Faith and Love - December 26

Read 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 

Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. 

Reflect 

When Jesus returns, how do you want Him to find you? 

One thing we know for sure, Jesus is going to come back! In Acts 1:6-11, after He was lifted up and taken up to heaven on a cloud, two angels asked the disciples, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you in heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven” (v.11). Jesus will return. We can count on it. But what about us in the meantime? What should we be about while we wait? What kind of spiritual virtues should develop in our lives?  

We get the answer from Paul’s prayer for his spiritual children in today’s passage. First, Paul prayed that God would direct his path back to Thessalonica. Why? Because he earnestly wanted to “supply what was lacking” in their faith (1 Thessalonians 3:10). He wanted to be able to continue to minister to the Thessalonians and teach them the Word of God to build up their knowledge and strengthen their faith in the Lord.  

Remember from 1 Thessalonians 2:17-18 that Paul, Silas, and Timothy had tried to return to Thessalonica so they could finish ministering to the new believers there. Acts 17 tells us about their abrupt departure from Thessalonica due to persecution. But Satan kept throwing up roadblocks and thwarting their efforts to return. So today, we read that Paul asked God to direct their path back to Thessalonica. They wanted to see them again but they needed God to go before them and clear a path for them. Paul understood that their desires were subject to God’s will.  

Second, Paul prayed that the Thessalonians would increase in love for one another. Jesus Himself commanded love of His followers. In John 13:34-35, Jesus said: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”  

There is a lot that we can apply to our own lives from Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians. If we are a disciple of Jesus Christ, we are supposed to love other disciples of Christ. But he also prayed that their love would increase and abound for all. All means all, even those who are far from the Lord. Why? Because God loved us while we were far away from Him. In Romans 5:8, Paul wrote: “...but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 

Finally, Paul prayed that God would “establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.” In other words, Paul prayed for the Thessalonians' holiness as they waited for Christ’s return.  

You see, no one knows when Jesus will return. In Luke 12:35-48, Jesus said that we have to be ready. He told a parable about a servant who was left in charge while his master was gone. That servant had a choice to make, was he going to be a faithful and wise manager who would be rewarded when his master returned (v.42-44)? Or, was he going to take advantage of his master being gone so he could get drunk, be irresponsible, and treat the other servants harshly? If the master returned and caught him in unfaithfulness, he’d be severely punished. 

We should ask ourselves the same question, are we going to be faithful or unfaithful servants? When Christ returns, how will He find us? Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians was that they would be found holy and blameless at Christ’s return. Here at Back to the Bible, that’s our prayer for all of you, too—that you’d grow in your faith, increase in your love for the saints and for all people, and that you’d be found holy, blameless, and faithful when Jesus comes back. 

Respond  

Lord, I want to be Your faithful servant. Please grow my faith and make my love for my fellow believers and for those far from You increase and abound. Establish my heart in holiness. May I be found blameless when You return. Come quickly, Lord, Jesus! Amen. 

Reveal  

How can you encourage and come alongside a newer believer to help them grow in faith, love, and holiness?