“Paul’s Thankfulness” (Part Three)

1 Thessalonians 1:1-4

This week, we are seeing the relationship between Paul and the church at Thessalonica. As we do, we have seen the nature of their environment and Paul’s tender greeting to them. Now, we see, on this Thanksgiving wee, what Paul was thankful for…

Paul’s Thanksgiving (vv.2-5)

(2) We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers; (3) constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father, (4) knowing, brethren beloved by God, His choice of you.

How He Gave Thanks (v.2)

• To God- direction of thanks, the source of every good and perfect gift.
• For you all- object of thanks. Notice it is for ALL not some of them!
• In prayer always- means of thanks was his own commitment to prayer, yet he was always, in those prayers, giving thanks for them!

Thanksgiving is a tough thing, because it demands of us the humility to acknowledge our dependence upon God. We thank Him for all He provides—for we could not attain it on our own! We are a dependent people, and, as a result, we must be an ever thankful people. Paul, however, was not just thankful—he was thankful for them and their faithful witness for Christ! A remarkable statement of their consistency and faithfulness!

Why He Gave Thanks

1) Their ministry (v.3)- the themes here are rich and often repeated in the NT- faith, hope, love. We see them in Col.1:4-5, Rev2:2, 1 Cor. 13, and here.

• Work of Faith- at first blush, this seems like a contradiction of terms (James 2:18) when actually it is the very purpose for redemption (Eph.2:10). Notice that Paul doesn’t bother to describe the size or event or nature of this “work”, but he does say it was by faith and he is thankful for it! Regardless of their size or notoriety, true “faith works” glorify and honor Christ because they fulfill his redemptive purposes for us! (2 Cor.5:7)
• Labor of love- in the midst of a hostile environment, it can be a fatiguing work. Still, Paul commends them because they continued in it—motivated by their love for God and love for people! It is a sad thing when people hate their work, but it is truly tragic when people serve Christ out of a resentful spirit. And that is why Moody said he was weary in the work, but he was NOT weary of the work!
• Patience of hope- notice Titus 2:13 and 1 Peter 3:15. Here, “patience” (hupomone) is that which gives us a positive outlook in spite of adverse circumstances! When life feels hopeless, we have hope—because we know the God of hope! We hope in Christ and in the watching eye of a loving Father. We hope in the person of the Savior. “There is no greater death than the end of hope”, said an ancient poet. The good news is that our circumstances are not in control, nor is a world system devoted to the evil one! God is on the throne, and because of that we are people of hope!

2) Their salvation (v.4)- because they are “beloved by God” and chosen by Him. This is a significant reason for Paul to rejoice, but it is also the basis for all they do in Christ’s name!

This is how we show Christ to the world—as a people of hope in a hopeless world! This is the true portrait of the believer—

Receiver of grace

Secure forever

Filled with purpose

Loved by God

That is a great place to start. These are great themes to take into life with you in the week ahead. These are powerful truths which, if allowed to, can impact for Christ all your thinking and all your interactions and all your decisions for the week ahead. Let us commit together this week to embrace every opportunity to be:

• Working and living by faith!
• Laboring out of love for God!
• Glowing with a real, abiding, transforming hope!

When these are in line, you are a living witness of the grace of Jesus Christ! It is what allowed Paul to write, “Now abide faith, hope and love—these three. But the greatest of these is love!” (1 Cor. 13:13) What makes that so important is that it makes our service our loving response to His love for us. That love reassures our hearts with confidence in Him, allowing us to have the comfort of His hope—even when facing death. It is what gives ordinary people an opportunity to make a difference, to impact eternity, to put divines love on display. It paints a portrait of a Christlike heart for the world to see.

And that is something to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving!