Would the Apostle Paul offer thanksgiving for our church?

1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Would the Apostle Paul offer prayers of thanksgiving for our church?

Introduction

Imagine 2 people from the church praying for the church: (1) Oh, Lord, have mercy! (2) Oh Lord, thank you!

Apostle Paul thanked God for almost every single church he wrote to:

Rom. 1:8 - thank you Lord. But, dear fellows, please take care. You know: (1) keep your faith strong in the middle of trials (Rom. 8:35) and (2) your love must be sincere! Sin cera! (Rom 12:9).

I've read somewhere that there is a folklore origin of the word, sincere. In ancient Spain during the Renaissance era, when the sculptors working overtime made any mistakes, they used wax or cera to hide the defects in their works. However, when exposed to full sunlight, the wax used to dissolve and their faults became apparent. Thus, sculptures without any defects came to be known as sin-cera, Spanish for "without wax" and later on, it originated the English word, sincere.

However, mainstream English scholars don't accept this theory. As is apparent from a Google search, the usual answer you get is that sincere is derived from the latin sincerus for pure or clean.

1 Cor. 1: 7 - about spiritual gift. But the best way to manifest them is … LOVE!

Galatians - no thanksgiving!

Eph. 1:15-16 - (1) Be careful about faith: grace comes by faith! (2) Be careful about love: (a) love as Jesus did (Eph. 5:2); (b) love your wives as Jesus did! (Eph. 5: 25).

And so on!

How should we describe our church? Is it about what we want to see? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. “I had always looked for a place like this!”We have a bunch of things in mind when we’re trying to describe our church (programs, bands, retreats, many people or few people, etc)

We have to look and describe our church having 2 things in mind: faith & love.

Sometimes joy gives birth to thankfulness, but not always. (1 Thess 3:9)

Thankfulness does not come always from our joy. We are thankfull because we feel something. But when we don’t feel we KNOW! And thus we are thankful. Sometimes we smile and say thank you. Other times we cry and say: thank you....The very first meaning of “grace” in greek language, was this: something that brings joy! (TDNT)

The reason of Paul’s thankfulness: their steadfastness faith and laboring love! (3:6)!

We are so thankful for your faith and love but we pray beyond any measure to see you and supply what is lacking in your faith. Oh! May the Lord make your love increase!

Context - 1 Thess. 3:9-13 - Paul’s praying style

Guidlines: thanks, asking for fellowship opportunities (v. 10-11), asking for love inside the community (v. 12) in order to have a stronger faith (v. 13) which lead to a proper waiting of Jesus’ returning!

So: would Paul say a prayer of thanksgiving for our congregation?

we don’t have the proper words to give thanks for the church, dear Lord! (v9a)

Sometimes we just can’t find enough words for a full sentence regarding thanksgiving for the community we belong to!

Paul felt unable to give sufficient thanks to God for the tremendous sense of relief and joy he experienced at hearing the good news concerning his converts at Thessalonica. Wanamaker

thanksgiving and joy have the same root word: grace!

Our reaction is toward God, not toward you: thanksgiving and joy! But whoever fill his prayers with thanks toward God will surely reveal that attitude in his words toward his fellows!

Love - Thessalonians letters

Love is not a feeling in christian faith and practice. At all. Of course, it implies feeling but it’s more than that. A lot more: “For God so loved the world that he felt something so sweet for us...”

Practical features about love:

labor of love (1:3)

give our life for you - by working hard (2:8)

love helps the faith to be stronger (3:12-13)

love is for all humanity (3:12)

the love hosts (4:9-10) - At a more practical level it meant that Christians traveling between cities could obtain hospitality from their brothers and sisters in places where they knew no one. This is exactly what Paul asks of the Roman Christians for Phoebe, a sister and servant of the church at Cenchreae in Achaia (Rom. 16:1f.). In all probability then the Thessalonians had demonstrated their love for their Christian brothers and sisters in Macedonia by providing hospitality for them when they visited Thessalonica, a major port and commercial center as well as the seat of Roman administration for the province. Wanamaker

to appreciate those who lead us! (5:13)

the love cannot stand still (2T1:3)

So: would Paul say a prayer of thanksgiving for our congregation?

Faith - Thessalonians letters

work of faith (1:3)

The content of faith: serve God and waiting Jesus (1:8-10)

faith endures! (3:1-7) It is helpful for our faith to be exhorted!

it is helpful for our faith to receive supplies! (3:10)

faith is vigilant! (5:8)

if the trial increases, the faith increases also (2Thes 1:3-4)

faith’s work are glorifying Jesus (2 Thes 11-12),

A connected (faith - with God; love - with fellows) congregation can keep the CROWN!

So: would Paul say a prayer of thanksgiving for our congregation? Yes, he would.

Application part-