***********1 thessalonians 2:17-20

Understanding 1 Thessalonians (An Encouraging Word in an Ongoing Battle (1 Thessalonians 2:17–20))

An Encouraging word in an ongoing battle

1 Thessalonians 2:17–20 (NRSV)

17 As for us, brothers and sisters, when, for a short time, we were made orphans by being separated from you—in person, not in heart—we longed with great eagerness to see you face to face. 18 For we wanted to come to you—certainly I, Paul, wanted to again and again—but Satan blocked our way. 19 For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? 20 Yes, you are our glory and joy!

All of us have experienced separation from family, friends, church members, and those that we love. All of us have experienced plans that fall through, hindrances in travel, in scheduling, in financing, and in time. Throughout the centuries the church has experienced struggles and trials, persecutions and pain, discouragement and fears. Satan and his army constantly wages war against the church. The outlook sometimes looks bleak, but there is encouragement from God’s word. There is hope and encouragement for the church, there is instruction and protection for the church, and there is blessings and privilege for the church.

Paul tells the church that he knows exactly what they are going through and that the persecution that they are experiencing is a sign of their genuine faith. Paul encourages the church and informs the church about present circumstances and future circumstances. In the midst of a heavy battle there is an encouraging word in an ongoing battle. Paul gives the church some instructions in an ongoing battle.

I. The plan of the servants. (vs. 17–18a)

(A.) A reminder to the church. (17a)

“But we, brethren, having been taken away from you for a short time in presence,”

Paul gives the church a reminder of his plans. Some claimed that Paul ran into town, made some converts, stirred up a controversy and fled. They claimed that Paul did not love the people or care for the people. He reminds the church that he didn’t leave because he wanted to, but because he had to. Having been taken away: means to be torn away from. The root word means to be orphaned or to suddenly lose your parents. Marvin Vincent wrote, “The word suggests the intimate personal fellowship of the writer with his readers. The separation was like that between parents and children.” The new believer’s in Thessalonica must have been devastated when the apostles had to leave town.

We see in this passage Paul’s love and care for the church. Paul could not experience the fellowship with the believers, evangelism with the believers, could not disciple the new believers, could not worship with the believers, and could not do ministry with the new believers because they had been torn apart. Paul reminds the church that it was not his will to leave the church. Acts 17:5–10, “But the Jews who were not persuaded becoming envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace, and gathering a mob, set all the city in an uproar and attacked the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. Jason has harbored them, and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king—Jesus.” And they troubled the crowd and the rulers of the city when they heard these things. So when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go. Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews.” No doubt about it, Paul hoped to be restored to the young church so that he could encourage, instruct, and disciple them. The letter to the Thessalonians was sent a short time after the apostles had been run out of town. Great Lesson: Don’t leave the people you love in the dark.

Paul let the Christians know what was going on, about his plans, and encouraged them to hang in there. In verse 17 we’ve seen a reminder to the church. Next we see:

(B.) A return to the church. (vs. 17b–18a)

“not in heart, endeavored more eagerly to see your face with great desire. Therefore we wanted to come to you—even I, Paul, time and again”

Have you ever heard the saying, “Out of sight, out of mind?” The apostle’s hearts were with the people, even though they had been separated from the people. Even in a short time the apostles developed a deep love for the people. They were concerned for their spiritual condition and for their physical condition. The church at Thessalonica was in the heart of the apostles. I have my wife Tracy in my heart. When she’s not with me I miss her, I pray for her. I pray for her protection, safety, and spiritual well being. I pray that she would be a godly woman everywhere she goes. She’s in my heart. When I’m not with her there’s a part of me that is empty, and a part of me that longs for her.

When Paul said that they had been taken away in presence, but not in heart, those words would have encouraged and blessed the young church. Endeavored: means “to make an earnest attempt.” The apostles had eagerly and earnestly attempted to return to the church. They desired to see the believer’s face. Face: (prosopon) denotes the countenance. It came to refer to the presence of the person or the presentation of the whole person. Paul earnestly and eagerly desired to see the brothers and sisters in Thessalonica. Do we desire to see our brothers and sister like that? If we had that kind of desire the churches would be full on Sunday morning and Sunday night!

My brother is a pastor in Kansas City. He moved there about nine years ago. A little over seven years ago I got married and my brother came down to Florida to marry Tracy and I. The wedding was the first time that I had seen my brother in over a year. I talk to him regularly on the phone and it’s good to talk to him, but it was better to see his face. There is nothing like having fellowship with brothers and sister face to face. Paul, Silas, and Timothy did not have South Central Bell or AT&T. They did not have video conference tele-communications. They could not get hooked up. They did not have satellites or cell-phones, and they longed to see the Thessalonians. Paul planned a return to the church.

Paul didn’t plan lightly, but was serious about what he sought to do. Paul longed to see the Thessalonians face with great desire. Desire: (epithumia) means a desire, craving, or longing. This word is used of the Lord Jesus’ desire to eat the Passover, Paul’s desire to be with Christ, and Paul’s desire to be with the saints in Thessalonica. In verses 17–18 we have examined the plan of the servants. In the last part of verse 18 we see:

II. The purpose of Satan. (18b)

“but Satan hindered us.”

This is not just a little statement thrown in at the end of the sentence. Paul understood that the spiritual battles that were going on were real and intense. He understood that the adversary was Satan. Satan: (Satanas) word that means adversary. It is used of the Devil as adversary of the people of God. Many try to deny the existence of Satan, of evil, of hell, but the Bible clearly teaches their existence. Satan is a real being. He is a created angel. He is a fallen angel. Satan does have limited power. Satan hates the church of God, hates the word of God, hates the work of God, and hates the Son of God.

Paul was aware of the enemy of God and God’s people. Paul understood that there was a literal and evil Devil. Many in our day joke and make fun of the Devil, or just flat refuse to believe what the word of God says about the Devil. Great Biblical Truth: Just as Satan tried to hinder the work of the church in the first century, he still tries to hinder the work of the church today. Marvin Vincent wrote, “In the New Testament Satan appears as the personal spirit of evil—the same who is called the devil, the wicked on, the prince of the power of the air, the prince of the world, the serpent, the god of this world, the tempter. He tempts to evil, opposes God’s work, inspires evil dispositions, torments God’s people.” When we are walking with and working with Jesus we will be walking against and working against the Devil. When we oppose the kingdom of darkness, the kingdom of darkness will oppose us. 1 John 4:4, “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” Luke 10:17–20, “Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.’ And He said to them, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightening from heaven. Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” Satan seeks to oppose, intimidate, and destroy the church of God. Paul was a casualty of spiritual warfare at times and he let the young church know that the battle was indeed raging. John MacArthur wrote, “the devil tempted Christ, he opposes the gospel, he performs counterfeit miracles, he seeks to deceive believers, he perpetrates lies and murders, he attacks individual churches, and he especially attacks spiritual leaders. The New Testament reports that he was present at the churches of Jerusalem, Corinth, Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, and Philadelphia.”

Paul says that Satan hindered the apostles from returning to Thessalonica. Hindered: (egkopto) means to cut into, it was used of impeding persons by breaking up the road. Jimmy Draper writes about the word hindered, “It usually referred to cutting up the road to stop the advance of someone along the highway, to make it impassable so they could not reach their destination. Paul declares that Satan is out to throw up roadblocks in our way.”

Why was Satan hindering the apostles? Satan was hindering the apostles because these men were faithful servants of the Lord Jesus Christ. These men were making a difference for the kingdom of God. Great Biblical Truth: Spiritual warfare is the greatest when God’s servants are committed to God’s will, God’s word, and God’s work. After a sermon on the devil, an elderly lady told the pastor, “the devil don’t bother me and I don’t bother the devil.” That’s where many in the church are today! If you have Jesus in you and you are walking with Jesus, then you will be bothering the devil, you will be attacking the kingdom of darkness, you will be shining the light of the gospel in this dark world.

Paul gives the church instruction about the purpose of Satan. We learn from this passage that Satan can hinder the child of God. A George Barna study shows that over 66% of Baptist do not believe that Satan is a real being. George Barna says, “The Christian body in America is immersed in a crisis of Biblical illiteracy. How else can you describe matters when most church going adults reject the accuracy of the Bible, reject the existence of Satan, claim that Jesus sinned, see no need to evangelize, believe that good works are one of the keys to persuading God to forgive their sins and describe their commitment to Christianity as moderate or even less firm?” We must understand that Satan is real and the demons of hell are waging war against the church of Jesus Christ. Great News: The purposes of Satan will be thwarted, he will be defeated, he will spend eternity in the lake of fire and brimstone.

In this passage we’ve examined the plan of the servants, the purpose of Satan, and now we see:

III. The preciousness of the saints. (vs. 19–20)

“For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? For you are our glory and joy.”

Paul encourages the church by letting them know about their position in the Lord. The church is precious in the sight of the Lord. Jesus loves the church, the church is His bride. He suffered for the church, bled for the church, and died for His church. Paul’s hope in Jesus was strengthened by the faith of the Thessalonians. Great Bible Fact: Our faith in the Lord Jesus will always bring hope to others. Paul had joy that the Thessalonians were faithful Christians in the midst of opposition. Paul’s deep love for the brethren comes out in this verse. Paul was concerned about the church and he was strengthened in his hope and had deeper joy because of the church. Paul says that the church was his crown of rejoicing. Crown: (stephanos) The root word means to encircle. W.E. Vine defines the word, “denotes the ‘victor’s crown,’ the symbol of triumph in the games or some such contest, hence a reward or prize. It is a token of public honor for distinguished service.” Paul boasted of the church and sought to edify the Thessalonians.

The church was a source of rejoicing in Paul’s life. Paul had a present day perception, but he never lost sight of the future day of glory for the saints. Warren Wiersbe wrote, “In times of trouble and testing, it is important that we take the long view of things. Paul lived in the future tense, as well as in the present. His actions were governed by what God would do in the future.” It will be a great and glorious day when the Lord Jesus comes for His saints! Paul’s desire was to present the Thessalonians proudly and boldly before the Lord Jesus Christ. Jimmy Draper wrote, “One of the greatest joys that we shall ever know is the joy of seeing lives that God has allowed us to touch and help. The glory of any teacher is his pupils. The glory of any pastor is those who have come to know God through his preaching. When we stand before God at His throne, our crown of rejoicing will be those whose lives we have touched for Him.” Paul tells the Thessalonians that they are his glory and joy and that they are precious. If you are a born again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, you are precious to the Lord and precious to someone else as well. It may be a father, or mother, or brother, cousin, friend, Sunday school teacher, Pastor, coworker, or stranger that led you to the Lord Jesus Christ, you are precious to that person. Great Biblical Truth: God blesses those who serve Him and He allows His servants to participate in winning people to Jesus. What an awesome privilege He has given to His church. In these four verses we are challenged to remain faithful in this ongoing battle. Are you struggling in the faith? Keep your eyes on Jesus! Thank God that He encourages us even in tough times!