AFFIRMATION AMIDST AFFLICTION (2 THESSALONIANS 1:1-12)

Like a cluster of grapes crushed in a winepress, the grinding wheel of persecution and the stone of affliction were crushing the fragile body of believers in Thessalonica. But as those tender baby Christians yielded to God, they began to produce a fine wine with full-bodied faith, with a fragrant love, and with a sweetness that spread to all the churches of Asia Minor. In this letter, Paul doesn’t focus on the excruciating winepress as much as he does on the wine —the faith, love, and persevering hope created through the pressure of suffering.

In this first section of the book, Paul addresses a question that constantly plagues the minds of believers who strive to live lives of faith and holiness in Christ: “Why are we suffering?” It seems counterintuitive that God’s people should suffer while the persecutors who perpetrate the suffering should get off scot-free. In the first chapter, then, Paul seeks to encourage them in the midst of their trials. He assures them that God is a just Judge and that the guilty would not go unpunished . . . nor the innocent unrewarded.