This is an epistle that is really positive. Paul is full of love and joy when he is talking about this church. John Stott has said that this is a good example of how churches should think about other churches.

As we look at this letter to Thessalonica, it is noteworthy that this church warranted two letters from Paul. We should pay attention to the start of this second letter, as it shows what was Paul’s priority in his letter. The start of this letter relays key priorities for church life. Paul lays a model for how we should be thinking about church life and relationships.

 When was the last time we got into a fierce debate about the centre of the Christian life? A discussion about doctrine? When was the last time you got into a serious debate about how Christians live? How many of you said that you were offended by was the lack of thankfulness in the lives of Christians? Issues of thanksgiving and gratefulness are not high on our priority list. This is the problem in our lives that Paul is trying to address. Thanksgiving is supposed to be a healthy normative priority.

(A) Prioritising thanksgiving is being consistent (2 Thess 2:1-2)

This letter was by Paul, Silvanus (Silas) and Timothy (2 Thess 1:1). Acts 15:36-16:5 tells us the context of the formation of the church of Thessalonians. They are now writing to the church that they started.

We’ve seen this formula before in the opening of 1 Thess 1:1. In 2 Thessalonians, Paul was not only copying his former letter. This idea of thanksgiving is not only something that he repeats, but also adds to. In 2 Thess 1:3, Paul adds the phrase “as is right”. He is emphasising the rightness of it. He doesn’t just share the pattern but also the priority and rightness of it.

(B) Prioritizing thanksgiving is appropriate (2 Thess 1:3a)

Notice Paul’s greeting here — “grace to you and peace from God”. Do you realise that we can say grace and peace to each other from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We get this peace when we join God’s family. We ought to continue to encourage one another with these words.

This is a call to mature thinking. How often do you think about the consistency of our lives? Do our priorities shift and change because of circumstances, or do they stay the same because of unchanging realities? What will your day be like if you begin each day with “grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ”? What will your day be like if you addressed the first Christian you saw in the morning with the grace and peace, even with the person that you have had a conflict with?

Why is it important? Paul says that it is right to apply consistency to our theology. To not do so, would be wrong. To not always give thanks would be wrong. To not address our thoughts to God would be wrong. To not approach our relationships with a frame of God and thanksgiving would be wrong.

 Paul gives the instruction “therefore encourage one another and build one another up” in 1 Thess 5:11. This verse is one of those verses that we struggle with. To us it is vague and unclear, and we seldom think about this command. Have we tried to orient a church camp or youth camp to this verse? We don’t do it because we feel that it is not important, because we don’t think that it is right. Paul says that if we prioritise thanksgiving, we do it because it is right.

 Jesus also modelled thanksgiving for us. What would he give thanks for? In John 11:38, Jesus gave thanks to the Father that God heard His prayers. Jesus, the eternal Son of God, was thankful that He was heard by the eternal Father in one moment. Jesus was expressing His relationship with the Father in that moment. And this was what He used to raised Lazarus from the dead. Before He summoned Lazarus, HE actually prayed thanked God for this relationship!

Thanksgiving to God is not surprising. It is an expression of right dependence on God. It is a statement of saying that what we have, we have received from God. We have not earned it by our own merit and efforts. Thanksgiving is the declaration that we are not wealthy or rich in ourselves. Even the eternal Son of God expresses such humble dependence. This is why Paul begins every letter with thanksgiving!

(C) Prioritizing thanksgiving means being attentive (2 Thess 1:3b)

Paul is specific in his thanksgiving and we read of how he thanks God for the people. The secret to unity, joy, tolerance, patience etc is this. Do you think that your Christian brother or sister is one to be tolerated? Are we fine with having the person in service but not in our cell group? Are the Christians around you burdens?

Paul also gives thanks to God for their faith and love. In 1 Thess 2:13, Paul also lays out what he means by faith. It is and actual trust in what God said and has done. Their confidence in these things have not waned but they believe in it more and more. Every day they believe it more today than they did yesterday.

How was this evident? Paul also received an actual report from Timothy (c.f. 1 Thess 3:6) . It is an empirical and verifiable report. The Christian life is concrete. It’s either you love people or you don’t. Their faith and trust in God was real and could be proven. And because of a real faith in a real God, they were willing to leave them comforts and show practical love for another. And it is a love that keeps growing, as we see in 2 Thess 1:3.

Is your faith growing stronger every day? It cannot if you feed yourselves trash. We consume more nonsense through this phone, than we feed ourselves the reality of our sins and the superior joy of God and His word. We are feeding on something every day. What are we feeding ourselves? Is what you’re feeding on fuelling gratefulness and thankfulness? Ask your friends/family: is my faith growing stronger or weaker every day? Write a report of my faith and love. If your faith is not manifesting in charity, kindness, goodness, Christlike-love, it will manifest in something else.

We are also to be attentive to the fruit of godliness being worked out in the lives of others. The use of the word “consider” in Heb 10:24-25 means to think hard, strategise, contemplate. The writer of Hebrews is calling the readers to think of ways to get others to love and good deeds. And it is to be done personally, face-to-face. These verses in 2 Thess 1 are calling us to get into people’s lives and thinking hard about how to bring forth Christ in a particular individual’s life and circumstances. Spend time and don’t give up meeting! When the day approaches, we want to present the brother or sister as faultless and blameless before Christ!

(D) Prioritizing thanksgiving means going public (2 Thess 1:4)

When Paul thinks about them and the ways that God is fruiting them and bringing about godliness, Paul boasts about them (2 Thess 1:4). They are his treasure! Paul wants more of what he is seeing and he is drawing attention to this! We should celebrate fruitfulness in one another. Can you point to fruit in each other’s lives? Or yours? Have you ever told someone that you are thankful to God for their growing faith and fruit that God is bringing about? What’s stopping you?

Some of you might wonder what fruit looks like. Perhaps consider this: you sit here tonight with even a small desire to study God’ word – that is fruit!

To continue in thanksgiving may not be that hard after all! It can mean that we should be consistent and draw our attention to what God is doing in each other’s lives. If this is not our practice, we are not looking at what God is doing in the world. We are not dependent on God for what he is doing in the world. We are probably miserable in God.

Following Jesus is tough, but we can also practice this text tonight – to be consistent and continue to point out how God is working in each person’s life.

If we don’t do that,

  • We are not looking at what God is doing in the world.

  • We are not dependent on God for what He is doing in the world.

  • We are probably miserable in God.

The reverse of these 3 things is also true! If we give thanks regularly,

  • We start to look for what God is doing.

  • We are dependent on God.

  • We will find joy in Him.

Go to church with a desire to see how God is working in the church and in our lives. See how the person is battling grief but waded through it to turn up in church. See how another person has found so much joy in God! Go to church with the goal of encouraging another person in church! Go to the preacher and be specific with your thanksgiving! We are meant to draw attention to God in our thanksgiving and encouragement.