Read 2 Thessalonians 1:3-12

2 Thessalonians is a brief doctrinal correction.  But this needed correction did not mean that Paul was not thankful for them and that he was discouraged with how the church was going.  According to Acts 17:1-9 it appears Paul and the team were only there for about three weeks.  Within days, we believe, Paul sent the first letter to them to encourage them.  In that letter he remembered the faith, love and hope they had shown (1 Th. 1:3).  Likely someone had been sent with that letter and then returned to Paul and reported to him the doctrinal issue.  But they also reported that God’s work was continuing in the young church.  The report would have noted that the persecution that began while Paul was there (again, cf. Acts 17:1-9) was still a problem.  But in the midst of that persecution here is what God was doing in the church:

·        Their faith was growing exceedingly.  They were still trusting Christ and they were growing deeper in the doctrines of the gospel.  We know from the Scriptures that, for believers, affliction is to be expected (e.g. Acts 14:22).  And we also know that affliction is like a hothouse where faith’s growth is intensified.  In my lifetime an amazing illustration of this was the growth of the Church in China during the time of Mao Tse Tung.  The church had been growing through the work of missionaries up until the late 1940’s.  But under the Communists the persecution was strong.  There was little news as to what was happening until the veil lifted after the death of Mao and what the world saw was amazing.  The Church had not decreased but had grown tremendously in that time.  Their faith grew exceedingly.  I think of this in these days when it seems the hammer is again coming down harder on Christians in China.  At the same time, in the West, where persecution is pretty non-existent for Christians, we see a weakening of the Church.

·        Their love abounded towards each other.  Love of the brethren is THE mark of genuine Christianity (Jn. 13:34-35).  Again, the persecution provides a great opportunity for love, for reaching out to and standing by persecuted believers.  This was happening in Thessalonica. 

·        Their hope was something Paul shared with the churches as he continued his journey.  But, of course, you do not see the word “hope.”  Instead he speaks of their “patience and faith.”  I would say that this is the definition of hope.  Hope is faith with a future emphasis to it.  In faith we are looking back at the cross and empty tomb.  But in hope we are looking ahead to the deliverance from affliction and the rest we will have in Christ.  The English translators of the Bible often use the word trust when speaking of hope. 

Our trials, whatever they are, are essential to our growth in Christ.  In these trials we can sink or swim; we can become angry and impatient or we can draw closer in the likeness of Christ.  Clearly God was at work in the Church of Thessalonica.  How is God working through your trials and afflictions?