1 Thessalonians 4:9–12 (ESV)
A Life Pleasing to God (Part 2)
9 Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers,
to do this more and more, 11 and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.
As a pastor, it hurts me to see brotherly love abused in Christians. I often hear people talking negatively about other people in the church or neighbors... sometimes even their own family members. On the other hand, the Thessalonians had
brotherly love for one another. Let me ask you some probing questions. Do you ever talk negatively about other fellow Christians? Are there members in your church that can make your blood boil? Is there someone who can get under
your fingernails, or perhaps... is there anyone you like to irritate? I must admit that when I look into the mirror at myself, I realize that maybe I have some rough edges that I need to work on and smooth out. Is Paul speaking about you when he
says “Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.” Well... I must say... I am a work in progress. This means that the Holy Spirit will
keep on working on me and shaping me according to God’s will.
I pray: O Lord, I look into the mirror and realize I fall short. I repent and want to do better. Let the Holy Spirit work
on me and continue to shape me. Help me to love others as you have taught me too. Amen.