Receiving God’s Message

As Paul writes his first letter to the Church in Thessalonica, he remembers the people’s “work of faith, labor of love, and endurance of hope.” All that the Church produces by the Holy Spirit bear witness to these attributes. Their faith is seen in their work for God. Their love for Christ is displayed in how they labor for Him. Their hope is evident in their endurance as they wait for their Savior’s glorious return. Paul is assured by these works that the people have indeed received the Gospel Message. Not only has Christ’s Good News been heard, but it has been followed. Because of the faith, love, and hope seen through them, the Thessalonians become examples to their surrounding Church communities and deliverers of the Gospel wherever they go. The Work of the Gospel is shown by them because of what it has done within them.

Paul gives thanks for the Thessalonian Church because it receives the Gospel Message and produces works that show its growth by it. This is what living as followers of Christ looks like. It begins by receiving the Gospel of Jesus and then living by it in such a way that believers (and even non-believers) can detect Christ’s work within us. It is one thing to say that we believe in Christ, but quite another to show it by the works we produce for Him, the labor we put forth for His Glory, and the enduring hope we maintain as we continue to walk in His Way.