PODCAST
Hopeful Endurance
November 7th, 2014
1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
Some of the Christians in Thessalonica were expectant almost to a fault. They had heard preaching about the second coming of Christ and mistakenly thought they should stop their earthly work and wait for it to happen. While they waited, they worried. One of the things they worried about was the fate of the believers who had died before Christ returned. What would happen to them?
In response, Paul reminded them that to avoid returning to their immoral lifestyles, they needed to make the most of their time on earth while they waited for Christ’s return. He also gave them encouraging news: the believers who had died prior to Christ’s return would rise to meet the Him at the second coming. Meanwhile, those who remained alive should develop patient endurance. He commended those who already had “endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 3).
Author Barbara Johnson once said, “Patience is the ability to idle your motor when you feel like stripping your gears.”* Do you ever feel that way? There is no need to strip your gears. Trust God with hopeful endurance.
* Barbara Johnson, The Best Devotions of Barbara Johnson (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2001).
Author: Stan Toler
