BRUCE C WEARNE continues his look at chapter 2 of II Thessalonians…
But for you brothers [and sisters] we are duty bound to continually give thanks to God for you, so dearly belovèd of the Lord, because He chose you to be a first harvest, to [enjoy] a redemption and complete spiritual holiness and by a faithful adherence to the truth, to which He also calls you through our Good News to obtain the eminence of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers [and sisters] stand! And hold to the handed-down precepts you were taught, either by word [of mouth] or [written up] in our letters.
And our Lord, Jesus Christ, and our God the Father, the One having loved us and given us the comfort that goes on and on with the gift of a good hope will comfort your hearts and confirm all your good works and words. – II Thessalonians 2:13-17/transliteration by Bruce C Wearne
The harvest is ripe! PICTURE: Melissa Askew/Unsplash
“It is as if Paul is saying to them that the Good News enables them to stand with the status and eminence of Jesus Christ, to not only repel the temptations thrown at them by their accuser, by Satan, but to be reassured that in Him they are now, fully and completely, participants in God’s work of harvesting the glories of His creational work.”
There is something definitive here. Paul has conveyed the concern he has for them because of the possible destabilising that comes from those wanting to say: “The day of the Lord has arrived”.
He has presumably said enough on that score. He now moves on. His aim is the up-building and encouragement of this church of Thessalonians.
There will be those who are distracted by such speculative talk to become idle and avoid personal responsibility. But that admonition will come later on as he closes the letter. There may well be a connection but in the meantime Paul gives emphasis, once more, to the place of these Christians in God’s Kingdom. They are chosen of God for a “first harvest”; they are to share in the honour and the glory, the status, the eminence, of Jesus Christ Himself.
Sure, he has had to describe the “scorched earth” recklessness of the unrighteous, those who thumb their noses at the Good News and the gracious offer of Divine Mercy.
The Thessalonians have been subjected to significant and persistent trials and tensions. They have been suffering persecution. Hold on! he says. Stand fast! Reckon with the sound teaching you have inherited. He reminds them that since they are disciples of the suffering servant of the Lord, they should not expect an easy trouble-free life. They have already, and will in future, share in Christ’s sufferings. They are to leave judgement in God’s hands. They should be living with the confidence that God has taken them into His own confidence, that He has assured them of their vindication. His warnings are clear.
The complex way of life in which their opponents are completely absorbed is indeed a labryinth of delusion. It is no happenstance. It may proclaim human self-sufficiency; but it is not itself self-sufficient. It may claim autonomy; but it is not actually a law unto itself. It is an interim judgement sent by God, and, if only they would realise it, a warning!
It is as if Paul is saying to them that the Good News enables them to stand with the status and eminence of Jesus Christ, to not only repel the temptations thrown at them by their accuser, by Satan, but to be reassured that in Him they are now, fully and completely, participants in God’s work of harvesting the glories of His creational work. They are fully employed in God’s project with His creation, called to flourish into an ongoing manifestation of redeemed creational and redeemed eminence (Genesis 1:28-31; Mark 16:15).
Here are the Thessalonian believers, bursting with fruit and fruitfulness because of what God is pleased to bring forth into their lives, even as they remain aware of the threats to their health that seem to spring up on every side.
But, as with the parable of the wheat and the weeds, (Matthew 13:24-30 36-43) the harvest will indeed involve a sifting and those called to bear fruit, to abide and flourish in the vine (John 15:4) are not those called to do the sifting and sorting on harvest day. That’s all in God’s reliable hands.
Paul, in terms of the Good News he has proclaimed, has been privileged to be a participant in their incorporation into God’s harvest. And once again it is evident that Paul sees himself and his own ongoing contribution very much bound up with these fellow believers. They are all members one of another, bound by the working of God’s Spirit, the Comforter, in their midst.
And so, their good works and good words are commended. Let them continue, he says, more and more.
OPEN BOOK: II THESSALONIANS – THE HARVEST TO BECOME HARVESTERS
BRUCE C WEARNE continues his look at chapter 2 of II Thessalonians…
But for you brothers [and sisters] we are duty bound to continually give thanks to God for you, so dearly belovèd of the Lord, because He chose you to be a first harvest, to [enjoy] a redemption and complete spiritual holiness and by a faithful adherence to the truth, to which He also calls you through our Good News to obtain the eminence of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers [and sisters] stand! And hold to the handed-down precepts you were taught, either by word [of mouth] or [written up] in our letters.
And our Lord, Jesus Christ, and our God the Father, the One having loved us and given us the comfort that goes on and on with the gift of a good hope will comfort your hearts and confirm all your good works and words. – II Thessalonians 2:13-17/transliteration by Bruce C Wearne
The harvest is ripe! PICTURE: Melissa Askew/Unsplash
“It is as if Paul is saying to them that the Good News enables them to stand with the status and eminence of Jesus Christ, to not only repel the temptations thrown at them by their accuser, by Satan, but to be reassured that in Him they are now, fully and completely, participants in God’s work of harvesting the glories of His creational work.”
There is something definitive here. Paul has conveyed the concern he has for them because of the possible destabilising that comes from those wanting to say: “The day of the Lord has arrived”.
He has presumably said enough on that score. He now moves on. His aim is the up-building and encouragement of this church of Thessalonians.
There will be those who are distracted by such speculative talk to become idle and avoid personal responsibility. But that admonition will come later on as he closes the letter. There may well be a connection but in the meantime Paul gives emphasis, once more, to the place of these Christians in God’s Kingdom. They are chosen of God for a “first harvest”; they are to share in the honour and the glory, the status, the eminence, of Jesus Christ Himself.
Sure, he has had to describe the “scorched earth” recklessness of the unrighteous, those who thumb their noses at the Good News and the gracious offer of Divine Mercy.
The Thessalonians have been subjected to significant and persistent trials and tensions. They have been suffering persecution. Hold on! he says. Stand fast! Reckon with the sound teaching you have inherited. He reminds them that since they are disciples of the suffering servant of the Lord, they should not expect an easy trouble-free life. They have already, and will in future, share in Christ’s sufferings. They are to leave judgement in God’s hands. They should be living with the confidence that God has taken them into His own confidence, that He has assured them of their vindication. His warnings are clear.
The complex way of life in which their opponents are completely absorbed is indeed a labryinth of delusion. It is no happenstance. It may proclaim human self-sufficiency; but it is not itself self-sufficient. It may claim autonomy; but it is not actually a law unto itself. It is an interim judgement sent by God, and, if only they would realise it, a warning!
It is as if Paul is saying to them that the Good News enables them to stand with the status and eminence of Jesus Christ, to not only repel the temptations thrown at them by their accuser, by Satan, but to be reassured that in Him they are now, fully and completely, participants in God’s work of harvesting the glories of His creational work. They are fully employed in God’s project with His creation, called to flourish into an ongoing manifestation of redeemed creational and redeemed eminence (Genesis 1:28-31; Mark 16:15).
Here are the Thessalonian believers, bursting with fruit and fruitfulness because of what God is pleased to bring forth into their lives, even as they remain aware of the threats to their health that seem to spring up on every side.
But, as with the parable of the wheat and the weeds, (Matthew 13:24-30 36-43) the harvest will indeed involve a sifting and those called to bear fruit, to abide and flourish in the vine (John 15:4) are not those called to do the sifting and sorting on harvest day. That’s all in God’s reliable hands.
Paul, in terms of the Good News he has proclaimed, has been privileged to be a participant in their incorporation into God’s harvest. And once again it is evident that Paul sees himself and his own ongoing contribution very much bound up with these fellow believers. They are all members one of another, bound by the working of God’s Spirit, the Comforter, in their midst.
And so, their good works and good words are commended. Let them continue, he says, more and more.
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