seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
2 Thessalonians 1:1 Paul, Silas and Timothy,
To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. 4 Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.
5 All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might 10 on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.
11 With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. 12 We pray this 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.
I found a couple of interesting clarifications in the commentary.Since it is a righteous thing with God: Many people question the righteousness of God’s judgment. They believe that God’s love and His judgment contradict each other. But God’s judgment is based on the great spiritual principle that it is a righteous thing with God to repay those who do evil. Since God is righteous, He will repay all evil, and it will all be judged and accounted for either at the cross or in hell.
To repay with tribulation those who trouble you: God was also shown as righteous when those who persecuted the Thessalonians were repaid with tribulation according to their evil works. They probably believed they did God a favor when they persecuted the Christians, but the righteous God would repay them and not reward them.
The Christians in Thessalonica might have been labeled "terrorist". They dared to tell people that God loved them so much, He sent His Only Begotten Son. They dared to tell people that it was no longer necessary for the priest to gut that oxen and throw it on the grill for your sins. They dared to tell people that it was no sin not to have the thingy cut. They dared to tell people that dietary restrictions aren't for God... They are to keep human guts clean and working. They dared to tell people Jesus walked out of a sealed, solid rock, tomb. Everyone knew they were spouting some really dangerous stuff!!!! Who told them all this dangerous stuff? The Christians of Thessalonica were accused of bringing the wrath of God on the good men of Thessalonica, for thumbing their noses at "God's Traditions and Rules".The Jews said the world will only be better if all the Christians were gone. The Jews thought they were defending God.
God didn't need defending.
Paul says the Christians would be repaid for all the beatings and killings the Christians would endure.
There used to be a T-Shirt with a logo that was quite famous.... "Kill them all, let God sort them out". That's what the Jews were saying about the Christians.
Now I'm pretty sure someone will wonder how today's headlines line up with these verses. HAMAS vowed to kill all the Jews. Christians vowed to feed all the Jews. HAMAS built tunnels under hospitals as a shield for their war against the Jews. Christians vowed to heal the sick and shelter the orphans and widows. It's the same... but it's different. I pray you will see the difference because I can't explain it any plainer than that.
Jesus said... "Love One Another". The people who wanted to murder all the Christians weren't showing a whole lot of love.... the Christians in Thessalonica weren't shooting at the Jews. They were showing love.
How do we know which side is right? Things are so confusing. Who's telling us the truth?
If we spend our time being kind to everyone.... God will sort it out.
Be kind to everyone... Let God sort them out!
