So, I’ve been really slacking on the posts, I know. But I’m changing the format to make it more doable, so I should be able to post more often. I’m not making any promises about daily or anything, but it should be several per week.
As always, please read through the Scripture before you read my notes, as it is much more valuable to be reading.
This chapter has two main points that jump out at me after reading through it, which are these: we need to be following Paul’s example in verse two where he is praying for the believers in Thessalonica “continually”. We should be doing that for our fellow believers as well, whether or not we know them very well, personally, or at all. All of us believers are, indeed, human. So we have a tendency to fall apart, turn away from the Lord, and develop bad habits and mindsets. It can never hurt to pray for a fellow believer.
Praying for your fellow believers doesn’t just help them, it benefits you, drawing you closer to the Lord, as you must put trust in Him and have faith in order to pray in the first place. It takes your mind off of your own needs, and helps you to truly put God first and love your neighbor as yourself.
And prayer also brings glory to God. And I don’t mean when you tell people about how much you’ve been praying, etc. etc. While it can bring people encouragement to know that you’re praying for them, don’t just “bring it up” in conversation for any other reason than that. It brings Him glory when you seek Him. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
The second point is that Paul gives thanks for the believers in Thessalonica. How often do we just thank the Lord for the people He’s put in our lives? I know I don’t do it often enough. We should give thanks for everyone He puts in our lives, not even just the other strong believers. Because He puts them there for one of two purposes, or even both: for your encouragement and edification, or for you to witness to. Remember, He puts everyone in your life for a purpose.
Ok, and, actually, I have a third point. This one, I think, is more important than either of the other ones. It’s this: Shouldn’t we want our fellow believers to give thanks for us? And i don’t mean, like, laying awake at night thinking, “I hope they’re grateful for me.” In fact, really, I don’t mean wanting to have believers thank God for us. What i really mean is that we should want to be a shining example of God’s grace and faithfulness in the way we act and live. If you look at the description of the Thessalonians that Paul gives in verses four through ten, their faith was astounding! In verse eight, Paul literally says this,
The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia – your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us.
1 Thessalonians 1:8-9a
Is this not what we want our faith to look like? Wouldn’t it be truly amazing if we, the church, were know everywhere for our faith in God?
You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed us in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.
1 Thessalonians 1:6-7
Being welcoming and joyful in suffering because of their faith. That only comes from God. Only in our faith, in Christianity, do you see joy and love in the midst of sorrow. We ought to follow the example of the Thessalonians, and take heart, and have faith in God. To truly be a light in this wicked and perverse generation. (Philippians 2:12-18)
We await Christ now, as they did. We hope on His return, as they did. We read the letters of Paul, and speak with others, and are called to be witnesses of great faith and love and hope, as they were. If anything is different between us and the Thessalonians, it’s that we are far better off, with far easier lives, and with far less pain and suffering to endure for following Christ.
if you have faith, then show it. It should be no mystery to the world that you are a follower of Christ, not a, sort of, scavenger hunt, looking around, wondering who claims to follow Christ. We should be known by everyone as His servants. Because you have hope.
We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 1:3
A Grain of Salt 