Faith Under Fire: Why Your Suffering Isn't Meaningless

Sermon Discussion Questions: January 4, 2026 Faith Under Fire: Why Your Suffering Isn't Meaningless 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12 I. Greeting 1. Paul may have spent as little an 3 weeks in Thessalonica. He spent about a year and a half in Corinth, the problem church of the New Testament. What qualities or attitudes hamper or enable a congregation's spiritual growth? 2. Pastor Paul said that the Christian life often involves suffering. Bummer. a. In Freud's earlier writings, he said that people usually act to avoid pain and increase pleasure. What motivates Christians to act contrary to this fundamental, and seemingly reasonable, motivation? b. In verses 6 & 7, Paul writes of this suffering being temporary. What other scriptures prophesy of a time when suffering, for the righteous, ceases? i. Old Testament. ii. New Testament 3. The Bible reveals God as the creator and sustainer of life, and the fountainhead of all joy and beauty. How do you resolve the paradox that aligning oneself with God's will involves suffering? 4. Looking at the first four verses, how does Paul encourage the Thessalonian congregation that they are on the right path – that their suffering is not evidence that they are doing something wrong? 5. Pastor Paul said that muscles grow with resistance. If this was an analogy, what does it illustrate? 6. Rather than congratulating the Thessalonians for their endurance, Paul opens the letter with __________________. II. The Judgement at Christ’s Coming 7. A major factor in determining whether a bridge or person can stand under a heavy load is its ________________. 8. Name two questions we can ask ourselves while we are suffering. 9. Name two elements of God's judgment that are revealed in this passage. 10. Name two characteristics that are revealed in this passage, of people who will experience God's judgment. 11. Pastor Paul said that God's love is not pitted against his judgment. If you agree, how do you reconcile this seeming contradiction? 12. Pastor Paul shared an anecdote about an unbelieving coworker did not realize he was the beneficiary of “common grace”. What is common grace and how to unbelievers benefit from it? 13. Paul prays in verse 11 that God will fulfill “every resolve for good”. If you made a New Year's resolution that had some spiritual component, please share it. 14. AI Question: 🤖Verse 11 speaks of God making believers worthy of His calling. What daily choices or habits could you adopt to better reflect God’s character and purpose in your actions? Prayer Points: • Ask God to show you evidences of His grace in and through your trials. a. Describe an incident in the Old Testament when God demonstrated grace as his servant went through a trial. b. Share a personal story of God giving you grace through a trial. • Pray that God would use you to bring the gospel to those who do not yet believe. a. If you have had the joy of sharing the gospel with someone, and seeing that person embrace Jesus and be changed because of it, please share the story. • Pray that God’s glory would be your calling in the year ahead. a. Share a success story, in which you were in a stressful situation, and managed to act in a God-glorifying manner instead of a self-protective manner.