Sloth

Introduction

Most people hate laziness

meaning, we have all had experiences with people, whom we would call lazy, and we found ourselves very annoyed with them

it may have been a coworker, one that did not do as much as you do

it may have been in customer service, not getting the service that we thought we should get because the people now days just do not seem to know how to work

kids now days are lazy, when I was a kid, I was the remote control for our house, and the antenna fixer as well

we say these things and it can get the anxiousness stirred up inside of us, or very least an understanding of a picture of lazy

I have never heard somebody say, I am a lazy person

I have heard people say that they are going to be lazy that day

but it is typically noted with how they deserve it

Today - Sloth

The sloth is seen as a lazy animal

I have seen pictures and videos of sloths, but did not know a lot about them, still do not

they move very slow due to their slow metabolism

on average, they move only 40 yards per day

it is 25 yards to the back door of the sanctuary

they sleep 15-20 hours per day

The thought came to mind, how can these things continue to live, predators would not have to work hard to catch them

they move so slow, that most predators do not see them in the tops of the trees

This slow moving, long sleeping animal has become the mascot for laziness

2 Thessalonians 3:6–13 (CSB)

6 Now we command you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from every brother or sister who is idle and does not live according to the tradition received from us.

7 For you yourselves know how you should imitate us: We were not idle among you;

8 we did not eat anyone’s food free of charge; instead, we labored and toiled, working night and day, so that we would not be a burden to any of you.

9 It is not that we don’t have the right to support, but we did it to make ourselves an example to you so that you would imitate us.

10 In fact, when we were with you, this is what we commanded you: “If anyone isn’t willing to work, he should not eat.”

11 For we hear that there are some among you who are idle. They are not busy but busybodies.

12 Now we command and exhort such people by the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and provide for themselves.

13 But as for you, brothers and sisters, do not grow weary in doing good.

PRAY

Introduction to the letter to the Thessalonians

Paul is writing to believers

they are very interested in the 2nd coming of Jesus

first letter is where we get the passage of Paul telling them that we will not taken before those who have passed before the second coming

the dead in Christ will rise first and then we will be caught up with them

some at the writing of the first letter and again in the second, did not think they needed to work but just sit and wait for Jesus to return

We are not created to be idle but to point others to Jesus by doing the work we were created to do

Paul’s Command

It would be simple to just read off to you a bunch of proverbs today and tell you that the bible says to work hard. - I will reference some

I could tell you how we are to look at the ant, always working and never sitting idle

2 Thessalonians 3:6 (CSB)

6 Now we command you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from every brother or sister who is idle and does not live according to the tradition received from us.

Define idle

idle - lazily, undisciplined, unwilling to work

this is an important definition to know

idle, or laziness does not mean they do not work as hard or the way that you think that they should

like so many other sins, we like to set the standard

often it is a standard that we do not meet ourselves

Proverbs 21:25–26 (CSB)

25 A slacker’s craving will kill him because his hands refuse to work.

26 He is filled with craving all day long, but the righteous give and don’t hold back.

Why are they idle

the definition of the word itself gives us some understanding

They are lazy - unwilling to work or put forth energy

they are undisciplined -

they are not self motivated

the people of the time had some that were not motivated because they were convinced that the Lord was coming back anytime

why work hard, Jesus will be here soon and then we will be with him, I will wait it out

they are not trained

this is so much as to how we live

we work the way we were taught

we see how our parents worked

I remember my dad working a ton of hours, it seemed like he was working a lot when I was young

I can remember him changing jobs where he worked less, normal hours

it is what the man does, how the father provides for his family

I know that I have taken on some of those characteristics, I do not always take the time off that I should

for some, it has been passed down the other way

they do not know how to work, or how to work well

they have no desire for work and do not realize that we were created to work

Genesis 2:15 (CSB)

15 The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it.

Even in the perfection of creation, before there was sin and separation from God, man was to work

work is not a punishment, but gives us purpose and meaning

But Paul tells them stay away from those who will not work

these are not lost people who just do not know what the bible says about work

keep away from every brother and sister that is idle…

keep away = avoid, take precaution

this seems odd to me, why do we need to stay away from these people who are believers

laziness is contagious

it is easier than hard work

it is easy to compare how hard one works with one who doesn’t, and the hard worker is trying to figure out why they are working so hard

the best bosses that I had were ones that would get in and work with us

now, looking back, I can see that they were focusing us on what work should look like, so that we did not focus on those that did not work well

Paul’s Example

2 Thessalonians 3:7–10 (CSB)

7 For you yourselves know how you should imitate us: We were not idle among you;

8 we did not eat anyone’s food free of charge; instead, we labored and toiled, working night and day, so that we would not be a burden to any of you.

9 It is not that we don’t have the right to support, but we did it to make ourselves an example to you so that you would imitate us.

10 In fact, when we were with you, this is what we commanded you: “If anyone isn’t willing to work, he should not eat.”

Paul was not lazy and did not want to even give the perception that he was

Paul makes the statement that they had the right not to work

their work was that of an evangelist, he and others were bringing the gospel to these people

teaching and discipleship

the bible makes clear that those who care for the church are to be taken care of

all the way back to the levites who would work in the temple, they were given portions of the sacrifices

even pastors today are to be taken care of by the church

this church takes very good care of us

even though I only work one day a week

so that some did not see Paul and his team not working and the church taking care of them, he worked

he would work in the time he was not teaching

Paul was a tent maker

he could provide for his own needs and the needs of those on his team

Paul’s desire is that people would look to his example of what it means to serve God

Laziness is a weight carried by somebody else

those in Thessalonica who were waiting on the Lord and not working were able to do so because the church would take care of them

they would eat from somebody else’s food

allowing others to work and they would be taken care of by the sweat of their brow

they were taking advantage of the generosity of those in the church

this happens

it is known, not just in our community, but all over, if you need help, call the churches

some even know, if you need help, call the people in the churches

I have said, and I still stand on the side of erroring on the side of generosity

but we must operate with wisdom

somebody is paying that bill

we are taking resources that could be used for something else

what was happening here

Acts 2 everyone was taking care of everyone, now why do I need to work, those people will take care of me

this shows a major misunderstanding of the gospel

like Paul asking if we should just continue to sin so that grace could abound!

this would show that we do not truly understand the love that we are to have with fellow believers

this would show that we do not truly appreciate the blessings of God

as if we are owed certain things in this world

we are to praise God for his blessings understanding that what we receive is from the grace we receive everyday

we cannot encourage laziness by allowing them to not face the consequences

sometimes there has to be hard conversations

Paul stated that he addressed this while he was there, but wanted to reinforce it now

if you do not work, you do not eat

it literally means that you are to eat your own bread

there are some that we simply have to say, I am sorry…

I have had those conversations, they are not easy

we can be called hypocrites, unloving,

this does not contradict the words of Jesus to love your neighbor as yourself

sometimes the most loving thing we can do is to let somebody who unwilling to work, to go without

Paul’s Encouragement

So what are we to do, how are we to wait on the Lord

Jesus tells us to be ready, always looking for his return

the disciples were told that he would return the same way he left

but then asked why are you looking to the sky

So lets get busy

if you have time to lean, you have time to clean

we can feel guilty for sitting and constantly find ourselves something to do

again… Paul

2 Thessalonians 3:11–13 (CSB)

11 For we hear that there are some among you who are idle. They are not busy but busybodies.

We are not just to do for appearance

busy does not mean we are not lazy

busybody = wasted labor

some people are so busy running around telling people how busy they are that they cant get anything else done

these are the people that we are to avoid from v6

so Paul has an encouragement, suggestion for those on each side of this equation

12 Now we command and exhort such people by the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and provide for themselves.

13 But as for you, brothers and sisters, do not grow weary in doing good.

Work to be self sustained and satisfied

this literally means eat your own bread

take care of your own needs, provide for yourselves

knowing you have backup

this is where the church comes in

things happen, we all need help from time to time

the church should with open hands come to the aid of people who need it

we do not work so that we can hoard

we will get to greed soon…

we never tire of doing good work

you were created for good work

Ephesians 2:10 (CSB)

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.

the good works are works that point to Jesus

how he blesses us through our work

providing for needs

enabling us to help others

that is work we should never tire of, grow weary of

that is a cause and a work that should excite us each day

Exalting Jesus in 1 & 2 Thessalonians Reflect and Discuss

Reflect and Discuss

1. Based on your understanding of 1 and 2 Thessalonians, what do you think was the sin of the “irresponsible” Christians?

2. What is the connection between spiritual rest in our relationship with Christ and the pursuit of productive work?

3. What are some biblical reasons that Christians should be excellent workers at any job they have?

4. Describe how Paul, Silas, and Timothy demonstrated a strong work ethic.

5. Describe a situation in which the behavior of others might make you “weary.” What can you do about it?

6. Why do the “strong” church members often fail at holding the “irresponsible” members accountable?