1

The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat

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[2 Thessalonians 3:10]

For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule:

"If a man will not work, he shall not eat."

3

Paul and Silas arrived at Thessalonica through Amphipolis and Apollonia,

where there was a synagogue where the Jews gathered.

The synagogue is where Jewish worship and various gatherings.

4

Paul spent three weeks in the synagogue with the Bible and discussed with the Jews.

And he testified to all who gathered that Jesus was suffering and

that he was resurrected three days after his death.

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Many people heard Paul's faith, believed, and followed him.

The church began in the house of a man named Jason.

But the Jews envied people to follow Paul and Silas.

6

They gathered the bullies and threw up riot in order to drive out Paul and Silas from there.

The city quickly fell into great chaos. Paul and Silas had no choice but to leave Thessalonica.

7

Paul and Silas left because of the intervention of the Jews,

but God made the Thessalonian Church strong.

The Thessalonians Church became a church full of faith, love,

and hope to be a model for other churches around.

8

But among the Thessalonians there were people who had a wrong belief.

They were very trivial about labor.

They did not do what they were told, saying they believed in Jesus well.

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Those who do not like to work have lived an unreasonable life.

These were people who did not benefit the church community but created problems.

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They also went to the people who were at work and nodded and interfered.

Those who strayed to the life and work of this world used their time in vain.

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Those who did not work naturally had no income.

So they could not even get themselves to eat.

They did not feel any shame even when they ate food for other saints.

12

The apostle Paul also heard the story of these people in the Thessalonians church.

The apostle Paul taught them what to do, pointing out their mistakes.

13

Through the letter, Paul said that he was an apostle, but he never ate the food for free.

The apostle Paul did his own work and prepared something to eat,

so that he would not burden the other saints.

14

As an apostle who devoted himself only to teaching the Word,

Paul could have asked the Saints to prepare what he needed for his daily life.

But Paul was able to earn money through labor directly to educate the Saints

about the importance of labor, and to prepare things for himself and his companions to use.

15

To the Thessalonian Saints, the Apostle Paul said to imitate his attitude.

And he warned the following strongly to those who,

even after receiving this letter, would not work.

"The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat." (2Th 3:10)

16

We, who believe in Jesus and become saved and become children of God,

should not act like those who do not like to work in the Thessalonians Church.

He who believes in and follows Jesus must be a man who, like the apostle Paul,

can do his work diligently for the benefit of his brothers and neighbors.

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Furthermore, the greatest reason why we work diligently is

because God is still working for us.

God has created the whole world and has been running the whole world to this day and supplying us with what we need.

Let us, being children of God, become people of faith

who are like the Father God and diligent in all things.

(This is the sample conclusion provided by CTM. Please feel free to change the conclusion to best suit the listeners of your sermon.)