A Life Worthy of Your Calling - 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12

In our country, most of those who hold public office are elected officials. Those who have won seats in positions of power and authority are thought to have earned those seats, and they are expected to act in a certain way. When their behavior doesn’t line up with their position, we remove those people, because we no longer think them worthy of their position.

What’s interesting, however, is to think about the families of these people in positions of power. They have not been elected, they have not been vetted by the voters, and yet they enjoy many of the privileges of the office. Even though they didn’t earn or seek this position they recognize that because they are the spouse or child of an elected official, their conduct reflects not only on the elected official, but the nation as a whole. Because of their love for their country and their family, they want to live in a way that will bring honor to them, rather than dishonor.

In our passage this morning, the Apostle Paul reminded the church in Thessalonica that they were in a similar position. Though they had done nothing to earn the position they had as believers in Christ, they had a responsibility to live lives that reflect positively on the One who had given them that position. As we unpack Paul’s instructions to the church in Thessalonica, we will find that his instructions are timeless and challenging.

Paul’s Prayer

Paul sought to encourage the Thessalonians by reminding them of how proud he was of them and the way they had served the Lord faithfully. He knew they were in the midst of persecution and wanted to encourage them to keep fighting the good fight. Paul understood that when you’re constantly being hammered, a word of encouragement can do wonders. So he reminded them that he continued to pray for them.

So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life worthy of his call. May he give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do. (2 Thessalonians 1:11, NLT)

Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians was twofold: that God would enable them to live a life worthy of God’s call, and that He would give them the power to do what their faith leads them to do. We’ll look at each of these petitions in turn.

First, Paul says his prayer is that they would live a life worthy of God’s call. We have to be careful here because we can easily misunderstand what Paul is saying. At first glance it seems like Paul is saying faith alone is not enough for salvation—that we must also live lives worthy of that salvation or it will be taken from us.

Here’s the problem with that line of thought: that’s impossible! There is no believer (not even Paul!) who lived a life worthy of the forgiveness offered in Jesus Christ. It simply isn’t possible. It is far too great a gift for us to possibly earn or live up to. However, because we have received such a great salvation even though we didn’t earn or deserve it, we should recognize that we are now ambassadors of Jesus Christ. We represent our Lord to the world. As such, we should live in a way that honors Him. Our good deeds are motivated by gratitude and trust rather than a sense of needing to earn the gift we’ve been given.

This is one of the great challenges of rightly understanding the Christian faith. We are not saved because of the good things we do. We cannot possibly merit the gift of forgiveness that is offered to us in Jesus Christ. However, we also can’t say that the way we live doesn’t matter. James tells us that faith without good deeds is dead—a faith that doesn’t change the way we live is not faith at all.

A person who has truly received this gift of forgiveness and new life from Jesus will necessarily change the way they live. If we really trust God to save us we will desire to live in a way that honors rather than dishonors Him. We will not do this perfectly, but we will make progress over time.

Think about it another way. Suppose you had built up a debt of several million dollars due to lots and lots of foolish spending. You obviously couldn’t pay it back, and now all your purchases have been repossessed, but you are still left with a mountain of debt. The debt is so high that you can’t even keep up with the interest payments. How would you feel? You would surely feel trapped, and you’d know it was all your fault. Now suppose someone came to you and told you they would not only pay your debt off, but they would help you get back on good footing and would even help you make better financial decisions in the future. They would help you to not only survive but thrive financially. How would you respond to such an offer? Would you take the money, then spit in their face? Would you simply ask for your debt to be paid off but not worry about getting on good footing for the future? Of course not! When someone shows you that kind of love (and also obviously knows what they are doing), you are willing to follow their advice because you recognize the gift you’ve been given.

This is the picture Paul is giving to the Thessalonians about why they (and we) should live a life that is worthy of the call we have received in Jesus. We don’t deserve Christ’s forgiveness, but because He has given us a new life, we want to do things His way—both to honor Him and because we know His way is always better.

So what does that look like? What should we do to live a life worthy of our calling? We live the way that God has instructed us to. Specifically I think it means we cultivate the characteristics of:

Love—Meaning that we treat others with value and respect even when they don’t do the same to us. One of the marks of a genuine believer is a life characterized by love. The Apostle John tells us Christians love others because we have experienced Christ’s love for us. What does that look like practically?

It means choosing to see the best in people rather than fixating on what we perceive as their flaws.

It means talking to people when we have an issue instead of talking about them.

It means trying to forgive offenses rather than nursing old wounds.

It means giving people the benefit of the doubt—trying to assume the best motives in them rather than the worst.

Faith—The rest of the world spends their time worrying about every little thing. Christians should be people who can face the worst circumstances in life knowing that God is still in control. We do not despair because we rest in the truth that God has a plan. People who live with such faith have a peace and a patience about them that is refreshing to the world around us, and it honors our Lord.

Self-Discipline—Step one of the gospel is to admit that we are sinners in need of a Savior. But that’s just the first step. To recognize our sin but do nothing about it doesn’t honor God at all. The true believer works to root out sin when they see it in their own lives. Rather than trying to pass the buck or explain it away, they accept responsibility and redouble their efforts to live according to God’s commands. The result is that over time we should see progress in holiness.

A Reordering of Priorities—When we come to Jesus, we recognize that the things we deem important are different than the things He does. And we also recognize that He knows better than we do. So we reorder our priorities (in terms of time, money, what we choose to think about, the media we consume, etc.) in order to better align with God’s priorities.

These are just a few of the ways we can begin to live lives worthy of the calling we have received. We aren’t trying to earn our salvation or even to pay back the Lord for the gift we have received, we are trying to honor the One who has given us more than we could have ever imagined.

The second part of Paul’s prayer is that God would give the Thessalonians the power to do everything their faith prompts them to do. I don’t know if you have ever had the experience of a strong feeling or pull that you should do something, and knowing that it was God prompting you to do it. I hope you’ve had that experience. Sadly, when that happens to me, I often resist that pull—usually because I’m being prompted to do something that is uncomfortable or scary to me. Paul’s prayer is that the Thessalonian believers would have the strength to do everything God’s Spirit prompted them to do.

God doesn’t just save people from their sin and quit. He doesn’t just leave us alone until we die. He has plans for us even while we are still here! And that’s true for every believer! Sometimes we have this idea that some people (like pastors, missionaries, or Bible scholars) are who God uses for ministry, but that the rest of us are just supposed to go about our business and leave the real ministry to “the professionals”. Nothing could be further from the truth. Let me remind you of the words of Ephesians 2:8-10,

8God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. (Ephesians 2:8-10, NLT)

We often focus on the first part of this passage (which is great news!) but we forget about verse 10 sometimes. It is mind-boggling to me that God had good things planned for us to do way before He ever saved us. This means God has a plan to use each of us in His greater purpose for the world. So we should be willing to step out in faith when we feel that tug from the Spirit. We should do things that scare us, trusting that God will help us do what He’s called us to do. If we will do that, we will get the opportunity to see God move in ways we may never have imagined.

Again, I’ve got some suggestions of what that might look like. It might mean,

Talking to your friend, co-worker, or family member about faith, even though it scares you and you think you don’t know enough. It is simply sharing with them what you believe and what you have learned through Jesus and trusting God to do the rest.

Stepping up to serve in a ministry that scares you a bit. Maybe you’re scared to teach because you think you don’t know enough. If God’s prompting you, then take the step. Maybe He’s prompting you to step up into a ministry (like the nursery, Children’s Church, or AWANA!) but you’re afraid it will take too much of your time. If he’s prompting you, trust Him that the investment of time will be worth it. Or maybe he’s prompting you to start a ministry that doesn’t yet exist—maybe something that has nothing to do with the local church. Maybe you’re scared you’re not equal to the task. Often God’s plans require us to trust Him for our strength, so we should take those steps when the Spirit prompts us…even when it’s scary!

Making a phone call, a visit, or sending a letter when you feel like someone could use some encouragement. Maybe you just keep thinking about someone, so you take the time to pray for them or check in on them. Or maybe it’s taking the time to really connect with someone, listen to them and care for them. Maybe you are supposed to give them a hug, or just to sit with them while they grieve. If God’s Spirit prompts you to do something then do it!

The list could go on and on, but the point is this: God has a plan to use you in His Kingdom. How He will use you is different than how He will use me or anyone else. When you feel God leading you, I (like Paul) pray that God would give you the strength to do whatever it is He’s calling you to do. I’m confident He will!

The Reason

Paul concludes by reminding us of why all of this is important.

Then the name of our Lord Jesus will be honored because of the way you live, and you will be honored along with him. This is all made possible because of the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:12, NLT)

The reason we do these things, the reason we live in ways that honor the Lord is because we want Him to be honored. He deserves it!

The reformers had a great motto that drove most everything they did: Soli Deo Gloria. It means: To the Glory of God Alone! This should be the driving force in our lives. If we base our decisions in life on what will bring God honor and glory, then we will be on the right path.

Unfortunately, this is difficult because quite frankly we want to be the ones who receive glory and honor. But the whole purpose of creation is to bring glory and honor to God. God created you and saved you in order to bring glory to himself!

Some people bristle at this notion—in part because they think it means we aren’t that important to God. I remember the first time I mentioned this concept to my youth group kids, and they kind of turned up their noses. They argued that the idea that all of creation was about bringing glory to God meant that God was utterly selfish and evil. I pointed out a very important distinction: it is wrong for us to want to be the center of the universe, because we are not. But it is perfectly right for God to want to be the center of the universe, because He actually is! When we make everything about God, we are finally living life the way it’s supposed to be done! God really is the center of the universe, so we should treat Him that way.

This means that we should be willing to do hard things in order to bring glory to God. It means we love when people don’t love us back. It means we are kind when others are not. It means we continue to remain faithful even when the world seems to be hammering us over and over again. It means we serve faithfully even when we don’t see how God is using us. We don’t do these things because we think it will make our lives easier, or bring us fulfillment, or get us earthly power, possessions, or anything else. We do these things because we know that living in this way honors God—and that is really the purpose of life.

But Paul reminds us of something else that happens when we live for the glory of God alone—we too will receive honor! God will reward us and honor us for the way we live.

Sometimes we will receive honor in this life for living in way that honors Christ. If we are doing it right, our lives should stand out from the world around us, and people will take note of us. We may receive encouragement, we may have friends, we may be well-respected by others. But we also may be ridiculed, marginalized, and lonely in this world. Paul reminds us that God will ultimately honor us for living the way we should—which is living for the glory of God alone. When God is honored, we also reap some of the benefits.

Conclusion

This passage should challenge each of us, because it reminds us that the way we live and the choices we make matter. We are to live in a way that honors the Lord, that reflects positively on Him—not because by doing so we will somehow earn or pay him back for our salvation, but because that’s the way we want to live. We want to honor the One who has given us so much.

But it is also possible that you come away from this passage a little discouraged, feeling overmatched by the task before you. It’s possible that you think about how God has called you to serve Him and you get scared. You think there’s no way you could possibly do what He’s calling you to. That’s where Paul’s last phrase in verse 12 becomes really important.

This is all made possible because of the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ.

We must remember that just as our salvation has nothing to do with our own inherent goodness or abilities, neither do the things we do in this life. Everything we do is ultimately powered by God’s grace. The good news of this is that we have a limitless source of strength and power we often forget. It means that when we feel like our strength is completely gone, we are just beginning to tap into the power that is really available to us. It means we can take steps that scare us, and we can try things we think are beyond our abilities because we know God’s grace will ultimately help us to do what He has called us to do.

But there’s another facet of this truth that everything is made possible by God’s grace. It reminds us that we must never begin to think more highly of ourselves than we ought. Sometimes it is tempting to look at the progress God has helped us make in our own lives or the ways in which we serve Him and then look at others (whether Christians or not, inside the church or outside it) and think of ourselves as somehow better than them. We must never allow ourselves to fall into that trap. We must never lose sight of the fact that we are only where we are because of God’s grace.

It also means we shouldn’t give up on people. There is no such thing as a lost cause. No one is too far gone that God cannot reach them. We can love and reach out to the people the world has long since given up on because we know it is ultimately God’s grace that changes people. And when we see the change He has brought within us, we know He can do the same for anyone else.

Paul’s intention in writing these words was to encourage a group of believers who was tired, and who felt like they couldn’t carry on. I suspect that may describe many of you today. But like Paul, my prayer is that God would help you to live up to your calling, that He would give you the strength to do the things you feel led to do, and that He would always keep you mindful of His grace. If we live knowing that God will answer this prayer, we will see Him do things we might never have imagined—and more importantly we will bring Him the honor and glory He deserves.