At the core of our faith, all of us must wrestle with understanding Father God’s heart. We are derailed by our own earthly father’s poor example, hard circumstances, our own selfishness, or we simply will not humble ourselves to understand.
In 1 Thessalonians 2, Paul is writing to the Church, all of God’s people, and conveying his strategy.
- Relationships – Paul is saying this is how the Truth of God’s love is expressed and learned and understood. Sharing the Gospel, life forever with Jesus, by investing and sharing life together and experiencing God together, not simply an information exchange.
- What kind of relationships? Familial. Look at the verbs: exhort, encourage, implore, guide. There is passion in those verbs for the sake of their children to know His heart and live for His Kingdom. In another version, visual pictures are used to describe this: holding your hand, whispering encouragement, showing you step by step.
- Power of His Word and Spirit – Clearly Paul is teaching, the whole church, God’s heart and ways are different than humans and we cannot possibly grasp with our own minds. It must come spiritually through the Word of God exercising supernatural power through the Holy Spirit to change our hearts and reveal to us how to know His!
- Lastly, Paul answers the question, why this is so important? Why must we, as the Church, live, share, and pass on this to the next generation? This represents our spiritual legacy. The only lasting impact of our lives will come through relationships and God’s Word and Spirit.
So, how, and in whom, are you investing your life? If you’re not sure, reflect on where your money and time are going…
In His Covenant family with you,
Pastor Brian