Admonish Encourage Help and BE Patient! - 1 Thess 5:14

And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. (1 Thess 5:14)

I am cruel hearted. I often see people "suffering" and I don't care. I see people  begging and think that they should "get over" their problems and just become "normal". I am like my dad in this way. He was a strong man. His stature didn't show how strong he was. He was about my height, he was a bit overweight, he didn't have a muscular structure, but he was strong. He could walk 15 miles a day and not feel tired. He didn't know how to swim but he adored walking. I remember I was with him and he said, "Let's go for a walk!" I quickly put on my tennis shoes and was excited to go with him for a short jaunt. Dad's short jauant was a good 5 mile hike! I nearly died. He was in his mid-70s and I was in my mid-30s. Wow! That was a lesson. 

My dad, in some ways, had little sympathy for sick people. He once said to me, "I don't know why these people sit around all day in a wheelchair! Why don't they get up and do a little exercise! I think that it would do them good." It wasn't until sickness took over my dad's body that he realized that not all people have the strength do do things we take for granted. 

Paul, in this verse, is talking to people like me, and maybe you. People who don't have much patients with seemingly "weak people". Look at how the great Apostle handled his admonition.

He urged the the church - this word carries the idea of: begging, beseeching, entreating, imploring. He could have demanded their obedience to the Word of God but he pleaded with them. This, however, wasn't a suggestion. It was the desired outcome. Paul wanted the people to understand that the following behavior was to be their continuing way of life. They were to, 

• Admonish the idle - There were some loafers at the church and they had stopped working and were waiting for Christ's return. In a later letter (2 Thess 3:10) Paul would say to them one of our favorite phrases, "If you don't work you don't eat!" The word admonish indicates that the “unruly,” those out of line, must be warned and taught to get back in line.
• Encourage the faint - the word encourage means to put in mind: hence, admonish, warn, rebuke. Faint means faint-hearted, feeble-minded. Paul was probably thinking about the people who had expressed concern about their dead loved ones. When a member of the flock suffers we should be ready to act and not just set at home and "pray" for the weak ones. It is as we all pass through troubles, and see our brothers helping in these hard times, that we become stronger in the faith. 
• Help the weak - Do you know any weak people? Of course you do. Just go look in the mirror. We are all weak from time to time. Here the idea is to be there when someone needs you or to have someone to cry with. 
• Be patient with everyone - now that is a tall order! Everyone? Yes everyone. How often is God patient with you? Right, everyday. So, return the favor. Be willing to wait with the slow to understand. 

Dr Charles Stanley summarizes the passage like this: "Grace ministers to different people in different ways, depending upon what they most need at the time. Some need stern warnings; others need comfort; some need help. But everyone needs patience, for we all fall short in many ways" (Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible Notes).

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