1 Thessalonians 4:12-The Thessalonians Must Live Godly in Relation to the Non-Christian and Support Themselves Financially

1 Thessalonians 4:9 Now on the topic of brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another. 10 And indeed you are practicing it toward all the brothers and sisters in all of Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more. 11 to aspire to lead a quiet life, to attend to your own business, and to work with your hands, as we commanded you. 12 In this way you will live a decent life before outsiders and not be in need. (NET)

1 Thessalonians 4:12 completes a paragraph which began in 1 Thessalonians 4:9.

This paragraph exhorts and encourages each member of the Thessalonian Christian community to continue making it their habit of practicing the love of God in their lives while interacting with each other.

Consequently, by doing they would demonstrate they were disciples of Jesus Christ to the non-Christian since the Lord taught His disciples that by obeying His command to love another as He loves them, all people would know they were His disciples.

1 Thessalonians 4:12 contains two hina purpose clauses, which present the purpose for which Paul, Silvanus and Timothy exhorted and encouraged the Thessalonians to continue making it their habit of exceling more in the practice of divine-love, making it their ambition to live quiet lives, attending their own business and working to support themselves with their own hands.

This interpretation is indicated by the fact that the conjunction hina introduces two assertions.

The first speaks of the Thessalonians living their lives properly while interacting with those who are outsiders, which is a reference to the non-Christian community.

The second speaks of each of the Thessalonians possessing absolutely no need financially whatsoever.

Therefore, this conjunction hina is introducing two statements which present the two fold purpose for which Paul, Silvanus and Timothy exhorted and encouraged the Thessalonians to continue making it their habit of exceling more in the practice of divine-love, to make it their ambition to live quiet lives, attending their own business and working to support themselves with their own hands.

The first purpose was so that the Thessalonians would live their lives properly while interacting with the non-Christian community.

The second is that each of them would possess absolutely no need whatsoever financially.

Now, as we noted in 1 Thessalonians 4:11, the first infinitival in this verse is expressing the idea of Paul, Silvanus and Timothy exhorting and encouraging each member of the Thessalonian Christian community for their own benefit to make it their habit of making it their ambition to live a quiet life.

Therefore, we noted that if the Thessalonians continue to make it their habit of making it their ambition of living a quiet life rather than disturbing each other, then they will be practicing divine-love for the benefit of each other since the practice of divine-love does no wrong to one’s neighbor (cf. Rom. 13:10).

The second infinitival clause expressed the idea of Paul, Silvanus and Timothy exhorting and encouraging each member of the Thessalonian Christian community to make it their habit of attending to their own business.

Consequently, they won’t be meddling in the affairs of each other.

It would be an expression of divine-love if they refrained from meddling in each other’s lives by attending or minding their own business.

Therefore, if they continue to make it their habit of attending to their own business rather than meddling in each other’s business, then they will again be practicing divine-love for the benefit of each other since again the practice of divine-love does no wrong to one’s neighbor (cf. Rom. 13:10).

The third infinitival clause expressed the idea that Paul, Silvanus and Timothy were exhorting and encouraging each member of the Thessalonian Christian community to make it their habit of working to support themselves.

Consequently, they won’t be a financial burden to each other.

Consequently, they would be continuing to exercise divine-love for the benefit of each other.

Therefore, if they continue to make it their habit of working to support themselves, rather than being a burden to each other financially, then they will be practicing divine-love for the benefit of each other since the practice of divine-love does no wrong to one’s neighbor (cf. Rom. 13:10).

So therefore, Paul is teaching the Thessalonian Christian community in 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 that they will meet the approval of the non-Christian community by making it their habit of practicing divine-love for the benefit of each other.

Specifically, they would benefit not only themselves and meet the approval of the non-Christian community by continuing to make it their habit of making it their ambition to live a quiet life, attending to their own business, working to support themselves with their own hands.

Therefore, we can see that in 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 the apostle is addressing the conduct or behavior of each member of the Thessalonian Christian community.

This is not the first time he has done so in this epistle because he addresses it extensively in 1 Thessalonians 2:10-12, and 4:1-8.

Throughout the New Testament there is a concern for the Christian’s lifestyle or conduct.

In fact, the verb peripateō which appears in 1 Thessalonians 2:12, 4:1 and 12 appears often in the New Testament with reference to the lifestyle or conduct of the believer (cf. Rom. 6:4; 8:1-4; 13:13; 1 Cor. 7:17; 2 Cor. 5:7; Gal. 5:16; Eph. 4:1-3, 17; 5:2, 8, 15; Col. 1:3-10; 2:6; 4:5; 10:3-4; 1:5-2:2; 2:6).

However, 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 is the only place thus far in First Thessalonians in which Paul addresses the Thessalonians’ conduct while interacting with the non-Christian community.

This indicated by the fact that he speaks of the Thessalonians in 1 Thessalonians 4:12 continuing to make it their habit of living properly while interacting with those who are outside the Christian community.

1 Thessalonians 4:12 is not the only place in Paul’s writings in which he addresses the conduct of the Christian community in relation to the non-Christian community since he does in Colossians 4:5.

In fact, the expression pros tous exō (πρὸς τοὺς ἔξω), which we translated “while interacting with those who are outsiders” speaks of the non-Christian community also appears in Colossians 4:5 for the non-Christian community.

Colossians 4:5 Each of you continue making it your habit of conducting your lives by means of wisdom while interacting with those who are outsiders so that each of you are causing yourselves to make the most of your opportunity. (Author’s translation)

In Colossians 4:5-6, Paul is exhorting and encouraging the Colossian Christian community to continue functioning in their royal ambassadorship while in 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 he is exhorting and encouraging the Thessalonian Christian community to do the same.

At the moment of justification, God gives the church-age believer two royal commissions: (1) a royal ambassadorship (2 Corinthians 5:20), which represents Christ before the unbeliever and (2) a royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:5, 9), which represents himself before God.

At the moment of their conversion, the church age believer was given a royal ambassadorship in which they were to represent the absent Christ who sits as the right hand of the Father and present to the unsaved the gospel message of peace with God through faith alone in Christ alone (2 Corinthians 5:20a).

The believer’s responsibility is to clearly present the gospel message to the unbeliever and the rest depends upon the convincing ministry of God the Holy Spirit (John 16:7-11).

They are also to conduct themselves with respect to the unsaved in an excellent and praiseworthy manner, bringing no reproach to the name of Christ.

1 Peter 2:12 Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation. (NASB95)

As royal ambassadors, believers are responsible for “witnessing” to the unbeliever, which is communicating God’s plan of salvation to unbelievers on a personal basis in two ways: (1) The example of your life (2 Corinthians 3:3; 6:3). (2) Your words (2 Corinthians 5:18-21; 6:2).

Just like an ambassador in the natural realm has his instructions in written form so the church age believer’s written instructions are found in the Bible.

Just like an ambassador in the natural realm does not belong to the country to which he is sent so church age believers are citizens of heaven, and do not belong to the devil’s world (Philippians 3:20).

Every church age believer as a royal ambassador for Christ has the responsibility to proclaim the gospel to the unbeliever and to conduct themselves an excellent fashion with respect to them so as to lead them to the Savior.