Dave's Diary

Daily Readings: 1 Thessalonians 1-2 and Psalm 148

In about 50AD, Paul wrote to the young Church in Thessalonica to encourage them. They had recently experienced death among their membership (possibly due to persecution), so Paul wrote to encourage them and to remind them of our Christian hope and assurance of life even after death.

In 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 he presents the Christian life as a matter of present transformation and future hope:

” … you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, ¹⁰ and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead – Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.“

The Christian life is a matter of serving the living and true God in this lifetime, and of joyfully anticipating the return of the death-conquering Lord Jesus Christ, Who will usher us into everlasting life beyond this lifetime. He has rescued us from the power of sin in the here-and-now, and from the righteous judgment of God against sin and those who cling to it (i.e. God’s “wrath”) in eternity. Moreover, He has promised us an eternity in “His Kingdom and glory” (2:12).

Our faith in Jesus and His Way of Life inspires us to “labour prompted by love” in this life and to an endurance of hardships inspired by our hope in His ultimate, victorious return (1:2).

Life application: Take hold of every opportunity to serve the ‘living and true God’ in love today, and when the going gets tough, be encouraged by your sure and certain hope in the return and ultimate victory of our Lord Jesus Christ.