As Paul the
apostle continued to care for the Thessalonians, he wrote concerning
their sanctification, abstaining from fornication, how to possess
their “vessels in honor”, and not having the “lust of
concupiscence even as the Gentiles which know not God”. In
chapter four and verse six of his letter, Paul goes on to tell them
not to “defraud” their “brother in any matter”
where we read:
because
that the Lord is
the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and
testified.
The
verse begins, “That no man
go beyond and defraud his brother in any
matter:”
Paul began with the phrase, “That no
man go beyond”
which means “step over, transgress, do wrong, sin, trespass against
in business” “and defraud” or
“have more, a greater part or share, be superior, excel, surpass
and take advantage over”“his
brother”
which refers to “a brother, whether born of the same two parents or
only of the same father or mother or a fellow believer, united to
another by the bond of affection who are brethren in Christ” “in
any matter”
or “that which has been done, a deed, an accomplished fact –
specifically business or a commercial transaction”. Paul warned the
Thessalonians concerning taking advantage of one another in “any”
transactions or dealings.
The verse goes on to
say, “because that the Lord is
the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and
testified.”
Paul went on to add, “because”
which means “on this account, inasmuch as, for” “that
the Lord”
which refers to “he to whom a person or thing belongs, about which
he has power of deciding; master” “is
the avenger”
or “punisher who exacts a penalty from one” “of
all such”
which refers to “each, every, any, all, the whole, everyone of
these” “as we also have forewarned”
which is the Greek phrase “prolegō
kai prolegō”and
means
“to say in what precedes, to say above, beforehand and before the
event” “you”
which refers to the Thessalonians “and
testified”
which means “earnestly and religiously charge, solemnly affirm and
give testimony to confirm and cause to believe”. Paul warned that
should the Thessalonians “defraud”
one another, it would be the “Lord”
who would “punish” and distribute “penalty” to them.
When
we think about Paul's words, we should be reminded to never take
advantage of others and particularly those who belong to Jesus
Christ. Too often people seek to advantage themselves on the backs of
those whom they know, and these relationships are used only for self
promotion. Let us be aware! The Lord Jesus is watching us, and He it
is who will “avenge”
anyone who disobeys His instruction. Paul the apostle saw this as
such an important principle that not only did he warn the
Thessalonians in this verse, but he previously “testified”
concerning it before. May the Lord Jesus help us to know when we seek
to “go beyond” and
“defraud” others,
and may we repent before Him if we have done this in our past.
Next
time Paul tells the Thessalonians how God has called us “unto
holiness”, so read ahead, and
we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
No comments:
Post a Comment