Mind Your Own Business

1 Thessalonians 4:10b-12 – Mind Your Own Business

It’s never enough for Paul. He is never satisfied. “You love each other a great deal,” he says, “but you need to love each other more!” Gee, thanks, Paul. But think about it for a minute. Isn’t that the way of true love? Its nature is to grow like all living things. When we talk about the people we love, don’t we always say that we love them more today than we did when we first met? So in essence, Paul is simply encouraging the natural progression of love. However, as Christians, too many of us tend to forget and allow things to stop that progression. We need those reminders from time to time, so it is imperative that you listen to Paul’s exhortation. Love more.

But love isn’t all there is. Paul says that we should aspire to live a quiet life and to mind our own business. How can we do that and still be the salt and light that we are called to be? Christianity is all about getting involved in people’s lives, right? Yes it is, but what Paul is saying is simply this: “Don’t be an agitator!” Some people seem to have the spiritual gift of stirring things up. Let me issue a disclaimer here – this is not a true spiritual gift. Okay, it is a spiritual gift – just not from the Holy Spirit! You’ve met people like this before. They can walk into a quiet room where everything is running smoothly, and in a matter of minutes, they can have everyone stirred up. Our goal as Christians is to live at peace with all men as much as possible. Having said that, there are times when we need to get in other people’s business. Times we need to take a stand! There are times when we need to stir things up, but we should choose our battles wisely. Actually, we should follow Scripture and only stand against those things that God stands against.

So Paul says that we should mind our own business and get along with those outside the church. That doesn’t mean that we condone sinful behavior, but it does mean that we should love people enough to draw them into the church and teach them what it means to be a follower of Christ.