: 2 Thess 1:3, Is It All Too Good to Be True?

Thursday May 25, 2023

Main passage:

2Th 1:3-4

We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brethren, as is only fitting, because your faith is greatly enlarged, and the love of each one of you toward one another grows ever greater; 4 therefore, we ourselves speak proudly of you among the churches of God for your perseverance and faith in the midst of all your persecutions and afflictions which you endure.

Theme: God is always pursuing you for your good. His pleasure is your good – do you believe this?

1. Three promises in Jer 32:38-41 (promises of the new covenant given to Israel that apply to the church … and will be fulfilled for the nation of Israel in the Millennial kingdom of Christ.)
   1. Promise 1: God will not turn away from doing you good (Jer 32:40).
      1. No matter what happens in life, good or bad, God is doing you good.
      2. For all of us this will mean a level of suffering, how much of which God knows perfectly, Psa 119:65; Gen 50:20.
   2. Promise 2: God rejoices in doing us good (Jer 32:41).
      1. God is always pursuing us like a highway patrolman trying to pull you over, Psa 23:6.
      2. God delights in showing us His greatness, Psa 35:27.
      3. It is God’s delight that we need to find meaningful, and not our own.
      4. Jesus delighted in the Father and the Father delighted in the Son because, as a man, Jesus reflected in His person and life the very image of the Father.
         1. Christ opened up the reality for us to do the same, 2Co 3:18.
         2. Do we believe that we can?
   3. Promise 3: God will do good to you with all His heart and soul (Jer 32:41).
      1. The promises in Jer 31-32 concerning the new covenant have spiritual as well as physical aspects. Christ gave the church the spiritual aspects in partial fulfillment of the covenant.
         1. Not all agree with the above assessment of the new covenant. But even so, no one would disagree with the fact that God has given us His heart and soul in giving us His Son Jesus Christ, Rom 8:31-32; Joh 4:23; 17:22.
2. Application: What is faith? How does faith allow God to draw closer to you? What is holding you back from putting all of your thoughts, your desires, your life in the will of God?