Thursday, March 27, 2025
Wednesday, March 26, 2025
March 22 = 2 Thessalonians 2:1-17
The Man of Lawlessness Will Be Revealed.
2 Thessalonians 2:1-12
Stand Firm and Hold Fast Because You Are Chosen for Salvation
2 Thessalonians 2:13-17
OPEN:
- At what stage in life were you "rebellious"? What memory (painful or humorous) is associated with those times of conflict?
DIG:
- What must have been happening in Thessalonica to lead Paul to write this?
- How much time was Paul able to spend with the Thessalonians (Acts 17:2)? How would this affect their willingness to believe rumors about Christ's return (2 Thessalonians 2:2)?
- Whom do you think is the restrainer of this lawless one (2 Thessalonians 2:6-7)? How do you think this "restraining order" is enforced?
- What is God's ultimate purpose in allowing the "man of lawlessness" to deceive people? What signs mark his appearing?
- How will those who refuse Christ respond to this "man"? How does the "powerful delusion" sent by God differ from the deceptive evil of this "man" (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12)?
- How and why will God save his people (2 Thessalonians 2:13–14)? In response to God's initiative and Paul's ministry, what are the people to do?
REFLECT:
- How does this passage on Christ's Second Coming, and what will precede it, make you feel? Afraid? Relieved? Rather not think about it? Why? How do you think Paul would have wanted you to feel?
- What encouragement do verses 13-14 give you as you face hard times? Where do you need encouragement and strength from God now?
- Put this prayer (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17) in your own words and pray it for one another this week.
Devotional
IS THERE SOMEONE WHO MAKES YOU SMILE?
“But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you….” — 2 Thessalonians 2:13
This morning, I was thinking about different things I had survived throughout my ministry. It started out as a positive reflection, but before I realized what was happening, I had slipped into thinking of all the people who had wronged me over the years.
I felt myself sinking mentally and emotionally into the sticky mire of those negative thoughts. I realized my thoughts were going in the wrong direction and swiftly put on the brakes. I shifted into reverse to escape that mode of thinking and began mentally compiling a list of everyone who had been a blessing to me over the years.
The number of individuals who had been a blessing to me was so long that I couldn’t stop listing them! In comparison, the sheer number of these blessed connections swallowed the names of those who had become negative memories in my life.
One brother’s name in particular literally made me smile. Just the mention of his name puts a smile on my face. I decided I would say his name to several other people who knew him to see how his name affected them — and every person, without exception, smiled when I mentioned his name. I thought, what a blessing that the mere mention of a person’s name would make people smile!
This must have been how Paul felt about the Thessalonian believers, because when he wrote to them, he said, “But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you…” (2 Thessalonians 2:13).
The word “bound” is the Greek word opheilo, which describes an obligation. Whenever Paul began to ponder the great things God had done in the lives of the Thessalonian congregation, he felt obligated to stop what he was doing and give thanks to God for that group of believers. The mere thought of the Thessalonians put a smile on his face! They had been such a blessing to Paul that he felt an overwhelming sense of obligation to stop whatever he was doing to thank God for them. This is the way I feel about my friend, and I hope you have someone who does that for you.
Thought of the Day: We, too, must learn to stop and thank God for what He has done in our lives — especially for those who have been a blessing to us and who cause us to smile at the mere thought of their name! We have an obligation to stop and remember all that God has done and to give Him thanks.
THE ONE THING CONSTANT IN CHANGE
“So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter. May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.” 2 Thessalonians 2:15-17
My Aunt Virginia was almost a dinosaur when she retired from her job a few years ago. She was past retirement age, but her job longevity was what seems so out of place in today’s culture. She worked at the same place, doing the same job, for 50 years! Such job stability seems as strange to us as dinosaurs would be in your backyard.
When she was employed at the Hunter Fan Company in Memphis, Tennessee, she was only seeking a temporary job, and she was just 18 years old. However, what she found was a long career winding fan motors, and when she retired she was the employee that has served the company longer than any other employee. She was given a frozen turkey on her last day of employment.
We are frequently told that employees of the 21st century will have to continually upgrade their skills and even change careers several times because of rapidly changing technology. However, just because technology and skills are changing at an exponential rate that doesn’t mean that everything in life should follow suit. It is unlikely there will be many people who can hold a job for 50 years in the future. This will be increasingly rare and even more of an exception to the norm than it is now.
In the midst of a tumultuous living and work environment, we can still find stability. Even though we may have to move from one state to another, or one company to another, we can still have stability in our lives. Our spiritual stability hinges upon one thing—our relationship with Jesus Christ. God does not change, and He is the same today as He was yesterday, and as He will be tomorrow.
To have stability in the midst of change, we must remember to put Christ first in our lives (Matthew 6:33). To have stability and the accompanying peace that it brings in the midst of the storm of change, we must look to God to provide what only He can give us (Philippians 4:6-7).
In my lifetime, I have had to move from one place to another, and I have had several employers, including those in my teenage years. In the midst of change and uncertainty, God has given me the stability of peace beyond human understanding. This does not mean that I have not experienced stress, fear, doubt, and depression, just as you have. It does mean that God has walked with me and carried me through it each step of the way. He will do the same for you!
Thought of the Day: Maybe it is time to let go of a job, a position, or a habit that you have held for ever. Maybe it is time to say, “God what do you have for me next. I'm ready.”
Tuesday, March 25, 2025
March 21 = 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12
Greeting
2 Thessalonians 1:1-2
Thanksgiving for the Thessalonian Believers
2 Thessalonians 1:3-4
The Judgment at Christ’s Coming
2 Thessalonians 1:5-12
OPEN QUESTIONS:
What did your parents do right in raising you? What rewards and punishments worked best?
=====
2 Thessalonians 1
1Paul, Silas and Timothy,
To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
2Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving and Prayer
3We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. 4Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.
5All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might 10on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.
11With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. 12We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
======
OUTLINE
2 THESSALONIANS 1
Paul opens his second letter to the Thessalonians by praising them for faith in Christ and for their love for one another. He encourages them, saying that the persecution they are enduring will prepare them for the Kingdom.
I. Paul’s Praise of the Church at Thessalonica (1:1–4)
A. The church’s testimony (1:1–3)
1. Their faith in the Savior has grown more and more (1:1–3a).
2. Their love for the saints has grown more and more (1:3b).
B. The church’s trials (1:4): They have grown spiritually in spite of troubles and trials.
II. Paul’s Promise to the Church at Thessalonica (1:5–10): The apostle says their trials will be used to accomplish a twofold purpose.
A. What (1:5–6)
1. Concerning the persecuted (1:5): Their hardships will be used to prepare believers for the Kingdom of God.
2. Concerning the persecutors (1:6): God is already preparing judgment and punishment for those who harm believers.
B. When (1:7–10): Both purposes will be accomplished at Christ’s second coming.
III. Paul’s Prayer for the Church at Thessalonica (1:11–12)
A. Concerning God’s power (1:11a): That it might strengthen them.
B. Concerning God’s purpose (1:11b): That it might be fulfilled in them.
C. Concerning God’s person (1:12): That he might be glorified by them.
DIGGING QUESTIONS:
What has happened since Paul wrote 1 Thessalonians (2 Thessalonians 1:4)? How has persecution affected this church?
What is the evidence that they are "worthy" of God's kingdom (2 Thessalonians 1:5)?
Who is on trial here? Who is on the witness stand? In the judge's chambers?
Why is God waiting until the Second Coming to punish these persecutors? Who benefits from this delayed justice? How so?
What quality do you think Paul admires most in these Christians?
What do you see as the net effect of Paul's thanksgiving and prayer?
REFLECTION & ACTION QUESTIONS:
How will you exercise faith and love this week in a specific way or relationship?
Which of your current struggles are a result of being a Christian?
How do you feel about the punishment mentioned in verses 8-9? How might you feel if you were being severely oppressed?
Pray Paul's prayer (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12) in your own words for one another this week.
Devotional
How to be Saved – 2 Thessalonians 1:8 “In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The main point to the above verse is the punishment God will give those who trouble the saints of God. But a close examination of this verse will reveal the way to be saved. Notice first that the vengeance of God will be taken on two groups of people: ‘them that know not God and that obey not the gospel’. Examining those two groups, we can see here how we may avoid the “everlasting destruction” (2 Thessalonians 1:9) that our heavenly Father will bring upon the disobedient.
First, we see that one group of people who will be punished is those who know not God. In order, therefore, to avoid the vengeance of God, we must know God. How do we learn about God so that we may know Him? Our answer comes from Romans 10:13-17, hearing the word of God. Without hearing the word of God, we cannot believe in God nor know Him. If we then know Him, we will be able to avoid His vengeance and be able to enjoy eternity in heaven.
Secondly, to avoid the ‘everlasting destruction’ of the Lord, we must obey the gospel. Jesus taught that, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:15). That which concerns the kingdom of God is what makes up the gospel of Christ. We can find in the scriptures that Jesus is the head of the kingdom/body/church (Colossians 1:18), salvation is in Christ (Ephesians 3:6), and all spiritual blessings are in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). The gospel is the “good news” of salvation in Jesus Christ.
It should really come as no surprise that 2 Thessalonians 1:8, with the same words, shows both what will condemn a person and what will save their soul. If not knowing God and not obeying the gospel will bring the vengeance of God upon us, then it must also be true that knowing God and obeying the gospel will keep us from suffering from that same vengeance.
In Christ, Steve Preston
Monday, March 24, 2025
March 20 = 1 Thessalonians 5:12-28
Paul's Final Exhortations (Christian Conduct)
1 Thessalonians 5:12-22
Paul's Benediction
1 Thessalonians 5:23-28
OPEN:
- What causes you to "blow a gasket": Traffic jams? Christmas shopping? Bickering children? Burned dinners? Or what?
DIG:
- From this passage, what people make up the Christian community?
- What attitudes underlie Paul's various commands here? What impressions of the Christian life do these commands give you?
- How would you summarize the goal and hope of the Christian life (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24) in your own words?
- How do the many commands in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-22 relate to the multi-dimensional blessing of 1 Thessalonians 5:23? To the promise of 1 Thessalonians 5:24? To the requests of 1 Thessalonians 5:25-27? To the benediction of 1 Thessalonians 5:28?
REFLECT:
- Of the various commands, which are most relevant to your church? Your small group? Your workplace? You? Which do you feel you are already practicing well? Which one will you work on this week? How?
- What encouragement, sanctification, and grace do you receive from God to fulfill these commands? How has your small group been a help to you in this regard?
Devotional
It’s Our Job
An organization called OnePoll did a survey concerning the generous habits of Americans. The results showed that the average American commits five good deeds a month—and wants to do more. Some of the good deeds were little more than good manners (holding a door open for a stranger), while some required personal investment (carrying groceries home or paying for a stranger’s meal). When people were invited to share the nicest thing anybody ever did for them, the stories were touching tributes to human decency and kindness to those unable to pay it back.
These stories are all around us because kind and good people are everywhere. A school bus driver in Copperas Cove (west of Temple), Texas, didn’t want children waiting in tall weeds at the bus stop—so he came back with his mower and groomed the abandoned property. A sergeant returning from overseas deployment for the birth of his son got stranded by the weather at an airport in Pennsylvania until a group of health workers on the way to a conference drove him the last eight hours in a blowing snowstorm. A 27-year-old worker at a New York Taco Bell routinely writes inspirational quotes and messages on the receipts she provides. A man on a plane found a lost wallet that contained ID and a paycheck, added some of his own cash, and anonymously mailed it back to the owner. These, and many other, stories play out every day as people do the work commissioned from the Lord—whether they realize it or not.
“And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else” (1 Thessalonians 5:14-15 NIV).
Daily kindnesses make our lives run smoothly. When we receive kindness from another, it reminds us that almost all people have similar interests and challenges. When we perform a good deed for another, we are filled with a joyous warmth that reminds us that we are, at heart, good people who want good things for others. All of this comes to us in the teachings of Jesus. He called us to care for one another without first deciding how it might be to our advantage.
God has been so good and generous to us that we are drawn to Him. We want to show those same character qualities to others as we go through our lives. We know that we have the ability to make another’s life brighter and happier just by a simple act of kindness. We all deplore the cruelties and crudities of our world. Here is a way to reflect some of God’s divine light and warmth across the landscape. One of the most obvious badges of Christian conduct is simple kindness. And so, with a good deed here, a kind word there, a small sacrifice now, we bless the world and imitate the One who sacrificed everything so that we might have the opportunity to be saved from certain and deserved doom. It’s our God-given job to improve the disposition around us!
-----
4 Powerful Ways To Spark Your Prayer Life
https://faithinthenews.com/4-powerful-ways-spark-prayer-life/
https://wisdomofgodwithwendy.org/want-spark-prayer-life-4-ways-can/
Here are 4 powerful ways that you can use to fire up your prayer life.
Pray Back His Word
There is nothing better, I believe, than to pray back God’s Word to Him. We know that the psalms contain many prayers in the form of songs and David’s psalms are really prayers that were put to music. Why not use some of these praise and prayer psalms as part of your prayer life like in Psalm 3 which says “I cried aloud to the Lord, and he answered me from his holy hill” (Psalm 3:4) or Psalm 84 “My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God” (Psalm 84:2).
Write out your Blessings
I challenged someone once who was going through a dark night of the soul to write out on a piece of paper everything that God has blessed them with. They came up with a list that contained (first and foremost) their being saved, a job, a home, a family, food, and so many other things. I believe that if we start counting our blessings and write them down one by one it will be easier to “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess 5:18).
Pray Whenever/Wherever you Can
Going back to 1 Thessalonians in chapter 5:16-17, it says “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing” but how can we pray without ceasing? The Greek wording used for “without ceasing” is “adialeiptÅs” and it means “without intermission, incessantly” which means that we can pray throughout the day, like when we are waiting in line or in traffic, when we are showering, when we are driving, or just about any time you can think about it. I start my day with prayer and devote certain times where I can be alone and pray in private, so don’t leave out this type of praying, but when Paul said to “pray without ceasing” I believe he meant that we can pray throughout the day so that we can be “constant in prayer” as Paul writes in Romans 12:12.
Find a Prayer Partner
I love to have others pray for me, but I also exchange prayers for them. It is one thing to be praying for yourself, but what a privilege to have others pray for you. Find a prayer partner and keep in touch with them on a regular basis. Ask them to pray for you for certain things during the week, and vow to pray for them for their spiritual and physical needs. Having a prayer partner is like having an accountability partner. Commit to pray for them and for them to pray for you, and you may be more committed to prayer.
Conclusion
For sure, we should pray for God to be glorified, for God always seeks to glorify His name. When we pray, we focus on God’s will, and we know for certain that it is always God’s will for His name to be glorified. Pray that prayer every day because we know that is always His will.
May God richly bless you,
Pastor Jack Wellman
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)