And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves.
Believers are to recognize those appointed to labor, oversight and admonition among them and to hold them in deep love, honor and trust because of their work. That respect is shown in kindness, gratitude, unity with fellow workers and heeding godly counsel, while it is broken by suspicion, criticism, evil speaking and pushing private opinions against authority. Such honor must never become idolizing the messenger instead of God, and it belongs to faithful service, especially guarding aged and longtime workers with tender sympathy. The same command requires living in peace together in word and deed, which calls for dying to self, restraining temper, leaving a brother's faults to God and uprooting envy and strife. That peace and unity bring strength and blessing and belong to watching, sober readiness for the day of the Lord, that believers may be sanctified wholly and kept blameless to the end.
Esteeming Leaders for Their Work
The command is to know those who labor among believers and are over them in the Lord and admonish them. These are those appointed to authority and responsibility, including ministers and deacons, and elders appointed to oversee the church, correct and encourage its members, and help preserve harmony and unity. The work and order of the ministry was established by Christ Himself as the great Head of the church, and appointed ministers are workers together with God.
Believers are to esteem such leaders very highly in love for their work's sake, which means to recognize, respect, love, trust, and honor them deeply because of their work. Workers in God's service are also to be united in heart, bound to Christ, and to value one another in love for their work.
This esteem is shown by cultivating kindness and forbearance and love and Christ's character. It means appreciating the burdens borne by fellow workers of God's appointment, showing gratitude with thankfulness and a forgiving spirit when errors are corrected and efforts are encouraged, refusing to catch at straws over failure to agree with all plans or to give deserved credit, refusing to cast imputations upon responsible workers or to allow others to do so, and correcting wrong feelings toward them in order to be harmonized with them. It means receiving the counsel of counselors whom God has raised up, whose lives are given to the work, and acting in harmony with them rather than following independent notions. It makes believers ready to support God's servants when opportunity arises, and helps them recognize selfishness. It requires fearing to sin against God by being unjust to brethren, fearing to offend His children, refusing to wound or bruise His heritage, refusing to handle a brother's reputation in a way that offends God, and showing tender interest for all for whom Christ died because God loves them as He loves us and takes as much pleasure in them as in us.
It especially applies to those who have borne the burdens of God's work, whose faithful service is precious in God's sight even when people do not appreciate it, since God sees the motives behind their actions and gives credit justly. Aged ministers and longtime workers and old hands who have worked hard all their lives and helped with their means and with their physical strength and mental powers must be guarded, respected, and esteemed very highly in love for their work's sake and treated with love and tender sympathy. They are not to have troubled hearts, not to be opposed, and not to be made to apologize for having a little home after years of labor or for living in poor conditions until they can obtain means for better. This included one whose labors especially blessed Minnesota, whose conscientious, God-fearing character called for his brethren's love and tender sympathy though age and feebleness left him vulnerable to being imposed upon.
What breaks the command is resisting leadership, rejecting authority, and disrupting the church by insisting on publicly promoting personal views and private opinions. It is broken by harboring suspicion, mistrust, and strife that bring depression and division. It is broken by criticizing ministers and speaking lightly of them, and by following independent notions that sow discord instead of receiving counsel and acting in harmony. It is broken by evil speaking, accusing, faultfinding, and misrepresenting brethren when one's own ideas are not treated as most important, by catching at straws over failure to agree with all plans or to give deserved credit, and by casting imputations upon responsible workers or allowing others to do so.
The respect taught must not become idolizing a minister or looking to him more than to God. Ministers are God's servants bearing the message of mercy to sinners, and God as giver of the message should receive the glory and the heart's affection while Christ remains central and is not eclipsed by the one who serves Him. Such high esteem in love for work is also conditional on faithfulness: one might have received it among God's people in Maine and become a strong and influential leader if he had acted on the light given him and become ready to bear responsibility, but backwardness, indecision, and failure to act kept him from that role.
Being at Peace Together
The command is to be at peace among yourselves in words and actions. That peace is God's commanded word for people living and working together, and they must possess it.
Keeping this peace requires each one to humble self before God, to overcome self, to let self die, and to leave a brother's faults alone to God in love and united fellowship. It means restraining an impetuous temper and keeping silent rather than speaking in anger, and refusing bickering and contention, especially with fellow believers who seek peace, love, and harmony. It means resisting wrongdoing and guarding against wrong words and actions, and striving for unity and agreement by cultivating love, uprooting suspicion, envy, jealousy, and evil speech, and working together.
Such harmony brings God's blessing, as at Solomon's temple, and gives strength and allows God to work among believers. It supports a testimony that can reach others as members of God's people strive for unity and shared purpose. It forms character for immortal life. It belongs to those who stand in liberty, lift up their heads, and rejoice in God and praise Him freely because He has redeemed them by His most precious blood and will soon save them with an everlasting salvation.
The call to peace is part of preparation for the day of the Lord, belonging with watching and soberness as children of light and of the day, with faith and love and hope of salvation, and with comforting and edifying one another. The whole chapter should be read and heeded and carried into practice, receiving more attention and being read in every church before as well as during seasons of prayer. So practiced it brings a great change in lives now inspired by the spirit that works in the children of disobedience. As each humbles self and loves one another in united fellowship, the God of peace may sanctify them wholly and preserve them blameless unto Christ's appearing and kingdom.
Believers are to recognize those appointed to labor, oversight and admonition among them and to hold them in deep love, honor and trust because of their work. That respect is shown in kindness, gratitude, unity with fellow workers and heeding godly counsel, while it is broken by suspicion, criticism, evil speaking and pushing private opinions against authority. Such honor must never become idolizing the messenger instead of God, and it belongs to faithful service, especially guarding aged and longtime workers with tender sympathy. The same command requires living in peace together in word and deed, which calls for dying to self, restraining temper, leaving a brother's faults to God and uprooting envy and strife. That peace and unity bring strength and blessing and belong to watching, sober readiness for the day of the Lord, that believers may be sanctified wholly and kept blameless to the end.
Esteeming Leaders for Their Work
The command is to know those who labor among believers and are over them in the Lord and admonish them. These are those appointed to authority and responsibility, including ministers and deacons, and elders appointed to oversee the church, correct and encourage its members, and help preserve harmony and unity. The work and order of the ministry was established by Christ Himself as the great Head of the church, and appointed ministers are workers together with God.
Believers are to esteem such leaders very highly in love for their work's sake, which means to recognize, respect, love, trust, and honor them deeply because of their work. Workers in God's service are also to be united in heart, bound to Christ, and to value one another in love for their work.
This esteem is shown by cultivating kindness and forbearance and love and Christ's character. It means appreciating the burdens borne by fellow workers of God's appointment, showing gratitude with thankfulness and a forgiving spirit when errors are corrected and efforts are encouraged, refusing to catch at straws over failure to agree with all plans or to give deserved credit, refusing to cast imputations upon responsible workers or to allow others to do so, and correcting wrong feelings toward them in order to be harmonized with them. It means receiving the counsel of counselors whom God has raised up, whose lives are given to the work, and acting in harmony with them rather than following independent notions. It makes believers ready to support God's servants when opportunity arises, and helps them recognize selfishness. It requires fearing to sin against God by being unjust to brethren, fearing to offend His children, refusing to wound or bruise His heritage, refusing to handle a brother's reputation in a way that offends God, and showing tender interest for all for whom Christ died because God loves them as He loves us and takes as much pleasure in them as in us.
It especially applies to those who have borne the burdens of God's work, whose faithful service is precious in God's sight even when people do not appreciate it, since God sees the motives behind their actions and gives credit justly. Aged ministers and longtime workers and old hands who have worked hard all their lives and helped with their means and with their physical strength and mental powers must be guarded, respected, and esteemed very highly in love for their work's sake and treated with love and tender sympathy. They are not to have troubled hearts, not to be opposed, and not to be made to apologize for having a little home after years of labor or for living in poor conditions until they can obtain means for better. This included one whose labors especially blessed Minnesota, whose conscientious, God-fearing character called for his brethren's love and tender sympathy though age and feebleness left him vulnerable to being imposed upon.
What breaks the command is resisting leadership, rejecting authority, and disrupting the church by insisting on publicly promoting personal views and private opinions. It is broken by harboring suspicion, mistrust, and strife that bring depression and division. It is broken by criticizing ministers and speaking lightly of them, and by following independent notions that sow discord instead of receiving counsel and acting in harmony. It is broken by evil speaking, accusing, faultfinding, and misrepresenting brethren when one's own ideas are not treated as most important, by catching at straws over failure to agree with all plans or to give deserved credit, and by casting imputations upon responsible workers or allowing others to do so.
The respect taught must not become idolizing a minister or looking to him more than to God. Ministers are God's servants bearing the message of mercy to sinners, and God as giver of the message should receive the glory and the heart's affection while Christ remains central and is not eclipsed by the one who serves Him. Such high esteem in love for work is also conditional on faithfulness: one might have received it among God's people in Maine and become a strong and influential leader if he had acted on the light given him and become ready to bear responsibility, but backwardness, indecision, and failure to act kept him from that role.
Being at Peace Together
The command is to be at peace among yourselves in words and actions. That peace is God's commanded word for people living and working together, and they must possess it.
Keeping this peace requires each one to humble self before God, to overcome self, to let self die, and to leave a brother's faults alone to God in love and united fellowship. It means restraining an impetuous temper and keeping silent rather than speaking in anger, and refusing bickering and contention, especially with fellow believers who seek peace, love, and harmony. It means resisting wrongdoing and guarding against wrong words and actions, and striving for unity and agreement by cultivating love, uprooting suspicion, envy, jealousy, and evil speech, and working together.
Such harmony brings God's blessing, as at Solomon's temple, and gives strength and allows God to work among believers. It supports a testimony that can reach others as members of God's people strive for unity and shared purpose. It forms character for immortal life. It belongs to those who stand in liberty, lift up their heads, and rejoice in God and praise Him freely because He has redeemed them by His most precious blood and will soon save them with an everlasting salvation.
The call to peace is part of preparation for the day of the Lord, belonging with watching and soberness as children of light and of the day, with faith and love and hope of salvation, and with comforting and edifying one another. The whole chapter should be read and heeded and carried into practice, receiving more attention and being read in every church before as well as during seasons of prayer. So practiced it brings a great change in lives now inspired by the spirit that works in the children of disobedience. As each humbles self and loves one another in united fellowship, the God of peace may sanctify them wholly and preserve them blameless unto Christ's appearing and kingdom.