2Thessalonians 3:1
Keeping the Church Together
I. \\#1:1-12\\ Paul’s Encouragement in Persecution
A. \\#1:1-2\\ Introduction
B. \\#1:3-4\\ Encouragement by Prayer and Spiritual Bragging
C. \\#1:5-10\\ Encouragement by Describing The End of Their Persecution
D. \\#1:11, 12\\ Encouragement with An Offer of Spiritual Blessing
II. \\#2:1-17\\ Paul’s Explanation of the Day of the Lord
A. \\#2:1-2\\ The Comfort of Truth
B. \\#2:3-12\\ The Events Preceding the Day of the Lord
C. \\#2:3-12\\ The Power of the Anti-Christ
D. \\#2:13-17\\ The Comfort of the Believer on the Day of the Lord
III. \\#3:1-18\\ Paul’s Exhortation to the Church
A. \\#3:1-5\\ An Exhortation Concerning God’s Work
B. \\#3:6-15\\ An Exhortation Concerning the Disobedient
C. \\#3:16-18\\ A Final Exhortation
Having confirmed the truth concerning the Day of the Lord and having comforted the
hearts of the believers, Paul shares a few closing encouragements.
I. \\#1-5\\ An Exhortation Concerning God’s Work
A. Paul’s Request
1. \\#1\\ Pray that what has been done for you will be done for
others; namely, that the Word of God will have free reign to work
and be glorified among those who hear it.
a. The image of what Paul is saying is powerful.
b. Paul does not paint the image of the Word being a tool in our
hands but rather it being a tool in God’s hands.
c. He says, "Just turn the Word of God lose and let it do its
work."
2. \\#2\\ Pray that Paul and his co-workers will be delivered from
wicked people who can not be reasoned with.
a. More and more, I see Paul’s situation.
b. Lost people can call Christians "extremists" and illogical all
day; but, as far as I can see, they are the ones who are given
to rage, unjustified leaps of faith, and closed minds.
c. God’s invitation and our challenge is to be able to reason with
anyone about the Scriptures.
Isa 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD….
1Pe 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an
answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with
meekness and fear:
3. If you take both of Paul’s statements and put them together, you
can see that we don’t have to convince people of the Bible.
a. We are to answer their false thinking with sounding thinking
based on the Bible.
b. Then, it is the Bible that will do the work.
B. \\#3\\ Paul’s Reminder - Remember that the Lord is faithful and will
establish (build strength into) you and keep you from evil.
C. \\#4-5\\ Paul’s confidence
1. Paul believed that this church had what it took to stay faithful.
a. \\#4\\ That the Lord will touch them.
(1) That was, God is not finished with them yet.
(2) He was still doing a work on them and with them.
b. That the Thessalonians were and would obey what they have been
taught.
c. \\#5\\ That the Lord would give them love and patience as they
waited on the Lord’s return.
2. What a great church!
II. \\#6-15\\ An Exhortation Concerning the Disobedient
A. This is the only rebuke that Paul makes to this church.
1. \\#11\\ "some" - Yet, it is not really a rebuke to the church but
to a few within the church.
2. Isn’t it a shame how one or two bad apples can paint a whole
church with a bad reputation.
3. Learn a few lessons:
a. A church will always be known by the strength of its weakest
link.
b. All the right that a church does can be erased by the wrong of
a single member.
4. Don’t let that discourage you. Let it motivate you not to be that
weak link!
B. \\#11\\ The sin is described.
1. Word has come back to Paul, probably through Timothy, that some
were not working.
2. Apparently, they had decided that they were the "church
supervisors."
a. In place of working, they had become busybodies.
b. BUSYBODY is defined as those who spend their time in useless
activities, officially making themselves the caretaker of
other’s affairs.
3. \\#8, 10\\ Apparently, these busybodies assumed that since they
were the church supervisors, the members of the church needed to
feed them.
a. \\#8\\ This attitude is hinted at.
b. \\#10\\ This attitude is rebuked.
4. It interesting that most of the time our application of this verse
is to lazy bums on welfare. The context applies it to lazy, self-
called church leaders.
III. \\#6-15\\ How to keep the church together.
A. \\#6-10\\ Give them the right example. Paul gives himself.
1. \\#6\\ Paul’s ministry had set the proper "tradition."
a. A tradition is normally set by longevity, but the Church had
not been around that long.
b. Paul’s use of the word is based on commonality.
c. What he was describing was what all the men of God at that time
did.
2. \\#7\\ Paul had not walked "disorderly."
a. The word means "out of step."
b. Disorderly is a military marching term.
c. Paul had not walked out-of-step with the Lord or in his role
as shepherd.
3. \\#8\\ Paul had not placed the burden for his care upon the
church; instead, he had labored in the day (to preach the
gospel) and in the night (to earn his living).
4. \\#9\\ Paul had done this not because it would have been wrong
to allow them to supply his needs but to be an example of a
hard working Christian.
5. The point being that if Paul did not think it appropriate for
him to let others supply his needs, how much less ought these
busy bodies think they had such a right.
6. \\#10\\ Paul had always preached that if a man was not willing
to work, that man should not eat. In other words, laziness
should not be rewarded.
B. \\#6, 12, 14, 15\\ Deal with the busybody.
1. \\#12\\ Paul commands these busybodies to go to work and to do
so QUIETLY, that is…
a. Mind their own business, quit meddling in the affairs of the
church, and go back to work.
(1) To work in the church is a good and honorable thing.
(2) However, it takes a being God-called to that work.
b. Go back to work without complaining and murmuring.
(1) These self-appointed church leaders were not to try to
divide the church.
(2) They were to just starting doing right.
(3) If they do, the problems is settled.
C. \\#6, 14-15\\ If the disobedient believers won’t go back to work,
Paul tells the church to withdraw fellowship from them.
1. Paul says to remove the fuse.
a. The best solution for stopping wayward church members from
DIVIDING the church is for the church to stay UNITED.
b. Anyone can "try" to split a church. Only a church can make it
happen.
c. Church, you don’t have to follow a church antagonists!
(1) The church does not have to let a dissenting member split
their fellowship.
(2) Certainly, things may not be right with those who are
leading the church—in fact, they probably won’t be.
(a) People tend to let small problems get out of hand.
(b) This causes the church to become a potential powder
keg.
(c) Then, when a insurrectionist comes along, he/she
becomes the fuse.
d. The church needs to deal with one problem at a time.
(1) The time to deal with the smaller problems is while they
are still small!
(2) If you have waited until an insurrectionist is in your
midst, the church needs to work together to deal with
the insurrectionist.
(3) The WHOLE church needs to break fellowship with him/her
until he will get right.
2. Once the fuse is removed, the church needs to deal with the issues
which created the powder keg.
3. \\#14-15\\ Paul repeated his command for the church to
disassociate from the disobedient but adds a reason and a caution.
a. The reason - That the disobedient might be ashamed.
(1) Christians are not to deal with believers in a fiery,
condemning, if-you-don’t-like-it-you-can-leave-way, but
in love.
(2) Our intent is that the disobedient might repent.
b. The caution - Knowing the zealousness of some, Paul warned
the church not to deal with their brother as though he
were some kind of enemy.
c. That is good advice in all Christian disputes.
(1) God’s people are a family.
(2) Families may have quarrels, but families are still family.
D. \\#13\\ Paul told the obedient church not to let these busybodies
wear them out.
1. Dealing with problems in the church is like dealing with an
infestation of insects. Just when you think you are about to get
a handle on it, another batch crops up in a different place.
2. God’s people must exercise diligence and determination.
III. \\#16-18\\ A Final Exhortation
A. \\#17\\ Paul made it a point to always close his letters himself.
B. \\#16, 18\\ Paul asks that God bless this church with three things:
1. \\#16\\ Peace
2. \\#16\\ God’s presence
3. \\#18\\ Grace
C. Closing line states that this letter was written from Athens. We
have discussed this several times already.
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