‘The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.’’ 2 Thessalonians 3:10
Compassion without accountability is just indulgence. The Bible teaches that we have a responsibility to feed those who are truly hungry and can’t provide for themselves. But let’s face it, there are some folks who would rather go hungry than go to work. Solomon writes, ‘Laziness casts one into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger’ (Proverbs 19:15). Centuries later the apostle Paul was even more explicit: ‘For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”’ Listen to what Solomon says about the sluggard: ‘The lazy man does not roast what he took in hunting’ (Proverbs 12:27). ‘A lazy man buries his hand in the bowl, and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again’ (Proverbs 19:24 ). Talk about laziness! He wants his bread buttered, but he wants someone else to butter it for him. If he kills a deer while he is hunting, he won’t even clean the meat and cook it; he wants someone else to cook it for him and serve it to him. What’s the Bible talking about here? It’s talking about the person who never starts a job; and if you give them one, they either won’t finish it or they will do it only halfway. Then Solomon wraps it all up in one final zinger. ‘The desire of the lazy man kills him, for his hands refuse to labour’ (Proverbs 21:25). There are no two ways about it; if you want God’s blessing on your life, you have to be willing to work!
