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2 Thessalonians 3:7
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7 For [gar] yourselves [autos] know [eido] how [pos] ye ought [dei] to follow [mimeomai] us: [hemas] for [hoti] we behaved [atakteo] not [ou] ourselves disorderly [atakteo] among [en] you; [humin] KJV-Interlinear
7 For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example, because we did not act in an undisciplined manner among you, NASB
Remember that not too long ago we studied the basic intuitions that people have. Everyone, knows the difference between what is right and what is wrong, between what they should be doing and what they are doing in life.
So even if you have no contact with moral instruction, God gave you a sense of basic morality. The only problem is that most folks simply disregard it. This does not mean that you are going to go out and party all night, or do bad things.
But what it does mean, is that you have no excuse in life, when you finally take your place in front of Christ, and He leans forward toward you and states outright, ‘Don’t you dare tell me that you did not know!’
And Paul states it clear here, ‘You know!’ The word, ‘eido,’ means to understand, to have already considered, to perceive, to know.
And what is it that you know?
That God intends for you to follow, to pursue a spiritual life. A spiritual life that He has laid out in front of you, and not one of your own choosing.
Follow, ‘mimeomai,’ means to imitate as by example, to chase after with enthusiasm the pattern. Paul is the example for you. Christ was the example for Paul. Therefore, your example is Christ. And Christ is the pattern of life, which we are all to follow.
And what is that pattern? To wear a white sheet? To walk everywhere we go? To be polite and talk humbly to everyone?
No. At the Second Advent, Christ will not be wearing a white sheet, nor will He be polite to an evil world.
Christ is the almighty. The pattern He has given to us is Bible doctrine. That includes responsibility, obedience, accountability, patriotism, respect and many more things. You are to follow His pattern no matter what your occupation is in life.
If in the military, then your obligation is to defeat the enemies of truth. If a mother of infants, then your obligation is to raise them and change the diapers with love and so forth. If a builder of rockets, then you have an obligation to build them right and better.
Plug in your occupation, and that means you are to do your work as unto the Lord.
But the single most important responsibility that you have in life, is to learn bible doctrine, to come to an understanding of what the scriptures teach, to use them in your daily life, to grow and mature as an adult should.
You are not to live a disorderly life.
The word for disorderly in this verse is not the same as in the last verse. Here our word is, ‘atakteo,’ which means confusion, unarranged, insubordinate, unruly. This is the life of a rebellious person, one who rejects truth, one who invents his own truth, one who finds ways to compromise or finds exceptions to truth, one who believes that he has a better way, than that which God has presented.
Paul did not live a disobedient, rebellious life, but kept with that which God teaches. Paul studied everyday. Something that you should do. Paul taught everyday. Something that you should do. And who is your principle student? Look in that mirror and say, ‘Hello, student. Be quiet and learn.’
Until you learn, until you teach yourself, until you settle down and listen to the instruction of Bible doctrine, and do the things that you should do in order to learn, you won’t amount to much of anything in life.
You cannot read the bible in a weekend, or a month, or a year and learn much. You have to study. That means listening, taking notes, memorizing verses, keeping a notebook – ‘Oooo, that sound like work.’
But God has given you much – a saved life, an eternal life, and place in heaven, and vast set of rewards in heaven and so forth. He expects much from you. And what is it that He expects from you? That you will grow up.
That requires self-discipline on your part. That requires a desire to want to learn. That requires some self-motivation on your part. That requires a toughness and a determination to not give up, no matter what.
For God will test you, sooner or later, to see if your commitment is real or fake.
Anyone can study when times are good, but the real separation of the men from the boys, the women from the girls, comes when life falls apart. And then your commitment to your daily, repeat, daily, studies will either rise up to the occasion, or fade into what it really is – nothing.
Better to make that commitment now while you can, because making the commitment when times are tough, is much more difficult.
But then, you already know this!
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