As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. 14 If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. 15 Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
Okay, this one is personal. I have grown weary, physically. We are the Warming Center for Middle Township and almost every night in January, we have hosted guests overnight in the church. It is good to be obedient to the Lord in this way but it is exhausting. Fortunately, this is not what verse 13 is talking about. I am sure Paul was weary from working as a tentmaker and an Apostle. Growing weary in this case means “do not get sick of doing good.”, especially if results are slow in coming. As for the verses on church discipline, it is also good to obey the Lord. Paul made sure in verse 15 to make sure there’s still love for their brother all the while.
These two lessons are good for us to learn today as we seek to make disciples in a time when opportunities seem fewer and the road seems more and more uphill. It would be easy to say, “I’m sick of doing good! It doesn’t do any good!” That is where we are wrong and it is where the Lord carries us through. As for our brother, there is such a thing as tough love but we must never forget that the second word is love. The first word, tough, comes naturally. We would do well to continue to do the good work while gently encouraging our brothers to do the same…
We’ll never get tired of that!
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church