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May 23, 2010
In his letter to the Thessalonian church, the apostle Paul thanked God for how his students had benefited from his teaching. Alistair Begg considers Paul’s celebration of how this early church received, applied, and displayed the Word of God. When Paul brought instruction, the church seriously heard it, worked it out in their lives through the Holy Spirit, and searched for ways to grow in their faith. We must imitate their response.
1For you yourselves know, brothers,1 that our fcoming to you gwas not in vain. 2But though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated hat Philippi, as you know, iwe had boldness in our God jto declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much kconflict. 3For lour appeal does not spring from merror or nimpurity or oany attempt to deceive, 4but just as we have been approved by God pto be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not qto please man, but to please God rwho tests our hearts. 5sFor we never came with words of flattery,2 as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—tGod is witness. 6uNor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, vthough we could have made wdemands as xapostles of Christ. 7But we were ygentle3 among you, zlike a nursing mother taking care of her own children. 8So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God abut also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.
9For you remember, brothers, bour labor and toil: we cworked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. 10You are witnesses, and dGod also, ehow holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers. 11For you know how, flike a father with his children, 12we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and gcharged hyou to walk in a manner worthy of God, iwho calls you into his own kingdom and glory.
13And jwe also thank God constantly4 for this, that when you received kthe word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it lnot as the word of men5 but as what it really is, the word of God, mwhich is at work in you believers. 14For you, brothers, nbecame imitators of othe churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For pyou suffered the same things from your own countrymen qas they did from the Jews,6 15rwho killed both the Lord Jesus and sthe prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and toppose all mankind 16uby hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved—so as always vto fill up the measure of their sins. But wwrath has come upon them at last!7
17But since we were torn away from you, brothers, for a short time, xin person not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire yto see you face to face, 18because we wanted to come to you—I, Paul, again and again—but Satan zhindered us. 19For what is our hope or ajoy or crown of boasting bbefore our Lord Jesus at his ccoming? Is it not you? 20For you are our glory and joy.
Copyright © 2024, Alistair Begg. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.
