1 THESSALONIANS 1:2-10 – We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.”
THEME OF THE DAY: HEAVENLY THINKING EMPOWERS EARTHLY GOOD. Perhaps we’ve heard the saying or something like it. It goes like this “He is so heavenly minded, he is of no earthly good.” The point being made is the religious person or for our illustrative purposes, the Christian, is so fixed on heaven and the next world, he or she is of no value in this world. In some cases, and sadly, this is true. I witnessed such a person while in the navy. I had a young sailor, a Christian, yet, he was not a good witness of our faith through his work ethic, respect for authority, and complaining attitude. Instead of working, he would try to witness to his fellow sailors or get into conversations about the Bible. Instead of doing all things for the glory of God, he had a reputation of being lazy, grumbling, and did damage for the cause of Christ on our ship. In his situation, it was true. He was so heavenly minded, he was of no earthly good. However, such should be the exception.
Jesus told us in His High Priestly prayer, “As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world” (John 17:18). Obviously, our Lord lived heavenly minded and did the most earthly good. So goes the Master so go His followers. So goes their Master so went the Thessalonian believers. Spend time, line upon line, in today’s scripture and note the reputation they had from the Apostle Paul and the observing world. And make sure we pay particular attention to what motivated their glowing testimony or their much earthly good for the Lord – the second coming of Jesus. The Thessalonian believers labored for the Lord watching for the Lord. It is having our minds fixed on His second coming that empowers godly living, weans us from worldliness, and will keep us focused on why we are still on the earth.
So, let’s strive to be so heavenly minded, looking for Jesus, that we indeed do the most earthly good for Jesus!
PRAYER: “Father, may I learn to fix my heart on Your Son’s 2nd Coming and live ready at any moment.”
QUOTE: “The coming of Jesus pulls our affections from the world and places them upon Him, the Living Word.”
In the affection of Christ Jesus,
Pastor Jim