As Paul wraps up his second letter to the church in Thessalonica, be begins by asking for their prayers as he continues to do the task given to him of spreading the gospel. Then, in his final exhortations he moves to secondary topic for his writing of this letter. It seems as though some of the people in the church had given up working, and were living off of the work of others.
Paul gets rather harsh in his answer. If someone is unwilling to work, they should not eat! Notice he doesn’t “If someone doesn’t work.” There are those who cannot work, whether it is due to age, illness, or other reasons. Paul encourages the churches to care for widows and orphans (unable to work because of society’s rules). We are to work at our jobs as if working for God and not for man.
May God grant for all His children the health and ability and opportunity to provide for their needs, and may we always have the willingness!