“Feb 26, 2024 - Hold to the Traditions”

Sunday, February 25, 2024

Hold to the Traditions

Reading:  2 Thessalonians 2:13-17
    
    Paul has been describing how many will be led astray by Satan and the “man of lawlessness” because they did not believe or love the truth.  The Thessalonians are different:  “But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth”(2 Thess 2:13).  Their “belief in the truth” is the means of their salvation, not destruction.  It marks them as the “firstfruits” of those who will be saved—a term that describes the first part of the harvest that promises more to come.  They will continue to be made holy by the Holy Spirit within them.  All of this began with their receiving the gospel and will continue until they “obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ”(2 Thess 2:15).

    So the Thessalonians stand between a marvelous beginning and a transcendent future.  What do they do now?  “So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter”(2 Thess 2:15).  Rather than being upset by false messages (see 2:2), they need to cling to the beliefs and practices revealed by the apostles.  God will work in them to bring them to their final goal, but only as they remain true to what they have received.  “Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word”(2 Thess 2:16-17).  He prays that Jesus and the Father will give them comfort and stability as they serve.

    While Jesus warns about keeping the traditions of men over God’s word (Mark 7:8), Paul encourages us to “hold to the traditions.”  The key is their source:  do they come from God (and his chosen spokesmen) or from men?  Through the apostles, God has revealed the true nature of the Christian faith.  Our job is not to reinvent it, update it, or correct it; our job is to hold to it.

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One Thing to Think About:   Why do we sometimes struggle respecting traditions—even if they are from God?

One Thing to Pray For:  Comfort and stability as I serve
 

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