In the presence of our God and Father, we
constantly remember how your faith is active, your love is hard at work, and
your hope in our Lord Jesus the Messiah is enduring. (v 3)
There is a kind of evangelicalism which sees faith and hard work as
being at odds with each other. We should, they say, not try too hard. We should
‘Let go and let God.’ But see how Paul commends the Thessalonians ‘hard-working
love’ or ‘labour of love’.
The Hebrew language (ancient and modern) doesn't distinguish between
manual work and spiritual work. There is only one word, avodah, which means ‘service’. When Adam worked the ground, it was avodah. When a slave served his master,
it was avodah. When the kohanim (‘priests’) ministered in the
temple, it was avodah. Whenever we
work, we serve God and others. This ties with another Hebraic idea called tikkun olam, or ‘building the world’.
Whenever our work does anything that helps others, anything that makes the
world better-ordered, or happier, or wiser, or better-fed, or nicer, then we
are ‘building the world’. In Hebrew thought, manual labour is regarded as a
thing of highest dignity. Among the rabbis, a manual trade was indispensable,
so that one could labour in Torah and labour with one's hands. Rabban Gamliel
(Gamaliel) said: ‘Lovely is Torah study with daily work, for persistence in
both makes one forget sin. But Torah without work leads to nought and becomes a
cause of sin’ (Pirqei Avot 2.2). Rabbi Shemaiah used to say: ‘Love work.
Despise high position. Avoid rulers.’ (Pirqei Avot 1). Remember, our Lord Jesus
was a builder (really!). And Paul the preacher supported himself as a
leather-worker (tent-maker). By faithful service we glorify God, bless others,
and change the world.
So we must work hard and not exalt imagined spiritual well-doing over
physical labour. Prayer is work; work is prayer. As it is said, ‘Whatever your
hand finds to do, do it with all your might’ (Ecclesiastes 9.10a). And ‘Be
always abounding in the work of the Lord since you know that your labour in the
Lord is not in vain’ (1 Corinthians 15.58). ‘If anyone will not work, let him
not eat!’ (2 Thessalonians 3.10). ‘For we are his workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus for good works’ (Ephesians 2.10).
David Mitchell
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