1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 Encourage and Build Each Other Up

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up,” is one of my favourite verses. Yet I will admit that there are many times when I fail to live up to it. The world is filled with too many harsh words, too many angry criticisms, too many careless words, too much putting people down that creates a lot of hurt people, a lot of people walking through life doubting themselves and their worth. We need to be reminded of Proverbs 15:1, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” There’s a huge need for more people like Barnabas, whose name means “Son of encouragement.” Barnabas helped Paul become the apostle he was. He encouraged Paul, stood by Paul when others were afraid of Paul, accompanied Paul on his first missionary journeys to provide support, and Barnabas built Paul up as a brother in Jesus.

Paul’s writing to the church in Thessalonica. Paul visited Thessalonica on his second missionary journey. Paul preached in the city’s synagogue for at least three weeks, and because of his ministry, a church was born. When Paul faced persecution at the hands of a mob, he fled to Berea, but the Thessalonians forced him to leave there also. You can find the story in Acts 17. This church experienced persecution regularly, and one of Paul’s reasons for writing is to encourage them, to give them strength. One of the ways he does this is by reminding them that Jesus is coming back again to claim this world as his own.

The chapter before our passage is all about the return of Jesus. Amy Peeler writes, “this letter is written in anticipation of Jesus’ return, “This eager anticipation translates into another reason that calls forth Paul’s praise: the Thessalonians correctly discern the times and seasons. They know that the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night.” Amy Peeler goes on, “Dionysus, the god of wine, was worshipped in Thessalonica, and his nighttime celebrations had the reputation of being frenzied, ecstatic, orgiastic events. The Thessalonians, being called from the worship of dead idols to serve the living God, no longer should participate in such events. Instead of being unclothed they are to put on the specific clothing readying them for battle.”

Paul reminds them that they’re people of the day, people of the light who shine the light of Jesus into the world. Paul calls them to be sober instead of drunk like the followers of Dionysus, the god of wine. Paul encourages them to put on armour to protect their hearts and minds from the influences and persecution around them; the breastplate of faith and love and the helmet of the hope of salvation.

We’re called to protect our minds and hearts, and Paul points us to the three great protectors: faith, hope, and love. Karoline Lewis writes, “As Paul nears the end of the letter he returns to the triad with which he started — faith, love, and hope. The triad recast in the imagery of armor suggests that possessing faith, love, and hope is not without its challenges. Indeed, this is how they are introduced at the beginning of the letter — work of faith, labor of love, and steadfastness of hope. Faith, love, and hope need to be lifted up and built up as marks of the community.” When faith, hope and love settle deep in our hearts, encouragement and building others up becomes more natural and automatic, part of our character.

With our hearts and minds protected, we’re able to live with confidence and hope in Jesus. “For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.” Some of the Thessalonians were worried that if they die before Jesus returns, they’ll miss out on the kingdom of heaven. Paul reassures them that Jesus is Lord of life and death and died so that we can experience new life through his resurrection; we will not miss out on this new life even if we experience death here, so go through life with confidence and hope. Encouragement is much more than saying “great job,” or “hang in there, things will get better;” the best encouragement is reminding us who Jesus is and how we’re so closely connected to him that not even death can separate us from him.

What does encouragement and building each other up look like? It starts by paying attention to what’s going on in each other’s lives, what others are facing, what sort of challenges and stresses are happening in their lives. This means being genuinely interested in each other and that takes time; time together, time talking with each other, time walking alongside each other, and time spent sharing life together. This is what church looks like, or at least I pray it does.

The word encourage in Greek is parakaleo and means to urge, to implore, or exhort. When I hear these words, I hear passion and concern, a desire for the other person to experience hope and strength, a new way of seeing Jesus at work in their life. The verb to build up in Greek is oikodomeo and it can be translated as strengthen, edify, benefit, or restore. This is about helping people see how Jesus is working in their lives, showing them that they’re part of a church family and not walking through life alone. Encouraging and building up each other is as much about building up and strengthening the faith of others as it is about our emotions. When you encourage and build someone up in their faith, you’re building them up emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.

We all need encouragement, we all need someone to build us up in those times when we’ve been knocked down, when we feel we’ve failed and our sense of self-worth is gone. In my last church, the financial situation became so tight that they could no longer afford a full-time pastor and I was encouraged to find a new church position. I felt like a failure, like I had failed the church and my family. I had doubts about my calling and doubts about my abilities as a pastor. The chair of council sensed that hurt and dropped by the church and sat down and talked about the people’s lives I had been able to touch in the 3 ½ years there, the people who had been given hope, comfort, and peace in Jesus through my presence there. She was a Barnabas to me, a voice of encouragement.

Encouragement doesn’t always sound like words; it can look like a side hug when you notice someone who seems to be feeling down. It looks like sitting down with someone after they messed up something and helping them learn from what had happened and to try again. It’s a reminder that Jesus doesn’t condemn us for failing, that he gives us what we need to keep going. It looks like being excited to see someone you haven’t seen for a while. Being an encourager comes out of our character. Philippians 2 reminds us, "In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!" It’s about caring about others so much you’re willing to be a humble servant, wanting to bless them and help them be who God's created them to be.

Imagine a church filled with people always looking for ways to encourage and build each other up to be who God has created them to be? Can you imagine the sense of community and fellowship, the strength between the people, the witness they would be to the community of the power of Jesus to change our lives, the glimpse of the kingdom of heaven they would be? Real encouragement comes out of knowing Jesus and what he’s done for us, knowing that in our brokenness, Jesus accepts us and loves us. But Jesus loves us too much to allow us to stay like we are and he gives us the Holy Spirit so that we might be transformed more into who God has created us to be through unconditional forgiveness, grace, healing and acceptance into the family of God. Encouragement feels like acceptance and hope. This is why inviting someone to join you in your walk with Jesus is so important, because you're showing that person acceptance.

In the end it's all about God. By encouraging and building others up, the people God brings into our lives get a glimpse of the kingdom of God; they experience a little of who God is and his love and commitment for them. Our encouragement rests in knowing that Jesus is coming back, that whatever we’re going through, it won’t last forever. Here you will find the encouragement you need and will be encouraged to build each other. It all leads to praising God.

 

 

Acts 2:36-47 Fellowship Connects Us

 

This morning we’re beginning a new series based on the question, “Why Church” or even “Why bother with Church?” Now I will admit that I’m a little biased because I strongly believe that the local church is the hope of the world, as Bill Hybels said, because our message is one of good news and hope for everyone in Jesus, as Peter talks about in our passage this morning, especially for those who have questions about the meaning and purpose of life, for those who wrestle with inner struggles, and for those who see injustice and wonder if there is any hope for justice and righteousness in our time. I admit that I have wrestled myself with the question “Why Church” at times, often when I’ve experienced hurt or rejection, or when I hear the stories of hurt, abuse, or rejection in the church. Yet I always come back to believing that the greatest answers to life are best explored and found in strong local churches that focus on being one together in Jesus as they work at imitating Jesus.

The first thing I think about when I ask “Why Church” is connection; a place to find fellowship. Fellowship is a churchy word. When you turn a dictionary to find out what fellowship is, you find answers like, “a community of interest, activity, feeling, or experience,” or “companionship” from the Merrian-Webster dictionary, while Dictionary.com defines fellowship as “a friendly relationship; companionship,” and “a community of interest, feeling, etc,” or as “communion, as between members of the same church.” At its heart, fellowship is about relationships, often around common interests or beliefs. This is why the word is so often used in churches and encouraged as a way to create closeness and unity. God is a God of fellowship, three persons who live in fellowship with each other in eternity, in unity and sharing the same goals for creation.

In the past 20 years, I can’t think of a time when an emphasis on fellowship within the church, never mind the broader community, is more needed. Church isn’t always easy; just think about how God created the church. God poured out the Holy Spirit on the Jews who have gathered from all over the Roman Empire and Africa to celebrate the feast of Pentecost. These Jews believe in Yahweh and the temple feasts and rituals, but were very different in the languages they spoke, in the cultures they embraced and lived in, and even in how they interpreted Jewish Scripture. They definitely didn’t always get along, or even understand each other; there were major differences between them. The only way they were able to get along was because there were only 7 festivals a year and most Jews only made it to one or two a year, so their time together was often short and limited. Later on, God really messes with them when he calls Gentiles into the mix, something so unorthodox, it blew some peoples’ minds. How can people so different from each other experience fellowship?

It’s that powerful connection with each other through fellowship that made the early church so strong, a fellowship that focused on who they are through Jesus and what he has accomplished for them on the cross, and in what they have together in Jesus rather than their differences. Peter keeps pointing to Jesus as the foundation of this new community being created by God. “God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” Peter calls them “to repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Peter is telling them that their hope, their salvation is rooted in Jesus and their response to Jesus’ willing death on the cross to bring reconciliation between God and humanity is to repent and be baptized, to be baptized as the sign and seal from God of their new identity as followers of Jesus and restored children of God. The guarantee of this change in their identity is the gift of the Holy Spirit who is given to those who accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour.

Fellowship is rooted in Jesus and the Holy Spirit. We see this is the people’s response, three thousand people are baptized that day! Can you imagine what that looked like! The apostles heading down to the river and the people lining up to be baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and coming up experiencing the joy of belonging to God, and embracing those around them who are experiencing the same thing. There’s a joining together, a fellowship that begins here that goes deep. Can you hear the conversations going on, “Let’s get together to learn more about Jesus,” or “Let’s get together to praise God for his goodness and grace to us, let’s pray together that others in our families and among our friends can experience Jesus’ forgiveness and grace!” It’s the presence of the Holy Spirit in their hearts that brings them together in spite of their many differences, because in the most important part of their lives is a commitment to Jesus. Fellowship in spite of differences, fellowship because the focus is on what Jesus has done and is doing in their lives, drawing them together. This is the context we need to understand verses 42-47 in; Jesus is at work through his Spirit!

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common.” When you experience deep fellowship centered on Jesus, when you spend worship time, learning time, vulnerable praying time together, you start to get to really know each other and start to deeply care more about each other. It’s much easier to be generous and live sacrificially when you are living life deeply with each other. Fellowship is about being with each other regularly; learning together, worshipping together, eating and living life together. This creates relationships and friendships that can become lifelong blessings. This is what starts happening with this new community that’s growing and founded on Jesus.

All the things that separated them before become less important as their unity in Jesus becomes the glue that binds them together. What a message for us today in a time where which political party or philosophy we follow, our beliefs on whether vaccines and masks, and more separate us, creating all kinds of bitterness, anxiety, leadership crises, and loss of fellowship. We can always find excuses to separate ourselves from each other, but the Bible keeps pointing us to Jesus where we find unity, a common purpose found in sharing the gospel news, support and encouragement, and even healing, within the fellowship of believers. More and more I’m realizing the power of Paul’s words to the Galatian church, Galatians 3:26–28, “So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” As followers of Jesus, we can put to the side all the things that divide us if we make our relationship with Jesus front and center together.

From there comes the fellowship part; learning about God together, the sharing of meals together, the time spent in each other’s homes and discovering who they really are, serving each other, caring for each other, and sharing the good news together. The Christian faith and fellowship are always other focused, leading us to place others above ourselves, learning to live sacrificially. Philippians 2:3–4 have really guided how I think about leadership and being more like Jesus, these are verses that a good friend and mentor told to write on my heart as a pastor, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” When we embrace these verses, fellowship grows deep and wide as we place our fellowship and unity in Jesus first.

These are some of the things that first drew people to the church; they saw a fellowship that was beyond anything they had ever seen, a fellowship that crossed all the barriers that too often keep us apart. Pamela Lewis describes the life in the Acts 2 church, “From these who were first baptized, flows all that we must know about the Christian life, which is meant to be lived in fellowship. In fellowship there is sharing in the same Lord, sharing life’s joys and sorrows, sharing the same guide for living, and sharing what God has given us in Jesus Christ. May we do these things gladly.” David Fitch connects this fellowship to God’s mission strategy, that when we “nurture a community in the redeemed life of Christ and Mission (including conversions) will follow.”

May our fellowship make us a strong witness to our community to the power of Jesus to overcome the things that divide and brings peace and hope out of chaos.

 

 

Revelation 3:14-22 To the Church in Laodicea

 

Jesus’ letter to the church in Laodicea is one of the more well-known letters in Revelation. We loved this one growing up because it talks about vomiting people up, images that most young boys, and some girls, find fascinating. The church in Laodicea is told to smarten up otherwise Jesus is going to vomit them out because they’re lukewarm. Uggh!

How does a church get so lukewarm that Jesus talks about vomiting them out because they taste horrible? It’s easy when you’ve been in a relationship for a long time to take the other person for granted. It’s not that you love them less, but you stop showing it, you allow other things to take your attention away from them, and you slowly drift apart, allowing your love to grow less hot. This creates lukewarm relationships, even with God. Laodicea was wealthy, but was destroyed in 62 AD by a powerful earthquake. The people of Laodicea completely rebuilt the city without a single drachma from the government. Their wealth came from the excellent wool that their black sheep produced; wool deeply coveted by the wealthiest Romans. This led to a sense of self-satisfaction and pride that resulted in a lukewarm spirituality.

Jesus tells the angel, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” This is about their deeds, the things they do, that has gotten Jesus’ attention in a bad way. Their deeds are neither hot nor cold, they don’t help anyone or make any difference. As the letter is being read in the church, the people could see the city of Hierapolis in the distance where there were famous hot springs used to soothe sore bodies and ease the aches and pains of growing older. Down the road the other way is the city of Colossae, known for its clear cold fresh water. This water was refreshing and energizing. Laodicea received its water from Hierapolis through an aqueduct and by the time the water reached the city, it was lukewarm and minerals clouded the water, giving it a foul taste. It had to be run through purifiers before it was fit to drink. Jesus is saying they taste like foul water.

When you can take care of yourself and don’t need help from anyone else, it becomes easy to think that we don’t need God. Hosea faced that attitude hundreds of years earlier, “Ephraim boasts, “I am very rich; I have become wealthy. With all my wealth they will not find in me any iniquity or sin.” It’s easy to believe that because you’re a good person, you don’t really have any need to be forgiven; what have you really done wrong? You mostly keep the law, so you’re fine. Life’s good, so let’s enjoy what we have since it’s been given to us by God. If I do something wrong, I’ll just give a little more at church and it’ll be fine again. You do just enough to figure you’re still good with Jesus.

Jesus has a sarcastic streak in him that he uses to grab their attention. “You say, I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.” Jesus calls us to “buy gold refined in the fire, so we can be rich; and white clothes to wear, so we can cover our shameful nakedness; and salve to put on our eyes so we can see.” Jesus is poking at them. The call to wear white robes that symbolize righteousness in contrast to their black wool, the eye salve that the medical school in Laodicea was famous for refers to their spiritual blindness, the gold is spiritual wealth that has passed through the refiner’s fire. This spiritual wealth is the life knowledge that comes from living through hard times when you find yourself searching for what’s really true, for who you can really count on. For us, that’s Jesus who is the way, the truth and the life. Jesus uses suffering to strengthen our faith, to draw us closer to him, and help us see the world through his eyes. The Old Testament calls us to be refined like the gold, to have the dross, the mess in our hearts and lives burned off, often this comes through suffering that refocuses us back to God, stripping away all the things we relied on, the things we had made into idols. Jesus died on the cross to purify us from our sin, just as the Laodiceans purified their water to make it clear again.

So many people live with disappointment, with lost dreams and hopes, living with relationships that could hold so much more. For many different reasons, we’ve learned to live with less hope and no longer strive to live for more meaning. Life hasn’t turned out the way we had hoped or planned and we live with regrets and disappointments. When someone asks us how we’re doing, we say we’re doing fine. We do lukewarm because all we see is our own needs and wants.

We’ve learned to hide our struggles and hurts really well from each other. A good friend who’s an actor once told me, “The church is filled with hypocrites.” I leapt to the church’s defense, but he stopped me and said, “All I meant was that most people come to church wearing masks, in Greek theatre, an actor wearing a mask is called a hypocrite because he’s not who he appears to be.” We wear masks is because we’re afraid people won’t accept us for who we really are; that they might look at us differently and judge us because we’re not doing as well as we could be. We wear masks to avoid examining our true beliefs, our true feelings, so we bury them deep inside us where we hope they will disappear if we ignore them long enough. We accept lukewarm and convince ourselves that this is good enough.

This is the church in Laodicea. On the outside they look good. They meet their budget, they help out when asked, they show up for worship on Sundays, but it’s not coming from a place of following Jesus, but from a place of self-sufficiency. They believe they don’t really need Jesus. They don’t recognize their need for Jesus, their need for healing from their sin. They believe they can handle everything themselves just fine. They do the faith things, but with a lukewarm heart, going through the motions, doing what’s expected, but not engaging deeply into God’s plan for their lives and the life of the church. They don’t want to do the hard work of examining their hearts and souls, of going for more: for deeper together, for inner peace, for freedom from fear, instead settling for wealth and getting by.

How do you change lukewarm? Jesus tells us, “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” These letters to the churches are a call to respond to Jesus and repent of our self-centeredness. When Jesus calls us to be earnest, he’s calling us to be enthusiastic, to regain our excitement in Jesus, to open the door to your life that Jesus is knocking at. This means getting up from your comfortable chair, putting aside that bowl of chips, and responding to Jesus’ voice to open the door of your heart and life so Jesus can come in and eat with you.

Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Paul sees all of life as lived through and for God. Romans 12:1 says, "I urge you ... to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God." This offering takes place in our everyday ordinary life. In the same way, Colossians 3:17 says, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus." Be hot and offer the soothing healing that Jesus came to bring to those God has placed in your life. Many people are looking for healing in their lives, in their hearts and souls that only Jesus can give them, but they’re unable to experience the soothing healing of Jesus until someone, you, invites them to meet Jesus.

Be cold and bring refreshment to your own life and the lives of your friends, co-workers, fellow students by inviting them to meet Jesus who can rejuvenate their lives again. Show them a fresh perspective on the craziness we’re living in and through right now by helping them see God’s in control and working his plans out for the salvation of the world. Help them see, instead of a wilderness of COVID 19, masks, vaccine passports, and infighting, show them a God who brings overflowing cups of refreshing life-giving water we can offer to others. Don’t settle for less than the full life Jesus came to give you; don’t settle for lukewarm. Grab the life of meaning and purpose God offers, a life focused on drawing others to God, inviting them to join us in walking the Jesus path of service and grace.

Everything we have is a gift to use to grow the influence of Jesus into our community, to care for those needing a hand up, and to use our gifts and talents to help our community flourish. These are the good works prepared in advance for us to do. A community of Jesus followers investing in others and inviting them to join us in following Jesus changes hearts, changes lukewarm into hot and cold, bringing healing, hope, refreshment and energy; giving us a glimpse of the coming kingdom of heaven that renews our passion for Jesus again. “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Revelation 3:7-13 To the Church in Philadelphia

 

Jesus is writing to the church in the city of Philadelphia, which means ‘brotherly love.’ The city was named Philadelphia to honor Attalus II who was honored for his loyalty with the nickname Philadelphos, literally one who loves his brother, by his elder brother, Eumenes II, king of Lydia. Philadelphia was founded in 189 BC along one of the major trade roads that led to the east.

In 133 BC, the Romans conquered the city. During the centuries before Jesus, Jewish families settled in the cities of western Asia Minor. Later on, Philadelphia is one of the cities St. Ignatius visits on his trip to his martyrdom in Rome and which he sent a letter. Philadelphia was built near the Anatolian fault lines, and suffered from earthquakes. An earthquake in the year 17 AD was so devastating that the Roman emperor Tiberius relieved the city of paying taxes. That’s how bad the destruction was! Philadelphia remained a prosperous city into Byzantine times. Now Jesus sends the church a letter praising them for keeping his word and not denying his name.

Jesus introduces himself as the one who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. Holy and true is easy to understand as Jesus is God and holiness is just who and what he is, and if you’re seeking to find out the truth about life, about who God is and who we are called to be, turn to Jesus and his life and teaching. It’s that reference to the key of David that sends us looking to the rest of Scripture to see what its importance is. Earlier in chapter 1 we read, “I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.” Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:7–8, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” After Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, Jesus tells him in Matthew 16, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Jesus’s words echo back the angel’s words in Luke, ^“He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end,” As we read this letter, we can see this key of David is connected to the kingdom of heaven. Now this is a church made up of Jews and Gentiles. This wasn’t always an easy relationship, but it’s working here. We also hear that they’re not a strong church and still they remain true to Jesus instead of being overwhelmed by the culture around them.

Jesus knows them, knows their hearts and commitment to him. This is why he’s placed an open door before them that no one can shut. Jesus, through his death on the cross for our sin and resurrection from the dead, shows his power over Hades and death, and has opened the door to the kingdom of heaven for both Jew and Gentile. This echoes God’s blessing to Abraham in Genesis 12, that he’s going to make Abraham’s descendants a blessing to all nations. The blessing God is talking about is the welcoming of the nations into the kingdom of heaven!

How are the nations invited to come through the open door into the kingdom of heaven? Charles Spurgeon writes about the believers in Philadelphia, “What had these Philadelphian believers done that they should be praised? What they did was this— they kept the word of God: “Thou hast kept my word, and thou hast not denied my name.” They’re not ashamed of following Jesus, they’ve not fallen sleep, lost their first love for Jesus, or followed different teachings. They’re keeping Jesus’ word, working at living out his teaching and imitating his life to become more like Jesus. They’re not ashamed of Jesus’ name. The believers heard Jesus’ warning in Luke 9 and take it seriously, “Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.”

This open door cannot be closed again because Jesus has opened it. Those who are of the synagogue of Satan are likely Jews who are against the Gentiles being welcomed into the blessing of Abraham. This goes against everything they’ve believed about themselves for thousands of years; that they’re God’s chosen special people. They find it hard to understand that God chose them to open up the kingdom of heaven through being the blessing God has called them to be; that God so loves the world that he gave his son Jesus so that whoever believes in him shall not perish. God’s focus has always been on inviting the entire world to come through the open door into the kingdom of heaven.

This comes at a cost to the church, they’ve endured patiently, so Jesus promises to keep them from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world. It’s not always easy to be a follower of Jesus, they have little strength, Jesus says. Perhaps Jesus is saying this because they’re a small congregation, or perhaps because there are many new believers who haven’t experienced persecution and so find themselves sometimes wavering in their faith, perhaps it’s because the persecution is so strong that even if you’re strong, your own strength won’t be enough to stand against it. We hear an echo to Jesus say to Paul in 2 Corinthians 12, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”

Throughout the history of the church, people have marvelled at how regular people could stand extreme pain, torture, and persecution and still not turn their back on Jesus. In many cases they became stronger the greater the suffering. Often faith grows deeper as people suffer the pains and sorrows of life when they lose loved ones, experience great losses, they still turn to God and place their lives in his hands. They hear the Word of God and love it. They listen to the teachings of Jesus and they believe it and live it out. They confess Jesus’ name, guiding people to the open door of the kingdom even when it costs them. There are stories of believers who suffer greatly in Palestine, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa tells stories of great forgiveness by Jesus followers, similar stories come out of the Rwandan massacre and its process of healing.

How we live is part of our witness; how we respond to hard times, to painful times. Do we respond by relying on our own strength and trust in our own wisdom and abilities? This can lead us to become proud, which leads to less compassion and empathy for those around us who are struggling. Or do we grumble or complain about the unfairness of life, are we self centered in our suffering and hard times? This leads us to think that we’re owed a better life, that others have an obligation to take care of us and make us happy and do things our way.

Or do we show our faith in Jesus, trusting that he’s with us in whatever we’re going through when life is hard, looking to recognize Jesus’ presence, and confessing our need for him in our weakness? This leads us to stand with the psalmist who often praises God even though he or she is suffering, seeking God’s help while living in a spirit of gratitude and trust in God and Jesus. This is not always easy, but we keep our eyes and hearts God focused, keeping our lives focused on Jesus, seeking out companions on the road through life who will support us in the hard times by pointing us to Jesus, but who also count on us to do the same in return. The church Jesus is writing to is called Philadelphia, brotherly love. This is the kind of love that drives us to share Jesus with others, offering them the invitation Jesus offers all of us to come to him when we are weak and heavy laden, when we are weak and tired and he will give us rest. This love invites us to enter the door Jesus keeps open to the kingdom of heaven.

Hold onto Jesus; he has written on us the name of God and his own name, claiming us as his own. Keep Jesus’ word, follow his way and confess his name wherever God places you this week and may you experience his strength and hope.