Thursday 11/18/21

Today we will pop into the book of Thessalonians. We saw in Acts 17 that Paul departed abruptly from Thessalonica. He writes this letter to these new believers to encourage them in their faith, and to remind them how to live because Christ is coming back.

We learn a lot about them and a lot about Paul from these two short passages.

  • Read 1 Thessalonians 1:1-7; 2:6-9

Reflect on the following questions:

  • From the sections in chapters 1 & 2, what do you learn about these people? Who are they?
  • What do you learn about Paul?

Verse 3 and verse 8 are beloved of mine and speak volumes about Paul’s care for his people. He tells them in 1:3 that he continually remembers their work produced by faith. He remembers that their labor is prompted by love, and their endurance is inspired by hope.

It’s brought me much encouragement over the years to turn these sentences around: Faith can be work. Love can be Labor. Hope can get Long. But that does not change the prayer for us. Perhaps you are in the place where it’s been work to have faith, and your loving is hard and laborious, and hope seems stretched thin it’s been so long.

Hear Paul’s encouragement and love spilled out for them.