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LABORERS FOR THE LORD. EPHESIANS 4:28. 26 APRIL 2020. #19.
Ephesians 4:28 [New King James Version (NKJV)]
28 Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.
- Cease stealing
- Again, akin to lying, Paul commands us to stop thievery (klepto)
- There are many ways to steal
- Taking someone else’s possession or property
- Outright thievery
- Purloining (borrowing without returning item)
- Stealing one’s reputation (gossip, false accusation, innuendos, speculation, mischaracterization, misquoting…
- Stealing affection that does not belong to you (someone else’s spouse)
- Taking credit for another’s efforts
- We most often steal praise that belongs to God (Moses at the rock, Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom, Herod Agrippa I in Tyre–Acts 12)
- Plagiarism, stealing another’s ideas
- Stealing another’s hope and joy (1 Thessalonians 5:19 quenching the Spirit) through discouragement
- Cheating on your taxes, in business dealings, or on loans
- Taking someone else’s possession or property
- The context of this passage is narrow: stealing possessions and $
- We are to stop cheating and stealing from others
- Honest labor
- God designed man to be productive
- Genesis 2 the first assignment God gave man was to tend the garden (even before he was given a wife)
- 1 Timothy 5:8 man is to take care of his family
- Paul emphasizes 2 aspects of earning a living:
- Labor with your hands = to work with tools God gave you
- Hand is a euphemism for productive labor of any kind (1 Sm. 5:11 the hand of God was heavy against the Philistines; Proverbs 21:1 the heart of the king is in the hand of the Lord; Eccl. 9:10 whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all might unto Lord; Ecclesiastes 11:6 do not withhold your hand from sowing in the morning and evening; Is. 48:13 God laid the foundation of the earth with his hand and with his right hand he stretches out the heavens; Isaiah 64:8 we are the work of the hand of God)
- We are not designed to be sluggards or idle (Proverbs 6)
- Labor with your hands = to work with tools God gave you
- Honorable work
- Every honorable work done in an honorable way (fair and quality) is pleasing to the Lord (laborers, tradesmen, doctors, clerks, teachers…)
- All labor must be done to praise of God
- God designed man to be productive
- Labor to give
- The Bible gives us 6 basic uses for money:
- Malachi 3:9-10 to give to the Lord
- I Timothy 5:8 to provide for one’s family
- Romans 13:1-7 to pay taxes and fees to whom they are due
- Proverbs 13:22 a godly man leaves an inheritance for his children and grandchildren
- Proverbs 3:27-28 (Jm. 2) to give to those in need
- Proverbs 6:6-9 store up for future needs (consider the ant)
- The biblical 6 expenditures must be met before anything else
- By giving to those in need we lend to the Lord (Proverbs 19:17)
- Can’t meet every need
- Often the Lord gives us bounty to share with others
- Not referring to give to those refuse to work and take advantage of others (2 THS. 4:6-15)
- To meet legitimate needs as the Lord leads (Good Samaritan)
- Go from thieving to working to giving (from taker to giver)
- Stewards of Gospel, family, testimony, all we are given
- The Bible gives us 6 basic uses for money: