In our passage for today, we examine how it is that we can make sense of persecution and what hope we have, in the midst of it.
We must remember that the Thessalonians were no stranger to suffering and persecution for the sake of the faith. Already, in Acts 17, we learn of how Jews in the city of Thessalonica were enraged by Paul’s message, chasing him out of the city in an uproar. (Acts 17:2-9) However, as we have seen in the previous passage, 2 Thess 1:3-5: their faith grew abundantly amidst such trial, and the love they had for one another continued to increase. They continued to bear much fruit, amidst the trial and temptations.
Does this surprise us? In our present time, the presence of persecution and the ability of the Thessalonians to endure and bear much fruit may feel like something very distant to us. Many of us may live in circumstances free from such active and overt persecution. However, while our lives may not be in danger, we must see that God’s people will face persecution and varying degrees of suffering for the faith. There are common stories of people who have had to endure ridicule, conflict and opposition from their family members upon coming to Christ.
We must understand that suffering is a part of the Christian life, lest we be surprised or blindsided by times of trial and tribulation that may come. And this passage prepares us for that, while pointing us to the hope that we have, amidst such suffering.
(A) God Repays and Relieves: Our Lives Evidence His Righteous Judgement
In 2 Thess 1:5, Paul writes about the evidence of God’s righteous judgement. What does this “evidence” refer to? Read in the context of the previous verses, we learn that the evidence of God’s righteous judgement is that the Thessalonians’ faith grows ever abundantly, and that their love for one another is increasing, despite all their persecutions and afflictions. In our persecution and affliction, God is preparing us to be “worthy of his kingdom”, using such affliction to grow us in faith and love.
We should pause and consider how counter-intuitive that is. What do we and the world often think about when we suffer? Often times, the narratives that form in our head would be either that: 1. God is absent, or that 2. God is not just. We wonder: are His righteous judgments working the way they should? And through suffering, we ask: why does it have to be me?
Paul takes the opposite position to such difficult questions. Their suffering is not proof of the absence of God, or His unjust nature. The suffering of the Thessalonians is the result of the righteous judgement God is at work in their lives, even in the midst of suffering. He is preparing His people for His kingdom: preparing them in faith and love, despite the suffering. We should note that when Paul writes about the Thessalonians being considered “worthy” of God’s Kingdom, he is not speaking of them gaining greater degree of entitlement to God’s kingdom through suffering. Rather, Paul is speaking of the Thessalonians being made more and more fit for God’s kingdom, through the suffering they endure. We become more and more like Jesus, as we go through suffering. We learn to respond to affliction just as Jesus did.
However, that does leads us to the question: what does God consider a just response to affliction? Many have genuine questions about the absence of God in our suffering. How does this passage encourage us in the midst of that? We learn from verse 6 and 7 that God’s just response is shown in how he will repay with affliction those who afflict us, and God will grant relief to those afflicted.
This is reinforced for us in 1 Peter 4:12-19. Peter leads us to see a similar conclusion as Paul’s letter to Thessalonians: that God is sovereign over suffering, and will one day repay and judge the living and the dead. (1 Peter 4:17-18) And more than that, Peter leads us also to see that the suffering we endure in the present are but a reflection of the suffering of Christ (1 Peter 4:13): who was afflicted for us at the Cross, that rebels like us can be reconciled to the holy God. In light of that, 1 Peter 4:12-19 echoes Paul’s message in 2 Thessalonians 1:6-7: that God will repay and eventually relieve our suffering. God remains just and righteous, even in the midst of suffering.
How does this encourage us, through pain, tribulation and suffering that may come upon us? Firstly, we learn that if God is present and will still execute His righteous judgements, then we can cry out to Him in lament. Psalm 72 reminds us that God is not just a theoretical concept, or a ‘crutch’ in times of trouble. He is the King, who truly delivers the needy when he calls, who helps the poor, and those who has no helper. (Ps 72:12-13) Our just and righteous God provides comfort in the now, and in the future. And even as we groan our trouble, we can take heart from God’s promise. We can run to promises, and run to Him in our honest lament, still trusting that He can act, will act and does act for us.
(B) God Reveals: Our Hope is in His Present and Final Glory
With that in mind, we can then ask: when are we promised this relief? When will God relieve our suffering? 2 Thess 1:7b shows us that our relief will come “when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty heavens”. Our relief will come at a point in the future, when the Lord Jesus is revealed form heaven. Justice and relief will be served, when Jesus returns.
And with that in mind, what will happen when Jesus is revealed? From 2 Thess 1:8-10 we see a vivid and terrifying picture of God’s judgement against those who disobey:
God will come with an army, described here as mighty angels in flaming fire. God will come in all splendour, with a mighty army! (2 Thess 1:7b)
This army will inflict vengeance on those who do not know God and those who do not obey the Gospel of Jesus. (2 Thess 2:8).
We learn from here that two groups of people will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction. The phrase “away from the presence of Lord and from His glory and might” emphasizes their eternal separation from God: that those who do not know God, and do not obey the Gospel will be utterly separate from Him.
On the other hand, Jesus will be glorified in his saints, marvelled among all who believe.
The first thing we can notice from these verses in 2 Thess 1:8-10 is this notion of God’s vengeance. Our idea of vengeance is shaped by popular culture, where we often think of vengeance as vindictiveness, getting back at someone for something done against us. However, the word for vengeance in this passage doesn’t carry the connotation of vindictive anger; rather, it is more closely associated with a straightforward, firm administration of something. It is the application of justice in a factual, impartial manner.
From this, we see that God’s wrath and vengeance cannot be likened to human anger or vindictiveness. Rather, it is His just anger against sinners. We see this also in Rom 1:18-21, we see how God has shown His invisible attributes to us. He has made these attributes plainly and clearly accessible, and so no one can have any excuse for denying Him. In that manner, our denial of God is clearly a form of rebellion against Him, one that God will not leave unpunished.
God’s vengeance will therefore come to two groups of people: Those who do not know God, and those who do not obey the Gospel of the Jesus (2 Thess 1:8). We learn from this verse that the Gospel message contains a call to obedience. The Good News of Jesus is to be shared and obeyed. Paul here is in accord with the message of Jesus in the Gospels: as we learn from passages like Mark 1:15, Jesus’s chief message was that we must repent and believe upon Him.
And in light of this verse, we see that the Gospel call to obedience is something we must obey and will continue to obey. We must continue to share the Gospel, and pray for the obedience of others to the Gospel.
What then is the outcome that these 2 groups of people will face? From 2 Thess 1:9, We learn that they will suffer eternal punishment, away from God’s presence in Hell. This means that Hell will be a place completely devoid of God’s character, except for His justice. People will be eternally apart from everything good and blessed in God’s presence.
However, in 2 Thess 1:10, we see a different outcome for those who know God. On that day, Jesus will be glorified in his saints, in those whom He will completely sanctify on that day. All who have believed will marvel, for they believed the testimony about Jesus.
What differentiates this group of saints, from those condemned? Note that it is not because of some moral superiority they inherently possess. The crucial point of difference is belief: belief in the testimony of Jesus Christ, as verse 10 reminds us. And in this, we learn that our greatest hope is in Christ. Our hope is in Christ’s glorious victory over sin, and this hope culminates in His return, where He will truly judge the living and the dead. Our hope is in His present and final glory.
(C) We Resolve: God Fulfils and Makes Worthy
In light of this stunning reality of Jesus’s coming, as described in verses 6 to 10, Paul prays for 4 things for the Thessalonians:
That God may make the worthy of His calling;
That God may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith;
The name of Jesus will be glorified in them
And they in Him: that the Thessalonians will be kept and sustained to the very end, and may be glorified in Christ.
And so, Paul prays that God may make them worthy of His Kingdom and glory. What is particularly striking in this prayer is how Paul prays that by God’s power, that every good resolve of them will bear fruit. So often, in our Christian life, we find that our willpower is weak and what we resolve can fail. But Paul’s prayer encourages us in the midst our weakness: that God will strengthen all that we resolve, which pleases Him.
The Spirit of God, who dwells in us, fulfils the good and pleasing things that we seek to do. We are not left alone to strive in this Christian life; but it is the very power of God, through His Spirit, that fulfils the good and God-pleasing things we resolve to do.
Thus, these verses teach us that we must first set our minds to do the things that please God. One half of doing the right thing in God’s sight is wanting to. And as we seek to do His will, there might be times that we know what the right thing to do is: but we don’t. We are afraid of bearing the cost of doing so. But here Paul prays that every good resolve, will bear fruit, and we can trust in our God who will empower us to bear fruit, for His glory.
Knowing this, what encouragement is there for us, in our Christian life? To see this more clearly, we can break down Paul’s prayer again, with the following considerations:
Who is the one who makes us worthy? God
Who resolves for good? Man
Who carries out the work of faith? Man
Who fulfils every work? God
We learn here that it is we who resolve for good and must carry out the work of faith. However, our Christian life is not lived in isolation, striving alone. Rather, it is God who fulfills and accomplishes every work in us, by His power, and in His time. This reduces that sense of ‘performance anxiety’ that often creeps in: where we worry so much about whether our works are sufficient or enough for God, or whether our feeble attempts can match up. Amidst our weaknesses, we can be comforted and encouraged that we resolve, and God fulfills His work in us. He will be glorified in us!
God does not need our partnership to accomplish what is His work. He is the all-sufficient God who desires our response. Through Jesus, He enables us to enter into relationship with Him. According to His grace, by the power of the Spirit, he works and accomplishes His work in us: He will keep working in us, sanctifying us and guiding us through trial and tribulation, until we come before Him. Even in our suffering, He does not stop, and our pain is not wasted in Him!
As we consider this passage, we learn about the following points about suffering, the Christian life, and second coming:
All Christian suffering is designed to make us worthy of the Kingdom of God. This does not mean that God takes any pleasure in our suffering. But what He ordains is right: and He can use suffering and trial to sanctify and grow us in holiness.
Evil and injustice will not triumph in the end. We see this promise from as early Deuteronomy 32: those who persecute others now will face His vengeance. And so, we can be comforted: that Those who suffer now for His kingdom will find rest and eternal peace in God.
All that we do in life: every endeavour that we have and do, is important and significant in the eyes of God. There is no such thing as an unimportant matter or issue, nor are our lives insignificant for the purpose of His kingdom! 2 Thess 1:11-12 encourages us to resolve to bear fruit of the spirit, praying that Christ may ocomplete His work in us.
Knowing about the judgement of God ought to change the way we live in the present. In a world broken by suffering and sin, we are encouraged to resolve boldly and act on or faith in the present day. What does that look like in your life? Are there areas of affliction and struggle where you find it challenging to trust God? Is there anything that God is calling you to resolve towards, and act on in faith today?