◄ What Does 2 Thessalonians 1:11 Mean? ►

What a glorious calling we have in Christ Jesus. Because of our faith in His sacrificial death and glorious resurrection, we are called children of God and have a dear and gracious heavenly Father, Who is the God of all mercies. In His grace He has promised to help us in times of troubles and to comfort us in times of distress.

Christ died so that we might live and throughout his writings to the Church, Paul emphases the importance of being worthy of our calling, so that by His goodness and grace we are enabled to fulfil every desire for good.. and to complete the work of faith, which God has started in each of our lives, in the power of His might.

Indeed, the Lord Himself told us that in this world we would have tribulation and would be called upon to suffer for His names sake... But as members of His body, we know that the more we suffer for righteousness sake the more we are comforted by this great God of all-comforts, Who has purchased us with the precious blood of His only begotten Son, and has graciously adopted us into His heavenly family - so that we may now address Him as Abba-Father.

As members of the body of Christ who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, we know that the sufferings that we may be called upon to go through in this fallen world cannot be compared with the glories that God is keeping for us in heavenly places. We have a hope in Christ that is steadfast and sure - knowing that because we are partakers in Christ's sufferings in this fallen world-system.. we will also partake in the consolation that comes from the God of all comforts, to each one of His own.

As members of Christ's body we are called on to suffer for His names sake.. and as Paul continues in this second epistle to the Corinthian Church, his prayer is that all believers will stand fast in the evil day, and be counted worthy of the high and exalted position to which we have been called. Paul learned that it is not in our own strength that we live and move and have our being but in the strength of Christ - Who is our life and our light. And so his earnest prayer to the Father was that each one of us would be counted worthy of our calling as ministers of reconciliation. For we are the body of Christ and one with Him - and it is by grace through faith in Christ that we are enabled to fulfil every desire for goodness.

How important that by faith we trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean on the whole human personality of God, which is seen in the face of Christ Jesus. How vital that we have absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness so that we are enabled to walk worthy of His call. How amazing that we are called by God to complete every activity in our life of faith, so that the Name of our Saviour, Jesus Christ the righteous.. might be glorified in each of us.

Heavenly Father, I pray that I, and those that are called by Your name, are counted worthy of the calling by which we have been called. I pray that both individually and as the corporate body of Christ, we may fulfil every desire for goodness and holiness of heart so that we may work the work of faith in the power of Christ and to His glory, AMEN.