2 Thessalonians 1

After greeting his friends, Paul launched into a statement of praise to God for what He had been accomplishing in their lives. Paul was practicing his own admonition, “In everything give thanks” (1 Thess. 5:18). You cannot help but notice Paul’s repeated thanksgivings in these two letters (1 Thess. 1:2; 2:13, 3:9; 2 Thess. 1:3; 2:13). Not only does prayer change people and situations, but so does praise.

Once I was teaching a series of lessons in a church about Satan’s devices to defeat Christians. One of these devices is suffering, as in the case of Job. If Satan can put us into difficult circumstances, he may be able to weaken our faith.

“One of the best weapons for fighting Satan is praise,” I told my morning class. “In spite of his pain, Job was able to say, ‘Blessed be the name of the Lord!’ So, the next time things go wrong and you are tempted to get impatient, turn to God and give thanks.”

That evening, just before the class started, a lady rushed up to me and said, “It works! It works!” And then she told me about her afternoon and all that had happened. Her story was so unbelievable that I would have doubted it, had I not known her character. “But in it all I gave thanks,” she told me, “and God gave me the grace and strength I needed. It works. Praise works!”

No doubt the Thessalonican believers did not consider themselves to be very spiritual as they suffered, but Paul detected what God was doing among them. You and I are the worst ones to evaluate our own lives. Many times others can see the spiritual improvement when you and I miss it completely. For what blessings did Paul give thanks and thereby encourage his friends?

Their faith was growing (v. 3a). A faith that cannot be tested cannot be trusted. New believers must expect their faith to be tried, because this is the way God proves whether or not their decision is genuine. Faith, like a muscle, must be exercised to grow stronger. Tribulation and persecution are God’s ways to strengthen our faith.

One of my favorite books is Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret by Dr. and Mrs. Howard Taylor. In it you read how Hudson Taylor’s faith in God grew from that first day he determined to live by faith in God alone. He learned to trust God for his salary, especially when his busy employer forgot to pay him. He learned to trust God for daily needs, and, as his faith was tested, he grew in faith and was able to trust God for His supply for an entire missionary organization. Sometimes it seemed that God had forgotten, but Taylor continued to pray and trust, and God answered.

An easy life can lead to a shallow faith. The great men and women of faith in Hebrews 11 all suffered in one way or another, or faced tremendous obstacles, so that their faith could grow. Paul had prayed for the believers in Thessalonica, that their faith might be perfected (1 Thess. 3:10), and now he thanked God for answered prayer.

Their love was abounding (v. 3b). Again, this was an answer to Paul’s previous prayer (1 Thess. 3:12). Suffering can make us selfish, but when suffering is mixed with grace and faith, it produces love. It is “faith which worketh by love” (Gal. 5:6). When Christians suffer, their faith reaches upward to God, and their love reaches outward to their fellow believers.

Thoreau once described a city as a place where many people are “lonely together.” Residents of a highrise apartment can be suffering greatly and the people in the next apartment know nothing about it. Our modern world can promote spiritual and emotional isolation and insulation, even to the point of our watching others suffer without really caring.

But for the Christian, suffering can help to produce abounding love. “Behold, how they love one another!” was the confession of the pagan world as it beheld the miracle of Christian fellowship. The early believers were only obeying the commandment of their Lord, “Love one another.” Their own suffering did not prevent them from sharing love with others who were suffering.

Their patience was increasing (v. 4). Perhaps “perseverance” would be the best translation of this Greek word. “Tribulation works out endurance” (Rom. 5:3, literal translation). You do not become patient and persevering by reading a book (even this one) or listening to a lecture. You have to suffer.

What were these believers enduring? Paul used several words to describe their situation: persecutions, which means “attacks from without,” or “trials”; tribulations, which literally means “pressures,” or afflictions that result from the trials; and trouble (2 Thess. 1:7), which means “to be pressed into a narrow place.” No matter how we look at it, the Thessalonican Christians were not having an easy time.

But God never wastes suffering. Trials work for us, not against us (2 Cor. 4:15–18; James 1:1–5). If we trust God and yield to Him, then trials will produce patience and maturity in our lives. If we rebel and fight our circumstances, then we will remain immature and impatient. God permits trials that He might build character into our lives. He can grow a mushroom overnight, but it takes many years—and many storms—to build a mighty oak.

Their testimony was helping others (v. 4a). “Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith” (2 Thess. 1: niv). Not only can suffering help us to grow, but we can then help others to grow. God encourages us that we may encourage others (2 Cor. 1:4–5). We are not to be cisterns that receive and keep, but channels that receive and share.

The word translated “faith” in 2 Thessalonians 1:3–4, can be translated “faithfulness.” Actually, the two go together; we reveal our faith in God by our faithfulness of life. The Thessalonicans were faithful to the Lord and to one another in spite of the troubles they endured. When a person in difficulty forsakes the Lord and the church, he shows that either he has never been born again or that his spiritual life is very weak. A true Christian who is growing will be faithful, come what may.

During World War II, when enemy armies invaded North Africa, the missionaries had to flee, and there was great concern over the churches left behind. But when the war ended and the missionaries returned, they discovered strong, thriving churches. The sufferings of war purified the church and helped strengthen the faith of the true believers. What an encouragement this was to the churches of the free world.

Paul had every reason to praise God and give thanks for what God was doing in the lives of these young Christians. But did you notice that one element was missing—hope? “Faith, hope, and love” had characterized these believers from the beginning (1 Thess. 1:3), but Paul gave thanks only for their faith and love. Why? Apparently they were confused about their hope. This leads us to the second encouragement.

The Encouragement of Promise (2 Thess. 1:5–10) No matter how difficult their present circumstances may have been, the Thessalonican believers had a secure and glorious future. In fact, their sufferings were evidence, “a manifest token,” that God was righteous, working out His great plan for them. We are prone to think that suffering proves that God does not care, when just the opposite is true. Furthermore, the way we act in times of trial proves to others that God is at work. (See Phil. 1:28–30 for another example of this principle.)

Three experiences are involved in the promises of God for His people.

Reward (v. 5). “You will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering” (niv). This was one of God’s purposes in permitting their suffering. It does not suggest that their suffering earned them the right to go to heaven, because we know that they were saved through faith in Christ (1 Thess. 1). The little word “also” indicated that this worthiness related both to their present experience and their future entrance into God’s glorious kingdom. You find the same idea in 1 Peter 1:3–9.

One day Jesus Christ will turn the tables and the wicked will suffer, while the believers are rewarded. Our Lord never promised us that life here would be easy; in fact, He taught that we would have to face difficulties and fight battles. But He also promised a future reward for all who were faithful to Him (Matt. 5:10–12).

Recompense (vv. 6, 7b–9). God will recompense affliction to the lost, but rest to the saved. To recompense means “to repay.” Certainly, the wicked who persecute the godly do not always receive their just payment in this life. In fact, the apparent prosperity of the wicked and difficulty of the godly have posed a problem for many of God’s people (see Ps. 73; Jer. 12:1; Hab. 1). Why live a godly life if your only experience is that of suffering?

As Christians, we must live for eternity and not just for the present. In fact, living “with eternity’s values in view” is what makes our Christian life meaningful today. We walk by faith and not by sight.

This brings to mind the story of the two farmers, one a believer and the other an atheist. When harvest season came, the atheist taunted his believing neighbor because apparently God had not blessed him too much. The atheist’s family had not been sick, his fields were rich with harvest, and he was sure to make a lot of money.

“I thought you said it paid to believe in God and be a Christian,” said the atheist.

“It does pay,” replied the Christian. “But God doesn’t always pay His people in September.”

What kind of a future does the unbeliever face? Look at the dramatic words Paul used to describe it: tribulation, vengeance, flaming fire, punishment, and everlasting destruction. The Christ-rejecting world will receive from God exactly what it gave to God’s people! When God recompenses, He pays in kind, for there is a law of compensation that operates in human history.

Pharaoh tried to drown all the male babies born to the Jews, and his own army was drowned in the Red Sea. Haman plotted to wipe out the Jews, and he and his own sons were wiped out. The advisers of King Darius forced him to arrest Daniel and throw him into a lions’ den, but later they themselves were thrown to the lions. The unbelieving Jewish leaders who sacrificed Christ in order to save the nation (see John 11:49–53) in a few years saw their city destroyed and their nation scattered.

It is a righteous thing for God to judge sin and condemn sinners. A holy God cannot leave sin unjudged. People who say, “I cannot believe that a loving God would judge sinners and send people to hell” understand neither the holiness of God nor the awfulness of sin. While it is true that “God is love” (1 John 4:8), it is also true that “God is light” (1 John 1:5), and in His holiness He must deal with sin.

A Christian doctor had tried to witness to a very moral woman who belonged to a church that denied the need for salvation and the reality of future judgment. “God loves me too much to condemn me,” the patient would reply. “I cannot believe that God would make such a place as a lake of fire.”

The woman became ill and the diagnosis was cancer. An operation was necessary. “I wonder if I really should operate,” the doctor said to her in her hospital room. “I really love you too much to cut into you and give you pain.”

“Doctor,” said the patient, “if you really loved me, you would do everything possible to save me. How can you permit this awful thing to remain in my body?”

It was easy then for him to explain that what cancer is to the body, sin is to the world; and both must be dealt with radically and completely. Just as a physician cannot love health without hating disease and dealing with it, so God cannot love righteousness without hating sin and judging it.

The word vengeance must not be confused with revenge. The purpose of vengeance is to satisfy God’s holy law; the purpose of revenge is to pacify a personal grudge. God does not hold a grudge against lost sinners. Quite the contrary, He sent His Son to die for them, and He pleads with them to return to Him. But if sinners prefer to “know not God, and … obey not the gospel” (2 Thess. 1:8), there is nothing left for God to do but judge them.

This judgment will take place when Jesus Christ returns to the earth with His church and His angels (2 Thess. 1:7). This is not the same event described by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18. We may contrast these two events: 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 2 Thessalonians 1 Christ returns in the air Christ returns to the earth He comes secretly for He comes openly with the church the church Believers escape the Unbelievers experience tribulation the tribulation, judgment Occurs at an undisclosed Occurs at the end of the time tribulation period, the day of the Lord

Rest (vv. 7a, 10). God will recompense tribulation to the lost, but rest to the saved. I believe that the first phrase in 2 Thessalonians 1: should be treated as a parenthesis: “to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you (and to you who are troubled, rest with us) when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed.” The saints receive their rest when the Lord returns in the air and catches us up to be with Him.

The word rest means “relief, release, not under pressure.” It is the opposite of “tribulation.” The word describes the releasing of a bowstring. In this life, God’s people are pressured, “pressed out of measure” (2 Cor. 1:8), and under the burdens of trial and persecution. But when we see Christ, we will be released. We need not fear fiery wrath and judgment (1 Thess. 1:10; 5:9), for God has already judged our sins at Calvary.

What kind of future is there for the lost? They face punishment and eternal judgment (2 Thess. 1:9), while the saved shall enjoy the rest and glories of heaven. The lost shall be separated from God, while the saved “shall see his face” (Rev. 22:4). Some cultists have tried to dilute the meaning of “everlasting destruction,” saying it means either temporary suffering or total annihilation; but both ideas are false. The phrase means “eternal judgment,” no matter how men try to twist it or avoid it (see Matt. 25:41).

Paul encouraged his friends with praise and promise; and he had a third encouragement.

The Christians in Thessalonica were grateful to God for Paul’s first letter, but it did not immediately solve all their problems. In fact, the persecution grew worse, and some believers thought they were living in the time of the tribulation. Then a letter arrived claiming to be from Paul, stating that the day of the Lord was actually present. Needless to say, the assembly was confused and frightened by this prospect.

Some of the believers concluded that since the Lord’s coming was so near, they ought to quit their jobs and spend their time waiting for Him. This meant that the other members were under an extra burden to care for them. Satan was working overtime; as the lion, he was seeking to devour (1 Peter 5:7–8), and as the serpent, he was seeking to deceive (2 Cor. 11:3).

It was in response to these needs that Paul wrote his second letter. He began with their most pressing need, the persecution they were experiencing because of their faith. In this first chapter, Paul shared three encouragements with his suffering friends.

Paul prayed for his converts (1 Thess. 1:2; 3:10). His “wherefore” in 2 Thessalonians 1: means “And because of all I have just said”—the return of Christ to be glorified in the saints, and to judge the lost. The future prospect of glory motivated the apostle to pray for the saints. We must never neglect a present responsibility because of a future hope. On the contrary, the future hope must encourage us to be faithful today.

There were three concerns in Paul’s prayer.

Their worthiness (v. 11a). In 2 Thessalonians 1:5, Paul had stated that he wanted them to be worthy of the kingdom when they entered glory in the future. But here he emphasized their present situation. God’s calling was in grace and love, and Paul desired that they might live up to that calling (see 2 Thess. 2:13–14).

Trials do not make a person; they reveal what a person is made of. When our faith is tried, we are revealing our worth (1 Peter 1:6–9). God certainly knows our hearts even before we are tried, but we do not know our own hearts. And others do not know what we are worth. We need to pray that God will build our worth and make us more valuable Christians because of the trials we have endured.

Their walk (v. 11b). “That by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act promoted by your faith” (niv). Character must lead to conduct. Paul prayed that they might have a resolute will, empowered by God, to do what He wanted them to do. Obedience and service do not spring from human talent and efforts, but from God’s power as we trust Him.

Paul had linked faith with love (2 Thess. 1:3) and endurance (2 Thess. 1:4), and here he linked it with power. If we believe God, we will receive His power in our lives. We cannot be victorious in tribulations if we only trust ourselves, but we can be victorious through trusting Him.

When I travel, I carry an electric razor that can store up the energy and run for perhaps two hours without any outside source of power. It is especially useful when I visit the mission fields.

While preaching for a week at a summer conference, I noticed that my razor was losing power. In fact, one morning it operated so slowly that I was convinced it was broken. Then by evening, it had picked up speed again. A few minutes’ investigation revealed the problem: I had plugged the razor into a socket that was controlled by a wall switch. When my wife had the desk lamp on, my razor was storing up power; when the light was off, the razor received no power.

That incident taught me a spiritual lesson: it is easy (by force of habit) to trust a source of power without checking to see if the switch is on. Paul was praying that his friends might “have the switch on” and, by their faith, receive the power needed to endure suffering and glorify God.

Their witness (v. 12). Jesus Christ will be glorified in His saints when they return with Him (2 Thess. 1:10), but He should also be glorified in our lives today. Unbelievers blaspheme His name (1 Peter 4:12ff.), but believers bless His name and seek to glorify it. The amazing thing is that the believer who glorifies Christ is likewise glorified in Christ, “glorified in you, and you in him” (niv).

How can this be done? “According to the grace of our God and Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thess. 1:12). Grace and glory go together, as do suffering and glory (see Ps. 45:2–3; 84:11; Rom. 5:2; 2 Cor. 8:19; 1 Peter 5:10). As we receive His grace, we reveal His glory.

“‘There is no peace,’ saith the Lord, ‘unto the wicked’” (Isa. 48:22). No rest for the wicked! But there is rest for those who trust Christ and seek to live for His glory. For the Christian, the best is yet to come. We know that “the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Rom. 8:18).