"Therefore when we could endure it no longer, we thought it best to be left behind at Athens alone, and we sent Timothy, our brother and God's fellow worker in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you as to your faith, so that no one would be disturbed by these afflictions; for you yourselves know that we have been destined for this." (1 Thessalonians 3:1-3)
If a friend or family member is going through trials, how do you normally go about encouraging them? Do you use verses from the Bible, maybe Psalms, to make them feel better? Do you use sweet, kindly words that make the trials seem rather insignificant in their lives? Or do you just listen and be the shoulder that they cry on?
Paul in our verses today tells the church in Thessalonica that he sent Timothy to them to strengthen and encourage them, but he also added his own words of encouragement. Words that to us do not seem encouraging, that they are destined to experience afflictions. Join me as we look closer at Paul's words.
Establish Proper Foundations
The Greek word for "strengthen" in our text is better translated as "establish." The idea here is not so much to only make the believers stronger, but rather to make them steadfast because of the coming persecution. They were to be rooted and grounded in their faith, making sure that their foundations were secure so that they would not topple over at the first challenge. This idea is further developed with the word "disturbed" in verse 3 which can also be translated as "shaken."
Though this is ultimately the work of God, Paul here ascribes it to the work that Timothy was going to do. Why? I believe it is because though God does the building, it is our responsibility as believers to guide others in with the Word in order to lay the foundations of their faith. This is yet another aspect of making disciples - making sure that they are correctly rooted in the Word so that they will not topple.
Encourage
Timothy was also there to encourage the Thessalonian believers. In the Greek mindset, encouragement was not just about making someone feel better about their situation, or to merely give them hope that all will be alright eventually, as we tend to do today, but it also included exhortation. Noah Webster in his dictionary defined exhort three ways: 1) To incite by words or advice, 2) To advise; to warn; to caution, and 3) To incite or stimulate to exertion.
The idea then is that in encouragement you are doing more than just giving simple platitudes in order to make someone feel better, but you are also warning and inciting people into some form of action. Timothy therefore, and indeed Paul in verse 3, was spurring the Thessalonians to action. To guide their behaviour, attitudes and words. This is yet another aspect of discipleship in that it was preparing the believers for what was to come.
Modern Discipleship
As I said last time, it seems as though modern disciple making is more about making converts, about having people make a decision for Christ as though that is all that we are to do. But the example of Timothy, Paul and the other apostles is different. Making disciples is about preparing people for life as a believer. The church in Thessalonica was going to experience intense persecution, so Paul was making sure that they were ready.
In your own life, do you prepare those that you are discipling for life as a Christian in the modern world? Do you teach them Biblical truths in order to help them build a strong foundation so that they will not be shaken? Do you encourage them with words of warning and correction so that they will be spurned into action to do the work that is necessary to survive the persecution that will come? If we fail to do the things that we have seen in these three verses so far, then we are failing to make true disciples and merely converts who will not have a faith built on a firm foundation, and may crumble at the first obstacle.
Just a Thought!
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