SHOWERS

I Thessalonians 1:3 – …remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.                                                                          

Welcome back, dear readers!

We are currently studying the letter which Paul (along with Silas and Timothy) wrote to the church at Thessalonica.  One of the main reasons for the letter was to encourage these believers who had received salvation in the midst of fierce opposition.

Immediately after his greeting, Paul commends the Thessalonian church for their faith, love and hope.

These are the three great abiding principles of the true Christian life, which Paul constantly mentions throughout his epistles:

I Corinthians 13:13 – So now faith, hope and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.                                                                                                                                                                 

Work of Faith:  Faith is belief in a statement or truth declared by another, which rests solely and implicitly on their authority and veracity (truthfulness).

In the present case, we might say that faith is a belief in the gospel message as declared by Jesus Christ the Messiah, the one who is the source of all divine truth and the one who possess all authority.  

In other words, as Paul preached to the sinners in Thessalonica, they became fully persuaded that the gospel message of Jesus Christ was true - in their minds and hearts they believed and accepted that Jesus Christ was the Messiah, the Son of God, who came to earth and died as the atonement for their sin.  They were absolutely convinced that through Christ they were reconciled to God the Father and that Holy Spirit lived within their hearts, sealing them until the day of redemption (Ephesians 1:13-14). 

Obviously, they received salvation the same way you and I did – by faith in Jesus Christ.  But our journey of faith doesn’t end there.  In fact, salvation is only the beginning.

One of the most basic principles of true biblical faith is that it is active/actively working in us.  True faith will always have an influence upon our hearts and lives:  

• Faith will affect the things we say and the things we do. 
• Faith will rearrange our priorities. 
• Faith will change our relationships. 
• Faith will impact the way we treat others. 
• Faith will enable us to ‘move mighty mountains’ (Matthew 21:21-22, Mark 11:22-24). 
• Faith will urge or impel us to work for the glory of God. 
• Faith motivates us to ‘work out’ our own salvation with fear and trembling.

The apostle James puts it this way:

James 2:26 – For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.                                                                                                                                                            

In other words, active faith (which is inward and invisible) produces fruit which is outward and visible in this world.  Paul knew that true faith was working in the lives of the Thessalonian believers because it manifested itself in outward actions or ‘works of faith’.

For example, faith caused these believers to abandon their worship of false idols.  Instead, they joyfully offered sacrifices of praise and worship to Christ. 

Faith prompted them to turn away from sin (envy, lust, pride, drunkenness, etc) and embrace righteousness and holiness.      

Faith motivated them to share the gospel with others (even in the face of persecution) and thus expand the kingdom of heaven.

Faith allowed the Thessalonians to receive gifts from Holy Spirit, which assisted them in completing the works they were called to accomplish.

We could go on and on, but I think the apostle James said it best:

James 2:18 - … I will show you my faith by my works.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

So, let’s pause for a moment and ask ourselves this question:  What evidence do we have of active faith in our own lives?

Each one of us will have a unique answer to this question because we’ve all had unique journeys through life.  Some of us came to faith in Christ early in life, while others were older.  Some of us came from the throes of sin and addiction, while others did not.  Some came to faith from false religions, while others were brought up in Christian households. 

While individual details will differ, the same Holy Spirit works in the life of every believer, and thus we find some general principles of faith that will be common to us all.  

• In conjunction with Holy Spirit, faith prompts the Christian to search the scriptures, find the promises of God and lay hold of them.
• Faith allows us to keep a grip on those promises, holding them tightly until we see them come to pass.
• Faith is the basis of all prayer – we can’t see God or his throne room, but we know our prayers are funneled to him through Christ our mediator.  
• Faith is importunate, which is to say it allows us to earnestly and persistently enter the throne room of grace in our time of need. 
• Faith calls things that are not as though they are. 
• Faith marches forward to share the gospel, to defeat the devil and to stand firm in the face of adversity. 
• Faith makes it possible to receive pardon when we fail and to get up once again.
• Faith empowers us to patiently and cheerfully be obedient to God’s commands.
• Faith keeps the promise of heaven continually in our hearts and minds.

So again, I ask you: How is faith working in your own life right now?

Labor of Love:  Let’s be honest… in many instances, love requires labor!

It’s easy to love people that you admire or respect.  It’s easy to love people that have the same ideas and opinions as you do.  It’s easy to love people who shower you with gifts and compliments. 

But it’s much harder to love those who are the opposite of you in every respect.  What about people who annoy you?  What about the people standing on the corner asking for money?  What about the homeless people who haven’t bathed for a month, and reek of alcohol?  What about those who despise you and make your life miserable every chance they get?

I have colleagues at work that have spiritual and moral viewpoints that are the complete opposite of mine.  Every day, I must work to find common ground with them.  I have to be careful what I say, so that I don’t agree with them, but I don’t alienate them either; I have to show them the love of Christ.  My guess is that it’s not just me - every one of us have people in our life that we must labor to love.   

In the gospel of Luke, Jesus laid out some really tough and non-negotiable commands about loving others:

Luke 6:32-35 – “If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you?  For even sinners love those who love them.  And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you?  For even sinners do the same.  And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you?  Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount.  But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.”   

If we were left to fulfill this mandate in our flesh, we wouldn’t last one day!  In fact, I doubt I could last even an hour, unless I was home alone! 

But thankfully, Jesus never sets us up to fail.  He gave us the command to labor in love, and he also gave us his indwelling Holy Spirit who makes this possible.

Holy Spirit empowers us to show kindness and compassion to those who seem unlovable.  Through him we can provide the necessities of life to the poor, and in showing them love, we can present the gospel to them.

Through Holy Spirit, we can be kind to those who mistreat us and in showing them love we will make an impact upon them; we will earn the opportunity to share the love of Christ. 

Through Holy Spirit, we can love people while hating their sin.  We can afford to be merciful, compassionate and kind, because Christ has been merciful, compassionate and kind to us!  As we labor to love those who oppose us or those who are difficult to love, Holy Spirit will anoint us to bring the message of salvation into their lives.

As a whole, the church of Jesus Christ has always labored in love.  She has been persecuted, hated, constrained, smeared, condemned, mocked and in some cases martyred.  But nevertheless, God has chosen to spread the gospel message through his church, and she continues to be an example of Christ’s all-encompassing love in every generation. 

Clearly, Paul was able to identify the ‘labors of love’ in the Thessalonian church, because these labors were outward visible signs of their relationship with Christ.  How are you outwardly living out ‘labors of love’ in your own life?

Steadfastness of hope (your translation may say patience of hope):  Hope is a feeling of trust or expectation that something we desire will happen.  Along with faith and love, hope is an indelible part of the Christian life. 

For the Christian, hope is always based on the firm, unwavering knowledge that God keeps his promises. 

Jeremiah 1:12 – Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.”                                                                                                                                                     

Numbers 23:19 – God is not a man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind.  Has he said, and will he not do it?  Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?                  

However, it should be noted that God’s timing is not always the same as ours!  He alone is in complete control of all things; he knows the exact right moment to fulfill the promises he has made.  Because of this, patience will always be a component of hope in the Christian life. 

Fortunately for us, God knew this, and he has already made provision for our weak natures by making patience one of the fruits of the Spirit:

Galatians 5:22-23 – But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.                                           

Now, what promises do you suppose the Thessalonian church was waiting for?  My guess is that they were waiting for the same things we are waiting for:

• We wait for revival to break forth on our loved ones, in our cities and on our nation. 
• We wait for the conclusion of trials and tribulations, knowing that our ‘test’ will give us a ‘testimony’ to share in the world. 
• We steadfastly wait for the return of Christ and the end of evil in this world.

Basically, patience of hope means that no matter what happens in this life, no matter what circumstances we face or what lack we endure, we remain victorious in Christ.  We are unconquered by adversity, grief or suffering because our hope is not fickle or temporary, it is steadfast and sure.  We know beyond a shadow of a doubt, that God will be faithful to keep his promises and bring us to the hope we have…

In Our Lord Jesus Christ:   Jesus is our Rock and our Redeemer; our hope is founded on him alone as our Savior.  I don’t know about you, but this truth makes me burst with joy!

Just think of it – in this life, we are never alone!  Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts, helping us to stretch/exercise our faith as we perform our labors of love.  He gives us the unwavering assurance that at the proper time, all of God’s promises will come to pass!  There is NO WAY we can lose in this life, unless we give up.  And why would we do that, when we know our hope in Christ is never in vain? 

Our hope differs from the hope of the lost.   They sit around fretting, because their hope has no solid foundation.  They hope for the best but prepare for the worst because that is exactly what their father the devil will give them. 

By contrast, our hope is rock-solid and secure, because it is based on the Lord Jesus Christ (I Timothy 1:1), who never fails and never changes! 

Hebrews 13:8 – Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

And then there is the world to come – our everlasting existence in the presence of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit!

Scripture tells us that each person will face a day of reckoning after this life. 

Hebrews 9:27 – And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment…                                                                                                                                                                           

For the Christian, this will be a joyous day because Jesus has already made payment for our sin.  In fact, he has allowed us to earn heavenly rewards (I Corinthians 3:14, Matthew 10:42) and crowns (I Peter 5:4, Revelation 3:11) for our service to him on earth.  He will welcome us into his kingdom with love and open arms; we have absolutely no reason to fear our meeting with him.  Hopefully, we have been diligent servants who will hear him say, ‘Well done good and faithful servant’. 

Such is not the case for sinners.  They will stand before God’s throne to be judged by what is recorded in God’s account books (Revelation 20:12, Daniel 7:10).  For them, this will be a dreadful day like no other. 

Hopefully, the thought of anyone being in such a position hurts your heart.  Hopefully, at this very moment Holy Spirit is causing you to experience godly sorrow for those who do not yet know Christ. 

Holy Spirit wants to use that sorrow to motivate or spur you on in exercising your faith, continuing in labors of love and remaining steadfast in your commitment to Christ.   We must remain faithful and diligent in his service, allowing him to work through us for the salvation of others. 

Let me offer you some encouragement:

In today’s post, we spoke about our individual journeys of faith.  I want to encourage you to stop for a moment and consider your own path to salvation. 

What events happened that put you in the right place and right time to hear the gospel?  What bondages did God break for you?  If you were raised in a Christian home, what impact did your parent’s belief have on you?  How did their everyday witness affect your decision to serve Christ?

How did you feel when your sins were first washed away? 

Where are you at in your journey of faith today?  How far has Holy Spirit taken you?  What vision or goal has he given you for the future?

These considerations should bring you encouragement because God has promised to continue working in you until the day he calls you home to heaven:

Philippians 1:6 – And I [Paul] am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.                                                                                                     

Let me offer you some relief:

God ALWAYS keeps his promises!  As a Christian, I am sure that you have certain scriptural promises that you are clinging to.  Perhaps it seems as though the answer is taking forever.

In those cases, you will be relieved to know that God is never late.  Even when we are unaware of it, he is working behind the scenes to orchestrate the fulfillment of our promise.  We can continue unwavering in our faith, because our God is both perfect and loving.  In fact, we can praise him now, for the answers we expect to come!

Let me offer you some strength:

When Paul speaks about faith, love and hope the order isn’t random – it is sequential. 

Faith is the path we take to salvation; it opens the gate to our spiritual life.  Once we have entered by faith, we can proceed to walk the paths of life, engaging in labors of love all along the way.  These labors of love manifest as good works, which bear fruit for the kingdom of heaven and please the Lord.

Colossians 1:10 – So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.                                                              

 Meanwhile, we walk with confidence and assurance, knowing that at the end of our journey, we will find the ultimate fulfillment of the hope we have carried all along the way - an indescribable eternity spent with the Father, Son and Spirit!  

Take the time to strengthen and encourage yourself as well as your brothers and sisters in Christ, because salvation is not the ‘end game’ of our spiritual life.  It’s actually the beginning of an exciting and amazing adventure!