In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul, together with Silas and Timothy, addressed the church as ‘fellow servants’. Paul was so thankful and blessed by their character, integrity, maturity, and conduct throughout the joyful as well as tumultuous seasons that he spent considerable time in this letter encouraging them.
Life has its ups and downs, especially when we don’t know what to expect from one day to the next. When our plans are up in the air, it is difficult to plan for the future. At those times, God seems small and people and circumstances seem big.
That’s why we sometimes need to refocus and take time to thank God even for the smallest things.
Why is thankfulness so important and what effects does it have on our lives? Let’s read 1 Thessalonians 1:1-8:
1 Paul, Silas, and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you.
2 We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.
3 We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
4 For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you,
5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.
6 You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
7 And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.
8 The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia - your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore, we do not need to say anything about it… (1 Thessalonians 1:1-8)
Paul, Silas, and Timothy were thankful for the believers in Thessaloniki because of:
Who they were (vv. 1-2)
How they lived (v. 3)
Their testimony as a church (vv. 4-8)
Who They Were
Paul was making it clear that the church (ekklesia) was the “called out ones.” This is who we are - called out from the rest to glorify God and become more like Jesus in all we do and say.
The life and purpose of the church is so different that it is meant to stand out from any other gathering.
The gathering of the saints is not just a physical location, a place or building where people gather together for some event but speaks of a spiritual locus. Christ is the whole reason we gather as a church and is the Head of the church, our Great Shepherd.
We believers are united with God the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ and our unity is based on the same faith, the same life, and the same Spirit.
We are brothers or sisters in the Lord, vital members of the body of Christ. And if you know who you are then you also know what your purpose is as one who has been “called out”.
Since Paul knew what difficulties this new church was facing and what they needed, he said:
“Grace and peace to you! ”
This is what Paul desired for his friends - that through God’s grace they would experience His riches, His enablement, encouragement, unmerited favor, and love. And he also desired that they would experience God’s peace - that all would be well in their hearts and minds.
The church needed to mature in many areas, but the three disciples didn’t focus on their problems. Instead, they lifted them up. They viewed the Thessalonians the way God did - with grace.
How They Lived
In verse 3, they chose to remember and focus on who Christ had made them to be and what God’s grace had done in their lives. They recalled and expressed thanks for the church’s unceasing labor and service for God the Father, energized by faith. They remembered how every decision they made, every step they took was motivated and inspired by a living faith - faith in God, in His character and nature.
The church was motivated by love. Motivation of love in this passage is more accurately translated as labor of love. These leaders were saying to the church that they remembered how …
they were willing to go through many hardships because of the love God gave them for others.
Even when they didn’t see any harvest for their hard work, nor received nothing in return, they didn’t get discouraged because they were motivated by and operating in God’s love. They recalled how this church invested in the lives of others even when they were rejected, and their hearts were broken.
Not everything we trust God for comes to pass and if it does, it doesn’t necessarily mean it will turn out as we anticipated. Not every investment will yield fruit, not every prayer will be answered in the way we expected and not every act of love will be understood or appreciated.
And even though this is true,…
“we can be thankful for the time and opportunities God has given us to trust Him, to plant seeds of faith, to pray, to love and to invest His Word in others”
Our reward comes from God, and we will not receive our full reward in this lifetime. Because whatever we do, when it is done unto the Lord, is never wasted, never in vain. God sees every labor of love, every act of kindness motivated by love, every hardship endured for His Kingdom, and He will reward us in the end.
Paul could see that the Thessalonian church’s work of faith and labor of love was inspired by hope in Christ!
He said in Romans 5:3-5:
3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.
4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.
5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Their Testimony
God loved the Thessalonian church; He had called them to himself and what was clearly evident was the testimony of their faith. They didn’t just listen to the Word, sit back and confess, but they believed what God said. These were a people who took godly precepts and principles, made them their own convictions, and then lived them out.
“Conviction without action is invisible. ”
Paul was expressing thanks because their lives were a testimony not only to other believers but to the unbelieving world around them. Their faith in God had become known everywhere.
How does this apply to us? What part does thankfulness play in your life? How do we put it into practice?
Let’s take a moment to focus on the positive characteristics of someone who is close to you, someone who is very special to you. Why are you thankful for that person? If you had the opportunity to express your thanks, what would you say to him/her and what things would you say about him/her?
With writing down memories, you not only have the opportunity to record them, but also to share them with that person. It also gives you the chance to hear his/her response and his/her own thankfulness for the memories.
Being thankful for someone is one thing, expressing thankfulness to that person is another.
When gratitude is expressed to the person you are thankful for, it changes the way you think about them. There is a link between thankfulness and happiness. When people are able to express their thankfulness to the individual, their happiness increased exponentially.
In the same vein, I would like you to take a moment to think about who Jesus Christ is to you. If you are a believer, you know that He is the Savior of the world and that He died for all of our sins.
But do we really take time to meditate on this fact each day? Do we think about who we are in Him, or our place in God’s family?
We are loved, chosen and counted as righteous before a Holy God, not because of our work, but because of our faith in God who forgives sinners.
Romans 4:6-8 (NLT) says,
6 David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it;
7 Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight!
8 Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.
Why did God take all of your sin, guilt and shame?
It is because of His great love for you - so that you could have everlasting life, have an incorruptible inheritance, experience His peace and joy now, and a home in heaven with God for all of eternity. Jesus was handed over to die because of our sins, and He was raised to life to make us right with God. And best of all, He gave us His righteousness as a free gift.
Why be grateful and express thankfulness?
“Gratitude helps people refocus on what they have instead of what they lack. ”
It means you value others for who they are and appreciate what they do.
Paul, Timothy and Silas expressed their thankfulness for this church in Thessaloniki - who they were as God’s people, how they lived, and for their testimony throughout the Mediterranean region and beyond.
