Written ~ 10-17-2024
Read 2 Thessalonians Chapter One
2 Thessalonians 1
In this follow up letter to the Thessalonian church, Paul needs to further clarify the misunderstanding the believers had that Jesus was going to return at any moment – the result of that misunderstanding was an idleness and complacency had set in. These believers, though strong in their faith, just sat around waiting for Christ’s return, they quit their jobs and waited for the end of the world and did nothing else to further the Gospel message. In this letter we will learn some keys events that must occur before Christ’s return and we will get encouragement from Paul not to become lazy, but to continue working hard at getting the message of Jesus out to all people!
2 Thessalonians 1:1-2…
1 “This letter is from Paul, Silas, and Timothy.
We are writing to the church in Thessalonica, to you who belong to God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2 May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.”
As with the last few letters Paul has written, he includes Silas and Timothy in his greeting. He was writing to the Thessalonian believers on their behalf as well as his own. It was Silas and Timothy who were with Paul when the church in Thessalonica was established, so their concern for the believers there would have been just as great as Paul’s. One thing I have noticed in Paul’s greeting in every one of his letters, he includes “May God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.” Why is that an important statement to include in his greeting? Maybe it was to confirm that it was God the Father in Heaven alone who they served and that it was the Lord Jesus Christ alone who gives Salvation. Maybe it was to remind believers that it was through God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ alone that we are given grace and peace. Or maybe it’s simply a personal greeting that was customary in writing letters to fellow believers. Either way it was a greeting that Paul used frequently, and I love that he started his letters with the focus placed primarily on God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Thessalonians 1:3-6…
3 “Dear brothers and sisters, we can’t help but thank God for you, because your faith is flourishing and your love for one another is growing. 4 We proudly tell God’s other churches about your endurance and faithfulness in all the persecutions and hardships you are suffering. 5 And God will use this persecution to show His justice and to make you worthy of His Kingdom, for which you are suffering. 6 In His justice He will pay back those who persecute you.”
The church in Thessalonica was under heavy persecution, it’s no wonder why they anticipated the return of the Lord so anxiously. In Paul’s affirmation, he was pleased that their faith was flourishing and their love for each other was growing, later in this letter though he will need to correct the false teachings that were spreading rapidly and causing great confusion about when Christ was going to return. But in the meantime, Paul was encouraging believers that persecution and hardship would create in them endurance and faithfulness. They needed to be patient as they watched God move in their suffering. It was God who would correct any injustice they were suffering through.
It’s a choice all of us have really…
If you are going through a particularly difficult period in your life where things just don’t make sense, it seems your head hits against a brick wall every time you think the clouds are breaking apart. During these difficult times you can either become lazy and hope Jesus will come back today and rescue you, or you can continue to flourish in your faith, grow in love and allow endurance and faithfulness to take root in your heart.
One verse I want to highlight is verse 1:5, “God will use this persecution to show His justice and to make you worthy of His Kingdom, for which you are suffering.” If we always had life handed to us on a silver platter, we wouldn’t feel the need to lean on the Lord. If we aren’t spreading the Gospel message or we aren’t coming up against any kind of opposition because we lack the boldness to preach the Good News… how does that show the Lord we are worthy of His Kingdom? The Thessalonian believers were under considerable persecution because they loved the Lord and were speaking the name of Jesus and serving Him. John 15:18-19 says, “If the world hates you, remember that it hated Me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.” When we are serving the Lord with all our hearts, and speaking against the world view, we will come under persecution. But we can’t have the attitude of pulling back our boldness and then just wait for the Lord to return. No, we must endure the persecution and be faithful to the Lord in everything we do until He returns.
2 Thessalonians 1:7-10…
7 “And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with His mighty angels, 8 in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from His glorious power. 10 When He comes on that day, He will receive glory from His holy people – praise from all who believe. And this includes you, for you believed what we told you about Him.”
What an awesome promise we have in the return of the Lord! We may go through difficulties while on earth. We may need to suffer through persecution because of the message we speak… but Jesus Christ our Savior will bring judgement “on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus.” When Christ returns, God will provide rest for us and we will spend eternity in Heaven in the Lord’s presence. We will give glory and praise to our Savior, Jesus Christ. Why? Because we believe He is the Son of God, that He died for our sins and rose again to make a way for us to know God and have a relationship with Him.
So, how does that bring us hope? Well, we can rest in the fact that our suffering while on earth is strengthening us, it is making us ready for Christ’s return. That means we must continue to work hard to spread the message of Jesus. Then someday we will come into a permanent rest when we stand before God and are shown worthy of God’s Kingdom.
2 Thessalonians 1:11-12…
11 “So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life worthy of His call. May He give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do. 12 Then the name of our Lord Jesus will be honored because of the way you live, and you will be honored along with Him. This is all made possible because of the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ.”
What a wonderful prayer. Think about what Paul is praying over these believers… think of the power these words hold… What if we were to pray these things over one another?
- Ask God to enable you to live a life worthy of His call
- Ask God to give you power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do
- Pray that the Name of the Lord will be honored by the way you live
- Pray that by the way you live, your life will be honored along with the Lord
- Give thanks to God our Father for the grace He gives to make all this possible
As we wait for the return of our Savior, let’s continue to live in confidence, express with boldness the love of God and speak the Name of Jesus not only through our words, but through our actions.
“May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.”
~AMEN~