Thursday, May 16, 2023
Paul’s Prayer for Gospel Advance – 2 Thessalonians 3:1–2 submitted by Kay Crumley
Do you ever question what you’re doing to advance God’s Kingdom? I ask myself that question. I don’t always like honest answers. I do pray for God to open opportunities to share the gospel, but do I consciously look for those encounters? Paul is giving the charge in todays passage to spread the gospel. That’s not the first time we have seen him giving that responsibility to those to whom he wrote. I share, on FB, a couple verses most days. Romans 10:14 was one of the verses I shared yesterday. How can they call on the One they have not believed in? How can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? How can they hear without someone preaching to them? Have you ever been surprised that someone you meet or maybe have known for some time doesn’t know about Jesus or have an accurate understanding of who He is and what He has done for us? Rather than asking, ‘how can you not know?’ We should be asking ‘have I ever shared the gospel with them?’ I know the answer to that question for myself, and it’s not what I want to be true. Romans 10:14 is, maybe, an ‘in your face’ challenge to us as believers. Are we doing what we’re called to do? Let’s review what that verse is really asking. We do not seek answers from anyone we don’t believe in or trust. Paul is telling us the obvious, we must know who Jesus is and trust Him to seek His help. But, the second question seems even more obvious, no one can believe unless they’ve heard of Him. If we stop there we are, maybe, off the hook, not my fault they have never been exposed to the truth. But Paul doesn’t stop there. Someone must preach to them. Does that also let me wiggle out of responsibility for them hearing the gospel, I’m not a preacher. One practice I use is to compare various versions when I have a question about a word of phrase. When I looked at this verse in the Amplified Version, there is a paratheses after preacher (messenger). That tells me that we don’t have to be the one standing in the pulpit on Sunday mornings to be responsible for sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. We just need to be one who will share the message to those who need to hear.
That brings us to our focal passage today, 2 Thessalonians 3: 1-2
1Finally, brothers, pray for us that the Lord’s message may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you, 2 and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men, for not all have faith.
Paul is asking that they pray for him and those he has taught to be the preacher, messenger, so that the gospel will spread rapidly. Paul has an urgency about the message being shared as quickly as possible. What he is request is that all the church, body of believers, would pray for him to do what God has commissioned him to do, share the gospel. Are we praying for our pastors to be able to share the gospel every time they preach? Perhaps that is what God is leading your to do rather than be the one to speak the Word. It is the calling of each of us to pray for our leaders, especially our spiritual leaders. The message is to be honored. That word can mean triumphantly celebrated and glorified. We are to honor the preaching of His word by applying it to our lives and striving to change our actions by obeying His commands. Paul recognized that these believers had done that, they accepted the gospel and truth and now trust in Jesus Christ.
What is the outcome of that acceptance? That they will be delivered from evil men. People who are unreasonable and wicked and do not have faith in God. Those are who will try to influence us to be like them, evil in the sight of the Lord. They will attempt to cause us to question our own faith. We can be rescued from them by spending time in the Word and with fellow believers.
The way to avoid being overcome by the evil influences of the world is to spend time daily in His word, pray, have faith in God, and focus on His promises. When difficulties come God is our defense, He is our shield. We honor Him by sharing the gospel. We only must share the message; God through the Holy Spirit will do the rest to bring others to Him.
