…It is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels...
— 2 Thessalonians 1:6-7
WHILE MINISTERING in Thessalonica, men sought to kill Paul, so he had to flee for his life. This frustrated Paul’s would-be killers, who then turned their rage on the Thessalonian church. Paul wrote this letter to comfort them.
It seems that people always come against those trying to live a godly life. They mock you, cheat you, lie against you, and it makes you wonder, “Lord, why do You allow these evil people to torture and torment those who are serving You?” The Thessalonian believers must have wondered that. So Paul wrote to encourage them that when the Lord returns, His first order of business will be to deal with their persecutors.
SCRIPTURE REPEATEDLY WARNS THAT GOD WILL JUDGE HIS ENEMIES.
The righteousness of God will be manifested in His judgments against those who persecuted the church. The tribulation will not be for the church; it will be for those who troubled the church. Because God is just, fair, and righteous, we can be sure that His judgments will be just, fair, and righteous.
The day of the Lord is a two-fold event. It begins with judgment and ends with the glorious establishment of the kingdom of God on the earth. I believe that the world today is ripe for the judgment of God. May we be accounted worthy to live in peace and rest with Him.
Father, help us to stand for Jesus Christ and to stand against the tide of evil. Lord, let us live in a way that pleases You.
Amen.