The Value of Hard Work
2 Thessalonians 3:6-13
Today we will focus on the cure for idleness, and here are my favorite thoughts on the subject:
“Yesterday I did nothing and today I'm finishing what I did yesterday.”
“If I won the award for laziness, I would send somebody to pick it up for me.”
Phyllis Diller: “I should have suspected my husband was lazy; on our wedding day, his mother told me: ‘I'm not losing a son; I'm gaining a couch.’”
The truth is, when we work hard, we glorify God. We’ve heard the saying, “Cleanliness is next to godliness,” but today’s passage suggests that hard work is also next to godliness. After all, one of the first things God did after creating Adam and Eve is he gave them a job: to till the garden of Eden. And this came before the Fall, before their sinful rebellion that led to a broken world and added unproductive toil to their work. God evidently saw work as valuable for his new humans.
The Bible says God even has jobs in store for us in heaven. We’ll certainly be worshiping God but we’ll also be serving, co-reigning with Christ, taking care of people or things. Jesus talked in parables about how our faithfulness in serving the Lord here will lead to even greater assignments in heaven.
And in today’s passage, Paul told the church in Thessalonica that they could look to him as their example for hard work. Even though he could have been funded by the church as an apostle, he always worked hard to pay his own way, probably because he knew some in the church suffered from laziness.
His first letter to this church also addressed this subject. Listen to his words, recorded in 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. And then chapter 5, verse 14: “We urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive” (1 Thessalonians 5:14). Paul understood the value of hard work and productivity.
Even our Lord learned a trade as a carpenter’s son and worked that trade until, at age 30, he became a traveling rabbi and carried out his purpose as our Messiah, the long-awaited Christ. Jesus himself understood the value of hard work.
I know what some of you are thinking: You’re thinking, “Pastor, those days are over for me. I’m done with work. I’m retired!” And I say, “Congratulations! Well done! But the word ‘retirement’ is not in the Bible.” Perhaps it is simply the nature of our work that changes with retirement and growing older.
I get this idea from verse 13 where Paul says: “And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.” Paul says we are called to do good works for the rest of our lives. Retirement brings a certain freedom to choose what kind of work and how much work we pursue. Yet the absence of a paycheck doesn’t devalue the work.
“Never tire of doing what is good.” When it comes to life in the Blue Skies community, what might that include? Is there a certain committee you could serve on, to help maintain or improve the quality of life here? Are there neighbors to encourage, friends to make, people to assist while on sightseeing or grocery shopping trips, residents or staff who could use a kind word, an encouraging smile, a warm hug? Perhaps some of these things might be your “work” on any given day.
And what about giving to our Food Bank collection? Did not Jesus say, “When you’ve done for the least of these, you’ve done for me?” Is this not holy work we are doing, as we seek to help those in need?
And what about in our church family? Are there ways we can serve the Lord by serving one another? Perhaps you could reach out to someone who has lost a loved one, or perhaps you could welcome a newcomer to our church or invite a neighbor to service. Maybe you could offer to usher or help in the office from time to time. Never tire of doing good! Make it your life mission to look every day for a way to serve your master, King Jesus!
Paul shows us the alternative: Stay busy or become a busybody! In verse 11 he makes a joke, a wordplay in the Greek. Instead of the busyness of productive work (ergazomai), some have become busybodies (periergazomai). The problem with idle time is it leads to temptation. Too much idle time for King David—who should have been at war with his army—led to his fall into sin with Bathsheba. Too much idle time for us today leads to gossip and meddling in the affairs of others. This is probably why Paul chose those words in his first letter, “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands” (1 Thessalonians 4:11).
There are a couple of theories why some were busybodies in the early church. One theory is that they believed so strongly in Christ’s imminent return. If the Lord is coming back tomorrow, why work today? Paul made it clear that we should always be prepared for Christ’s return. (We’ll talk more about that next week.) But he also made it clear that this should not be an excuse for laziness.
The other theory is that some were taking advantage of the goodness of hardworking Christians to take care of them. May I suggest that it is not always helpful to give to those who will not work? Notice I said “will.” And that’s the way Paul phrased it as well in verse 10 when he reminded them of the rule, “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” Paul was into welfare reform here! It’s not that he didn’t believe in charity. Lots of other places in scripture he urged believers to take care of those in need, particularly in the church family. And he even gathered offerings to distribute to the poor and suffering.
Yet here he was talking about those who could work but chose not to. This is why I’m usually not willing to give money to people on street corners. I don’t know their situation, and my well-meaning gift might feed an addiction or an apt for laziness. It’s a situation that requires prayer and discernment.
For those who choose not to work, even when able, they need to suffer some natural consequences. I know it’s not easy when it’s someone you love. It’s not easy to say “no” to a grown child asking for money because of poor decisions, especially if grandchildren or great-grandchildren may possibly suffer. These kinds of situations require much prayer, counsel from trusted friends, and careful discernment how to proceed.
The bottom line is, work is good for us. My grandfather understood that. He worked hard to provide, a true Alabama entrepreneur: in addition to being a school principal, he opened the first motion picture drive-in theater in the state. After that he developed a highly successful turkey farm, winning a reputation for excellent quality and fair pricing. Granddad ended up making a lot of money, and yet he was very careful as he gave it out to his children and grandchildren. He wanted us to learn the value of hard work as well.
Staying busy for the Lord is a lifelong mission, although the nature of the work changes as our physical and mental abilities change. God only holds us responsible for what we can do. Yet, if we pay attention, God will give each of us an opportunity to serve him in some way every day. A smile, an encouraging word, a way to spread hope or peace or love in a world desperately in need of a Savior. We can follow the example of our Lord, who came not to be served but to serve and gave his life as a ransom for many. As we serve others in Jesus’ name, we serve King Jesus himself. Let us pray.
Lord, help us to be known for our productive busyness, not for our busybody tendencies. Help us never to tire of doing good, to stay active for you as we serve you by serving others. We ask this in the name of Jesus, who came to serve us with his very life, and now works to prepare a place for us in heaven, amen.
