November 28, 2015
Scripture Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:10b-12
Yet we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, 11and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, 12so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.
Questions for Reflection:
Paul gives direction to the church into how they can practically live out the philadelphia (brotherly love) that he had encouraged them in the preceding verses. What practical directions does he give them in verse 11? How would you express those instructions in your own words? One commentator notes that when Paul was directing them to lead a quiet life, it contains within it “images of virtue, peace, tranquility, and security.”
This whole section of Scripture (1 Thessalonians 4:9-12) contains one major idea: live in love. The first two verses are the “what” of the passage. In verse 11, Paul gives the church “how” they can live that out. The apostle gets to the “why” in verse 12. Why should they live in love more and more? What are the results they could anticipate if they applied this teaching to their life? Why are those outcomes important?
In Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi shares the story of how he came to believe the gospel after growing up in the Muslim faith. One of the stumbling blocks for Qureshi was the lack of genuine Christian friends that he had. He said:
I knew of no Christian who truly cared about me, no one who had been part of my life through thick and thin. I had plenty of Christian acquaintances, and I’m sure they would have been my friends if I had become a Christian, but that kind of friendship is conditional.There were none that I knew who care about me unconditionally. Since no Christian cared about me, I did not care about their message.
How we live our lives and how we love those around us should be a direct reflection of the love we have been given. Spend time in prayer asking God to help you live your life in a way that you might “win the respect of outsiders.”