Are You Concerned?

In 1 Thessalonians 3, the Apostle Paul said he just couldn’t take it anymore– he had to check on his people in Thessalonica. “For this reason, when I could no longer endure it, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor might be in vain.” (1 Thessalonians 3:5). So, Paul sent his protege, Timothy, to check on the believers at Thessalonica..

Paul was overjoyed to receive a good report from Timothy concerning the Thessalonians’ faith– Paul’s labor in preaching the gospel and establishing the church was not in vain. The believers still believed, and they longed to see Paul face-to-face just as much as he did. In the previous chapter, we learned that the tempter, the devil, was successful in his attempt to keep Paul from visiting the Thessalonians. Satan hindered him from traveling to edify them personally. Yet, the tempter was unsuccessful in any attempt he made to tempt them out of their faith.

That was good news to Paul. He said that although he was distressed and faced much affliction, he was comforted concerning their faith (v.7). He even said “Now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord.” (v. 8). Their steadfast faith in God, despite their persecution, brought life to Paul. Besides God the Father and Christ Himself, the only other thing that ever seemed to bring joy to Paul was knowing that his brothers and sisters remained in the faith.

What brings you joy? Are you concerned about the faith of others? Do you care if people believe in God? Or could you not care less if someone believes or not?

These are important questions to ask ourselves because it can aid in determining if we are keeping God’s second greatest command– love others as you love yourself. If you are a believer in Christ, then I assume you are concerned about your faith. I assume you want to believe in God through Christ because He is our life. Because He is our joy and peace. Because He is our shelter and refuge, and because Jesus is the only way to inherit eternal life and walk into a restored Eden with God.

So, faith in God is essential, and any one who is a true believer holds their faith dear and near to their heart. But if we are only concerned about our faith, and no one else's, then that is an indicator that we do not love others. If we believe God, then we believe that no one will enter into heaven without Christ. And that means we should be concerned about the faith of others because if their faith slips away or if they have no faith at all, a terrible ending is on the way to them.

How can we say that we love others if we do not care about their faith? That means we don’t care about them suffering through life with no true peace. That means we don’t care if they are eternally separated from God. That means that we do not care about others. It means that you do not love them … and if you do not love your brother who you can see with your eyes, how can you love God who you have not seen? (1 John 4:20).

If we do not care about the faith of others, then we do not love them, and if we do not love them, we do not properly love God. And how do we suppose to enter into the Kingdom of God void of love for Him and others?

Reader, are you concerned? Do you care about the faith of others? If not, be honest with yourself and be honest with God. It’s okay to let God know that we are struggling to love others as we should. He is there to help us.

1 Thessalonians 3 closes with Paul praying for the church– that means he was also praying for us since all believers are collectively the church. He said, “May the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you” (v.12) If you are void of love for others, don’t fret. The Lord is able to make us increase in love towards one another. And if your own faith is on the fritz, if you are struggling to believe as you should, again… be honest with yourself and be honest with God.

God is man enough to take your honesty. Plus, He knows how you feel anyway, so you might as tell Him the truth. Let us let God work in us so that our faith can be complete, so that we can love Him as we should and love others as we ought as well.

That’s all I have for you today. Are you concerned? About the faith of others that is. If not, God can change that. If you are, may God bless you for having a Christ-like heart and may you continue to love and care about others in a high capacity.

May God bless you and keep you is my prayer. Until next time, take care.

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Thank you for reading this week's Write On! Wednesday article. New article and video posted every Wednesday at 12 pm. The Now, That's A Word! YouTube Channel is here: https://YouTube.com/@nowthatsaword

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Sincerely,

Quin Arrington