God’s Got This
Opening Prayer
Ever-present God, You walk with me through good times and bad. Your footsteps are my guide, Your hands are my support. I bless Your name.
Read 2 THESSALONIANS 1
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.
Thanksgiving and Prayer
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.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
“And in Your steadfast love You will cut off my enemies, and You will destroy all the adversaries of my soul, for I am Your servant.” (Psa. 143:12, ESV).
Think Further
Here we see Paul’s injunction not to repay evil with evil (1 Thess. 5:15). We are to “leave room for God’s wrath” (Rom. 12:19). In other words, “I’ve got this. Leave it with me.” Meantime, the Thessalonians are to continue enduring in suffering, growing in faith and increasing in love for all, including their enemies. In the period between Christ’s two comings, he is controlling history, granting relief in suffering and holding back his wrath until the final judgment. He yearns that all will come to repentance and salvation. Our mission is never to take revenge, but to share Christ that all will believe.
This passage reminds us that God’s wrath is real. It will occur at the consummation of the age, Christ’s return. It will be just. God will avenge his people and world, acting decisively to rid his creation of corruption. This he must do, for he is just and loves his people and his world. There is a free way out: to know God and obey the Gospel with faith. For those who do believe, his return will be fantastic; we will glorify our Lord and marvel at him. For others there is the horror of eternal destruction. The nature of this is undefined, but it will amount to being shut out of God’s presence forever rather than being with the Lord forever” (Thess. 4:17).
This is difficult, but we can trust God’s justice. Paul ends this chapter with prayer for the Thessalonians to be worthy of their glorious call, that their good intentions will be fulfilled by God. The ultimate goal is that Jesus is glorified in grace. To this end we labor on. We do not resort to vengeance; we can leave it with God.
Apply
Which of your current struggles are the result of being a Christian? What positive steps can you take to resolve the situation? How do feel about the punishment mentioned in verses 8 and 9?
Closing prayer
Father, make us worthy of Your calling, and by Your power bring to fruition our every desire for goodness. We glorify You.
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