Let us pray. Holy Father, we thank you that as we read your word, we have the understanding that you are speaking to us directly through your word. And we thank you, Lord, that you have not let us to understand your word in our own strength, but you have given us the Holy Spirit who Open our eyes and give us the understanding and the light that we find in your scriptures. We pray, Lord, that as we look at these verses, our faith will be strengthened, that whatever we are going through, we will be strengthened by you through what we read here today. We pray all these things in Jesus' name, amen. So every time we come to any of these chapters or verses or portion of this letter of Second Thessalonians and even First Thessalonians, we encounter that the context of these verses or the context of the test that we have in front of us is that Paul is strengthening the faith of brothers and sisters who were going through difficult times, who were facing challenges in their faith. And it sounds like every week in the introduction of every passage that we preach from this letter, that's what we or what I share with you, but it is basically because what Paul is doing through all these chapters is strengthening the faith of these brothers and sisters. He was really concerned that a young church who was facing trials and tribulations and difficulties will depart from the faith that they have received. And therefore, this is what he does verse by verse and section by section in different areas of their faith. He is strengthening their faith. And this continues to be relevant to the church throughout all generations because the church has always faced challenges. Challenges as persecutions. challenges to the faith that we have received from the beginning, but also individuals, Christians, we all face different challenges in our faith. And it is when we face tribulations or difficulties in our life that our faith is tested, is when Our faith grows more, but when our faith is tested to be grounded in what we have received, which is from the Word of God. Therefore, there are three things that we could see from these verses that Paul is teaching the Thessalonians in order to strengthen their faith. And as he's doing that to them, or as he did that to this church in particular, he's doing that to us as well. So my hope is that as we look at these verses together, we will also leave this room with our faith being strengthened with the word of God. So the first thing that Paul focus in this section is to remind the Thessalonians what they were or what God has done for them already. And we see that in verses 13 through 14. He's reminding the Thessalonians what God has already done for them. He start by thanking God for what God has done in their life. He says, we ought always to give them to God for you. And I think that by doing that, Paul is in humility recognizing that as effective as his ministry was among these believers, he understood that his effectiveness did not depend on his eloquence or his ability to convince them with a clear message, but his effectiveness depended on God's work in their life. That it was God the one who was doing something in this church, in this group of believers. And I think that with that, Paul is also setting an example for us as believers that we are to remember that wherever we go and share the gospel, with people and people come to faith and to understand Jesus or to understand who Jesus is, we are to give God the glory because God is the one who does the work in people's hearts. He is the one who transforms people's life. It is not up to us with how good are we in presenting the message, but how effective is God in changing hearts and bringing them to him. Then he goes to strengthening them or to encourage them by reminding them that it's God the one who choose them to be his followers. What we find in these verses is very clear in terms of Paul teaching them or reminding them the doctrine of election. And we know that this has had many challenges throughout the history of the church and continues to be a point in which many Christians are divided. But the reality is that when you look at the scriptures, when you look at the Word of God, there are sometimes even four times more evidence in the scripture about God choosing people to be saved than the divinity of Christ. That doesn't mean that the fact that Christ is divine, that Christ is God is not clear in the scripture, but there is overwhelming evidence in the scripture that God is the one who bring people to himself, who have chosen people to be his own people. And what is curious is that we don't see division among Christians in that point that Christ is divine. In fact, those who don't believe that are not considered to be believers because don't believe that Christ is divine. Yet, there is so much division among Christians regarding this doctrine, the doctrine of election. And I think it's more related to the fact that it's very difficult for humans to understand how God choose people to be saved. And on the other hand, it puts people in a humble position where we have nothing to offer to God, but it's God the one who has done all the work bringing us back to him. Then he starts saying, he says, for you brothers beloved by the Lord. And by this word, he is already describing that they have been loved by God. The question that you could ask right away, why were they loved by God? Or you could ask that question about yourself. Why are you loved by God? Why God love you? We know and we understand that no one seeks God. No one looks for God. Not even one. And in Ephesians, we also are reminded that we were following the desires of our own desires, following the prince of this world. We were enemies of God. We are no lovable people. But God, unilaterally, which is in his own decision, came and loved us, loved people to save them. Why did he love them? In a sense, we could say that's a mystery for us. Why does God love me? I don't know, but I know that he love me. And we know that he love us because, he said, because God choose you. God has appointed you to be safe. God choose you. So he love you because he choose you, and he choose you because he love you. Here, again, Paul is reminding these brothers and sisters this important foundation of their faith because when they were facing challenges and tribulations, they were probably tempted to think that God did not love them or that it was because maybe they did not deserve to be counted as God's people. Then Paul says, he says, give thanks to God for you brothers, beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the first fruits. As the first fruits. It is in fact, in this line, as the first fruits, two ways you could actually translate that word that we have here as first fruits. One way is, as you have it here, rendering our ESV versions as first fruits. The other way is from the beginning. The reason why some translations have decided to translate the word apartheid as first fruits is because the same word is used in other seeds' occasions throughout the New Testament, and they are always referring to first fruits. So in this other context, it makes sense that this word is translated as first fruits. But when you look at the context of what Paul is teaching here, I believe it fits more to translate these words or translate this word as from the beginning. Those who interpret this as first fruit, they'd say that what Paul is saying that the Thessalonians were among those who became Christians earlier in Macedonia. Remember, they came to Philippi, shared the gospel of Philippi, then they went to Thessalonica, and shared the gospel of Thessalonica. Therefore, they say that Paul is saying that they were the first fruits of the Macedonian area or the churches in Macedonia. But again, as I told you, I believe that a better translation for that is that Paul is saying God chose you from the beginning. Now the question that you can ask is what beginning? What do you mean by from the beginning? I think that what brings light to verses like this is what we find in Ephesians chapter one verse four. He says, even as he choose us in him before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and blameless before him in love. In other words, when Paul says, because God chose you from the beginning, Paul is saying God chose us, or chose them, the Thessalonians, in this case, before the foundation of the world. What Paul is reminding the Thessalonians is that God chose them before They were created before there was even will in them to follow God or to follow Jesus. And in Romans, we can find this illustrated even more with Isa in Romans chapter nine. Therefore, Paul is reminding these brothers and sisters that God loved them, therefore choose them before the foundation of the world to what? To be saved. He says, to be saved. As Christians, this is a very common understanding for us, that we are safe, and we are safe from what? We are saved from eternal condemnation. We saw two weeks ago when we were studying chapter one that those who are persecuting the church are destined to be separated from God for eternity. That is what God save us from when he choose us to be his people before the foundation of the world. before we were even created. Now, how does God apply this to us? Paul explained this here in what he says in verse 13 and also what he says in verse 14. First of all, he says in verse 13, through sanctification by the Spirit. Through sanctification by the Spirit. The word holy describes the purity in terms of when we talk about God, that God is pure, that there is no sin in God, but also describes that he is set apart from everything that exists. Therefore, when something is holy, it can be understood as something that is pure, but also something that has been set apart from the rest of the things. Therefore, when Paul says here that God choose us, from the beginning to be saved through sanctification by the Spirit is through the Spirit who set us apart from the rest of creation. It's the work of the Holy Spirit in us, the one who set us apart, who appoint us, who apply God's election in our lives. How does he do that? He does that in the way Paul described it in verse 14. He says, to this he call you. To this he call you. We know that the nations are called to trust in God through the proclamation of God's word, through the preaching of God's word. We also have the effectual call of God, which is the work of God through the Holy Spirit, which is the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, who sets us apart in our hearts, transforming us, changing our hearts, and giving us a heart for him. Therefore, being able to receive the external call that is proclaimed to us through the preaching of God's word. In other words, what Paul is saying here is that God called our hearts, God called the Thessalonians' hearts internally so they were able to respond to the proclamation of God's Word by Paul, Silas, and Timothy. If we read again, he says, to be saved through the sanctification by the Spirit and believe in the truth, and believe in the truth, the truth is the gospel that is proclaimed to them. To this, he called you through our gospel. So it's the interaction of the gospel that was proclaimed to them, but also the internal call from God. Now, besides saving us from hell, Besides saving us from eternal condemnation, God, by electing us, he has elected us to be glorified. If you read Romans chapter eight, verses 29 through 30, it describes step by step how all this happens. He said, for those he love, or for those he foreknew, which is those he love, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son in order that he might be the firstborn, meaning Christ might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those who he predestined, those who have been chosen by God, he also called the effectual call in their hearts, and those he called he also justified, he has declared as just, as righteous before God, and those he justified he also glorified. Remember that what Paul is doing here is Paul is strengthening their faith of these brothers and sisters. who were facing difficulties, who were facing trials and tribulations. And why he do that, or the way he does that, is by reminding them that the one who called them, the one who choose them, the one who predestined them to be saved, is the same one who will glorify them. That at the end of the time, when they will be before Christ, they will be glorified, not because of what they have done, but because of what Christ has done. Not because of their own desire, but because God has loved them. They were beloved by God. Now second, then if this is what God have done for us, what are you to do? What are we up to do? One of the arguments that some people have against the doctrine of election is if God has already done all the work, I don't need to do anything. What is the point? What would be the motivation in my life to live life that honor and please God? Well, Paul, throughout his letters, does two things. He always remind people their status before God, what God has done for them, and he move to also exhort people to live according to that calling. Look what he says in verse 15, he says, so then brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. Paul is exhorting them to stand firm because they were in the middle of a storm, remember? They were new believers and they were facing already great persecution. They were called to stand firm in the middle of all these challenges. The same call is to us when we are reminded of what God has done for us is to stand firm to the tribulations or persecutions or temptations that we are facing. For example, the society might be tempting us to adapt ourselves to what they are offering. But he says here, how do you stand firm? You stand firm by holding to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. In other words, Paul is saying stand firm by holding on to the word of God. The traditions that were taught by then is when Paul came to them and preached the gospel to them. But the letter was the letter that they have already received, which is 1 Thessalonians. We also, as Christians, the way we stand firm is by holding on to this, which is the Word of God. And there will be always people coming with novelties, with new things, maybe new interpretations of the Word of God. We are called to stand firm in what we have been already taught by the Word of God. Then from there, Paul moved to pray for the brothers and sisters in Thessalonica. And I think that by praying for them, he's also setting an example for us how we ought to pray for our brothers and sisters and how we ought to pray also for ourselves. In verse 16, he again remind them of what God has already done. He says, now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, and then he says, who love us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace. How do we have that eternal comfort and good hope through grace? We have that by knowing that we are beloved by God, that we are chosen by God, that we were chosen before the foundation of the world to be saved, that we have been set apart by the Holy Spirit, and that we have been called in our hearts to be God's people. This is the eternal hope that we have. He's not talking about a momentary hope. He says eternal comfort. These coming days, some people will be looking forward to comfort food in Thanksgiving. But comfort food only comfort you for a couple of hours, and then comes guilt, because probably you ate too much. But the comfort that God is offering to us is eternal, because we know that it is not only for now, And the tribulations or difficulties that we might be facing now, but it's extended to eternity. To eternity. And what is that Paul is praying for them? He's praying that he says in verse 16, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word. His prayer is that God will comfort their hearts and establish them in every good work and word. These past weeks, I was able to experience firsthand something that I have heard many brothers and sisters sharing with me before. When people have come to us or to me asking for prayer, or I have heard that somebody's going through a difficult time, I have prayed and I have seen brothers and sisters praying for them. They have shared with me and shared with others, I have felt your prayers. The way I have felt your prayers, they say, is because I have experienced peace even in the middle of this difficult time. And with the passing of my father, I could say that I have felt your prayers for me. I finally understood what you meant when you were saying, I'm feeling your prayers. Here Paul is saying, comfort your hearts. That's the prayer that he had for them because he knew that God will strengthen them internally, inwardly, as they were facing difficulties. But he's also asking God to establish them in every good work and word. Basically, this is the same prayer that he has in all his letters, that they might live a life worthy of God. That they might live a life worthy of the kingdom of God, that their works, their actions would reflect what God has done in them, and their words also will be a testimony of what God has done with them. So if we summarize what Paul is teaching here or what Paul is saying to encourage these brothers and sisters. First of all, he's thanking God for what he have done for them. But by thanking them, he's reminding them, he's reminding that God is the one who brought them to him. And he is the one who choose them, who predestine them, not on the basis on their works, but on the basis of what he have done for them. But he continues to exhort them, to exhort them to remain steadfast in this faith that they have received. That they will remember these words and these words will be the source of encouragement when they were facing trials and tribulations. And Paul also prays for them that they will, again, live life that honors God by works and words. These days we are, especially this week, we are thinking about no election only, but also missions is the global outreach week. And I think that this test, this passage from the Bible also should encourage us in our mission to the world. Our mission to our classmates, roommates, coworkers, neighbors, and also those who are called to go overseas and bring the gospel out to the nations. Because we know that this enterprise of bringing the gospel out is effective. And the reason why it is effective is because it doesn't depend on us and our words, but in whom God has already called to be his child of God. to those who he has called to have eternal hope. Our mission is to let the world know who is the Savior, Christ. But God is the one who transforms people's hearts. Let us pray. Dear God, we thank you for giving us this eternal hope that as we come to you, we know that it is because you have loved us even before we knew you. You knew us and you loved us. and you call us to be your people. Help us, Lord, to stand firm in this faith. Help us to hold fast to these promises that we have written in your word. Help us, Lord, to rely on them, especially when we are tempted to abandon them. And we pray for our brothers and sisters here in our church, here in Philadelphia, and especially around the world where they face persecution, that they will be able to stand firm as well in the middle of the storm, remembering these words of encouragement that we have here in front of us. We pray all these things in Jesus' name, amen.