This week we start the fourth oldest book in the New Testament as recorded in its publishing. We began with James on our year-long journey chronological study of the New Testament. Hence the reason we are calling this message series Chronos. It's a word that means “time.” We will be journeying through time back to the start of the early church. For the next month we will continue walking through the second book written to those in Thessalonica.
Today, we open to the first chapter of this amazing letter to the church plant in one of the main travel junctions in all the Roman empire. A city of around 300,000 with some upper class but a great deal more working class people. The city was made up of Romans, Greeks and a powerful group of Greek speaking Jews.
The leadership collective (paul, silas and timothy) were sending this letter to the new church plant in Greece as encouragement and to correct some issues that had arisen. Although Paul had only spent three to four weeks at this house church, he was impressed with the willingness of Thessalonians to live the mission when others would not.
As I read this letter a couple of times this week, I began to envision it being sent to us at The Center from a group of founding members who helped get us started. They had heard we were struggling due to some government or public persecution and wanted to encourage us.
Let’s begin this week reading the entire first chapter as we stand like the early Christians would have for the reading letter like the earliest Christians would have.
Paul, Silas and Timothy,
To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. 4 Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.
5 All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might 10 on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.
11 With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. 12 We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
What a powerful example of “how to” to encourage each other as we wrestle with being at odds with the world around us due to our belief in the one true God. To overcome the world, we must be willing to praise, trust in the promise and pray. Say it with me - praise, promise, pray.
Warren Weirsbe, Theologian and Preacher, once shared about an experience that happened after teaching on Satan’s ways to defeat Christians. He taught if Satan can put us into a trying situation, one where we suffer deeply, he will. Satan uses this tactic knowing that over time, it can weaken a person’s faith to the point where they might turn away. He referenced the book of Job where in spite of Satan’s tactics Job was able to say, “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
In the same vein, Paul, Silas and Timothy were recognizing that while this new church was suffering there was good taking place. It’s been said before,
“a faith that cannot be tested, cannot be trusted”
and
“Faith, like a muscle, must be exercised to grow stronger.”
By any measurement, the Thessalonians had it rough.
Property was being seized. Workers were stopped from practicing their trades. Those who found a new faith were shunned by their families. Some were insulted, some beaten, and some put to death. They were experiencing suffering of the worst kind. Paul is deeply concerned for these young Christians going through such severe trials all on their own.
But God never wastes the suffering of His followers. Trials work for us, not against us. If we praise God, our trials produce patience and maturity while encouraging others when their time comes to be tested. Did you hear that “when their time comes”?
Suffering for your faith remains a constant. Sometimes it is overt as in public persecution and other times its covert.
For example, a person’s decision not to take a sabbath. God rested on the seventh day. God wants us to rest as a sign of our trust. However, our culture, influenced by the evil one, subtly pressures us to do more. And a little more. And a little more. Each time we give up something life affirming (bible reading, prayer, fasting, meditation, silence), we lose a little of the connection we have with God. Until we find ourselves suffering and in the greatest pain of all: alone without a relationship with God unable even to praise God publicly or privately. Covert is the devil's greatest tool.
When we praise God in and for our trials:
our faith grows,
love for others expands
and perseverance endures until the end.
The second way to overcome the world and be encouraged is to remember the promise and remember every promise has three components.
The Reward - verse 5 - “You will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God for which you are suffering” - God permitted their suffering, not to qualify them for heaven because Faith in Jesus accomplished that. However, it does act as an assurance of their place in God’s heart. Let’s face it, the evil one doesn’t come after those he has already corrupted or the ignorant. He heads for the ones who could upset the rebellion.
The second component of the promise is the repayment. Those who persecute others causing them to suffer will be repaid in time. This is a hard concept when it seems like evil is going unpunished. However, living with an eternal view puts everything in its right perspective. There will be a day of judgment where all unjust is made right.
The story of the two farmers (atheist and a believer) - Final lines: I thought you said it paid to believe in God and be a Christian” said the atheist. The Christian replied, “It does pay but God doesn’t alway pay his people in September.”
The third component of the promise is relief. Relief means “rest, release and not under pressure.” The life you have committed yourself comes with a promise you can be assured of and as such, changes our perspective from it's all about the now and even the years in which our heart continues beating to a time we have difficulty understanding.
The third way to overcome the world and be encouraged is to pray. We must never neglect a present responsibility because of a future hope. Paul, Sala and Timothy are praying for their worthiness, walk and witness.
Christian worthiness is not based on our ability but Jesus actions on behalf. Our worthiness is a gift. Paul is praying they understand this concept. There are many who have gone astray thinking they were worthy, their actions and the results were confirmation of God in their lives. However, this kind of thinking kills our faith slowly. Eventually people flame out or fry out due to their best of intentions. Unfortunately, only a few recover. When we talk about serving those “done” with religion at The Center, this is who we are referring to.
A Christian ‘walk’ defines our only responsibility as followers. We are to regularly ask how best we are to use God’s gift in this life and then obey the answer every day. This sounds simple but it is not easy. To discern the Lord’s will is a regular practice of trial and error that over time becomes more and more clear.
I can remember being on fire for the Lord the first time. I kept asking God what do you want me to do. I kept asking. He didn’t answer. I would do whatever was asked by the lead pastor or other christians I respected. A lot of the activities seemed mundane. I kept asking. I remember saying I wish God would just send me a fax or email telling exactly what he wanted me to do. I can remember singing in church, where you send me I will go and meaning it. And then I got an email to sell my business. Talk about inner turmoil. “How could God ask me?” I said it. He offered the opportunity. I did it. Which leads us to the next part of the trio’s prayer.
A Christian witness is the result of our continued obedience over a long period of time that demonstrates God’s character to a broken and fallen world.
So to recap, Christians are best encouraged in times of trial through praise, promise and prayer.
Wiersbe Commentary: p192-195
