Let us aspire to live quietly

Scripture reading: 1 Thes 4:11-12

1 Thessalonians 4:11–12 ESV

and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

This morning, based off 1 Thes. 4:11-12, I’d like to share a message entitled, “Let us aspire to live quietly.”

In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul tells them to aspire to live quietly. But the city of Thessalonica was anything but quiet. It sat on a key trading route between Rome and the eastern regions, so it was a bustling cosmopolitan city. Business was booming. People got rich.

We know what it’s like to live in a bustling city. Success in such places tend to be defined as bigger, faster, louder. It’s part of the culture.

But the Apostle Paul warns them of the spiritual dangers of such a culture. And his response is to offer three exhortations, and two benefits. As we see in today’s passage.

The three exhortations. Aspire to live quietly, mind our own affairs, and work with our hands. The two benefits are that we would walk properly before outsiders, and be dependent on no one.

Aspire to live quietly

What does it mean to aspire to live quietly?

Aspire in Greek is philotimeomai/φιλοτιμέομαι, which means to consider something as honorable, or to make something an ambition.

Live quietly in Greek is one word, asuxazo/ἡσυχάζω, which means to refrain from any disturbing activity. It doesn’t mean that Christians cannot be high profile jobs or careers. Paul’s not saying to remove all stressors from our lives, but to live in a way that invites peace.

For example, Daniel was a high ranking official in Babylon. But he focused on prayer and on doing his job to the very best. And he steered away from things that would disturb the peace.

The Apostle Peter also uses this same word, asuxazo, to describe the inner beauty that all Christians should seek for.

1 Peter 3:3–4 ESV

Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.

Such a quiet life and a quiet spirit is very precious in God’s sight. Why? Because we glorify God when we live quietly, rather than making much of ourselves in order to gain attention from others. It means that our hearts are satisfied in Him, to the point that the world’s offerings aren’t that appetizing anymore. It means that the things of earth have become strangly dim, in the light of God’s glory and grace.

Mind our own affairs

The Apostle Paul says to live quietly, and mind our own affairs.

The church in Thessalonica had a problem with busybodies and gossips. We can see this in Paul’s second letter to them.

2 Thessalonians 3:11 ESV

For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies.

So what does it mean to mind our own affairs? It means that we should live focused on the calling that God has placed upon us, without looking to the right or to the left.

Deuteronomy 5:32 ESV

You shall be careful therefore to do as the Lord your God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.

Proverbs 4:25–27 (ESV)

Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil.

The book of James reminds us of the dangers of our words.

James 3:6–8 (ESV)

And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.

For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

Work with our hands

The Apostle Paul then says to work with our hands. Here he isn’t referring to the kind of work we should do, but our attitude toward work itself. To work with one’s hands is a call for diligence in our work ethic.

Proverbs 10:4 (ESV)

A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

Ephesians 4:28 ESV

Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.

So as a follow up to the previous exhortation to mind our own affairs, Paul’s saying to work diligently with our hands instead of working out our mouths in grumbling or gossip or comparison. We are called to be quietly busy, instead of being busybodies.

The benefits

So what are the benefits of living quietly, minding our own affairs, and working diligently?

1 Thessalonians 4:12 ESV

so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

To walk properly before outsiders means that we need to give even unbelievers a reason to think well of us.

Paul even makes this a necessary qualification for those seeking to be elders in the church.

1 Timothy 3:7 ESV

Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

And so by way of our unflappable inner peace, our gentle words, and our diligent work ethic, let us give people a reason to think that our God is a God who surpasses all other gods.

The next benefit is of being dependent on no one.

Back then, and even today, especially today, people were dependent on others for their sense of worth. Social status was as real back then as it is in today’s world of social media and linkedin.

But as Christians, we don’t need to depend on anyone for our sense of identity. We have received our identity as sons and daughters of God. We don’t have to prove ourselves anymore, but God has proven His love for us on the cross.

The cross means that we don’t need to stoop or bend over backwards to drink from the waters of this world, for God has quenched the thirsting of our souls.

The first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism asks, “What is the chief end of man?” And answers, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.” We glorify God when we enjoy Him. When we’re satisfied in Him. Our satisfaction in God shows the world that God is greater than any other idols.

They say that empty vessels make the most noise. I pray that we will be filled with the love and grace found in Jesus Christ, and glorify His name by living a quiet life.

Conclusion

So we could say that the Apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians is describing Jesus, whether he knew it or not. Jesus lived quietly, minding His own affairs, while working with His hands as a carpenter. There’s very little known about Jesus’ life until His baptism at the Jordan river.

And following His baptism, Jesus set His mind on only fulfilling the mission that He received from the Father. For Jesus, it was always about God’s work.

So as the body of Christ, let us always be about God’s work. And let us remember our first love, and carry out that mission that our Father has given us with a quiet spirit, with all diligence, not looking to the right or to the left, but only straight ahead. And I pray that we in Zion Church will fulfill our mission unto the last day.