Why you should live an ambitiously quiet life

In his first letter to the Church in Thessalonica, the apostle Paul instructs the believer to

make it your ambition to live a quiet life, to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands... 1 Thes 4:11

A pretty strange statement, eh!

Most of us aspire to greatness and that basic precludes quietness. The greater your influence, the more people you will have demanding your time (for good or ill!).

We even see this in Jesus’ life.

The Quiet Life of Jesus

Jesus knew the importance of quiet.

Despite preaching to thousands, he withdrew to the wilderness to be alone with his Father.

And when he was at the height of his popularity, he pushed away many of his followers (John 6:66).

Although many came to him, his ambition was to be faithful to God.

The Quiet Life During Persecution

The church in Thessalonica was undergoing persecution.

Not the “someone rolled their eyes at me when I said Jesus rose from the dead” persecution; real beat you up, put you in prison, want you dead kind of persecution.

In these situations, there are two typical responses:

• quiet down, go along with the crowd, and maybe even recant our faith.
• protest, riot, start a fight.

Neither is what Paul is talking about. He praises them for not giving in or compromising and then tells them to aspire to a quiet life. Aspire is interesting because we can aim for that outcome but we can’t control others’ responses.

But the reason Paul tells them is really interesting.

so that you may walk properly before outsiders.

In the current culture war age the temptation is to either comprise or “own the libs”, Paul presents another option. Remaining truthful and loving while being persecuted.

The Value of Manual Work

This idea was counter-cultural (and is today).

Roman culture saw manual work as inferior and degrading. It wasn't something noble or to aspire to, but something to escape. Today, knowledge work, leadership, and other intellectual pursuits are rewarded and encouraged.

But Paul encourages it.

Now, we can point to some natural reasons why; we spend all day with screens, our bodies can become stagnant, we can think better when we move our bodies, and so on. At that time, however, it may have simply been because there were people not working but relying on others. (Address in the second letter and hinted at in 1 Thes 5:14).

Although Paul says it's okay for those who preach the Gospel to receive financial support, he also worked as a tentmaker (or leather worker) so he wasn't a burden on others (1 Cor 9:13-15). I suspect that is what he is getting at, especially in a new church community where speculation about the second coming may have promoted idleness.

What does that mean for us?

I'm not saying we should abandon our knowledge worker jobs (but we should certainly ask God if that's what he wants us to do). We should, certainly, work in ways where we contribute to society and are not a burden on others (and make sure we move our bodies plenty).

Staying stagnant is bad for the mind, the body and the spirit.

Minding Your Own Affairs

We may not have the same persecution as the believers in Thessalonica but we face the same temptations.

Paul’s instruction to aspire to live a quiet life is as true and controversial as today.