“which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer…”
which is manifest evidence
The Thessalonian’s faith and patience under pressure were plainly evident for everyone to see. There was plenty of evidence to give plain proof of their dynamic faith. The Thessalonians suffered for Christ’s kingdom by courageous faith is proof of the reality of their salvation.
“And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5).
of the righteous judgment of God,
At first appearance, the Thessalonians’ suffering seemed unjust, yet their dynamic faith demonstrated very clearly that God is righteous in His dealings with them.
God is righteous in His judgments. He will justly deal with the injustices against the Thessalonians in His future judgment, although He might refrain from judgment for the present.
“Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:25).
Principle:
How mature believers react to affliction is an obvious sign of God’s righteous judgment in their lives.
Application:
In righteousness, God designed affliction to come our way. He judges us worthy for this. He metes out a certain measure of suffering designed especially for us. He is too wise to do wrong or to make a mistake in this. He knows our tolerances. He never allows suffering to come without rhyme or reason.
God’s character is always 100% consistent. He never compromises his justice. Because of the death of Jesus on the cross, God is now free to deal with us fairly and still keep His character intact. There is a danger in the assumption that God can overlook His righteousness to love His creatures. If God did this, then He would not be consistent with His own attributes.
God has the good sense to know the tolerances of suffering we can endure. He knows when to prosper us and when to send adversity. He mixes both blessing and hardship in proper proportions. God’s central interest is what happens to our soul in suffering. When our interest is the suffering itself, we miss the point that God tests our caliber of our souls. God tests the edification of our souls in suffering. If we have not grown sufficiently, then He introduces more pain into our lives so that we can appropriate His promises. What is your capacity of soul?
