As we, the local church, are experiencing the challenges of isolation from one another, and from our formal gatherings, it is worth taking a closer look at the letters of Paul to the churches. The longing of Paul to be reunited with his brothers and sisters in Christ is a common theme throughout his epistles. Whether he is separated from the body of Christ by distance, or by chains, his desire for both continued and renewed fellowship continues to be displayed and our desires likewise should reflect these same longings.
2 Thessalonians 1:1-4;11-12
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,
To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring.
To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, 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.
Like the first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul, Silvanus and Timothy greet the believers there, though the primary human author of this letter is Paul.
Paul greets the believers there, not just as acquaintances nor friends, but instead as family. Indeed, this family consists entirely of members that at one time Paul would have rejected completely. These Gentile believers, who were once far off, are now brothers and sisters in Christ. Through Christ’s work they have been brought near, and now all share in the gift to call upon God as their Father.
His desire for them, as he states here first, and as we see expounded upon in his letter, is for God’s grace and peace to be upon them. It is not his desire to see their situations changed, it is not his desire to see abundant prosperity and a removal of all adversity for them. Instead, he longs for them to receive God’s grace and peace in their current situation. Paul longs to see them transformed, not their situation.
He continues on, stating that because of the reports of their growing faith, evidenced by the fruits of the Spirit increasing in them, that he, and those with him, ought to be giving thanks to God for them and the work he is doing in them. Paul says this thanksgiving “is right”, because this is the proper response in all of us when we see our brothers and sisters maturing in the faith. We ought to rejoice with one another, we ought to praise God when we see his goodness manifested in his children.
Paul also makes the claim that they are boasting of the Thessalonian’s faith to the other churches, boasting of their steadfastness during persecution and affliction. They are facing such great persecution in fact, that some of them have growing concerns that the day of the Lord has come. Paul reminds them that the man of lawlessness is yet to come, and to stand firm in their faith, because Jesus will bring his justice upon those who beset them with persecution.
Throughout this letter Paul continues to urge the Thessalonian’s on in their faith, in their comfort in God alone, through Christ’s work and the sanctification of the Spirit. Reminding them that they are beloved of the Lord, chosen by God to be saved, to obtain the glory of the Lord.
This is our hope in trial and adversity, it we too labour in the Lord. This is the same encouragement we ought to show one another. This is the same love we ought to have for those from whom we were once separated by the dividing wall of hostility. This is the same desire we ought to have for one another, to see our brothers and sisters made worthy of His calling, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in them, and them in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.