reassignment surgeries? What if Christian judges are forced to violate religious liberty? What if teachers are forced to teach gender fluidity in the classrooms as required curriculum? 

And interestingly Dreher’s advice for Christians is to teach their children trades. Instead of sending them to medical school and acquiring hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of debt that forces them to stay in the medical field, we should be encouraging them to “work with their own hands.” It’s an interesting suggestion. 

Just so you know, Dreher’s been accused of being an alarmist. But there’s some evidence to suggest in Canada and Europe that some Christians are being blackballed from certain professions. How should we respond to that? Well, we can’t be idle. We need to know how to support ourselves and work with our hands. 

By the way, Paul was no stranger to this. At times he would receive financial compensation for his work as an evangelist. But other times he was a tent-maker, a leather-worker. He knew how to work with his hands. He knew how to provide for himself. And he never wanted to be an unnecessary burden or stumbling block to the church.

So, let’s synthesize all of this and finish up with a few applications. Go ahead and write these down in your notes. Here are four enemies of hard work from the book of Proverbs. Here we go:

1. Slothfulness 

Proverbs 19:15 – Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger. 

The poet Robert Frost said once, “The world is full of willing people: some willing to work and the rest willing to let them.” Thomas Edison said this: “I never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did any of my inventions come by accident; they came by work.” The poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote, “Free men freely work: Whoever fears God, fears to sit at ease.” 

There’s hard work, and then there’s slothfulness. Slothfulness is a fun word to say, but it’s not a fun thing to experience… in yourself or in others.

Here’s another great word for this. The book of Proverbs mentions slothfulness, but it also mentions sluggardliness. That’s a fun word to say too, but it’s not a fun thing to experience. 

Proverbs 10:26 – Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to those who send him.

Proverbs 26:14 – As a door turns on its hinges, so does a sluggard on his bed.

Imagine the creaking sound of a door turning on its hinges. That’s a sluggard in his bed. Now some people need to learn how to get out of bed, and some people need to learn how to sleep. Sleep, by the way, is not a curse. Sleep is a gift from God that is given to us to remind us that we need rest. God never slumbers. But we do. And God gave us sleep to remind us that we aren’t God. So, sleep is a good thing, but too much sleep is evidence of slothfulness. 

I’ve noticed that in the evangelical world there are people who need to learn how to work, and there are people that need to learn how to rest. There’s a spectrum there, and you need to know where you are on that spectrum, so that you can gravitate towards the middle. Some in this room need to be encouraged to rest. God set a precedent for that in creation when he rested on the seventh day. Why did God do that? Does God need to rest? No! He did that as an example for us. “Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest” (Ex 34:21). Some of you are too busy, and you need to learn how to rest. Others need to learn how to work and stay busy… not as busybodies, but working as unto the LORD. And that actually makes your rest more enjoyable. So, don’t be a slothful person. Work hard when it’s time to work, and then rest when it’s time to rest. 

2. Entitlement

Proverbs 20:21 – An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end.

Parents, don’t just give your kids everything. Make them work for it! Entitlement leads to poverty and bitterness and dissatisfaction. There’s joy that comes from work. Don’t rob your kids of that. 

3. Fantasies

Proverbs 12:11 – Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense. 

“Pastor Tony, when I grow up, I’m going to be an underwater basket weaver.” Okay, well, you might want to have a backup plan. “Pastor Tony, when I grow up, I’m going to be a professional football player!” Okay, well you’re 5’ 3” and 160 lbs. soaking wet. You might want to have a backup plan. 

You know it used to be quite common when I was a kid for young children to aspire to be astronauts when they grow up. And I think teachers and counselors well-meaningly encouraged that. Well I hate to burst anyone’s bubble, but despite the enormous interest in becoming an astronaut for NASA, there were only 150 astronauts in 2000. And today there are less than 60. So, good luck with that aspiration!

And I don’t say that in order to encourage cynicism or to be a grumpy old man. I’m too young to be a grumpy old man. I tell you that, so that you don’t chase fantasies. If you want to write a novel, go for it. But that’s a hobby, not a job. Do it in your spare time after a hard day’s work. 

4. Hastiness 

Proverbs 21:5 – The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. 

Don’t be hasty! Constantly bouncing around from job to job! Never pressing through the challenges! Never getting to the sweetness of a job well-done, because you’re always on to something else or quitting in order to start some new thing. 

Proverbs 12:14 – From the fruit of his mouth a man is satisfied with good, and the work of a man’s hand comes back to him. 

Listen, work is not a curse. It’s not! Work is a good thing. It’s an honorable thing. No Christian should be going around singing: “Sixteen tons, what do ya get, Another day older and deeper and debt.”

Some people might assume that because of Genesis 3 and the Fall, work is a curse. But that’s not true. Yes, work is cursed because of what happened to Adam in the garden. We’ve got to work by the sweat of our brow. But Adam worked and kept up the Garden of Eden even before the Fall. And even before that, what’s the first thing that we see God doing in the Bible? He’s working! He’s creating the world! He’s taking dirt and creating Adam and then Eve. So, if work was a curse, why did God do it? Work is not a curse. Work is a gift from God—just ask someone who’s having trouble finding work. 

So let’s work hard, church. Let’s Love deeply, Live quietly, and Work diligently. 

Why is this so important for us, as Christians? Why is Paul so intent on Christians working hard and not being a drain on their community. Well he states it clearly in verse 12. He says, 

But we urge you, brothers… to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one. 

Why does Paul want us to work hard? Two reasons: 1) So that we walk properly before outsiders and 2) so that we are dependent on no one. We’ve talked about the second reason. We’ve talked about the importance of not being idle and being a drain on the church community. But also, Paul wants Christians to have a good reputation with outsiders. He wants us to walk properly before outsiders. He wants Christians to be a benefit to society. He wants Christians to have a good witness. He wants Christians to represent Christ rightly before the watching world. 

Why? Why does he want this? Because, like I’ve said throughout this series, we are “Kingdom Called.” We are called to represent Christ and his Kingdom. 1 Thessalonians 2:11, “we charge you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.” That’s what we are called to do. And when we love each other in the church… when we aspire to live quietly and mind our own affairs… when we work with our own hands and provide for ourselves, depending on no one, we are bearing fruit as believers in Jesus Christ. We are good witnesses before the world. 

And why do we want to have a good witness before the world? Why is that important to the Lord? Why is that important to the Apostle Paul? Because he wants us to reach the world. He wants there to be no barrier to reaching people with the gospel. So that people can look at the church and look at our work-ethic and look at our love for one another and say, “I want that. Whatever you guys have, I’m missing that in my life. I want what you have.” And we can say in response to that, “Jesus Christ, he died for my sins. My faith in him has saved me and changed my life. And you can have your sins forgiven too.”

Do you know this Jesus? Have you had your sins paid for by his blood? Let me be clear, it’s not our work that saves us, as important as that is to the Apostle Paul here. It’s the work of Jesus that saves us. Have you put your faith in that work? If not, let me invite you to do that now.