A little while ago, I produced a verse by verse series in Philippians. I really enjoyed that exercise and have been wondering if I should take on another book. Well it turns out that 1 Thessalonians is the victim of my machinations, and hopefully, the thoughts produced by this fantastic book will edify and encourage the reader.

As with Philippians I am going to limit each post to one verse, and hopefully produce a short, succinct read for my friends who follow.

1 Thessalonians 4:12 so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

Paul is summing up the topic of brotherly love he started a few verses back, and naturally his thoughts flow towards those whom we rub shoulders with in our day to day lives. Our witness before those outside of the church.

Paul speaks of this many many times in his writings, for those outside of the church don’t know (and don’t care) about the intricacies of our faith, of our doctrines and of our internal debates. All of that is for the Body to handle and if we are obeying the Master in relating to one another per the New Testament commands, the impact will be beyond the family of God and towards those outside of the faith.

As an aside, I found a great site that freely provided the “One Another” commands graphic to the left. Check it out – https://overviewbible.com

To return to this verse, Paul is speaking of the result of the believers obedience to verse 11 commands. (Note the “so that” link at the start of the verse.)

What were those three commands?

1. Aspire to live quietly
2. Mind your own affairs
3. Work with your hands

Three commands that enable us to walk properly before outsiders. Without these traits, no matter how great our message is, (and it is great!), we are not enabled properly to approach or witness of any work of God in our lives.

Boisterous, nosy and lazy believers bring nothing to the table in presenting a godly lifestyle for those watching from outside of the Body. I firmly believe those outside of the church are all from Missouri – the show me state – for they want to be shown a life that is desirable, peaceful, loving and giving.

Who can argue against that?

It is interesting that though Paul summarizes the three “tasks” of the previous verse for believers to exhibit before those outside of the church, he goes on with a specific requirement for those in the church. Be dependent on no one. Surely he is breaching the topic of a believers dependence on those outside of the church. But Paul – you have already told them to work with their own hands. Now telling them to not be dependent on anyone? Are you beating a dead horse here?

This topic is not the only time Paul addressed this trait amongst the Thessalonians. One of my wife’s favorite verses, as we raised our kids and developed thier work ethic was in Paul’s second letter to this church

2 Thessalonians 3:10b ….If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.

What is going on with these saints? Was there a tendency amongst the saints to depend on government handouts? Is this a common problem for the modern day saint? Do you know some saints afraid of a good day’s work, preferring a life of leisure, willing to abuse state handouts and government “gifts”? An ol’ Jewish man once told me – “With shekels, come shackels.” Depending on government assistance removes God from the position of provider in the saint’s life. I firmly believe that depending on government assistance is a costly, possibly deadly, decision.

I personally have not met many believers who openly depend on the government for a handout, but I have witnessed many believers that are in the habit of constantly expressing their needs. It is this challenge or that expense that they are “waiting on God” for. Though the family of God is called to bear each other’s burdens, each blessing can be abused. I have personally witnessed many that have become highly skilled with manipulation strategies seeking support to live off the Body. ‘Nuff said.

With my little rant over, I would end with the admonition for each believer to reach those outside the church as Paul has provided guidance. That guidance included the goal to live quietly, to mind our own affairs, and to work with our hands. Out of this foundational lifestyle, we can bring to the table a life changing message for the unbeliever to consider. This is the saints proper walk towards those outside of the church. We have much to give, and no need to depend on those who know not the Lord.

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Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion.