Good morning. You've been handed out little study guides there. Feel free to jot down any references or points that may feel relevant to our message this morning. We once again resume our studies on the second book of Thessalonians with chapter 3 verses 1 to 18 as our main text. So if you still have your Bibles handy, would you all please turn with me to 2 Thessalonians chapter 3, verses 1 to 18, reading at verse 1. Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord may have free course and be glorified, even as it is with you. that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men, for all men have not faith. But the Lord is faithful, who shall establish you and keep you from evil. We have confidence in the Lord touching you that ye both do and will do the things which we command you. And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patient waiting for Christ. Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us. For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us, for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you, neither did we eat any man's bread for naught, but wrought with labor and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you. Not because we have not power, but to make ourselves an example unto you to follow us. For even when we were with you, this commanded you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat. For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busybodies. Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ that with quietness they work and eat their own bread. But ye, brethren, be not weary in well-doing. And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, Note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother. Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always, by all means. The Lord be with you all. The salutation of Paul with mine own hand, which is the token in every epistle, so I write. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. And may God the Holy Spirit grant us wisdom to know and understand the scriptures before us. But first let's go to the Lord in prayer. Father in heaven, we are so thankful to have been here this morning around the Lord's table to remember our blessed Savior. And this morning as we open thy word, we pray that the Spirit of God might be pleased to illuminate our understanding of the text before us and the message that is about to be delivered, so that we might be conformed more and more to the image of our blessed Savior. For it is in his name that we do ask of thee these things. In our last message we tackled chapter 2 of this book and looked at the topic of the man of sin. This week we will conclude this wonderful epistle with the third and final chapter. We can divide the first six verses into a separate theme of exhortation. of these young believers. And so in verses 1 and 2, our key word here is prayer. A life of prayer is the identifying trait of a mature Christian. All of us can and need to pray regularly and often. Paul in particular wishes to direct their prayers towards his ministry and towards ministers in general. We all need to pray for and uphold in prayer those who preach the gospel, whether in our own assemblies or whether they are out in the foreign fields ministering to others. For the minister of the gospel is always Satan's first target and one whom he unrelentlessly attacks. It is by far the most dangerous position in which to serve. Destroy the preacher or the teacher and the rest will quickly crumble. Paul knew that he needed prayer desperately. Paul not only prayed for himself and his flock constantly, but he also urged the saints to pray for him and his co-workers. The Bible teaches that the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much, James 5.16. And we often pray, but I fear it is not a fervent prayer. Now King David knew how to pray fervently as we see in all of his supplications to God. In 2 Samuel chapter 22 verse 7, We read that David in his times of need cried out to the Lord. That is, he wept before the Lord in prayer. Quote, in my distress I called upon the Lord and cried to my God and he did hear my voice and out of his temple and my cry did enter into his ears. Or as in 2 Samuel 12, verse 22, after David had that adulterous affair with Bathsheba, David says, while the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, who can tell whether God will be gracious to me that the child may live? Do we pray like that? Well, we should. Those who do faithfully pray in such manner not only draw closer to God, but also closer to the ones they pray for. And in the end, they will be rewarded greatly by Christ himself. Then we come to verses three and four, and we see the preservation of God. We need to always remember that only God can preserve us from evil and from the dangers of life. And if we are in tune with God's will, then we will be spared many hardships in this life. Simply knowing and obeying his word will keep us from making disastrous decisions in life. Psalm 119.11 tells us, Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee. Sin is what causes us pain, regret, grief, suffering, and great turmoil. Sin is Satan's way of destroying our peace of mind and eventually unrepented sin will lead to the destruction of our very own souls. In verse 6, Paul admonishes these young believers to withdraw themselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us. It is very easy to be led astray by one's friends, especially if they are unsaved. Even those who profess to be Christians can often, whether intentionally or unintentionally, mislead other Christians. That is why we all need to know the Word of God intimately. Paul says, withdraw yourselves from such for your own protection. In verse five, Paul encourages these young believers to consider the love of God. Though he prays that the Lord direct their hearts into the love of God, they themselves also need to meditate on the love of God as well. And that love will of course always lead them to Calvary. In that same verse, verse 5, Paul also prays that God will direct them into the patient waiting for Christ. That through all of their trials and testings, they patiently wait for the rapture of the saints. Patience is a very badly needed virtue. In James 5, verses 7 to 8, we read the same admonition. Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman, or farmer, waited for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be also patient, establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Christ too is patiently waiting on the right hand of God for the last soul to be saved to complete the church before he raptures her. When it is time, he will rise and come for his church. And so we too need to patiently wait for him while resting in his love. Now we come to another division of thought or theme, and we can again include verse 6 here as well. And this second division is verses 6 to 15. And verses 6 to 15 is a warning against inappropriate conduct or behavior. And the first of these we have already discussed in verse 6, that of withdrawing from those who profess to be Christian, but do not walk the talk. Withdraw from them, or they will drag you down with them. But here in the other verses, verses 7 to 15, Paul is especially concerned with idleness or slothfulness, in other words, laziness. He begins this portion in verse 7, by reminding them how he and his co-laborers, Silas and Timothy, Barnabas, et cetera, conducted themselves. They were a godly example to all. They did not behave disorderly. Verse 7, they did not sponge off of anyone's labors. That is, they were not freeloaders. But even though, as apostles of God, they were entitled to live off the gospel, they did not. Instead, they worked for their bread and earned their way, even providing for those without. They did this so that no one could accuse them of being in it for the money, so to speak. Verse 8. Paul, when he was with them the last time, commanded them to work for a living. If any would not work, neither should he eat. Now, notice what he said very carefully. would not work. He did not say who could not work. There are times when one cannot work due to illness, injury, loss of life, etc. But not wanting to work when one can work is sin. Idleness is a sin. Slothfulness is condemned because it often leads to mischief and other crimes as well as self-destruction. Proverbs 21, 25 tells us, the desire of the slothful killeth him, for his hands refuse to work. Even today our streets are filled with young able-bodied men and women who have turned to crime, drugs, and all sorts of evil acts. And often the solution is simply to get them off the streets and working or learning skills with which they can provide for themselves. But unfortunately, it is an endless cycle. Bad parenting or lack of parenting often breeds the same thing in the offspring. Without honest labor, a household cannot stand. Without productive labor, society disintegrates. Work gives one a sense of purpose and direction in life. After all, we were created to work. Work is in our DNA. And try as hard as we may, A life of total leisure always goes sideways sooner or later. Work builds one up, not only materially, but also physically and spiritually. An unoccupied servant is easily manipulated by Satan to do evil and to be distracted from the noble goals in life. In verse 11, we see that Paul had been informed that there were some among the Thessalonians that were not working at all, walking disorderly and becoming busybodies. And so Paul speaks to them directly to get their act together and to work. Work with quietness and eat your own bread. Don't expect your Christian brethren to feed you when you can work for yourself. To the others, Paul says, be not weary in well-doing. Verse 13. Continue serving the Lord in every and any way you can. That is why you were saved, to serve. I'm going to make an aside here. Often when we get saved, we think that we need to drop our jobs, go to the mission fields or become a pastor or teacher and serve in the Christian church that way. Nothing could be farther from the truth. You remember Joseph, how God used his gift and saved Israel. saved Egypt from the famine. And Joseph did not serve in the Christian environment or in the religious environment. He served in the secular world. And so we too, whether we are doctors, lawyers, accountants, teachers, laborers, office workers, we serve God. And if we use our skills, our talents, to His honor and to His glory, then we are in His will. As for those who are Christians, or say they are Christians, but obey not Paul's admonition, note that man or woman, and don't associate with them, so that they may become ashamed and perhaps repent, and might then seek to be more obedient and have a closer walk with the Lord. Continue to admonish him as a brother, but don't count him as an enemy. Show him the same kind of grace that God showed us. Paul then concludes this short epistle with a benediction and his usual salutation in verses 16 to 18. Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all. The salutation of Paul with mine own hand which is the token in every epistle, so I write. And what was that token or sign that showed them that these letters were really from Paul? It was this, verse 18, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, amen. And sometimes it was shortened to Grace be with you. Amen. He would open and close his letters with grace to you, thus assuring the saints that it was he who wrote the epistle. And so we come to the end of our studies on the first and second books of the Thessalonians. But as always, before I step down from this platform, I must once again ask this question. Are you in Christ this morning? You are either in Christ or you are not. You are either saved, born again, converted, or you are not. You are either headed for heaven or you are not. There is no middle ground. There are no second chances after death. And if you are not certain where you stand this morning, then I plead with you, turn to Christ and ask Him to forgive you and all your sins and to give you that assurance that you may be looking for. Believe. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Acts 16 31. Why not take him at his word? Let's pray. Father, we thank thee so much for the word of God that we have in our very hands this morning. We are delighted that thou has kept thy promise from the day that thou has written this book to the day that we have opened it and are reading it, that it is divinely preserved even today. Part us now with thy blessing, we pray, and if the Lord be not come, may it please thee once again to bring us together next Lord's Day around his table, for we do always ask it in his name and for his glory. Amen.