November 2, 2025
"Growth Through Suffering"
2 Thessalonians 1:1-12
This letter is addressed to the church in the Greek city of Thessalonica. The city was a trading center according to some scholars. A Jewish synagogue was located in the city. This might explain why the apostle Paul made it a point to visit the city and include it in his missionary journey to the region.
Paul and Silas are credited with establishing the church in Thessalonica. We’re not exactly sure of its make up. It may have been comprised of both non-Jewish and Jewish believers. The important thing to know, however, is that the gospel of Jesus Christ had reached the city through the evangelistic efforts of Paul and Silas. God used these men to preach the Gospel in the city of Thessalonica. This was to fulfill God’s promise to spread the Gospel throughout the world.
The apostle Paul wrote this letter to the Thessalonian church. There doesn’t seem to be any doubt as to who authored this letter. Ancient church authorities quote this letter in their own writings and never question its authorship.
It is included in the Bible because it was written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It is God’s word. Even though it was addressed to the church in Thessalonica, it has a message for all Christians, even for us today. We have some of the same concerns as the members of the Thessalonian church had. That’s why this letter is relevant for us today.
It appears that the church at Thessalonica experienced persecution. It could have been from the authorities and even from ordinary citizens of Thessalonica. The Christian religion was not welcome. The persecution must have been severe enough to lead the members of the church into believing that they were living in the last days. That’s how bad their situation might have been.
Our text is Paul’s response to their concerns. He assured them that their suffering wasn’t for nothing. He didn’t write that their suffering would go away or disappear. Eventually, it would cease when Christ came back, but until then they would continue to suffer in this world. My guess is that the members of the church wondered how much longer they would have to suffer. How much longer would the persecution go on? Paul didn’t give them a specific time period. He did write, however, that it would end when Christ came back to judge the world—and that wouldn’t happen for some time yet.
Paul commended the church for having remained faithful to the Lord throughout the trials and suffering they were going through. They didn’t give up on God. They persisted in the faith. Paul assured them that their faith in the Lord would lead to eternal life. They would enter God’s eternal kingdom.
He also made it known to them what would happen to those who persecuted them for their faith in the Lord. Justice would be served. Jesus would return again and administer His justice. Those who persecuted them would be punished forever and excluded from the kingdom of God. These evildoers would not go unpunished.
This was meant to comfort the church. Paul wanted to assure the Thessalonian church that God was completely in control and well aware of what they were experiencing. God would not abandon them and let their persecutors off the hook.
Paul made it clear that whoever rejected the Gospel of Jesus Christ would face severe consequences. In verses 8 and 9, he writes, “He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord...” Again, those who reject the Lord and persecute His followers will have a severe price to pay.
Does any of this strike a chord with us? Is there anything I’ve said so far that applies to us? Certainly there is. We all experience suffering and trials of some kind. And they do test our faith in the Lord. But we hope that as a result of them our faith would grow more and more and our love for each other would increase. This is what we hope would come from the suffering and trials of life.
This is what happened in the Thessalonian church. Their love for each other increased because they were all in the same boat. They needed each other to get through. Their trials and suffering brought them closer together.
Trials and suffering bring us closer together. We rely on each other for spiritual, emotional, and physical support. We raise each other up in prayer. Trials and suffering tend to raise our awareness of what is going on in our Christians brothers’ and sisters’ lives.
I know it seems counterintuitive. “How can trials and suffering bring us closer together? That doesn’t make sense.” Well, they do. When we see our Christian brother or sister suffering, we see them as one of our own. We don’t abandon our own. We get closer to them in the Lord.
If we think about it, we all are in the same boat in life. We all experience trials and tribulations. We all experience suffering of some kind. Life isn’t partial when it comes to trials and suffering. Everyone gets a dose of them. This we all have in common. We tend to get closer to each other when we find members in a similar situation. When we find ourselves in a similar situation, we turn to each other for support. It’s as if trials and suffering have created a bond between us. We understand what each of us is going through.
Let me explain this a little differently. Two people have cancer. They understand what the other is going through. Let’s take two other people. One has cancer and the other doesn’t. The one who doesn’t have cancer doesn’t understand fully what the person with cancer is going through. So, the bond between them probably isn’t as strong as the bond is between the two people with cancer.
Our bond with other Christians who experience trials and suffering is stronger than it would be if we ourselves didn’t experience trials and suffering. People tend to draw close to each other when they experience the same things.
This is what Paul mentions in his letter to the Thessalonians. They are the better for having to endure trials and suffering. They have grown closer to each other as a result.
Our situation is a little different from that of the Thessalonians. It sounds like the trials and suffering they endured happened because of their faith in the Lord. The authorities or whoever did the persecuting had it out for them. This isn’t the case with us, however. The authorities have not targeted us. And most people leave us alone. If we want to worship the Lord, that is our right. Most people respect this right of ours to worship the Lord in this place each Sunday. So, the trials and suffering the Thessalonian church experienced were different than the trials and suffering we experience.
But the thing we have in common with the Thessalonian church regarding trials and suffering is that the devil is behind them. The devil intended to destroy the church at Thessalonica. He hoped to ruin it through trials and suffering he was behind. His goal was to end it and make life miserable for the members who belonged to it.
The devil is behind the trials and suffering we experience. He hopes to destroy our faith in God by them. This is what we have in common with the believers at the church in Thessalonica. The devil uses trials and suffering to drive us apart.
But praise God that he doesn’t always succeed. God uses trials and suffering to bring us closer to Him and to each other. God’s intent is good; the devil’s intent is always evil.
The devil is the Christians’ common enemy. For centuries, he has been going after Christians. He went after the Thessalonian church; he goes after us. And his goal is always the same: to turn as many as he can away from the Lord. He does this through the trials and suffering we Christians experience. This isn’t going to change here on earth.
Eventually, however, the devil will be destroyed. He will be punished forever. Our enemy, the devil, will never again go after us. As Paul says in our text in verse 6: “...He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you.” The devil is included here.
Until then, may the Lord use the trials and suffering in life to draw us closer to Him and to each other.