Verse of the Day 1/10

 

1 Thessalonians 2:11-12 For you know how, as a father [dealing with] his children, we used to exhort each of you personally, stimulating and encouraging and charging you

¹² To live lives worthy of God, Who calls you into His own kingdom and the glorious blessedness [^[a]into which true believers will enter after Christ's return].  Amplified Bible (AMP)

For today's verse we will take a slight detour from the Sermon on the Mount and go to the book of 1 Thessalonians.  In yesterday's verse we considered how words matter and that we should be careful and avoid name calling and  that "every careless word" is heard and we are accountable for them.  In today's verses the Apostle Paul reminds his readers how he has exhorted, stimulated and encouraged them and he charges them to do the same.

J.R. Miller writes, "We dare not go about among our fellows saying discouraging things, dispiriting things--for if we do, we are imperiling those whose burdens are already as heavy as they can bear. One disheartening word may cause them to weaken and sink down in despair.  Like the apostle Paul, we should strive to be encouragers. He who makes it harder for a brother to live nobly and do his work well, has sinned against one of Christ's little ones."

 

Instead of resorting to name calling  may we do our best to take Pau's word to heart and strive to be encouragers, God himself at work in you believers (v.13 The Message) stimulating others to do the same.

 

In Christ,
Mike

 

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Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace  NIV

1 Thessalonians 2:11-13

The Message (MSG)

^9-12 You remember us in those days, friends, working our fingers to the bone, up half the night, moonlighting so you wouldn't have the burden of supporting us while we proclaimed God's Message to you. You saw with your own eyes how discreet and courteous we were among you, with keen sensitivity to you as fellow believers. And God knows we weren't freeloaders! You experienced it all firsthand. With each of you we were like a father with his child, holding your hand, whispering encouragement, showing you step-by-step how to live well before God, who called us into his own kingdom, into this delightful life.

¹³ And now we look back on all this and thank God, an artesian well of thanks! When you got the Message of God we preached, you didn't pass it off as just one more human opinion, but you took it to heart as God's true word to you, which it is, God himself at work in you believers!