I Thess. 3:2b-3 We sent him to strenghten you, to encourage you in your faith, and to keep you from becoming disturbed by the troubles you were going through. But, of course, you know that such troubles are going to happen to us Christians.
Paul sent his traveling companion and disciple, Timothy, to the church in Thessalonia to help them in their faith and to keep them on track. Timothy was to encourage the church and keep them from becoming overcome by faith's sufferings.
It is important that we encourage one another in the faith. It is so easy to get discouraged. Sometimes people of faith are our worst discouragers. Some people just seem to thrive on discouraging others, especially if they dare to not think the same thimg about things. Circumstances sometimes are discouraging. The things going on in the world can be discouraging. We need to be surrounded by people who will lift us up and spur us on instead of holding us back and dragging us down. If you don't have encouragers in your life, you need to make some changes in whom you associate with and find people who are good for your soul.
Paul reminded the church that things were not always be easy for them because of their faith. Christians ought to expect troublesome times in their lives. It is normal for us because we are surrounded by enemies of the faith. Those who are not of the faith are enemies of God. If we are being true followers of Christ we will face opposition to our faith by those in the world, and sometimes it will cause us much suffering.
When we have encouragers in our life, we will be much better equipped to face our troubles positively without being overcome by them.
Thursday, April 21, 2016
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
GOD'S WORD RECEIVED
I Thess. 2:13 And we will never stop thanking God that when we preached his message to you, you didn't think of the words we spoke as being just our own. You accepted what we said as the very word of God--which, of course, it was. And this word continues to work in you who believe.
It is not always easy to know the truthfulness of what someone is saying these days. There are some very good speakers who can be very convincing who do not speak the truth. Many speak their own ideas and sometimes they clash with the truth. How can we know for sure that what we hear and believe is true?
We must be good students of God's Word ourselves. We cannot rely on what others tell us it means and believe it. We must examine the Word and think it through ourselves. When we do, we must bathe it in prayer with an open mind and heart. We must stay close to God so that we can be certain it's the Holy Spirit who is guiding our thoughts as we study the Word.
If we still do not quite understand what is being said, we turn to reliable sources for answers. We seek out the counsel of people who we know are mature in the faith and have a good grasp of the Scriptures. We also can find insight from what others have written in commentaries and books. It is important that we do our research until we have reasonable cause to believe what we believe God is saying is true.
A good test as to whether or not something is indeed true is that it works. God's Word works. It can be seen at work in others and experienced in ourselves. It stands the test of time. It never fails to do what it claims to do. If what you believe just doesn't seem to work out in life, then be assured it's not from God.
It is not always easy to know the truthfulness of what someone is saying these days. There are some very good speakers who can be very convincing who do not speak the truth. Many speak their own ideas and sometimes they clash with the truth. How can we know for sure that what we hear and believe is true?
We must be good students of God's Word ourselves. We cannot rely on what others tell us it means and believe it. We must examine the Word and think it through ourselves. When we do, we must bathe it in prayer with an open mind and heart. We must stay close to God so that we can be certain it's the Holy Spirit who is guiding our thoughts as we study the Word.
If we still do not quite understand what is being said, we turn to reliable sources for answers. We seek out the counsel of people who we know are mature in the faith and have a good grasp of the Scriptures. We also can find insight from what others have written in commentaries and books. It is important that we do our research until we have reasonable cause to believe what we believe God is saying is true.
A good test as to whether or not something is indeed true is that it works. God's Word works. It can be seen at work in others and experienced in ourselves. It stands the test of time. It never fails to do what it claims to do. If what you believe just doesn't seem to work out in life, then be assured it's not from God.
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
LOVING CARE FOR ONE ANOTHER
I Thess. 2:7-8 As apostles of Christ we certainily had a right to make some demands of you, but we were as gentle among you as a mother feeding and caring for her own children. We loved you so much that we gave you not only God's Good News but our own lives, too.
I really like Paul's imagery here. There is nothing like a loving mother who watches over her children and ministers to their needs. A mother feeds her children what is good for them at each stage of their lives. Babies require baby food, not junk food. As a child grows older, mom weans her child off of baby food and gives her children solid food. She knows that she has to be discerning as to what kind of food she makes available to them as much as possible. As they get older, they will want more junk food than is good for them and mom tries to control their intake as much as possible. Mothers do what they know is best for her children because she loves them and wants what is best for them. She wants to see them grow up to be healthy adults someday.
We should be like the Apostle Paul in this regard. We, too, should have a real interest in the spiritual growth of God's children. We should want to see each other grow up into spiritual maturity, useful servants in the Kingdom of God. It is not an easy task to do because, like growing children, we don't often know what we need and what we shouldn't have. We have much to learn about ourselves and how to become who God wants us to be.
Let us strive to love each other as we are loved by God. Let us set aside our personal agendas and seek the spiritual well-being on one another. Let us take a real interest in the spiritual maturity of others and share with one another God's Good News every chance we can. Let us be a people who are willing to do whatever it takes to help one another become the people God wants us to be, a people after His own heart.
I really like Paul's imagery here. There is nothing like a loving mother who watches over her children and ministers to their needs. A mother feeds her children what is good for them at each stage of their lives. Babies require baby food, not junk food. As a child grows older, mom weans her child off of baby food and gives her children solid food. She knows that she has to be discerning as to what kind of food she makes available to them as much as possible. As they get older, they will want more junk food than is good for them and mom tries to control their intake as much as possible. Mothers do what they know is best for her children because she loves them and wants what is best for them. She wants to see them grow up to be healthy adults someday.
We should be like the Apostle Paul in this regard. We, too, should have a real interest in the spiritual growth of God's children. We should want to see each other grow up into spiritual maturity, useful servants in the Kingdom of God. It is not an easy task to do because, like growing children, we don't often know what we need and what we shouldn't have. We have much to learn about ourselves and how to become who God wants us to be.
Let us strive to love each other as we are loved by God. Let us set aside our personal agendas and seek the spiritual well-being on one another. Let us take a real interest in the spiritual maturity of others and share with one another God's Good News every chance we can. Let us be a people who are willing to do whatever it takes to help one another become the people God wants us to be, a people after His own heart.
Monday, April 18, 2016
SEEKING PRAISE FROM OTHERS
I Thess. 2:6 As for praise, we have never asked for it from you or anyone else.
The Apostle Paul was a very humble man. He only had one desire in life, to honor and glorify Christ through his living. He was a man who lived a life worthy to be followed. He is still highly respected in the church today. We are still learning from him and honor him as one worthy to be followed. He had great insight and wisdom from God.
Yet, in spite of his position in the church and the respect the church had for him, he never sought out the praise of man. He was not concerned about whether or not he was popular. He did not thrive on the attention of others. In fact, the opposite was true. He thrived on the sufferings he endured at the hands of man because he preached and taught the Gospel message. All that Paul was concerned about was the spreading of the Gospel and bringing souls to Christ. He was passionate about leading others into a much deeper walk with the Lord than they had ever known before. He was driven by the desire to prepare others for the certainty of death.
We need to imitate Paul in this. Seeking the praise of man is a dead end street. It's not important whether or not people like what we do as long as we do it to honor and glorify the Lord in what we do and say. There will be people who will want to lavish praise on us, especially if we are talented and can do some things well. Ask the Lord to keep your soul humbled before Him at all times. Ask Him to protect your soul so that you seek to honor and glorify the Lord and not yourself. He alone is worthy of adoration and praise.
The Apostle Paul was a very humble man. He only had one desire in life, to honor and glorify Christ through his living. He was a man who lived a life worthy to be followed. He is still highly respected in the church today. We are still learning from him and honor him as one worthy to be followed. He had great insight and wisdom from God.
Yet, in spite of his position in the church and the respect the church had for him, he never sought out the praise of man. He was not concerned about whether or not he was popular. He did not thrive on the attention of others. In fact, the opposite was true. He thrived on the sufferings he endured at the hands of man because he preached and taught the Gospel message. All that Paul was concerned about was the spreading of the Gospel and bringing souls to Christ. He was passionate about leading others into a much deeper walk with the Lord than they had ever known before. He was driven by the desire to prepare others for the certainty of death.
We need to imitate Paul in this. Seeking the praise of man is a dead end street. It's not important whether or not people like what we do as long as we do it to honor and glorify the Lord in what we do and say. There will be people who will want to lavish praise on us, especially if we are talented and can do some things well. Ask the Lord to keep your soul humbled before Him at all times. Ask Him to protect your soul so that you seek to honor and glorify the Lord and not yourself. He alone is worthy of adoration and praise.
Sunday, April 17, 2016
APPROVED BY GOD
I Thess. 2:4 For we speak as messengers who have been approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He is the one who examines the motives of our hearts.
Paul understood who he was in the church and why. He was a messenger sent by God to the church and he was approved by God for the task. God does not send people out to do a task that are not approved by Him for the task. In order to be approved by God, one must have a holy heart and be totally committed to Him. Paul clearly met God’s requirements. Living in fellowship with God and being right with God consumed Paul’s life. He had no other desire in life than to give his all to the Lord and the Kingdom of God.
Paul was trustworthy. God entrusted Paul with the Good News. God knew Paul would not mess it up. He knew he would be faithful and not preach another Gospel. He knew Paul would tell it like it is and not worry about how others might receive it. His duty was to proclaim the Gospel and he did it with determined passion. He was not a people pleaser. He was not concerned about anything but living rightly before God.
We must be good imitators of Paul. We have but one agenda as children of God, and that is to serve the Lord with determined passion. We are not in the people pleasing business. In fact, if people are pleased with us all the time, we are not being faithful messengers of the Gospel. The truth always is opposed by those who don’t want to live by it. We share the Gospel messenge regardless of whether someone wants to hear it or not. How it is received is between the listener and God.
We must never forget, God knows our hearts. He knows not only what we do, but why we do it. We need to be careful that we don’t serve the Lord with wrong motives. Those who please the Lord have pure hearts in all they do. They serve Him out of love, not duty.
Paul understood who he was in the church and why. He was a messenger sent by God to the church and he was approved by God for the task. God does not send people out to do a task that are not approved by Him for the task. In order to be approved by God, one must have a holy heart and be totally committed to Him. Paul clearly met God’s requirements. Living in fellowship with God and being right with God consumed Paul’s life. He had no other desire in life than to give his all to the Lord and the Kingdom of God.
Paul was trustworthy. God entrusted Paul with the Good News. God knew Paul would not mess it up. He knew he would be faithful and not preach another Gospel. He knew Paul would tell it like it is and not worry about how others might receive it. His duty was to proclaim the Gospel and he did it with determined passion. He was not a people pleaser. He was not concerned about anything but living rightly before God.
We must be good imitators of Paul. We have but one agenda as children of God, and that is to serve the Lord with determined passion. We are not in the people pleasing business. In fact, if people are pleased with us all the time, we are not being faithful messengers of the Gospel. The truth always is opposed by those who don’t want to live by it. We share the Gospel messenge regardless of whether someone wants to hear it or not. How it is received is between the listener and God.
We must never forget, God knows our hearts. He knows not only what we do, but why we do it. We need to be careful that we don’t serve the Lord with wrong motives. Those who please the Lord have pure hearts in all they do. They serve Him out of love, not duty.
Saturday, April 16, 2016
BEING APPRECIATED BY OTHERS
I Thess. 1:2-3 We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. As we talk to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and your continual anticipation of the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Wouldn’t you like to have a pastor like Paul, one who you knew appreciated you and was constantly praying over you? I can only imagine what the church would be like to have spiritual leaders like that, people who genuinely cared about the souls of the church.
Paul did not focus on the negative things within the church. Instead he thought about their faithful work, their loving deeds, and their focus on the Lord’s coming. It is so easy to magnify the flaws of others in our minds and prayers. It is easy to point out flaws in others to the Lord and ask Him to fix them. But, Paul wasn’t like that. He chose to focus on the positives instead of the negatives. It would be wonderful if a church was so good that there would not be room for the negatives to crop up, but unfortunately that generally is not the case.
What do we think about when we pray for one another? Think about it for a moment. Do you thank the Lord for what is going on right with a person and pray that it continues? Or, do you focus on the negatives and ask the Lord to change them? One of the reasons why we are prone to dwell on the negatives is that in our minds it makes us look better than they do. And when we see ourselves in a positive light, we are not prone to see our own flaws and failures and repent.
Let us strive to change our ways. Look at others in a positive light. Thank the Lord for the good that you see in others and it will have a profound effect on how you react to them. You cannot truly love someone who you look down on. You are far more prone to care about those whom you love. The Kingdom of God is built on the positives and not the negatives. It is God's will for us to love one another and work together for His glory.
Wouldn’t you like to have a pastor like Paul, one who you knew appreciated you and was constantly praying over you? I can only imagine what the church would be like to have spiritual leaders like that, people who genuinely cared about the souls of the church.
Paul did not focus on the negative things within the church. Instead he thought about their faithful work, their loving deeds, and their focus on the Lord’s coming. It is so easy to magnify the flaws of others in our minds and prayers. It is easy to point out flaws in others to the Lord and ask Him to fix them. But, Paul wasn’t like that. He chose to focus on the positives instead of the negatives. It would be wonderful if a church was so good that there would not be room for the negatives to crop up, but unfortunately that generally is not the case.
What do we think about when we pray for one another? Think about it for a moment. Do you thank the Lord for what is going on right with a person and pray that it continues? Or, do you focus on the negatives and ask the Lord to change them? One of the reasons why we are prone to dwell on the negatives is that in our minds it makes us look better than they do. And when we see ourselves in a positive light, we are not prone to see our own flaws and failures and repent.
Let us strive to change our ways. Look at others in a positive light. Thank the Lord for the good that you see in others and it will have a profound effect on how you react to them. You cannot truly love someone who you look down on. You are far more prone to care about those whom you love. The Kingdom of God is built on the positives and not the negatives. It is God's will for us to love one another and work together for His glory.
Friday, April 15, 2016
BE CAREFUL HOW YOU LIVE
Col. 4:5-6 Live wisely among those who are not Christians, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and effective so that you will have the right answer for everyone.
Sadly, many professing believers live foolishly amongst those who are not saved. They do not take a stand for Christ by not refusing to participate in unholy things. They do not guard their tongues. They do not protect their eyes from unholy things. They do not speak out when they have opportunity to share Christ. They compromise their standards when asked to do so for personal gain. Instead of such foolishness, we are to live wisely among those who are not saved. We are to stand firm on truth and not waver in our commitment to it. We are to always do what is right in God’s eyes.
We are to make the most of every opportunity we have to be witnesses for Christ. In our living and talking we ought to be gracious and effective witnesses. It doesn’t happen by accident or overnight. We need to continuously develop our faith. We need to take the time to invest in the development of our souls. We spend time in the Word to discover and grasp its truths. We spend enough time in prayer so that we can have real fellowship with God. We put into practice the things we learn so that we can be effective in our witness to others. We become knowledgeable of truth so that we can help others and not lead them astray. We purposely strive to act and speak graciously towards others. We strive to always be right in our declaration of truth.
The time we spend developing our souls into godliness is the best investment of time we will ever spend. We become wise in the things of God and attractive to those who are not Christians seeking to find God. People everywhere are searching for answers to life. They are trying all sorts of things to discover purpose and meaning to their lives. We need to diligently take care of our souls so that we will have the right answers for those the Lord brings our way.
Sadly, many professing believers live foolishly amongst those who are not saved. They do not take a stand for Christ by not refusing to participate in unholy things. They do not guard their tongues. They do not protect their eyes from unholy things. They do not speak out when they have opportunity to share Christ. They compromise their standards when asked to do so for personal gain. Instead of such foolishness, we are to live wisely among those who are not saved. We are to stand firm on truth and not waver in our commitment to it. We are to always do what is right in God’s eyes.
We are to make the most of every opportunity we have to be witnesses for Christ. In our living and talking we ought to be gracious and effective witnesses. It doesn’t happen by accident or overnight. We need to continuously develop our faith. We need to take the time to invest in the development of our souls. We spend time in the Word to discover and grasp its truths. We spend enough time in prayer so that we can have real fellowship with God. We put into practice the things we learn so that we can be effective in our witness to others. We become knowledgeable of truth so that we can help others and not lead them astray. We purposely strive to act and speak graciously towards others. We strive to always be right in our declaration of truth.
The time we spend developing our souls into godliness is the best investment of time we will ever spend. We become wise in the things of God and attractive to those who are not Christians seeking to find God. People everywhere are searching for answers to life. They are trying all sorts of things to discover purpose and meaning to their lives. We need to diligently take care of our souls so that we will have the right answers for those the Lord brings our way.
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