2 Thessalonians 3 The Wrong Kind of Busy It is our badge of honor in an age where technology promised the very opposite. Technology lied, or at least fibbed, and though we can do more and more, our busy-ness seemed to expand rather than shrink because of its advances. It feels like the modern day equivalent of “My dad is stronger than your dad.” We try to outdo each other in a game of calendar jousting. We thrust at our opponent with the words: “I’m busier than you are.” And they counter with: “No you’re not! I’m busy twenty-eight hours a day!” But busy doing what? That’s the real question at the heart of this battle. That’s where Paul’s final chapter to the Thessalonians gets us thinking. In the middle of chapter 3, there’s this whole section that warns against “idleness.” It would appear that because they were convinced that Jesus was coming back within a few weeks or the next month or two at the latest, some had taken the approach: “We’re done working. It’s vacation time. We need to get our bags packed for eternity. Why bother with work and making a living when Jesus will be coming back so soon? Why not kick back and enjoy these last few days before the world comes to a crashing halt and a new heaven and earth appears?” Paul responds quickly and directly and he uses a little bit of word play while he’s at it. Specifically I’m talking about verses 11-13 where he writes: “We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat. And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.” The words “busy” and “busy bodies” are connected in the Greek just as they are in English. Paul is saying that there are those in the community who are busy – busy getting into other people’s business. They are busy telling others what they should or shouldn’t do, while at the same time, they would be offended if anyone were to suggest they themselves had better things with their time. We all have stories from our lives of people whom we would describe as “busybodies.” We may have discovered them in our families, our neighborhoods, our offices, the PTO, or the gym. But our response might be: “Busybodies at church? Tell me it isn’t so.” Because I have folks who read these devotional thoughts from each of my previous churches as well as my church home right now, I will not give personal examples. Sufficient it is to say that Paul’s words apply just as much today as they did at the Church at Thessalonica. But my personal take home is not about assembling my list of “busy-bodies” but to ask myself the much harder question: “So you’re a busy guy, but busy with what? Are you busy with all that is trivial and temporary? Or are you busy doing the things that matter long-term? Are we busy listing what’s wrong with other around us, or are busy creating, maintaining and promoting a self-image we try to sell to the world on placed like FB, Twitter, or the third pew on the pulpit side of the sanctuary? Or are we busy spending time with the One who is making us a new creation from the inside out? Are we using our time to love others and seek ways to connect others to Him? These are the things that are well worth the time.
Posted on: Mon, 07 Oct 2013 12:44:26 +0000
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