テサロニケの信徒への手紙二3:6-9 2 Thessalonians 3:6-9,

怠惰な生活をして、わたしたちから受けた教えに従わないでいるすべての兄弟を避けなさい（二テサロニケ3:6）

「避けなさい」という強い命令の目的は、第一に、他の信徒たちが怠惰な信徒たちの悪い影響を受けないようにということでしょう。誤った信仰や生活の仕方が、信仰共同体の中で正当化されて認められますと、驚くほど周囲の人々に影響を与えます。つまり、クリスチャンであってもあのようなことをしてもよいのだという気持ちが伝染して、教会全体が神様の教えにそむくようなことにもなりかねないのです。コリントの教会では、性的にみだらな行いを平気で行っている信徒がいて、しかもその行いが教会で黙認されているような状態がありました。そこで、パウロはコリントの信徒への手紙一の5章6節と7節で、コリント教会の信徒たちに対して、酵母が発酵を促してパンの練り粉を膨らませるというたとえを用いながら、「あなたがたが誇っているのは、よくない。わずかなパン種が練り粉全体を膨らませることを、知らないのですか。いつも新しい練り粉のままでいられるように、古いパン種をきれいに取り除きなさい」と強い調子で命じました。そして、それに続く5章11節で「兄弟と呼ばれる人で、みだらな者、強欲な者、偶像を礼拝する者、人を悪く言う者、酒におぼれる者、人の物を奪う者がいれば、つきあうな、そのような人とは一緒に食事もするな」というように非常に具体的な命令を与えています。このように、信仰共同体としての教会の秩序と清潔さを守るために、パウロは誤った考えや行いをしている信徒を避けるようにと命じているのであります。

「避けなさい」ということの第二の目的は、怠惰な人々を悔い改めに導くためということです。パウロは、テサロニケの信徒への第二の手紙の3章14節と15節で「もし、この手紙でわたしたちの言うことに従わない者がいれば、その者には特に気をつけて、かかわりを持たないようにしなさい。そうすれば、彼は恥じ入るでしょう。しかし、その人を敵とは見なさず、兄弟として警告しなさい」と記しています。ここに表されている考え方は、教会の中で教えに従わない信徒がいたとしても、いきなり敵とみなして除名するのではなく、共同体の一員であることを認めながら交わりから遠ざけて、罪に気づかせ悔い改めを促すという考え方です。パウロは、テサロニケ教会の怠惰な信徒たちも、悔い改めて正常な生活をするようになることを願っていました。そのためには、彼らが自分たちの犯している過ちに気づいて、悔い改めるための機会を与えられなければなりませんでした。そのような悔い改めの機会を与えるために、怠惰な信徒たちをそのままにはしておかないで、怠惰な信徒たちが自分たちの何が間違っているのかを考えるように、彼らを交わりから遠ざけて「かかわりを持たないようにしなさい」と、ほかの信徒たちに命じているのであります。

（12月29日の説教より）

The Christian’s mission is to witness to Jesus Christ. It can be paraphrased as bearing witness to the Kingdom of God in this world. And that means living in this world as those who belong to heaven, not to this world. We live in this world. As long as we live in this world, we need daily bread – daily food and drink – to sustain our earthly bodies. In order to get our daily bread, we have to work daily. In order to work daily, we must live in relation to the people of this world. To do this, you may have to belong to an organisation in this world. Of course, belonging to the organisation of this world is temporary, while belonging to heaven is eternal, so it is more important to belong to heaven. However, in order to testify that we belong to heaven in this world, we must have proper relations with the people of this world. In other words, not being involved in this world because we belong to heaven is not a way of life that bears witness to our Christ.

In Christian history, it has been the case that people have tried to live as belonging to heaven by living a life of detachment from this world. For example, in Dostoevsky’s novel The Brothers Karamazov, there is a priest named Father Ferapont who lives in a simple hut in a Russian Orthodox monastery, guarding the ikons of Christ and the saints and keeping the light burning. Dostoevsky describes the daily life of this monk as follows.

It was said (and indeed it was true) that he ate only two pounds of bread in three days. The beekeeper, who lived close by the apiary, used to bring him the bread every three days, and even to this man who waited upon him, Father Ferapont rarely uttered a word. The four pounds of bread, together with the sacrament bread, regularly sent him on Sundays after the late mass by the Father Superior, made up his weekly rations. The water in his jug was changed every day. He rarely appeared at mass. Visitors who came to do him homage saw him sometimes kneeling all day long at prayer without looking round. If he addressed them, he was brief, abrupt, strange, and almost always rude. On very rare occasions, however, he would talk to visitors, but for the most part he would utter some one strange saying which was a complete riddle, and no entreaties would induce him to pronounce a word in explanation.

The figure of Father Ferapont depicted here is that of a monk who has renounced contact with this world and lives in a monastery, where he has minimal contact with other people and does not even engage in proper conversation with them. Of course, this is a character from a novel, so he is not a real person. However, in the history of Christianity, there have been such a character who was venerated by the people, which is why Dostoevsky dared to depict him in his novel. Is it the way of life that the Bible teaches, like this Father Ferrapont, to live out of communion with this world? I do not think so. The Christian life that the Bible teaches is a life lived in this world, in fellowship with the people of this world, fulfilling the responsibilities of this world and witnessing to the Kingdom of God. And this is in line with what Paul teaches in today’s Bible passage.

Having written a profound prayer for the Thessalonian believers in 3:5, in verse 6 and followings, Paul writes specific words of command to solve the problem that was occurring within the Thessalonian church. First, in verse 6 he says, “Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.” From these words, we can see that the problem in the Thessalonian church was that there were members of the church who were “walking in idleness.” This problem had already been pointed out in the First Epistle to the Thessalonians. Namely, in 4:10-12 of the First Epistle, it is stated as follows.

But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

This is probably because, at the time the First Epistle was written, there were already believers who did not aspire to live quietly, and to mind their own affairs, and to work with their hands. The exhortation in 5:14 of the First Epistle to “admonish the idle” also makes this clear.

The believers of the Thessalonian church were even referred to in 1:7 of the First Epistle as “an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.” It seems strange that there were “the idle” among the believers of that Thessalonian church. However, when we consider that in the Thessalonian Church there was a strong faith in Christ’s Second Coming on the Last Day and in the Last Judgement, we can infer the reason for “the idle.” It is likely that there were believers who thought that they no longer had to work for their earthly lives, since the Last Day was imminent and those who believed in Christ would be resurrected and receive eternal life at that time. And such believers would have despised doing earthly work.

And in addition to this, in the early church, rich believers offered their wealth to the church, which the church used to support the poor believers. This is best illustrated by the work of the Jerusalem church in Acts 4:34-35. It is recorded as follows.

There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.

This was done in the Jerusalem church in the first period after the Pentecost, so it may not have been the same thing carried out everywhere in the church in New Testament times. However, it is possible that in some way the church supported the lives of poor believers in other churches in New Testament times. For example, the church may have provided meals. It is possible that the Thessalonian church also supported the lives of poor believers in some way. And “the idle” in question in the First Epistle may have been so spoilt by such church support that they did not try to work themselves. It is important to note that these may not have been people who could not work regardless of wanting to work, but rather people who interpreted the teaching of waiting for the Last Day to suit their own needs and thought that they did not have to work in this earthly life. That is, they were probably people who could work but deliberately did not.

Therefore, in today’s Bible passage, Paul also dares to give a strong command to the Thessalonian believers to “keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.” The purpose of this strong command to “keep away” may be, firstly, to prevent other believers from being influenced by the bad influence of idle believers. When wrong beliefs and ways of life are justified and recognised within a community of faith, they can have a startling effect on those around them. In other words, the feeling that it is OK for Christians to do such and such a thing can become contagious, and the whole church can be turned against God’s teaching.

In the Corinthian church, there were members of the church who were practising sexually immoral behaviour with impunity, and this behaviour was tacitly approved by the church. Therefore, in 1 Corinthians 5:6-7, using the analogy of yeast causing fermentation to swell the dough of the bread, Paul says to the Corinthians, “Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?” and commands in a strong tone, “Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened.” He followed this with a very specific command in 5:11: “I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.” Thus, in order to maintain order and purity in the church as a community of faith, Paul commands to keep away from believers who are thinking and doing wrong.

A second purpose of “keep away” is to lead the idle believers to repentance. Paul says in this Second Epistle to the Thessalonians 3:14-15: “If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.” The idea expressed here is that if a member of the church does not follow the Christian teachings, the idea is not to suddenly dismiss him as an enemy, but to keep him away from fellowship while recognising him as a member of the community and, so that he will realise his sin and repent. Paul hoped that the idle members of the Thessalonian church would repent and come to a normal life. For this to happen, they had to realise the wrongs they were committing and be given the opportunity to repent. In order to give them such an opportunity to repent, he does not leave the idle believers as they are, but commands the rest of the congregation to keep them away from fellowship and “have nothing to do with him” so that the idle believers can think about what is wrong with them.

In verses 7 and 8, Paul tells the Thessalonian believers to remember his own example as a model for how Christians should live. He says as follows.

For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you.

This indicates that in his evangelism in Thessalonica, Paul worked on his own to earn his living. In the First Epistle to the Thessalonians 2:9, Paul says, “For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.” It was not only in Thessalonica that Paul worked and earned his living when he evangelised. Also in Corinth and in Ephesus, Paul worked and earned his living when he evangelised. The reason for this was Paul’s concern that the burden of supporting himself should not hinder evangelism or stumble the congregation.

Paul’s decision to work and earn his own living while evangelising was also to set an example of how to serve others as a Christian. In verse 9 at the end of today’s passage, Paul writes: “It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate.” In the First Epistle to the Corinthians 9:14-15, Paul also writes: “The Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel. But I have made no use of any of these rights.” And in 9:19, Paul explains his motivation: “Though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them.” In other words, he would be saying, “If it will be of benefit to the spread of the gospel, I will share the gospel with others without using my right to receive rewards.” In the light of Paul’s attitude of serving the church by daring not to accept the rewards he is entitled to receive from the church, it is clear that the idle Thessalonian believers, who live on the support of the church and take this for granted, are in the wrong. Paul dares to speak of himself here in order to make the idle believers realise their error.

Paul preached the gospel while working in this world in order to better witness to the gospel of Christ. Such a way of life of Paul was in contrast to the idle believers who relied on the support of the church. Paul was willing to do whatever it took to witness to the gospel of Christ. The idle believers, however, interpreted the gospel of Christ in a way that suited them and were willing to do nothing. If you think about it, when you live in fellowship with this world, fulfilling your responsibilities in this world, you will know better how to witness to Christ to the people of this world. Of course, we must remember that our relationship with this world is not eternal, but temporary. We must not be swallowed up and buried by this world. But living in this world while fulfilling our responsibilities is the first step towards witnessing to Christ. As the Reformer Calvin taught, “Every man’s mode of life is a kind of station assigned him by the Lord” (Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 3, Chapter 10, Section 6), we have been given a mission by God to witness to Christ by fulfilling our responsibilities in this world in each of our posts.