Love for other Christians
1 Thessalonians 3:6-10
22nd October 2021
Last time, Paul was writing about the persecutions that he, his friends and the church in Thessalonica were having to endure, and about his sending Timothy there to see how they were. Paul was concerned that they may have been tempted to abandon Christ and the Gospel. Now he writes:
1 Thessalonians 3v6-10
But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about
your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of
us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.
Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged
about you because of your faith.
For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord.
How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the
presence of our God because of you?
Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what
is lacking in your faith.
Timothy had returned to Paul and Silas, who were probably now living in Corinth, with good news. The church in Thessalonica was living and demonstrating faith and love. They'd held on to their faith! All the cruelty of their neighbours and their government had not caused them to abandon the truth, to walk away from Jesus or each other. None of the subtle and no-so-subtle words of the evil one had persuaded them to return to worldly thinking and worldly lives. They'd remained faithful. They hadn't joined the herd; they'd stayed in the flock.
Jesus said:
Luke 12:32
"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give
you the kingdom."
And the Thessalonians were living that out. They knew that loving and serving Jesus with our whole hearts and all our lives is far more rewarding than seeking worldly pleasures or worldly security.
Paul and Silas were touched that the Thessalonian Christians loved them, had pleasant memories of them, and longed to see them again. Christian brotherly love is a real thing. We English can be shy of saying so, but we love our brothers and sisters in Christ, miss them when they're not here, and long to be reunited with them not just in heart but by being present together in the same room. Perhaps we should tell them more often. There's no friendship on earth like Christian fellowship.
Some people ask the question, "Do you have to go to church to be a Christian?" They mean, of course, "Do I have to go to the meetings?" My answer is that the true, committed Christian longs to go to church. To go to a church meeting is to be present with my brothers and sisters. To go to a church meeting is to worship my heavenly Father in the congregation of His people. To go to a church meeting is to have opportunities to encourage my Christian friends.
It's a sad truth that many Christians have lost that longing. Maybe too much Christian hypocrisy has turned them off. Maybe they've been hurt in a church – the last place anybody should ever be hurt. Maybe they just couldn't face more boring sermons. Maybe what Jesus called "the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth" (Matthew 13v22) changed their sense of priorities. You don't have to go to church to be a Christian, but you do have to go to church to be a happy Christian, a fulfilled Christian. You can't love God and ignore God's people. You can't have love for God without having brotherly love for your fellow Christians. And you can't have brotherly love without wanting to meet with your brothers.
Paul's and Silas's distress and persecution were real and painful. Some of us haven't really experienced persecution, but we've all experienced distress. Distress is more painful when you feel like you're going through it alone. And great comfort can come from knowing that your brothers and sisters remember you, care about you, and long to meet with you again.
This is what Christian fellowship means to real, committed Christians: Paul writes, "now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord". The spiritual, emotional and physical health of our brothers and sisters is of immense importance to us. But it's their spiritual wellbeing that matters most. Paul, Silas and Timothy were thrilled to know that the Thessalonians were standing firm in the Lord.
Come what may, may you and I always stand firm in the Lord. May we always trust God, may we always believe all the Bible, may we always speak the truth.
When Paul, Silas and Timothy prayed together for the Thessalonians, they were filled with joy, so much that they didn't know how to adequately thank God for that joy. May we value each other as much.
As we thank God for our brothers and sisters in Christ, may we pray for them consistently. And may we seek ways to build each other up in our holy faith. None of us is complete. None of us knows everything. None of us is without sin. May I help to supply what is lacking in your faith, and may you help to supply what is lacking in mine. And may we all have the humility and the grace to accept that our understanding is not perfect, and we need each other.