
Do not let idleness take root!
Have you ever heard the saying “Idle hands are the tools of the devil”? God created each one of us with various gifts and talents to be used for His glory, our good, and the good of others. It is His desire to use what we have been endowed with in a manner that is pleasing in His eyes. To have an attitude which produces a reaction of idleness is not what the Lord would have you or I do.
Being a productive and active person in this world, and even more so in the Kingdom of God, falls very much in line with the message God gave the Apostle Paul to share with the Thessalonians and us. “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. 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. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living. As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good.” 2 Thessalonians 2:6-13
Our Lord Jesus was the perfect model of a man who was not idle. His ministry consisted of preaching, teaching, healing, helping, feeding, and saving. When Jesus took time out to rest and pray, He was setting an example for His disciples to follow. While dying on the cross for you, me, and all mankind He was still at work praying for those who were persecuting Him, ministering to the thief on the cross, and He was looking out for the well-being of His mother. His idleness did not even end at the grave, as He descended into hell to proclaim victory over death and the devil. Thanks be to God that our Savior was not a man consumed by idleness, but He was one who was committed to working for the glory of the Father and the salvation of our souls.
Idle hands may be the tools of the devil, but productive hands are the tools by which the Lord can use us to be His workers for the building of His Kingdom both on earth and in heaven. Pastor McCarty