Good morning to everyone. Thank you again, Mark, for leading us in all the good hymns this morning. We're continuing our study in 2 Thessalonians chapter 3; we're kind of coming to the end of this epistle. This last chapter of the 2nd epistle is very practical; it's an instructional section. 

Paul writes, "Finally, brethren," he doesn't really mean the end, but really says besides these other things, we want you to apply these truths. Specifically, this term is used by Paul to mark the division between the doctrinal and application sections; we see that in Philippians as well, this word "finally." So he's going to wrap up by giving us some practical instructions to obey, to apply the doctrine that we've been learning. We come to the practical section of the epistle, and we're going to see some clear commands from Paul. 

In these first five verses we're going to study this morning, we see Paul's utter dependence on the Lord. We see his clear purpose in life and ministry, the reality of opposition to this great work in the world, and trust in the sovereignty and provision of God. These short verses wrap up the essence of the ministry of Paul and the ministry of all believers as they are called to be witnesses, called to be ambassadors for Christ, bearing the word of reconciliation. They bring us back to the simplicity of Christ, the centrality of our calling, and the constant dependence on God and His grace to carry these things out in real time in this world. 

These words are near and dear to my heart because they describe a faithful church body, living in and trusting in the will of God for them. The church in Thessalonica was a great example of the grace and power of God and His word preached and taught in a proper response by the people of God to receive that word and to obey that word. This text is a beautiful synopsis of the Christian life and ministry to which we are called as a local body of believers. 

Let's look at our text together, 2 Thessalonians 3, verse 1: "Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men. For not all have faith, but the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you. Now may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ." 

I've given you four points on your outline this morning: first, prayer; second, purpose; third, persecution; and fourth, providence. I think it is significant that Paul appeals to these believers to pray for him and his fellow workers in the gospel, because here we have a very young church, immature believers, and we have the great apostle Paul asking them to pray for him and for his ministry. 

Paul understood that his ministry was wholly dependent on the grace and provision of God, and he also understood that prayer was effective, was important, and was vital to his work. And we see that all believers have access to God the Father, that we can each come directly to him through Christ to petition God, to praise and worship him in prayer, and to seek his will and provision for his work through fellow believers in Jesus Christ. 

Paul says, "Pray for us that the word of God may run swiftly, just as it is with you." Paul's great desire was in line with God's great desire—the very purpose for which he chose Paul, called him, saved him, and sent him to the Gentiles. Yet there was this continual need for prayer, for fellowship with God, and dependence on him one moment at a time for grace, power, and provision to carry on the work and to see the fruit produced. 

Our relationship with God is one of continual prayer, talking to our Father, seeking his will, asking for his guidance, and lining up our will with his. The ministry that we have on this earth is wholly dependent on God and his grace to orchestrate circumstances, arrange meetings, control the details, and work in the hearts of men through the faithful preaching of the gospel by his witnesses, his people who trust and obey him. 

Turn over to Colossians 4 with me, please, and let's look at another passage where Paul asks the believers to pray for him. Colossians 4 at verse 2 says, "Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving; meanwhile praying also for us that God would open to us a door for the word to speak the mystery of Christ for which I am also in chains, that I may make it manifest as I ought to speak. Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one." 

"Continue earnestly in prayer," he says, "being vigilant in it with thanksgiving." There's a real need for prayer for the work and the workers of the gospel. In Hebrews 13:17, the author of Hebrews said, "Obey those who rule over you and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls. As those who must give account, let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you. Pray for us, for we are confident that we have a good conscience in all things desiring to live honorably, but I especially urge you to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner. Pray for us."

Prayer is a great need for the church, for pastors, teachers, evangelists, and for each one of us in the body. We're in this world doing the work of ministry, preaching the gospel, and encouraging one another—all of this that the word of God may run swiftly. This is a necessity because we are wholly dependent on God to handle all of the details, to make it work by His grace and power and life in us. Paul understood this, and he coveted greatly the prayers of the saints for him and his fellow workers. 

I believe we also see Paul's great desire for lost men to be saved in these words as well; a reflection of the desire of God for lost men to be saved. We see this truth explicitly in 2 Peter 3:9 where he said, "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise of coming back at the second coming to set all things right in this world. He's not slack as some count slackness, but He is long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." 

You can hear the heart of Paul, hear the great desire of God: not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. In Romans 9 at verse 1, Paul says some amazing words: "I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit," listen to what he says, "that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart, for I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen, according to the flesh, who are Israelites— to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises, of whom are the fathers, and from whom according to the flesh Christ came, who is overall the eternally blessed God, amen." 

Paul's great desire was for men to be saved, and he believed that by going out, preaching the gospel, persuading men, imploring them, and begging them to come to Christ, men had the opportunity to believe and be saved. However, we understand the sovereignty of God in salvation and the responsibility of man to believe; we can be sure of one thing from the scriptures—from these examples of Paul and from the word and heart of God our Father—this life and ministry that we have in this world is no exercise in futility. 

The salvation of men in this world is not independent of their will, and God in His sovereignty has allowed man to have a will to choose to believe or reject Christ when they hear the gospel message preached. Paul's words speak of a great desire to win men to Christ, to have the gospel, the word of God, come to men in power and effectiveness by faith. This is independence on God and His work and His grace and power, but it is not futile. It is not independent of the willingness of man to believe, and thus Paul sought to persuade men, to beg men, to convince them of the gospel truth. 

He would go into the synagogue and reason with them from the scriptures that Jesus is the Christ. We see this over and over in his ministry and his words and his instruction to us, and this is the very calling that he had from God. I very often heard Christians say, almost as an excuse for not witnessing, "Well, God has to open their eyes." But what does the scripture say? 

Turn to Acts 26 with me, please. Acts 26 at verse 12. This is Paul giving his testimony of his conversion on the Damascus road. Verse 12 says, "While thus occupied, as I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, at midday, O King, along the road I saw a light from heaven brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.' So I said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And he said, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. I will deliver you from the Jewish people as well as from the Gentiles to whom I now send you to open their eyes in order to turn them from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in me.' Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision." 

God has sent us, His people, His witnesses in this world, to open their eyes in order to turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified. How are they set apart? How are they sanctified? By faith in me, Jesus says. 

It's amazing what we can learn when we just look at the words, receive what God is saying. We don't need to spend our time trying to explain God or working out some theology explaining every jot and tittle to the satisfaction of our own minds, and then declare ourselves wise. We need to know to receive, to believe the word of God, and then obey it. 

There's nothing clearer in the New Testament than the fact that we are here to be witnesses for Christ, to bring the word of reconciliation, the gospel, to lost men, to every creature, and to implore them, beg them, persuade them to believe to be saved. Paul's example to us, his desire for all the churches to pray for him and his ministry and his continual laboring for the gospel and seeking to persuade men does not speak to us of a feudal situation where everything is predetermined and God will save whom he's going to save. I'm not saying that these doctrines aren't true in the scriptures. 

What I'm saying is if we understand it that way, we're missing it. I remember driving on 29 from Wausau to Eau Claire one time and I was listening to R.C. Sproul on Christian radio. And he said, "I just licked my ice cream on the left side. God predetermined that before the world was." What does that mean? What does that mean? What I'm saying is, yes, God chooses, yes, God elects, but man has a will and whosoever will may come. 

And if we so emphasize one side over the other, we're going to get messed up. What is it that God has given me to do? What example do we see from Paul here that the word of God may run swiftly? How is that? How does it run swiftly? Paul came, as we're going to see, to Thessalonica. What did he do? He preached the word of God in power. He made the message clear. And God, by His grace and power, saved those people and was producing fruit through them as they were obedient to Him.

What do I need to worry about? Do I need to worry about God doing His part? No, I need to worry about me doing my part, right? Being a witness in obedience to the word of God. Paul says, "Pray for us, continue in it vigilantly, persevere in prayer for the expressed purpose that the word of God may run swiftly, just as it is with you." 

Turn back to 1 Thessalonians 1-2, please, and let's look at that time when Paul came to this city and these believers were saved and started the church there. 1 Thessalonians 1-2 says, "We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God. For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake. And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction with joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Achaia who believe. For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out so that we do not need to say anything. For they themselves declare concerning us what manner of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come."

Paul came preaching the gospel. God was working through his faithfulness to His call by His grace and power. The gospel was effective there. There was much fruit. But notice also Paul says that from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth; your faith toward God has gone out so that we do not need to say anything. You turned from idols to serve the living and true God. 

Their faith and faithful witness was a testimony to the power of the gospel and the grace of God working together to accomplish his will and purpose. This was joy; it was rejoicing for the Apostle Paul. It wasn't always this way. Think of Corinth. Yes, God worked mightily there, and there was a church, a group of believers. But they were not being faithful, were not being witnesses and faithfully receiving and proclaiming the Word of God. They were not fruitful. They were a thorn in Paul's flesh rather than a joy and an encouragement. 

We live as believers in utter dependence on God and His grace and provision every day. He makes it all work. He gives the power. He opens the doors. But we also must be faithful to abide, to trust in Him, to look to Him in faith and continual dependence like a branch abiding in the vine. We must have a passion; we must have a desire, a love for men—for their salvation through the witness of the Word, the Gospel, which has been entrusted to us. 

So we pray that the Word of God may run swiftly, that there would be fruit, and men would believe and be saved. This is our heart's desire because God has poured His love out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. We long for men to believe. We know that faith comes by hearing a message about Jesus. And so we speak. We believe, therefore we speak, persuading men, imploring them to be reconciled to God. This is the clear command of Scripture and the clear heart of Paul and of Jesus, who came to seek and to save the lost. This is our prayer, and this is our purpose. 

Now next we see in our text opposition or persecution. Verse 1, "Finally, brethren, pray for us that the Word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified just as it is with you, and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men, for not all have faith." It is our desire; it is God's desire that every man come to the knowledge of the truth and be saved, but every man does not. Not all have faith. Not all respond to the gospel with faith, with belief in Jesus and salvation. 

In 2 Timothy 4:14, Paul wrote to Timothy: "Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm. May the Lord repay him according to his works. You also must beware of him, for he has greatly resisted our words." Turn over to Acts 17 with me, please. Let's read an account there in Paul's ministry. Acts 17:2 says, "Then Paul, as his custom was, went into them for three Sabbaths, reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, 'This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.' And some of them were persuaded, and a great multitude of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women joined Paul and Silas. But the Jews who were not persuaded, becoming envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace and gathering a mob, set all the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason and sought to bring them out to the people." 

When they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, "These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. Jason has harbored them, and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying, 'There is another king, Jesus.'" 

Well, it's clear in the ministry of Paul, consistently, that when he entered a region preaching the gospel, there were those who believed and received the message with gladness, but there were always those who hated the gospel, who hated the message and the messenger. Paul suffered much from the enemies of Christ. In 2 Corinthians 11, he gives us an account of some of the sufferings he had experienced in his ministry. He said, "Are they ministers of Christ?" speaking of the false teachers, "I speak as a fool, I am more—in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews, five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. A night and a day I have been in the deep, in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren, in weariness, in toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Besides these other things, what comes upon me daily, my deep concern for all the churches." 

Not all have faith. And we should expect, as Jesus taught us, that when we go out into this world speaking the truth, the enemies of Christ will hate us, will persecute us, and many will reject the good news of the message of the grace of God and the gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. In John 15:18, Jesus said, "If the world hates you, you know that it hated me before it hated you. Why? Why does the world hate believers? He says, 'If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for my name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent me. He who hates me hates my Father also.'" 

They hated me without a cause. And he talks about the Holy Spirit coming and how they'll testify and bear witness, and people will hate them, and they will be martyred. In Matthew 13, Jesus said that the ministry of the gospel in this new covenant age will be like a farmer who went out to sow his seed, and then Jesus gives us four types of soil representing the hearts of men in this world. Only one out of four was good soil, was willing to receive the word and bear fruit. Not all have faith. 

It's a sad reality, but it is what we should expect when we go about preaching the gospel of good news to a lost and dying world. Paul asked the believers to pray—to pray for him that the word of the Lord would run swiftly, bearing much fruit as it had there, and he also asked them to pray that he and his companions, fellow workers for the gospel, would be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men. 

What does Paul mean by this? Is it that he does not want to suffer persecution, as Jesus promised he would? Jesus told Ananias concerning Paul, "I will show him all the things he must suffer." No, what Paul's asking for by way of the prayers of the saints is that these evil, wicked men who hate the gospel would not hinder his ministry, hinder the going forth of the truth and the building of the kingdom. He's asking God to thwart their efforts as they oppose the gospel and the will of God. 

"Pray for us for our purpose, that the gospel would run swiftly and bear much fruit. Pray for us for our persecution, that those who come against us would be foiled in their attempts to keep men from Christ." And then in a most fascinating way, we see Paul's thoughts turn immediately to the providence of God. 

Verse 3: "But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you. Now may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ." 

Three times in the next three verses, Paul expresses his confidence that the Lord will accomplish His will through them, the furtherance of the gospel, and their protection from the evil one and his schemes and wiles to keep men from salvation. "The Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord. Now may the Lord direct your hearts." This is encouragement for ministry. 

Remember the believers there were experiencing tremendous persecution, so much so that they thought that they were in the day of the Lord. Yet they were faithful; they were so faithful in the midst of all this persecution—something we can't imagine. Faithful to the Word, to their witness, the Word of the Lord was sounding forth from that place as they trusted God in the midst of persecution. 

I've been reading about communist Russia in the early 20th century just for fun. The Soviet Union began in 1917 and existed until 1991, and although this Marxist atheist government had only been in power for about three years in 1920, we already began to see the dire effects of communism in the Marxist philosophy. The country was literally starving to death. For a more modern example, you can consider Venezuela—a tragic situation. Over five million people died in 1920 in Russia from starvation. Lenin had taken all of the food from the peasant farmers and shipped it to the city. If you were a woman who had children and they were starving, and you went out to glean what little had been left by the harvesters, you were by law to send that grain to the state as well. And if you fed it to your children, you would be executed. 

It was a horrible time in the history of our world in the Soviet Union. In addition to this, there was the direct persecution by the atheist government against Christians. Throughout the history of the Soviet Union, there were periods when Soviet authorities brutally suppressed and persecuted various forms of Christianity to different extents depending on the interests of the state. 

Soviet Marxist-Leninist policy consistently advocated the control, suppression, and ultimately the elimination of religious beliefs, and actively encouraged the propagation of atheism in the Soviet Union. The state advocated the destruction of religion, and to achieve this goal, it officially denounced religious beliefs as superstitious and backward. According to some sources, the total number of Christian victims under Soviet regime has been estimated up to 20 million. At least 106,300 Russian clergymen were executed between 1937 and 1941. They flooded the schools and media with anti-religious teachings and introduced a belief system called scientific atheism. Sound familiar? 

It may be that we, as so many believers since the time Jesus and Paul in this little fellowship in Thessalonica, were being persecuted; we too may soon experience persecution. It's estimated that 94 million people died in the 20th century under Communist regimes. Yet the latest polls show an amazing increase in favorability towards Marxism in these United States. The number of young Americans who have a favorable view of Marxism has increased five-fold in just one year. According to a new survey, nearly one-third of the members of Gen Z, Americans between the ages of 16 and 23, deem Marxism worthy of support. It went from 6% in 2019 to 30% in 2020. Gen Z's approval of socialism also crept up nine points last year to a favorable 49%. 

It seems that we may, in the not-too-distant future, suffer persecution in the church in America like we never have. It's been an enigma in history; it's been the norm around the world since Christ for Christians to suffer. If this comes, how can we be faithful? How can we be faithful as our brothers and sisters in Thessalonica were in the face of persecution? Pray. Continually, constantly seek God's provision. 

Remember your purpose: that the Word of God may run swiftly and be glorified. We're here to preach the gospel so that men can be saved. We're here to snatch men out of the fire. And perhaps most importantly, remember God's providence. The Lord is faithful who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. 

"We have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you. Now may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ." God is in control. His grace is sufficient. He's working out His will in our lives, always doing what is best for us, working all things together for our good and the good of the gospel. He is faithful who will establish you and keep you from the evil one. 

Our confidence is in the Lord. He will direct your hearts into the patience of Christ. The patience of Christ, what an interesting phrase. In the old King James, this verse is translated "waiting for Christ," speaking of patience, endurance as we look forward to the coming of Christ. The new King James translates it "the patience of Christ," speaking of living as Christ did with patience in suffering and tribulation. 

Hebrews 12 says, "Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." 

Listen to Peter's words, 1 Peter 2:19: "For this is commendable, if because of conscience toward God, one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. For what credit is it if when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. For to this you were called." Some of the most stunning words in the Bible, I think. "For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that we should follow His steps." 

He suffered for us, leaving us an example that we should follow His steps—found in His mouth. Listen to this: "...who when he was reviled, did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but he committed himself to Him who judges righteously." He did not defend himself. He did not seek his rights. He did not even revile in return, but he entrusted himself to Him who judges righteously. 

Either translation or understanding results, I believe, in the same application. We are to be abiding, trusting, knowing that God is in control, that our Father is faithful to keep us, to conform us to the likeness of Christ, to accomplish His will in and through us, and to bring us to glory. 

We eagerly wait for that day with perseverance because we have hope. That is a confident assurance based on the promise and the power of God. God is sovereign. He exercises providence over all things, is in control of all things, and we are in Him, and He lives in us, and we have His precious promises in Christ by faith. What do we have to fear? If God is for us, who can be against us? 

Now, if we wrap ourselves in this world, fill our minds with the propaganda of this world, all the voices out there speaking continually into our hearts and minds, then we will be fearful. We will be bitter, and angry, and scared. But if the Word of Christ dwells in us richly, if we continually renew our minds to His truth, His promises, His provision, if we keep in mind our purpose through prayer and obedience and witness, if we keep looking unto Jesus, then we will have peace in this world because He Himself is our peace. 

We need not fear; only believe and abide, entrusting ourselves to Him who judges righteously. Know that God is faithful who will establish you and keep you from the evil one. These are great words of application and comfort for us. We need to heed these words, meditate on them, roll them over in our minds, and take them for ourselves by way of promise, by way of prayer, and a solid confidence in the providence of our God and Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Let's close in prayer. Father, we're so thankful for the example of Paul, the example of the church in Thessalonica, these believers who were enduring persecution. Thank You for all of the examples throughout time of Your faithful witnesses who did what was right, who kept their focus, who trusted You, and who offered their lives often for the sake of the gospel. Help us to live this way in this great time of peace and prosperity that we enjoy and to be thankful to You and to use our time and our resources to be a witness for You. And if persecution comes, we trust You and know that Your grace is sufficient. Help us to be faithful for Your glory. In Jesus' name, amen.