Rick Renner's "Sparkling Gems From The Greek - Volume 2" is very good for today!
Flattering Words
For neither at any time used we
flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloak of covetousness; God is witness. — 1 Thessalonians 2:5
As Paul shared his priorities and
motives in ministry, he also talked about what didn’t motivate him in
ministry — namely financial gain. In First Thessalonians 2:5, he wrote,
“For neither at any time used we flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloak of
covetousness; God is witness.” In this verse, Paul specifically dealt with the
issue of money in ministry, and he emphatically conveyed that his motives for
ministry were not financial gain from those who followed his ministry. Instead,
the apostle strove to keep his motives for ministry pure.
If Paul hadn’t made this his
first motive — to please God and not man — he would have been vulnerable to
becoming a man-pleaser and using “flattering words” to exact some kind of
selfish gain from the people he ministered to. But Paul’s primary focus was on
pleasing the One who called him and who sent him to the precious people in
Thessalonica.
The same quality should be true
of us. Our motives for serving God should be pure and unadulterated, rooted
solely in a heart desire to please Him through the fruits of our labor as we do
what He asks us to do.
Let’s study verse 5 more closely.
What exactly does it mean for someone to use “flattering words”? This phrase
comes from the Greek word kolakeia, which means to “butter up”
someone by saying things he or she wants to hear. Usually, when someone
“butters up” another person, he is putting himself in a position to take
advantage of that individual. The word kolakeia — “flattering words”
— also means to say things with an insincere motive.
In other words, when you’re
using kolakeia, your words are just a vehicle to get you what you want.
They hold no genuine meaning and are spoken for no other reason than that.
But in these two verses in First
Thessalonians 2, Paul was saying he didn’t do that to the congregation in
Thessalonica. He didn’t butter them up so he could get something out of them.
He didn’t just say good things about them or tell them how wonderful they were
to receive some kind of selfish gain. Paul wasn’t insincere in his dealings
with the believers in the Thessalonian church; instead, he spoke truthfully to
them as he interacted with them and ministered to them.
Now let’s look at the next phrase
Paul used in this passage: “cloak of covetousness.” The word “cloak” is the
Greek word prophasis, which can be translated as a pretense or something
that is phony or not real. The whole idea behind this word prophasis is
that a person will be whatever he needs to be to receive some kind of gain from
others.
Prophasis describes a person
who is constantly changing, not according to his conviction, but according to
how he can gain something from someone else. This is why the Bible calls it a
“cloak.” It is a covering or a pretense — something that
isn’t real.
The Bible calls this cloak a
“cloak of covetousness.” I believe that a better translation would be “a
cloak for the sake of covetousness.” In this verse where Paul wrote, “For
neither at any time used we flattering words…nor a cloak of covetousness,” he
was actually referring to the exploitation of people for gain.
The word “covetousness” in First
Thessalonians 2:5 is translated from the Greek word pleonexia, which is
used in this scripture to describe monetary greed. The word pleonexia carries
a few ideas that tend to build upon each other, as in a progression.
First, it simply means to
have more.
Second, it portrays the concept
of expanding — to have more and more and more.
Third, it carries the idea
of overreaching for more than you need.
Fourth, it depicts control.
In other words, at some point, you aren’t reaching out for the thing you want
more of anymore — now that thing has reached out and grabbed you. Now it has
gained control of you.
This word “covetousness”
describes a man who has money in the heart. He “thinks” money. In fact, he
thinks about money almost all the time. He eats, drinks, and
sleeps money! Money becomes just about all he wants to talk about. When he
goes to bed at night, he’s thinking about money — and when he gets out of bed
in the morning, his first thoughts turn to money. When he talks to people, he
sees currency on their foreheads! He’s constantly looking for more money, and
he sees everything — every encounter, every relationship, and everything he
does — as an opportunity to turn a buck.
It is this attitude of
covetousness that Paul emphatically rejected. His motive for preaching was not
to pretend to be something he wasn’t in order to make financial gain from the
people God had given him to care for and minister to. And neither can it
be our motivation for serving others! Furthermore, people are smart — and
if they sense that you are after their money and not their hearts, it won’t be
long until they will send you on your way!
So make the decision today that
you will always be someone who speaks from an authentic, pure heart and seeks
only to edify the listener and glorify God, never to receive monetary gain or
advantage for yourself. As you make that your constant practice, people will
come to know that they can trust the source! They’ll receive your words as
genuine, and the power of love behind your words will minister to people’s
hearts as God intends!
AMEN! Read this one over and over, allowing Holy Spirit to show you where you need to improve in your walk with Him and in your fellowship with Him! He SHOULD BE the most important person in your life AND the One you are closet to! Here is Hillsong UNITED with "Whole Heart":
Shalom in Him!
