Begun by Our Faith; Fulfilled by God's Power
That our God may make you worthy of his call, and may fulfill every good resolve and work of faith by his power. (II Thessalonians 1:11)
II Thess. 1:11-12; I Cor. 1:26; Eph. 1:18; II Tim. 1:9; II Pet. 1:10
What Is God Saying?
Paul's second letter to the Thessalonians is meant to clarify the main message found in his first letter-Christ is coming again. That is the blessed hope of the Church. All that is said points to I Thess. 5:23 in the prayerful hope that these Christians would ‘be kept sound and blameless in spirit and soul and body at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.’ This precious doctrine ought to engender steady comfort. Yet many were ‘shaken in mind’ because some deceivers were stating that ‘the day of the Lord had already come’ (II Th. 2:2). Others were ‘living in idleness, not doing any work’ (II Th. 3:6, 11). Why work if Jesus is coming back? No, says Paul, work and wait until He comes.
And as long as it is necessary to wait, says Paul, make sure that you allow God by His power to fulfill every ‘resolve after goodness and every work that faith inspires.’ That is still the way we become worthy of our high calling. The reason for this, the result of all this, is that when Jesus does come again He will be glorified by who we are and what we are doing.
How Does This Apply To Us?
Meanwhile back to our calling. In many letters of Paul's and Peter's, the fact of our calling is emphasized in the opening sentences (II Thessalonians; I Corinthians; Romans; Ephesians; II Timothy). Our calling is a top priority. What may not be so evident to us is that we become worthy of this calling through the power of God working in us. That is the deep, rich, accurate meaning of the words ‘by his power.’ We can hinder His power. We can doubt His power. We can live without conscious dependence on that power, but if we let Him, it is God who makes us worthy of our calling. We would take these words to heart. We would ask the Holy Spirit to keep them indelibly on our minds. ‘He who calls you is faithful, and he will do it’ (I Thess. 5:24).
Pray With Me
O Lord, all power is given to You, and Your kingdom is everlasting. I thank You for the joy of this discovery—it is God who does it all. God makes me ‘worthy of his call, and fulfills every good resolve and work of truth.’ No more the ups and downs of humanly-based good intentions. No more the heavy steps of faltering faith. No more the sapping of finite energy. No more the sagging of human resolve. It is Your power that counts. It is Your power that continues. It is Your power that conquers.
Let me not, therefore, be afraid to make the good resolve. Let me not hesitate to start the work of faith. Yes, I have often failed before. Results do seem little and few, but from now on, every good resolve and every work of faith will be laid in the channel of Your power. Forgive me for tearing it away from Your omnipotent Hand. Forgive me for not resting in the almightiness of God. Forgive me for choosing to struggle through the underbrush, when, lifted by everlasting arms, I might be soaring through the skies. In the light of eternal truth and goodness, the good resolves I make and the works of faith I begin will have Your blessing. If by my obedience they are begun, then by Your omnipotence they will be fulfilled.
In the name and by the power of Jesus, risen and returning King, my Lord, and my God. Amen.
Moving On In The Life of Prayer
It is God who both calls us and gives us the power to be worthy of that calling. When we trust that the Lord ‘is at work in us both to will and to work for his good pleasure’ (Ph. 2:13), when we know that it is by His power that we become worthy of our calling, prayer takes on a new meaning. Prayer is letting Him fill the heart as a vessel He has molded. In choosing us God has called us to a great life. In calling on God, we receive the power to make that great life a good life, to His glory.
