13 But
we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord,
because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through
sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth: 14 Whereunto
he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus
Christ. 15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions
which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. 16 Now
our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us,
and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, 17 Comfort
your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work. (2 Thess
2:13-17)
The Collect
Ascension Day
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RANT,
we beseech thee, Almighty God, that like as we do believe thy only-begotten Son
our Lord Jesus Christ to have ascended into the heavens; so we may also in
heart and mind thither ascend, and with him continually dwell, who liveth and
reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen.
¶ This Collect
is to be said daily throughout the Octave.
Have we
considered being thankful for ALL that comes into our lives? We often consider
the death of a five-year old child to be a great loss and tragedy, but have we
considered that all life is a gift of love – that even five years of the gift
is nonetheless a gift? God grants us every breath and heartbeat. Each moment is
simply another gift. When He withdraws continuing His gift, are we at a net
loss? For the life that God withdraws from His child in this life, God adds
that life to the beauty of Heaven. Moses looked with forlorn hope from atop Mt
Nebo into the Promised Land, but God would not allow Moses to enter therein
after his struggling with the obstinate Hebrews for forty years in the Wilderness.
Poor, sad, Moses! God took Moses on Nebo. So did Moses not go into that Land of
Promise? Think again! The next time Moses is presented in Scripture, He is with
Jesus Christ and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration. That which is lost to
the Children of God in this sorry world is multiplied exponentially in the
next. How may we come to be thankful for all things? Consider the meaning
of the word and its etymology:
"Our English word, thankful, is related to its
Anglo-Saxon derivation, to thinkful. To be thankful is to
be thoughtful or mindful of a benefit received. A transient thought is too mean
for a standing mercy. How many beautiful examples have we of the memorials the
saints of old preserved of god's goodness: like Jacob's Pillar (Gen 35:14),
Joshua's twelve stones at Gilgal (Joshua 4), the stone Ebenezer (1 Sam 7:12),
or David's Sword (1 Sam 21:9)." Dr. Bowes.
13 But
we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord,
because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through
sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth. When did God
chose you, my friend? From the very beginning! That which makes us chosen is
the sanctifying grace of the Spirit of God and the belief in the truth of Jesus
Christ. We are not merely INCLINED to give thanks for the grace of God in
saving us, or at sundry times; but we are rather BOUND to give thanks and at
all times! Perhaps we might understand and appreciate the grace of God more
powerfully if we consider the preceding verses to today's text: And with
all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they
received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this
cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That
they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness. (2 Thess 2:10-12) Those who do not LOVE the truth of
God will not receive the benefits of salvation offered in Christ. Because they
love not the truth, God will give them their way and will enable them to be
even more deceived than their foolish hearts can afford. We see this strong
delusion in a great many of our mainline churches today – perhaps the great
majority of them. The deluded ones will have no excuse whatsoever for
their damnation when they stand before God. Having rejected the truth, they
will have swallowed an ocean of Satan's lies.
14 Whereunto
he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus
Christ. In rejecting truth, it is the glory of Christ upon which we
trample. We are called by means of the Gospel of Jesus Christ preached by His
true ministers. When we come to the Throne of Grace, we receive not only a
salvation unto life, but share in that glory which belongs to the Bishop of our
Souls – the Lord Jesus Christ!
15 Therefore,
brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught,
whether by word, or our epistle. The military command, Stand Fast,
means to "hold your ground." The command has often been given at a
critical juncture of battle when the lines begin to sway in face of the enemies
onslaught. The Christian is not to have second thoughts spurred by fear in the
face of the enemy, but is to hold his position and not be intimidated by the
formidable force of the enemy at his front. As the enemy hurls lies and
propaganda against the Gospel Truth – often even by means of the traitor in our
ranks – we are not to be swayed in our faith, but hold to that which is true
and which we have known from god's immutable Word. We learned in Basic Training
(Bible School) that Satan never sleeps nor forsakes the battle. He never takes
leave, nor goes on vacation. He observes all of our daylight deployments
and comes in the cover of darkness to flank our lines, or penetrate our
defenses. We need not wonder IF he will come – only at what point his next
attack shall occur.
16 Now
our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us,
and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace.
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is also our Father. What an unmerited
grace! He LOVES us more than any earthly father, though willing, is able to do.
God our Father gives us comfort in consoling us in all moments of hurt or
doubt. When we know that the night is near past and the dawning of day is
approaching, we can take hope in coming light. With God, the Light is ALWAYS
coming and increasing for us. He does all things for us through an indomitable
grace.
17 Comfort
your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work. The
means by which we may comfort our hearts is through the knowledge of the truth.
When our hearts are comforted in knowing that we are Christ's, and He is ours,
we are emboldened to declare the truth of God's Word. In knowing and declaring
God's Word, the goodness of our living works shall follow as the night the day.
Are you mindful of God's love, of His graciousness to you, of His unrelenting
love through all perils and strifes? It is far easier to practice good works if
we do so out of a good conscience. What is the condition of your conscience
toward God today?
