God Speaks
From: Paul, Silas, and Timothy.
To: The church of Thessalonica—kept safe in God our Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ.
2 May God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you rich blessings and peace-filled hearts and minds.
3 Dear brothers, giving thanks to God for you is not only the right thing to do, but it is our duty to God because of the really wonderful way your faith has grown and because of your growing love for each other. 4 We are happy to tell other churches about your patience and complete faith in God, in spite of all the crushing troubles and hardships you are going through.
5 This is only one example of the fair, just way God does things, for he is using your sufferings to make you ready for his Kingdom, 6 while at the same time he is preparing judgment and punishment for those who are hurting you.
7 And so I would say to you who are suffering, God will give you rest along with us when the Lord Jesus appears suddenly from heaven in flaming fire with his mighty angels, 8 bringing judgment on those who do not wish to know God and who refuse to accept his plan to save them through our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 They will be punished in everlasting hell, forever separated from the Lord, never to see the glory of his power 10 when he comes to receive praise and admiration because of all he has done for his people, his saints. And you will be among those praising him because you have believed what we told you about him.
11 And so we keep on praying for you, that our God will make you the kind of children he wants to have—will make you as good as you wish you could be!—rewarding your faith with his power. 12 Then everyone will be praising the name of the Lord Jesus Christ because of the results they see in you; and your greatest glory will be that you belong to him. The tender mercy of our God and of the Lord Jesus Christ has made all this possible for you.
Source: The Living Bible: BibleGateway.com
We Respond
Reflection: This second letter from Paul, Silas, and Timothy was written to clarify concerns the Thessalonians had regarding Christ’s return. Paul thanked God that the Thessalonian believers were growing in their faith in Christ as well as in their love for one another, especially despite the crushing troubles and hardships they were going through. He even bragged about their patience and faith in God to people in other churches. Paul reassured them that God would stand up against those who were trying to harm them. He described how, on the day Jesus comes back, He will deal harshly with those who refuse to believe and obey Him. At the same time Jesus will comfort and reward those who have faithfully trusted and obeyed what Paul had taught them about Christ. Paul continued to pray for them that God would shape them into the people they needed to be to bring praise and glory to His mighty power at work in them.
Prayer: Dear God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, thank You for filling me and those I hold dear with peace of mind and heart and more blessings than we can recount or imagine. Please help my fellow believers and me to grow in our faith in Christ as well as in our love for one another especially during difficult circumstances. May those who know us be able to brag about the faith and patience You have given us for Your glory, Lord. Thank You, Lord Jesus, that when You return, You will stand up against those who are trying to harm Your faithful followers. You will deal harshly with those who refuse to believe and obey You. At the same time, Jesus, You will comfort and reward those who have faithfully trusted and obeyed what they have been taught about You. I will continue to pray for my fellow believers and myself that we will cooperate as You shape us into the people we need to be to bring praise and glory to Your mighty power at work in us. AMEN
Action: (Ask the Holy Spirit, which one of these He wants you to work on or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will pray daily for God to fill those I hold dear with peace of mind and heart and more blessings than they can imagine or realize.
- I will take time to actually picture in my mind how God, the Holy Spirit is helping them to grow in their faith in Christ as well as in their love for one another especially during difficult circumstances.
- I will “brag” to others how God has blessed me with patient endurance, especially during difficult times in my life.
- I will call, email, text, Zoom, or write to a fellow believer who is going through hard times to encourage them and remind them that Jesus will deal appropriately with their tormentor when He returns.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.