"don't drink, curse or chew or go with girls who do."

This was a saying that I used to hear, back in the day. It was usually said as a joke - but only partially. In our day and age we do tend to have certain sins that are viewed as the "big ones." And as long as we don't dabble in those areas we tend to feel safe and righteous. We also tend to turn our noses up at those who have become snared by those "big" sins.

My point in bringing this up is this: we tend to give ourselves a pass on certain sins as if they weren't a big deal, as if they also did not put Christ, the just, on the cross.

One of those sins you may have given yourself a pass on is laziness. It seems not to be that big a deal but what does God think of it? Does He mention it all in His word? Does He give us a pass on this as well? Should we feel safe in our righteousness?
(Warning: this may be meddlesome. Feel free to stop reading.)

Consider some verses from just in the book of Proverbs on the subject:

6:6 Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!
6:9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?
10:26 As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so is a sluggard to those who send him.
13:4 The sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied.
15:19 The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns, but the path of the upright is a highway.
20:4 A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing.
21:25 The sluggard's craving will be the death of him, because his hands refuse to work.
22:13 The sluggard says, "There is a lion outside!" or, "I will be murdered in the streets!"
24:30 I went past the field of the sluggard, past the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment;
26:14 As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed.
26:15 The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.
26:16 The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who answer discreetly.

>>> Clearly, in God's eyes, laziness is a big deal; a sin to be repented of, a scourge to remove from among us, a disease to be eradicated. So...

What is the Biblical antidote? What is God's cure to the disease?

1. A Biblical perspective
2. Good old fashioned discipline

>Get your mind right and get your feet moving.
>Set your mind on the things above and on the task to be completed
Col 3, Phil 3, 1Pet 1:13, Prov 3:5-7
>Fight against the natural instincts & wage war with your members & master them
Rom 6:12-23 & 1Cor 9:24-10:13

I feel safe in saying that the Christian laborer ought to be the hardest working individual on the job. And this applies to all jobs we are given, be that household chores, working at the factory, working on your jump shot in practice, working on your notes in band, working on your homework - Christians ought to be known not only for their love but for their hustle!
Why?

Ecclesiastes 9:10
Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.
>>> labor hard now my friend, when this life is over there is no more chance for glory. Faith will now be sight. "rage, rage against the dying of the light!"

Colossians 3:23
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men,
>>> it doesn’t matter what anyone else says, you’re a servant of Christ

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
>>> we labor to adorn our God and by working hard we magnify Him

1 Corinthians 10:31
So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
>>> this gives us motivation for the most mundane of tasks in life. every part of life has potential to glorify Christ, capture these moments

Exodus 20:9-10
Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God.
>>> it may seem odd to include this but think about it, we are trained to think of working in a 5 day pattern. We like our weekends, our “me time.” For goodness sake, we are the biggest recreational society of all time! But God says to labor 6 days.

Proverbs 2:3-5
For if you cry for discernment,
Lift your voice for understanding;
If you seek her as silver
And search for her as for hidden treasures;
Then you will discern the fear of the LORD
And discover the knowledge of God.
>>> hard work is a requirement for the task. So…

Cowboy up, Son & show thyself to be a man! 1kings 2:2

Let this be a slap in the face that wakes you out of the stupor you have drifted into. Do not feel safe in your slumber but arise and work diligently for the LORD your God is your audience and your judge!

Not only that but, (2timothy 2:3) I thought you were a soldier anyway?

The disciple of Christ must be self aware. The disciple must test himself.

If your study of the Word is leading you toward a progressive growth in haughtiness and pride rather than a place of meekness and humility – I would caution you greatly about the nature of your “growth.”

One does not draw near to the God of holiness and walk away feeling high on them self nor pompous toward His people.

We can miss this entirely if we fail to connect the two greatest commandments – Mark 12: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." Notice our LORD links these two together without room for separation. Jesus marries the two thoughts.

It is an easy thing to claim a high and mighty love for God who cannot be seen, but the easiest way to see through to the truthfulness of this claim is to view one’s treatment of God’s people. 1 John 4: 20"If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. 21And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.”

I can talk a great deal about my love for God but where is my love for His people? How much and in what way am I a servant to His people? Are my hands extended to the weak and poor? Am I sacrificing any of my liberties for infants in Christ, as well as instructing them in maturity? Am I patient, kind, tender and giving with His people?

Another way to ask the same question (and I find that it cuts to the heart of the matter for me) is this: Are you finding it easier to find fault with your brothers and sisters as you “grow” or do you find it to be more common for you to cover a multitude of sins in sincere love?

Make certain that your growth is real; that your progeny is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control rather than a worldly swelling up in haughtiness and criticism toward the people of God.

It is a difficult thing to ‘walk worthy of the calling’ and far too many have come to the conclusion that it is something that you can just meander through without deep inspection. But while difficult it may be, it is a fully worthwhile assignment; for we find that as we grow we glorify our LORD. And this is life indeed.

According to Solomon (Ecclesiastes) the best things to be had in life are a good day’s work, to enjoy life with the woman you love, to eat, drink and to recognize life as a gift from God.
Now these are things that can be had by all people. Slave and king are on the same playing field. What an amazing and puzzling concept.

This is a very interesting apologetic.

In Ecclesiastes Solomon introduces us to the inherent problems with the usual suspects wherewith we seek satisfaction in life.

• With riches its "mo money mo problems" just as the great philosophical mind of Puff Daddy put it.


• With accomplishments the problem is that they all will turn to dust and the list never ends - there is always something else.


• The problem with accumulation is that it all may go to a fool.


• The problem with pleasures is that they never last - laughter, for example, lasts no longer than dry twigs on a fire.


• The problem with wisdom is that while there are obvious advantages, there are yet great pitfalls when you trust it - the most troublesome is that with the increase of wisdom there is a superseding rise in grief.


• And the problem with people is that they are fleeting, fickle, rarely wise, abusive and clearly oppressive.


• Not only this but, when one takes on the task to examine life in great detail you will discover many problematic paradoxes - as the painful history of philosophy reveals.

In the end, this idea that the best things in life are universal to humanity, is a surprisingly powerful notion. And I would add that it must be a pesky paradox to atheistic, evolutionary constructs.

How is it possible that a non-feeling, random force (if I can call it that for the sake of discussion) like natural selection would even find such a thing as this let alone choose it? That is, for the most fulfilling things in life to be those things that can be felt by the king in his palace no better than the slave in his squalor. Consider what I am saying, the powerful, wealthy man has no greater access to the simple joys of life over the pauper! The brilliant scholar has no more ability to experience the best things in life over the relative fool! Of course the various comparisons and contrasts can continue indefinitely: the skilled tradesman vs the grunt, the elite warrior vs the feeble man, the thrill seeker vs the simple man, and so on.

What a marvelous and puzzling characteristic to be found within the makeup of humanity. What could have built this into the fabric of the universe? Or better put, who could have devised such a plan?

None of this supports an unfeeling, random force nebulously directing the universe. Rather this all points to an infinitely brilliant and yet personally connected creator who cares about the most basic elements of life for those whom He created.