“…and sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God, and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith…”
and encourage you
The second mission of Timothy was to “encourage” the Thessalonians. The word “encouraged” connotes to cause someone to be consoled, either by verbal or non-verbal means. This is more than saying sweet things to fellow Christians. It is giving them strength in their faith to form principles for spiritual living.
Paul and his team left Thessalonica about a year before he wrote this epistle. During the course of that year, the Thessalonians martyred some believers for their faith. Others endured persecution for their faith.
Principle:
Encouragement comes from forming biblical principles for life.
Application:
Courage does not come from saying sweet things to each other. It comes from promises and principles taken from God’s Word.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ. Now if we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effective for enduring the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or if we are comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. And our hope for you is steadfast, because we know that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation” (2 Corinthians 1:3-7).
