Page 3 of 6
Subject: Pastor’s Anniversary
Because of his:
I. LABORING
IN THE MINISTRY (1 Thess.5:12a,b,c)
“ …We urge you, brethren, to
(“know” KJV, to “recognize” NKJV, to “appreciate” NASB) those who labor among
you
“…We
urge you brethren.” Now at the first glance, this
verb “urge” seems to suggest
urgency or being pushy.
In
Greek, however, the word is
erotao, and is the most
delicate and
tender expression for prayer or request
with the one asking and the one being asked being
on equal
level. In other words, “we are not making a request of you that we ourselves will not heed.”
So the
word “URGE”…means, 1) To ask of a person, 2)
To ask for something, 3)
To pray as a request
Let me
point out two important concepts here:
A.
The right attitude is critical in showing
appreciation.
The right attitude is Spirit-motivated.
So
the request is to
“recognize.” This does not mean simple face recognition,
but that the people of God are to literally know their pastors well enough to have an intimate appreciation
for them and to respect them because of their “value.”
If
the right attitude is critical in showing appreciation
– then…
B.
The right action is contagious in showing appreciation.
Our actions speak louder than words. Right?
The
request is to the “brethren.” The word is adelphos,
a brother/adelphe, and a sister. The root is delphus,
and means a
womb. Are you ready for this? The
request goes to the brethren – people from the same
womb!
The
use of adelphos – brethren also came to designate a community of love based on the commonality
of believers due to Christ’s work on the cross and in their lives. Love is the bases for the right action. Mark
12:28-31, says…”Love God!”
“We urge,
beseech, ask, or request
of you, brethren, to recognize,
know, or appreciate
those who labor among you.”
This
word labor is in a verb form here, but in the language
it is a present participle. So it lit. Reads, “ recognize
those who are laboring among. The idea is,
working to the point of exhaustion!
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