REVEALED WORD TODAY
// READ: 1 THESSALONIANS 2:10-20 //
10 You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. 11 For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, 12 encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.
13 And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe. 14 For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews 15 who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to everyone 16 in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last.[a]
Paul’s Longing to See the Thessalonians
17 But, brothers and sisters, when we were orphaned by being separated from you for a short time (in person, not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you. 18 For we wanted to come to you—certainly I, Paul, did, again and again—but Satan blocked our way. 19 For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? 20 Indeed, you are our glory and joy.
MEDITATION:
The church of today has reduced salvation to just preaching to an unbeliever. They do not work on new converts the way Apostle Paul worked on the converts in Thessalonica and this is why there are many halfbaked Christians. Verse 11 says “As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you as a father does his own children.” How many of us go to this extent in establishing our converts in the faith? Let us imitate Apostle Paul henceforth and there will be hope for the future.
PRAYER: Lord, help me to labour more on my converts so that they will be rooted in you.