2 Thessalonians 3:18

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2 Thessalonians 3:18

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18 The grace [charis] of our [hemon] Lord [kurios] Jesus [Iesous] Christ [Christos] be with [meta] you [humon] all. [pas] Amen. [amen] KJV-Interlinear


18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. NASB


Paul concludes this second letter to the Thessalonians, with the promise of Gods grace, which is Gods favor, that is bestowed upon any and all who enter into His spiritual plan.

For it is by His grace, that any of us even have a life to live, are who we are, or have what we have.

Were it not for His favor upon us, we would be nothing, have nothing, and amount to nothing. We are all undeserving. None of us can earn nor do we deserve anything that God provides.

Formed out of the dust, God is able to bring life into the dust, fashion the dust into some of the most beautiful people, impute into the dust some of the most phenomenal talent and abilities, and yet we need to realize that it is dust and nothing more than that, which God has fashioned us from.

What can man say of his own accomplishments? And yet humanity will assume credit for that which he had no part in, in the invention or design of himself.

And by Gods grace, dust is given life, and life is given choice, and choice is given the heirship to the new universe yet to come. Why?

From nothing, to greatness beyond dreams, Gods grace made it all possible.

When I began posting this daily study on the internet many years ago, there were but a few who read the studies.

When I began posting this daily study on Facebook, just a month ago, there were very few within that group who were reading this study.

Over the years, the study has spread to over 150 countries, and now this most recent effort on Facebook has seen the study expand to over twenty groups. Some with but a few members while others have several thousand. And even though less than two percent of the readers of the entire study, originate from Facebook, it does offer a tremendous population for bringing people to Christ and to the fullness of their life.

I noticed early on that, of the many Facebook groups that are out there, most are nothing more than lists of names, with no function or purpose, other than to become a list. Certainly with no structure or goal of purpose. And that is unfortunate. Because there is a tremendous opportunity before us, given to us by God, if only we would want it bad enough. Most do not.

The opportunity is there, the studies are there, but where is the desire to dedicate ones self, to a daily commitment?

Paul has given us confirmation that Christ is one day, going to return. Most will not be ready, because they do not see the importance. Other common details of life seem to be more important that ones eternal future.

From dust to what?

God invented this universe and created it in all of its vastness, for us. That is quite a lot just so we could have an environment to live our life, in this world. The next universe is going to be far greater than this one. The resurrection bodies waiting for us are going to be far, far better than what we have now. Our whole eternal future is so vast, that even our imaginations cannot even begin to comprehend it.

And yet what commitment are you willing to make for your own future?

With each tick of the clock, Christs appearance draws closer. None of us know when He is going to call us home, or when He will suddenly appear out of nowhere.

But regardless of those certain future dates, you have the opportunity right now, to get your act together.

The objective of this study is to provide you with all of the tools necessary to advance in your spiritual life to as far as is humanly possible. And it is all courtesy of the grace of God.

As long as there are positive people, who want, really want all that they can possibly get for themselves out of life, God will provide the means for that effort. But when people slip into indifference, then those opportunities will likewise fade away.

We have already studied the details of the end of our own dispensation, which is described as the great apostasy.

And it is that spiritual gap in history, just like the two gaps before it in history, the preflood gap and the gap separating the two Testaments, that have and will bring the greatest of events that have ever occurred in history, namely the Flood of Noah, the Birth of Christ, and the Rapture yet to come.

Gods plan will advance in history regardless of what you do for yourself. It is far better for you, if you advance in Gods plan, than simply becoming meaningless historical filler, just as those useless lists of member names are, on so many Facebok groups.


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2 Thessalonians 3:17

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2 Thessalonians 3:17

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17 The salutation [aspasmos] of Paul [Paulos] with mine own [emos] hand, [cheir] which [hos] is [esti] the token [semeion] in [en] every [pas] epistle: [epistole] so [houto] I write. [grapho] KJV-Interlinear


17 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand, and this is a distinguishing mark in every letter, this is the way I write. NASB


With a couple of exceptions, Paul identifies this letter, as well as others, as his own work, because of the fraudulent letters circulated to the Thessalonians earlier mentioned in this same letter, 2 Thess. 2:2. Those fraudulent letters attempted to claim, in Paul’s name, that the return of Christ was already at hand, which of course it was not.

Authenticity and truth are in view here. Over the many centuries, there will occur after the time of the apostles, many false letters that will come into the world in an attempt to falsify or dilute the contents of the Bible.

Of these attempts all have sufficient errors within them to identify them as false. Probably the worst writing ever attempted was the writings of Muhammad, who did not even write even one word of the Koran, which was written by others several years after his dreams. Because it is filled with so many errors, misquotes, historical errors, and so forth, it can easily be proved to be false. This we covered a few weeks ago, in detail, on that very topic, ‘The Flaws of Islam.’ I have placed that study in the special studies section on the web site, as well as in the introduction section.

The importance of truth is paramount in life, but especially within the content of the scriptures, simply because as God, who is supposed to be error free, and not able to make mistakes, then any communication from God, must be accurate. If not, if it contained even a single error, then it could not ever have come from God.

And there will be folks who will claim error after error within the scriptures, but they rush to make the claims, without studying the context from which they quote. Remember, that the Bible has been around for many, many centuries, for even thousands of years. It has been criticized, and condemned, and hated by one and all more often than anything or anyone in all of human history. And yet it stands firm.

No one, born in our present day, can come up with any single error claim, that has not already been charged against the Bible, many times over. And yet there will be those who do not even read the Bible, do not even know its content, but will still make their claims of error.

Therefore, truth is paramount, and truth has but one origin – God.

The Bible identifies God as truth.

God is the source of peace, strength and now the references to truth, Psa. 31:5, Isa. 65:16, 2 Chron. 15:3, Jer. 10:10, John 7:28, 17:3, 1 Thess. 1:9, 1 John 5:20, Rev. 6:10.

His words are truth, 2 Sam. 7:28, He is abundant in truth, Psa. 86:15, He is true even if all men are liars, Rom. 3:4, He cannot lie, Num. 23:19, 1 Sam. 15:29, Titus 1:2, Heb. 6:18.

Jesus Christ is God, and is also truth, John 1:14, 17, John 7:18, John 14:6, Eph, 4:21, Rev. 3:7, 14, Rev 19:11.

The Holy Spirit is truth. John 14:17, 15:26, 16:13, 1 John 5:6.

The Christian Church is described as the pillar of truth, 1 Tim. 3:15. But in order to be a pillar of truth, you as a member of Christianity, must be able to distinguish and discern between truth and lies, 1 Jn. 4:6. That is your mandate. That is your obligation.

There is only one source, only one benchmark which clearly identifies truth and separates out the lies of the world, Col. 1:5, 2 Tim. 2:15, James 1:18, which is the Word of God, the scriptures, the Bible.

And you can only accomplish this by your daily study, 2 Tim. 2:15, ‘Study to show thyself approved [mature], rightly dividing [discerning] the word of truth.’

The challenge is now set before you. Will you clearly identify your intentions for your own life, just as Paul has clearly identified His name on this letter, and take up the daily obligation to study, be taught and learn that which God has placed before you?

Or, will you give it all lip service and no real substantive effort to advance in your spiritual life?

Your life began when you were born into this world. Your life will continue on forever.

When you were born into this world, you had no say as to what your life would be like.

But now being born again, you have every opportunity to define and design your entire eternal life ahead of you. How could anyone pass up on that opportunity?


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2 Thessalonians 3:16b

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2 Thessalonians 3:16b

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16 Now [de] the Lord [kurios] of peace [eirene] himself [autos] give [didomi] you [humin] peace [eirene] always [dia] [pas] by [en] all [pas] means. [tropos] The Lord [kurios] be with [meta] you [humon] all. [pas] KJV-Interlinear


16 Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all! NASB


‘The Lord be with you all.’ The last few words at the end of this verse, seem plain enough, but there is more here than meets the eye.

God is omnipresent and as such, is everywhere simultaneously. So obviously God is with you in that sense.

Having someone nearby is one thing, but having someone nearby to whom you can look for support is quite another.

But Gods strength comes in various forms.

As humanity, Gods strength sustains the world so that we can all have a place to live. We call this common grace. Included in common grace are the laws of divine establishment, which include principles of, volition, marriage, family, free enterprise, legal due process, nationalism, fundamental economics and so forth.

These are the things that guide, stabilize, and sustain society in the midst of the laws of the jungle, which oppose all divine rules, and attempt to tear down society in all of its aspects.

Even the concepts of the male, female roles in society are attacked by the numerous philosophies that have been invented to create equity but are never equitable, among the genders, and are in fact attacks against divine rules of stability.

God defined the female role as a stabilizing influence through the marriage and family units. While the male assumes the active role, the female assumes the passive role, and together they both serve to stabilize society.

These roles have nothing to do with who you are or what you do in life. Either male or female can change diapers of build rockets. Your occupation is irrelevant in your relationship with God and/or your role in society.

However, it is the world that creates discrimination and prejudice in order to make one group superior to another. And it is that superior minded group that advances evil at the expense of everyone else.

If you can keep the inferior groups suppressed, then the elites believe that they can gain and keep power and control for themselves. And this applies in all cases, whether slavery because of race, whether denial of rights because of gender (women), whether citizens denied freedoms because of abusive government. Keep them in the dark and deny them access to truth. That is the policy and force of evil in the world.

But God, provides a higher level of grace, for those who believe in Christ.

For those who reject Christ, they are at the mercy of the world. And in the world they can survive if the rules of divine establishment function as designed. In a world where these principles are compromised, then trouble makes life difficult for everyone. Marriages fail, alternative lifestyles crop up, principles of family and God are always under attack, socialistic or legislative philosophies try to stamp out free enterprise, internationalism (one world) tries to subdue nationalism, and so forth.

But for believers in Christ, an additional higher law, takes over. The Law of Christ in you (post salvation grace plus greater grace of maturity).

We all live in this world and we are all subject to the activities that occur in the world. But as a believer in Christ, then Christ takes on the additional role of protecting you. This role is not available to the unbelieving crowd.

However, Christ’s role in your life depends on your participation in advancing in your spiritual life.

Again, for believers who are positive, then there is the additional support mechanism from God. But for believers who disregard their spiritual life, then there is the support provided that the rest of the world has – common grace.

It is to this post salvation grace that Paul is referring to as well as the advanced grace of spiritual maturity, which is called greater grace in James. Refer to the detailed studies in James on this subject.

When one attains or is in the process of advancing toward spiritual maturity, then greater grace becomes more and more apparent in your life.

This is ‘Christ in you.’ The achievement of peace through advancement to maturity in the spiritual life.

This is not acquired by singing about it, by hearing devotionals, by making wishes, even though these things exercise the emotions.

However, spiritual advancement is attained by work – work that is defined by God for the spiritual life. And that work is – residence in fellowship, daily bible study, listening to and learning doctrine, applying it to your daily life, developing an understanding which God provides, replacing your understanding which the world would want you to have, developing true wisdom, inner happiness, spiritual productivity by the application of correct doctrine to your daily life, obedience to Gods mandates, and not the least of which is the persistence to stick with your studies, regardless of your situations in life.

These things must be followed with a rigid self discipline, and not occasionally or only as they may be convenient to your life.

Then through this, you will have the greatest access to God, to Christ, and to the ultimate goal of the spiritual life – peace.

And can you even accomplish these things? Yes.

Phil. 4:13
13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. NASB

Yes, you can accomplish that which seems to be the impossible, because the world would have you believe that it is impossible. But Christ is greater than the world, so you only have to replace the worlds views in your soul, with those of Christ. That takes commitment and a resolve to accomplish it.

And so, the world will attack anything and everything that represents truth.

Women represent the foundation and stability of the marriage and family unit, and therefore society. By attacking women restricting their access to truth, by restricting their access to education, by restricting their freedoms and liberties, then society is rendered dysfunctional and unstable.

Thus the real need for womens studies and as we have mentioned before, the women of Islam, who are probably the largest and most repressed group on the planet. But where the women are, then the men have no choice but to follow. Well, at least that is a good plan.

The studies of Bible doctrine are not directed at any one gender, because the whole Bible is for everyone. But often times a whole family is led to the Lord when just one member enters into the Christian faith, and then hopefully others follow.

Your objective in life, your very best objective in life, in order to gain for yourself and for others, the very best life and most complete life possible, is through Bible doctrine.

Life is a very serious matter. Everything is on the line and determined by your thoughts and decisions.

You can pursue the world, and gain those things from the world, which you see and sense everyday, but they are all temporary and an illusion, not the real deal.

Or, you can pursue God, Christ, doctrine, and your spiritual life and gain far more, than anything anyone could ever gain from this world in a thousand lifetimes. And your complete life, your completed life is readily available to you through your positive decision to pursue truth through your daily studies.

Through consistency, and perseverance, with no excuses, you can have the greatest life beyond imagination.

This would be a good time to review our study of your life’s story, http://www.dailybiblestudy.org/biblestudy/basic/your-story.html in order to remind you of just some of the things that your life stands for.


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2 Thessalonians 3:16

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2 Thessalonians 3:16

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16 Now [de] the Lord [kurios] of peace [eirene] himself [autos] give [didomi] you [humin] peace [eirene] always [dia] [pas] by [en] all [pas] means. [tropos] The Lord [kurios] be with [meta] you [humon] all. [pas] KJV-Interlinear


16 Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all! NASB


Peace is the highly prized and ultimate objective of the spiritual life.

Peace in the spiritual life is not anything similar to the peace of the world. Whereas the world defines peace in terms of calm, tranquility, contentment and so forth and just as the spiritual life includes these attributes, the means of obtaining them is very different. The peace of the world is based on the presumption powered by arrogance, wherein people believe that their efforts or beliefs are adequate to bring themselves before God, or in some religions, make God unnecessary.

The world can obtain calm, through drugs, alcohol, false beliefs, wealth, status and so forth. These things are not real, but produce a calm or peace based on lies, deception, or temporary things. The worlds definition bases its peace on having everything going well. When things do not go well, then that peace vanishes.

Spiritual peace, on the other hand, is based on the integral relationship between the soul of the individual and God. Spiritual peace is obtainable by everyone who pursues it through their legitimate spiritual growth. The peace offered by the world is not available to everyone, but is in fact elusive to everyone.

Spiritual peace is based on the inner resources of the soul, and those resources are determined and defined by doctrine which the individual learns, understands, and uses in their daily life.

The peace offered by the world is difficult to obtain, and in fact cannot be obtained because it is a pseudo peace.

The peace offered by the spiritual life is obtainable by everyone, if only they will commit themselves to God, Christ, doctrine, and their spiritual life, and it consists of the inner confidence beginning with salvation and continuing with ones eternal life, based on Gods sovereign control and power over everything.

Peace from God has several characteristics. First it originates from God. From the Father, who is called the God of peace, Judg. 6:24, Rom. 15:33, 16:20, 1 Cor. 14:33, 2 Cor. 13:11, Phil 4:9, 1 Thess. 5:23, Heb. 13:20.

Christ is called the Lord of peace, making His deity equal with the Father, 2 Thess. 3:16, Isa. 9:6, Eph. 2:14.

The Holy Spirit is called the source or fruit of peace, Gal. 5:22, Rom. 14:17.

Therefore, the Father authored peace, the Son obtains it, and the Holy Spirit brings it to humanity, Acts. 10:36, Rom. 5:1, Col. 1:20.

Peace is not something that you can work for to obtain for yourself, but is a gift from God, Num. 6:26, Psa. 29:11, and is available only through the successful advancement through the spiritual life.

There is no peace available to unbelievers or spiritually negative believers, Rom 15:13, Isa 48:22, 57:21, Jere. 6:14, 8:11, Ezek. 13:10,16.

True peace of the soul is inseparable from Gods righteousness and justice (holiness), Psa. 85:10, Isa. 32:17, Deu. 29:19.

The peace of the spiritual life is continual regardless of life’s circumstances, and is not dependent on circumstances.

Peace is the product of the spiritual life. When the spiritual life is interrupted by sin, then the spiritual life and therefore peace, can be resumed or recovered by confession, Psa. 42:11, 42:5, 43:5, Lev. 26:3-6, Rom. 2:10, 1 Jn. 1:9. This allows you to resume walking in the Spirit (fruit of the Spirit – reside in fellowship), Gal. 5:22.

Peace is on the promise of eternal salvation, Heb. 5:9, and promised by God who cannot lie, Titus 1:2, is anchored in the successful spiritual life, Phil. 1:6, is unlike what the world offers, Jn. 14:27, and stabilizes the believer in every situation, Phil4:7.

The inner peace of the believer’s soul, is the ultimate objective of the spiritual life. It is the basis for inner happiness, fulfillment, contentment, meaning and purpose in ones life.

The world will swirl around you, and no matter what you do or accomplish in this world, you can lose it in a moment of time. You can be injured, laid off from your job, endure a loss in a storm, be diagnosed with some physical problem, or simply be the victim of hard times.

There is nothing offered in this world which will give you hope or secure your life, except Bible doctrine.

Jesus Christ is the living reality of the written word. By taking in, learning, understanding Gods word, you are taking Christ into your soul, making Him the foundation and structure of your soul and of your life, which structure gives you completeness, meaning and purpose, and becomes the strength in your life, which will allow you to endure life.

Strength is covered in the last half of this verse, which we will cover in tomorrows study.

And then will also touch on the foundation of the stability of the world through women in tomorrows study, because they are an integral part of peace and stability. That is one reason why the appeal to women in general through Bible studies, and specifically to women of Islam, or any other faith for that matter, through Bible studies. But we are getting ahead of ourselves.


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2 Thessalonians 3:15

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2 Thessalonians 3:15

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15 Yet [kai] count [hegeomai] him not [me] as [hos] an enemy, [echthros] but [alla] admonish [noutheteo] him as [hos] a brother. [adelphos] KJV-Interlinear


15 And yet do not regard him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother. NASB


The busybody is our context, and how we are to deal with them is our subject.

During your lifetime, you will come into contact with many people under many sets of circumstances. Whether family or friends, neighbors or strangers, countrymen or foreigners.

And in every case the Bible give you adequate information as to how to conduct yourself in all of your social situations. Most of it is based on simple common sense.

The Christian life is not a competition whereby we are all out to beat everyone else, nor to get even with others, nor to make the lives of others difficult. The Christian life is not there so that we can prove others wrong, nor to intimidate or threaten or force others to see things our way.

One day history will end for humanity. One day we will all be in heaven or the Lake of Fire. Those of us who are in heaven will never see those who are eventually lost forever, and by the grace of God, our memories will soon forget them. That is a good thing, for heaven is not going to be a place of perpetual grieving. Time heals all things.

But we are now here on this earth, and knowing that one day those who we do know, will be in heaven, a perfect place, then in eternity we will have more than enough time to get to know everyone who has ever lived, from Adam till the end of human history.

That is a lot of friends, a lot of conversations and a lot of laughs over most of the dumb things that we all did, and such.

You gain nothing by perpetuating anger or mistrust or revenge against anyone, when it is God who will eventually deal with everyone, based on facts, not emotions, reality, not imagined hearsay.

So, do not count the busybody as an enemy, or one who is hostile, just because they have wrong ideas, wrong habits, wrong motives, or are simply annoying.

There will always be someone who will try to cheat you, argue with you, or just make mistakes.

Your objective is Christ, and your relationship with Christ, through doctrine. Through doctrine, means the learning and growing up process to spiritual maturity, not your getting even with others.

Brother, is a reference to a family member. And indeed, in Christ we are all members of the family of God as Christians. And our spiritual family relationship is not one of squabbling, but one of closeness through truth.

The Lord deals with everyone in His good time. So we are to again, make our case (admonish – warn, set straight though your views) when confronted by busybodies, and if they continue in their harassment, then we simply back off and do not deal with them.

God will step in and will deal with them as only He can, and in accordance with His plan, not ours. It may be decades before there is a resolution, and that should be none of our concern.

After all we should not be in any hurry to condemn, but to be patient.

No one gains anything by seeing others suffer at our own hands. None gains anything be seeing others punished at our own hands. And remember this topic is concerned with social relationships, not aspects of crime or war.


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2 Thessalonians 3:14

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2 Thessalonians 3:14

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14 And [de] if any man [ei tis] obey [hupakouo] not [ou] our [hemon] word [logos] by [dia] this epistle, [epistole] note [semeioo] that [touton] man, and [kai] have [sunanamignumi] no [me] company with [sunanamignumi] him, [autos] that [hina] he may be ashamed. [entrepo] KJV-Interlinear


14 And if anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of that man and do not associate with him, so that he may be put to shame. NASB


This verse unfortunately had been abused and interpreted as authorizing a form of ostracism or excommunication, of the offender, out from the church or group, and that is the incorrect application of the principle being taught in this verse.

Our context is busybodies or sinners due to their incorrect application of Biblical principles. People who are otherwise annoying because they are pushy, or defiant, or belligerent, or opinionated, or people who have selfish or deceitful agendas in their use of the Christian faith, and so forth.

And so this is how you are to deal with these folks. They are presumably believers if Christ, but just misguided by their enthusiasm and lack of preparation, or by their greed and desire to take advantage.

To not obey, means to misapply or misuse the principles of truth. Whether they abuse Christian principles through ignorance or intentionally, is irrelevant.

The implication here is that they have been confronted, once or twice or several times, and thus have no excuse for not understanding their error, but continue to defy correct instruction, and continue going about their ways.

Instruction by this letter, is a reference to the teaching from Paul within this epistle, as we have been studying, or by their disobedience of any Biblical principle for that matter.

Then, they are to be isolated, not permanently, but association is simply to be withdrawn so as to make them embarrassed or shamed because of their behavior.

This serves two purposes. First, the disassociation protects you from their further false teaching. That preserves your knowledge and continued growth. And second, if the person is isolated by the majority, then they might see the error of their ways and make the necessary changes in their life, in order to get back into the general group.

But we all know that in the real world, belligerence attracts others of a similar attitude, clique’s arise to form their own group. This is how many of the protestant denominations began in past centuries, for example. This is a common action is many social clubs as some members break off to form their own club.

So, embarrassment, or shame is not something that you or I can cause in a person, in order to get them to change.

God is the ultimate power who will bring shame. And Bible doctrine is His tool of choice here in this world.

Doctrine is truth and truth needs no help when it comes to critiquing, or correcting the errors of our life.

2 Tim. 3:16
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; NASB

So it is not for you nor I to argue or attempt to force someone into how they should or should not think. All we can do is state our position, then turn away, or withdraw from the discussion, and then leave the matter in Gods hands.

Busybodies will often times not give up but will push and push their points, without listening to anything else.

A reasonable person will listen. A responsible Christian will listen, and in listening, you can see clearly the errors of the views that are being presented or pushed onto you.

Remember, the Christian examines everything. And we examine not to find fault, but to objectively know the right from the wrong contained within the argument, whatever it may be.

If the busybody is going to change then God will accomplish that in His own good time. Perhaps the person will remember something you have said, and at some later date will realize their error. Perhaps the person will hear your view, from some other person. Perhaps God will bring a hardship into their life, and through that, they will wake up.

By whatever means, your responsibility is to speak your piece, hold on to your correct beliefs (just make sure that what you believe is correct), do not retaliate, and simply walk away from the conversation. This will save you a whole lot of frustration and grief.


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2 Thessalonians 3:13

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2 Thessalonians 3:13

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13 But [de] ye, [humeis] brethren, [adelphos] be [ekkakeo] not [me] weary [ekkakeo] in well doing. [kalopoieo] KJV-Interlinear


13 But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary of doing good. NASB


Now here is the big test for the positive believer who is growing in their spiritual life, weariness.

The world is full of difficulties, and obstacles that make living day to day hard enough, but when you throw trouble makers into the mix, life just gets more difficult.

When you were born into this life, the clock started on your life in this world. God (Christ) alone knows the end date of your stay here, but during your stay on this earth, time will seem to pass ever so slowly.

The days will turn into weeks, will turn into months, will turn into years and your commitment to Christianity will become the target of not only those who oppose Christianity, but you will also be the target of those who profess Christianity. The busybodies who we have just been studying.

They will challenge your beliefs, challenge your interpretations, challenge your commitment to doctrine. And while we are all commanded to remain quiet, study, learn and grow up in truth, the other side will make noise, twist your words and beliefs, try to prod you into debates to demonstrate their brilliance, and otherwise get you to see things their way.

And of all of the tests that we could be going through in life – tornados, hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanoes, war, famine, and so forth, at least in these we can identify our enemy, but we also have to deal with the belligerent fools that don’t know straight up from straight down.

And they will keep coming like a bad smell. You just cannot seem to escape them, and you won’t.

Weary, ‘ekkakeo,’ means to be frustrated, overwhelmed, faint, weak from an endless onslaught of pressures.

As you grow and advance to spiritual maturity, as you move along with that growth, gain much wisdom and see exactly how this world operates, you will then see just how overwhelming the pressures of this world can be, and how they seem to saturate every aspect of society.

Then you will indeed discover that you are in the only true minority in existence, not only in this world, but in all of history. Spiritually mature believers and those who are advancing will be counted among the few, when it is all said and done.

But that club, though it is not difficult to get into, it is however, difficult to remain in, because the world, Satan and his objectives, and even people who mean well, will try to sabotage your spiritual life. And as time move forward ever so slowly, you have to live, make a living, and just get by in life. For most that is difficult enough.

Remain strong and committed to the Word of God, Isa. 41:10. Memorize this verse.


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2 Thessalonians 3:12

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2 Thessalonians 3:12

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12 Now [de] them that are such [toioutos] we command [paraggello] and [kai] exhort [parakaleo] by [dia] our [hemon] Lord [kurios] Jesus [Iesous] Christ, [Christos] that [hina] with [meta] quietness [hesuchia] they work, [ergazomai] and eat [esthio] their own [heautou] bread. [artos] KJV-Interlinear


12 Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread. NASB


‘Now for such persons,’ is a reference to the busybodies of the previous verse. This then is Pauls advice and Gods command.

Stop promoting annoying activities, stop meddling, stop burdening others with your do-gooder attitude, stop your hypocritical pattern, stop spreading false or distorted ideas, and all of this is wrapped up in, stop eating the bread of others, but eat your own bread.

What is bread? That is the bread of life, spiritual food, Bible doctrine.

In other words, when a person interferes with someone else's life, uninvited, obnoxious and intrusive, with mis-information, then the other person will have a tendency to become defensive, and sour against Christianity. This diminishes their growth, and the busybody is in effect stealing the doctrine right out of their mouth (soul), so to speak.

Anytime you become an annoyance, anytime you promote false doctrines, anytime you mess up Christianity with your bothersome, burdensome, and annoying rhetoric or activities, this becomes a turn-off for others. That in turn delays or defers their spiritual life. What is their rightful food (doctrine), has been removed because the busybody has placed a bad taste in their mouth.

If the hearer is indeed positive, they may come around at some later date, when they hear correct doctrine, or when life’s circumstances, drives them to God.

But that is no credit to the one who has interfered with their previous opportunities at a spiritual life.

So Paul states clearly, stop, cease, desist with what you are doing, you busybody. Remain quiet (stop your activity) and eat your own food (correct food of doctrine), and thus grow up with the proper knowledge, gain correct understanding, and acquire the proper and legitimate wisdom, before you go back to face people.

A Christian who is clueless as to what they are doing, does more damage than a dozen unbelievers. God uses prepared believers, not do-it-your-selfers who do not know straight-up from straight-down. Can a doctor practice medicine before he has finished his training? Thus self-appointed busybodies lead only to trouble. Get prepared, first, and stay out of the way until you are prepared.

Eph. 4:28
28 Let him who steals steal no longer; but rather let him labor, performing with his own hands what is good, in order that he may have something to share with him who has need. NASB


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2 Thessalonians 3:11

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2 Thessalonians 3:11

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11 For [gar] we hear [akouo] that there are some [tis] which walk [peripateo] among [en] you [humin] disorderly, [ataktos] working [ergazomai] not at all, [medeis] but [alla] are busybodies. [periergazomai] KJV-Interlinear


11 For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies. NASB


James defines work, or spiritual work, and Paul here defines and distinguishes spiritual work from temporal activity.

The student of the Word of God needs to understand the difference between the two.

Spiritual work is the effort and function of the spiritual life and spiritual growth, which enhances and builds up your soul, while in felowship.

Temporal work is the physical effort which pursues whatever physical, or verbal activities you have in life, while out of fellowship.

Spiritual work is efficacious. It is effective and beneficial to your soul. It sponsors spiritual growth and spiritual production which exists within your soul.

Physical work is anything that any unbeliever can do, but without spiritual benefit.

Paul calls such unproductive folks, not busy or workers ‘ergazomenous,’ but busybodies ‘periergazomenous.’ Not workers of the doctrine within their soul, but people who are busy imitating what they believe is spiritual activity, ut is not.

They think that they are doing the work of the Lord, but are in fact are doing their own self defined work.

The foundation of your life, exists in the content of your soul. Doctrine in the soul means a good foundation in the thought behind your words and actions. Lack of doctrine in the soul means your thoughts and words and actions are empty activity.

The test is simple. If you do not or have not pursued a daily study (not on your own as you see fit) while under the guidance of qualified instruction, then your soul will be terribly lacking.

If you have committed to a daily study of the scriptures and have learned, and come to the understanding, and use of what you have learned, then your foundation of doctrine will yield spiritual production in your life.

What is spiritual production? All activity that you do, while in fellowship. The Bible calls it, gold, silver, and precious stones.

What is temporal or carnal production? Any and all, even the same, activity which is done while out of fellowship. The Bible calls it, wood, hay and stubble.

Spiritual production glorifies God. Carnal production glorifies yourself.

Spiritual production gives all credit to God. Carnal production seeks credit for ones self, but says it is for God.

Spiritual production is maintains responsibility in ones life. Carnal production disregards responsibility, finds excuses, rationalizes ones actions, so that you can do Gods work as you see fit.

Spiritual production is humble. Carnal production is arrogant.

Spiritual production is approached with order. Carnal production, activity, work, is disorder.

Disorder here is the same word as used in verse six, ‘ataktos.’ It approaches life with disorientation, inconsistency, and guided by ones arrogance, rather than by Gods mandates.

The busybody emphasizs their physical activities as their basis for advancement in their spiritual life.

The believer functioning properly within their spiritual life, looks to spiritual growth through doctrine made resident in their soul. The production of wisdom, follows learning and understanding, not the reverse.

God uses prepared believers – those who learn and understand doctrine and then life.

Those who reject Gods mandates, and mechanism for advancing in ones spiritual life, walk, ‘peripateo,’ action with movement that is not movement, walk in place, walk in circles getting nowhere, occupied with ones meaningless travel while disregarding the destination or purpose that is never reached.

They are busybodies, doing more damage to the Christian image, while seeking to advance themselves with disregard to the repercussions they cause on the attitudes, distaste, annoying disgust in others who observe them.

1 Tim. 5:13
13 And at the same time they also learn to be idle, as they go around from house to house; and not merely idle, but also gossips and busybodies, talking about things not proper to mention. NASB


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2 Thessalonians 3:10

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2 Thessalonians 3:10

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10 For [gar] even [kai] when [hote] we were [en] with [pros] you, [humas] this [touto] we commanded [paraggello] you, [humin] that [hoti] if any [ei tis] would [thelo] not [ou] work, [ergazomai] neither [mede] should he eat. [esthio] KJV-Interlinear


10 For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone will not work, neither let him eat. NASB


The only thing that far too many folks get out of the study of these two letters, 1 Thess. and 2 Thess., is the rapture context. Bet you don’t even remember the three nearly simultaneous events that occur at the time of the Rapture. However, the subject of both letters respectively is ‘waiting,’ and ‘sin.’ The subject of 1 Thessalonians is ‘waiting.’ The subject of 2 Thessalonians is ‘sin.’

One of the principle components of sin, of which nearly everyone is guilty, is that they do not keep or fulfill their obligations before God. That is why most folks do not grow up in their spiritual life. It is too easy to ignore, or rationalize away ones obligations.

In the last couple of weeks we have seen the three primary mandates that every believer is held responsible for in their spiritual life. Do you remember any of them?

Your first responsibility is to pray for doctrine, for instructors, for the opportunity to grow up in your spiritual life. All of these combine and make for the environment within which you have the opportunity to receive and possess that which God has made available to you, namely a completed life.

God provides that which you pray for. No prayer, no provision. Prayer demonstrates the degree of spiritual assertion that you have in your life, or that society has within it, or conversely, does not have.

As we have already learned, our dispensation, at its end, is going to decline into the worst apostate state in all of history, thus far. That means that the vast majority will turn away from God and likewise prayer. The only more horrible time, for spiritual decline, will be in the Tribulation.

Oh, and by the way, my wife and I went to see the movie ‘2012.’ Cool special effects. So if you really like the special effects that are in the movies these days, this one is a great one to see. End of the world stuff, and all of that. We will probably address this end of the world prediction pretty soon. Not sure when, but the Mayan Calendar, the Hopi Indian Prophecy Rock, the Hindu Four cycles, Nostradamus, Yin Yang Number prediction, and the Time Wave Theory, are all a part of this 2012 prediction.

And just as we saw the end of the world predicted for the year 2000 because of the computer date format problem, which at least had some rationalization behind it, so this new prediction is hopelessly off the charts of the bizarre. We’ll see if the world moves toward hysteria (as a spiritually dysfunctional world will), as the predicted date in December approaches, three years from now, (now is November, 2009). Anyway, I am getting off the subject.

Your second responsibility, is to grow up in your spiritual life. Most folks will presume that all they need do is believe in God, or any god, or simply believe in Christ, or believe that all they need do is live an honest life (by their own definition) regardless of the existence of a deity. But they completely discount the value of truth, and substitute their own beliefs for truth, which they are not. And the result is the invention of all kinds of religions, philosophies, cults, things that seem reasonable, to things that are beyond the ridiculous.

And yet people will firmly believe in any or all of these. Which leads to folks who are skeptical about anything spiritual, to discount everything, simply because there is so much confusion and ambiguity out there. Thus they blame God for not clearing it all up.

Of course if you know the Bible, then you know that God is a gentleman and will allow any and all who want, emphasis on want, truth, will receive it. But for those who just want to complain, or argue, or debate, or want others to prove truth, rather than digging it out themselves, then there is not much hope. And in this we are nearing the subject of our current verse.

Truth stands on its own, and needs no support, nor proof. Truth is proof. Believers are already told to question, objectively, search, and pursue truth, so that they will discover it. Being argumentative or adversarial is not intended here. If you want something really bad, then you go looking for it until you find it. If you don’t really want something, then you try to get others to do your work, you don’t look yourself, and you certainly do not pursue it, but rather you ridicule, or mock, or make cute little remarks, using the flaws of people or dress or culture as the basis for their remarks or rational, rather than looking at God and the principles that we are all to live up to.

And the third responsibility for the believer, is to support the teaching of the Word of God. Most folks think that this means paying, and for some that may be Gods intent for them. If so then God will provide the means for that option. But there are many ways to support the teaching and spread of the Word of God. You just have to look deep into your own life, and discover what applies to you. And looking deep does not mean searching for the excuse, for the out, that gets you off the hook of doing something that you simply do not want to do.

And so we arrive at our verse. ‘No work, no food.’ Life is as simple as that. Work is the effort with which you put into something. Food is the reward for your efforts.

In this temporal world, truth has an opposing view for every principle of truth. That is why you will find government handouts for no work. This leads to unproductivity, low self esteem, laziness, unreasonable expectations, philosophies like socialism and share the wealth or redistribution programs, entitlement programs, and so forth. And this leads to family breakups, immorality, crime, hopelessness, meaninglessness, bitterness and all sorts of problems in a dysfunctional society.

Now, Paul is addressing those who ‘are able’ to work, but do not, verses those who are ‘not able’ to work. There is a big difference between the two. Infants are not able. Mentally handicapped may not be able. Common sense should apply here.

In this temporal world, for those who work and are able to make a living, they should be entitled to keep the fruits of their labor or ingenuity. Those who choose to not work, have no right to the wealth of others.

Our study is of course in the spiritual life.

And this is the principle. For those who pursue God, Christ, Bible doctrine, and their spiritual life, the rewards are great. For those who do not pursue these things, there is no reward. This should be an easy concept to understand. The rewards of eternity go to those who are mature, or advancing in their spiritual life, not to those who have consciously decided to not grow up.

For unbelievers, there is only one question that is important to their life, ‘What do you think of Christ?’

To believe in Christ is eternal life. To disbelieve is eternal condemnation. Eternity is a very long time. For unbelievers who cling to their unbelief, their sin never ends, thus their condemnation never ends. That is a huge price to pay for refusing to even think those six little words, ‘Father I believe in Jesus Christ.’ What kind of stubbornness would cause a person to refuse, for all of their life, to even think those six little words? If must take a lot of effort to refuse to believe.

As for believers, those who have believed in Christ, then they face a second question, which is a series of questions. ‘What do you think of Bible doctrine?’

For the objective of the believer is to advance to maturity, to grow up.

The reward of belief is salvation. The reward of maturity is blessing beyond imagination. But you have to work, in order to get paid. And that work for the spiritual life, means daily study, everyday of your life, no exceptions, no excuses.

For the unbeliever who rejects Christ, is resistance. For the believer show refuses to grow up, is laziness.

Life is a serious matter. People are so full of their own opinions, that they lose sight of their real place in history. When we were all born, we knew nothing. As we live for a few decades, we presume that we know it all, when we in fact know virtually nothing.

And then reality catches up with us, and we die. Surprise! Then the next life becomes very real to us. But why should we wait until it is too late before we finally figure it all out, when we can easily discover truth, right now?

Some folks don’t want to work at all, unbelievers, no food. Some folks want to do just enough to get by, indifferent believers, or those who think that they have done enough. Little work, little pay.

And then there are those (the few) who go beyond the extra mile, advance to maturity, are obedient to Gods mandates (all of them, can’t pick and choose) and make Bible doctrine real in their life. To those, the rewards go way off the charts.

God is fair. God is a gentleman. God gives everyone the choice of what pay grade they want to be in.

Which one do you prefer? Which one are you willing to commit your life, your entire life to, and then stick with it day in and day out, for the rest of your life, regardless of the circumstances that you know you will one day face, when God tests your resolve for doctrine?

Prov. 16:26
26 A worker's appetite works for him, For his hunger urges him on. NASB

1 Tim. 5:8
8 But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever. NASB

Why worse than an unbeliever? Because the unbeliever works, as it were, only for salvation. That work is one little thought or expression of faith.

The believer, on the other hand, has to commit himself for his entire life for the vast rewards of spiritual maturity, which rewards are far beyond our comprehension. That kings wealth is right at your finger tips. All you have to do in order to lose it, is to do nothing.

The unbeliever gives up one thought, faith in Christ. The negative believer gives up decisions that span a lifetime, and rewards that span eternity.


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2 Thessalonians 3:9

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2 Thessalonians 3:9

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9 Not [ou] because [hoti] we have [echo] not [ou] power, [exousia] but [alla] to [hina] make [didomi] ourselves [heautou] an ensample [tupos] unto you [humin] to [eis] follow [mimeomai] us. [hemas] KJV-Interlinear


9 not because we do not have the right to this, but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you, that you might follow our example. NASB


Paul and those who worked with him, had a right to receive donations and support from those to whom they taught. After all, when you receive something of value, then there is an implied obligation to pay a fair price for it, even if it is given freely. No honorable person would take and not give back.

However, this is the word of God that is being disseminated, not the usual wares of some corner store.

There are far more folks in the world, that cannot even feed themselves, let alone their families, so they can’t possibly have anything left for a traveling preacher. And, as we studied yesterday, God is not interested in your money. He does not need it in order to support His messengers. But He is interested in your attitude.

But here is the point. Paul and his fellow workers, worked for their living. They engaged in a double duty, as it were, in order to support themselves, and still be able to teach the scriptures to anyone who desired doctrine.

And why? Because Paul wanted all to know that this is the example of how we all should live our lives.

We need to go the extra mile, do the extra work, make the extra effort, in all things in our life.

Far too many folks will do only so much in their life. They will work their eight to five, do only that which is placed before them, make no effort to do anything beyond that which they think they should do, sit back and quietly let others do what they should be doing.

God does not force you to do extra. God does not demand that you do extra. But God does give you the opportunity to demonstrate your unselfishness and genuine desire to not only learn doctrine, but to come up with ways that you can help others as well.

Most folks won’t even read their Bible daily, or weekly, or even annually. Too inconvenient!

Most folks have the means and the opportunity to do more, but they ignore that opportunity, and pretend that they did not think of it.

Many folks don’t have the means or the opportunity, and this principle applies to them as well, but more from the attitude perspective, than the tangible wherewithal.

A poor person can be just as lazy as the wealthy one with respect to attitude. Many do not care.

But the example is set.

God will provide the means, if you provide the desire. God will provide the opportunity, but you have to follow through.

Your spiritual growth is paramount, and more important than anything else, but a part of that spiritual growth includes responsibility and the desire to participate by giving back. But God never forces that issue.

If the genuine desire is there, then the means and the opportunity will always be there.

We all have an obligation to pursue and to support the spiritual life of ourselves and of others. God is able to accomplish the goal of spiritual support, with or without your help. The question is, will others receive the credit for something that you should have done, but did not.

The preparation of instructors, the availability of Bible doctrine, the bringing together of those who want to learn, with those who teach, the mutual support of all of these, will always be accomplished, regardless of whether you help or not. Gods plan does not depend on human effort.

But what is impacted, is your own spiritual life, spiritual production, and ultimately the degree of completion of your spiritual life. And that is something that only you can decide.

Remember our study of a few days ago. It is God who guides and makes the path clear for your spiritual advancement, not you. But out of courtesy, God allows you to participate in His plan (not yours), for your own benefit. You just have to want it, really want it. The spiritual benefits far, far, far outweigh the costs.


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2 Thessalonians 3:8

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2 Thessalonians 3:8

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8 Neither [oude] did we eat [phago] any man's [para] [tis] bread [artos] for nought; [dorean] but [alla] wrought [ergazomai] with [en] labour [kopos] and [kai] travail [mochthos] night [nux] and [kai] day, [hemera] that [pros] we might [epibareo] not [me] be chargeable [epibareo] to any [tis] of you: [humon] KJV-Interlinear


8 nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with labor and hardship we kept working night and day so that we might not be a burden to any of you; NASB


Paul accepted gifts of money, food, lodging, and others items of support when they were offered voluntarily, but he never demanded, requested, nor expected any support for his work in his ministry.

Paul here states clearly, that his intention was not for the availability of the teaching of the scriptures to be a burden of any kind on those who wanted it.

No one should be placed in a position where they must pay for doctrine, or not have it. And no one should be placed in a position of feeling guilty because they do not pay, or cannot pay, some form of support.

Paul worked for his support and that may have placed a burden on Paul in that he was doing a sort of double burden, but that was his calling and God made provision to Paul either from his labors, Pauls labors, or from folks who stepped forward voluntarily, to offer him support.

Now, support of the ministry is always a sticky point in the minds of many folks. Many churches obviously need finances in order to pay their bills, and that is reasonable for those who become members of a local church, that they should support their own church.

However, doctrine comes from many sources. This study is an obvious non-church source and the rules still apply, but on a different level.

God provides for us all. God provides those who will support by labor, by prayer, or by financial means. And as long as there are those who are willing and desire the teaching of the scriptures, then God will make it all come together one way or another.

Your obligation to support whatever source you get your spiritual food from, is between you and the Lord.

Your first obligation in life is to study, listen and learn and grow up, and to not worry about anything else. Most folks have enough of a difficult time, just making their own ends meet. The last thing that anyone needs is to feel an obligation for Gods Word.

Sooner or later in life, God will supply you with the means so you can support the teaching of His Word, but that should not even enter into your mind, nor even any guilt for your inability. God is wealthy, and does not need your money nor anything that you have.

God is ‘I Am.’ Do you remember that from our study in Exodus? Do you remember what ‘I Am’ means?

Remember that Moses was asking how he was going to accomplish all of this exodus stuff. In his mind he was going to need money and equipment and ammunition and training and so forth in order to defeat the Egyptians. But God says, in effect, ‘No, you don’t need any of those things.’

‘But what will the people say? What is your name? Who is it that is sending me?’

‘I Am.’

And God repeated it three times, not for identification of the trinity, but for emphasis on the source of all support.

God is infinite support. God possesses infinite resources. And ‘I Am,’ means He who possesses infinite resources.

For every ten-thousand, it only takes a few to adequately support anything, as a general rule. In many situations, God provides the means of support through other ways. You have a job for your support. And while we are all in the same boat, in that we have bills to pay and financial pressures as everyone has, God supports us all in the same manner.

The principle here is that doctrine should be freely available to everyone, without restriction and without hindrance. It should not be available to only the rich, or the well to do. And thus God sends many folks, in varying circumstances, into spiritual field so that folks all over the world will have the opportunity of growing up to spiritual maturity.

And so whether you live in a hut or in a mansion, whether you receive your doctrine on the internet, in a tent, or in a cathedral, all of those things are irrelevant. What does matter is that you have access to doctrine, want doctrine, and make it a high priority in your life.

Sooner or later in your life, God will engage you in more of a role in His plan. And whether it is visible to others or to God alone, makes no difference. Your relationship is with God, and that is what matters more than anything.


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2 Thessalonians 3:7

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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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2 Thessalonians 3:6

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2 Thessalonians 3:6

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6 Now [de] we command [paraggello] you, [humin] brethren, [adelphos] in [en] the name [onoma] of our [hemon] Lord [kurios] Jesus [Iesous] Christ, [Christos] that ye withdraw [stello] yourselves [humas] from [apo] every [pas] brother [adelphos] that walketh [peripateo] disorderly, [ataktos] and [kai] not [me] after [kata] the tradition [paradosis] which [hos] he received [paralambano] of [para] us. [hemon] KJV-Interlinear


6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep aloof from every brother who leads an unruly life and not according to the tradition which you received from us. NASB


The objective of Bible instruction is not to impress with lofty heights of analytical concepts, but to present practical applications for day to day living.

And thus the Bible is filled with practical sayings that teach us the habits that we should follow in our life. We have all heard the phrases, ‘If you play with fire …’ ‘If you run with the wrong crowd …’ etc, etc. And then what happens to you? You get burned or hurt in some way.

And that is exactly what happens to the person who lives within the wrong environment of life.

There are only two environments in which you can live. First, there is the environment of truth, which comes from God. And second, there is the environment that comes from the world. The world environment comes with a mixture of truth, blended in varying degrees, into the vast realm of what everyone believes in life.

Thus all of the philosophies, beliefs, religions, variations of religions, cults and so forth, generally carry with them some form of truth just to make them seem more real or acceptable to those who follow them.

But here Paul teaches that you have only two choices, truth, or anything else.

In life, a wrong thing done in a wrong way, is wrong.

In life, a wrong thing done in a right way, is wrong.

In life, a right thing done in a wrong way, is wrong.

Only a right thing done in a right way, is right.

And of course the right thing in life, is the pursuit, the objective pursuit, of Bible doctrine. Any other blending or compromise, or pretense, or even outright rejection of truth, is wrong.

You cannot mix the world in with truth, and still maintain truth. Once filth is introduced, then the whole batch will eventually rot.

So, Paul commands us here to avoid making associations with people who are obvious rebels against Christ or truth.
Now, use common sense here. You cannot isolate yourself from the entire world. What is Paul talking about?

He is speaking of the pattern of life which you choose to pursue for yourself. Everyone will make different choices, but your choice must be for truth. And you learn truth by engaging in a daily bible study. That is your textbook for life.

Do not pursue the obvious bad habits or lifestyles that are out there. You do not socialize or entertain in your thoughts, the beliefs that others have.

You obviously can hear what people say, see how they live, recognize the things that they believe, but your command here is to follow the ‘traditions’ taught by the Word of God, not the enticements presented by the world.

Command, ‘paraggello,’ is not a suggestion, not an option, but an explicit order. In the military if you disobey an order, what happens? You are shot on the battle field right then and there, for your disobedience.

In the spiritual life, if you disobey, then what happens? You are shot (out of fellowship) so to speak, rendered spiritually inactive, immediately. When out of fellowship, you are dead to your spiritual life. In order to regain your spiritual functionality, you then must confess your sins to God the Father (resume your obedience), and that places you back in fellowship, 1 Jn. 1:9.

But if you continue in your disobedience throughout your life, then what happens? You lose any or all of your spiritual assets. As a believer you are still saved. You can never lose that. But your spiritual growth would be non-existent, as it were, and the blessings that will be associated with that spiritual growth, will likewise fade away, too.

Disorderly, ‘ataktos,’ means to be irregular, disoriented, and this is used in contrast to the order and correct orientation to life that is provided through ones spiritual life.

Withdraw, ‘stello,’ means to abstain, repress, avoid, to detach from.

And therefore, Gods command to you, Gods order to you, is to leave the lies, the disorder, the disorientation of the world, to separate from them permanently, and pursue truth as your chosen source for life.

For in truth, there is correct understanding of everything that goes on in life, complete orientation to everything around you. There is order, security, meaning and purpose, and even more, there is blessing and happiness that is not available by any means, from this world.


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2 Thessalonians 3:5

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2 Thessalonians 3:5

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5 And [de] the Lord [kurios] direct [kateuthuno] your [humon] hearts [kardia] into [eis] the love [agape] of God, [theos] and [kai] into [eis] the patient waiting [hupomone] for Christ. [Christos] KJV-Interlinear


5 And may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ. NASB


Anyone who has leadership, command, or control over others, in any way shape or form, has an obligation to do whatever is within their power or ability to provide others with whatever is available through truth. To prevent, to restrain, to keep any opportunity from those of whom you can control the flow of information, is one of the most evil sins imaginable. You impact their entire spiritual life potentially for all of eternity.

Why? Because when you are in a position to keep information from people, then you are in a position to restrict their spiritual growth, and that is something that none of us has the right to do.

Here Paul makes that quite clear. It is God, who directs. It is God who makes available. If is God who presents truth to every individual, not man. And anyone who stands in the way is no better than the evil world in which we live.

And what is it that God provides?

Doctrine.

This is not restricted to prayer, not restricted to feeling good, not restricted to devotions, not restricted to music, not restricted to whatever it is that someone decides should be revealed. People must have the right to decide for themselves, and in that they must have information made available to them, freely and without restrictions or controls.

Lord, ‘kurios,’ is a reference to Jesus Christ. He directs, ‘kateuthuno,’ meaning to make a clear and unbarricaded path.

Into the love of God. And love is ‘agape,’ which is the content of the scriptures. And it is directed, or guided into your heart. The heart is the learning center, and activity center of your soul. Bible doctrine is from God, comes from God, and is directed by God, into your soul. Faith is not automatic nor an emotional whim, but is built up based on the facts, the details of learned doctrine.

The learning process of your spiritual growth, is controlled totally by God, within the scope of the rules for learning doctrine, which He has made clear to everyone who has even the slightest of interest in God and their spiritual life.

Patience means endurance, and Christ, in the last of this verse, is a reference to the written Word (Christ, the written word).

Therefore it is God from whom the source of doctrine is made available. God directs your heart, your soul, in the learning and growing process of your spiritual life, such that you can become complete through Christ (doctrine in the soul), and therefore complete within yourself.

You do not grow up by praying and nothing else. You do not grow up by singing songs and nothing else. You do not grow up and have the completeness of the spiritual life, by pretending or making yourself believe that you have no need to learn anything more. You do not grow up by being lazy in your daily studies.

Far too many Christians live a pretended spiritual life, and they are fooling only themselves.

Far too many Christians believe that when they impress others with the language of spirituality, with prayer, with music alone, then they also impress God. They are wrong.

The Christian life is not external, but internal, and is more than just ones thinking, it is the edification of Gods work within your soul by means of your dedication and devotion to a disciplined daily study. Without that, you have nothing.

Faith, prayer, your spiritual life must be built up by the foundation of learned doctrine. Without doctrine, they are empty gestures. The Book of James is a good study in this concept.

If you prevent yourself from growing up, that is bad. If you prevent others from having the opportunity to grow up, that is far worse, because you are affecting or preventing the lives of many for all of eternity. Ponder that for just a bit, and see if you really understand the implication of your actions on yourself and on others.

The objective of the spiritual life, is to allow God to guide you and for you to pursue the completion of your life, through a daily study (not just a daily reading), but a daily study, of the Word of God.


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