All Commentaries on 1 Thessalonians 3:8 Go To 1 Thessalonians 3
Augustine of Hippo
AD 430
This is why I am admonishing your graces and urging you in the Lord to think lightly, my brothers and sisters, of things present, which you can’t carry with you when you die. Be on your guard against sin, on your guard against injustice of all sorts, on your guard against worldly appetites and greed. It is only then, you see, that our profit from you is undiminished and our reward full of joy in the Lord. I mean, we say what has to be said. We preach what has to be preached and absolve ourselves of our debt to the Lord in the Lord’s sight. We haven’t kept quiet about what we fear, and haven’t kept quiet about what we love. So the sword of the Lord’s vengeance, upon whomever it may fall, cannot blame the sentinel for failing at his post. Still, we don’t want our reward to be assured with all of you being lost, but with all of you being found. The apostle Paul too was sure of his reward, and yet what did he say to the people? “Now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord.”
