In this expositional sermon from 2 Thessalonians 3:16-18, pastor Ben Smith makes clear that being saved through faith in Jesus Christ is the only source of peace and the only hope of grace. Although simple and brief, these concluding words to the Thessalonian church testify to the hope and blessing of salvation, encouraging the church to continue in the faith.

These are Paul’s last recorded words to the Thessalonian church. He signs the letter to ensure that they will know that these words are authentically his (17). The church had received a counterfeit letter (2 Thessalonians 2:2), and Paul wanted to assure the church that this letter was genuine, authentic, and authoritative. In addition to his signature, he prays for them and blesses them. Both the prayer and the blessing are founded on their salvation in Jesus Christ. Paul wanted to remind the church of the blessings that flow from salvation in Jesus Christ.

These verses encourage the church with two blessings that flow from salvation in Jesus Christ: 1) The peace that comes only from Jesus Christ, and 2) the grace of Jesus Christ.

The cost of faithful obedience does not negate the worthiness and value of Scripture’s commands. The difficulty or unpleasantness of a task does not mean that the task is unnecessary or a worthless pursuit.

Church discipline is hard, relationally taxing, and requires significant attention and energy from the church. This level of investment and cost was causing the Thessalonian church to grow weary, and some were surely tempted to give up or give in. In our day, many church members are weary from the excessive commitments they have made outside of the church. This leads them to be unprepared and with little tolerance or energy for the mental attention, emotional fortitude, and spiritual determination required for church discipline. Additionally, our culture places great importance on preserving the individual’s self-esteem, emotional stability, and autonomy. Any attempt to express judgment towards an individual is countercultural and generally rejected. The church is not immune to these cultural forces and is often tempted to compromise biblical fidelity for the sake of cultural acceptance.

In this passage, Paul pleads with the church to faithfully endure in church discipline, regardless of how difficult the task may be.

In this sermon, Pastor Ben Smith expositionally preaches from 2 Thessalonians 3:6-12, addressing the critical issues of the sin of idleness and the often-abandoned practice of church discipline. He emphasizes that sin is a serious threat to individual Christians and the church, rightly understood as rebellion against God's lordship. The sermon highlights that faithful labor is submission to God, contrasting it with sinful idleness. The sermon also outlines three basic principles of church discipline: it is an action of the church, a direct confrontation of sin, and is fundamentally gospel-driven. Listeners will understand why the church must obey Christ's commands, even when they are countercultural, to affirm the gospel, combat sin, and rescue wayward members.

"The question that Paul is dealing with and the question for us today is this: How can you remain faithful and encouraged in the context of a world that is indehaticably working against the gospel? Every day, all day, the world is working to discourage, to thwart, to act against the church, the gospel and believers. So, how can you in that context be faithful, remain faithful and encouraged and continue to advance the gospel? Well, friends, this text teaches us that the only way to endure in a hostile world is to put your trust in God alone"

Almost every believer will struggle with doubt at some point in their life. Very often, Satan uses moments of spiritual failure or weakness to sow the seeds of doubt. Because of the pressures of persecution and the confusion of false teaching, the Thessalonian Christians were struggling with doubt. They wondered and worried if they were truly saved. They wondered and worried if they were worthy of God’s grace. They wondered and worried that if they experienced a moment of failure or weak faith, could this have forfeited the promises of the gospel?

Having corrected the lies of the false prophets and teachers, Paul now turns his attention to assuring these saints of their salvation and encouraging them to stand firm in their faith. To stand firm in the faith is to remain steadfast and faithful to God and obedient to His word. To do this, Paul does not begin with a list of demands for the church to meet but rather with an affirmation of the true gospel that enables the saints to stand firm in their faith.

Confident hope in the assurance of salvation empowers believers to stand firm in their faith and hold fast to the testimony of the gospel. Failure to stand firm is sometimes the result of being lured away by worldly novelties and distractions. Other times, the pressures, difficulties, and hardships of this world press down so hard that it seems impossible to endure in your strength.

In response to the deceptions of false prophets and the hardships of persecution that the Thessalonian Christians were enduring, Paul encouraged the church in 2 Thessalonians 2:13-17 to stand firm in the faith in three ways.

1. Stand firm in the faith by affirming the true gospel. (13-14)

2. Stand firm in the faith through faithful confidence. (15)

3. Stand firm in the faith by enjoying the comfort of peace. (16-17)

Fear is a powerful emotion. Though some are more prone to it than others, all struggle with it. Fear can paralyze your ability to take action, and fear can cause you to forfeit what is good. However, the most destructive and dangerous reaction to fear is that it can cause you to lose your confident hope in God's promises and surrender your expectant joy in the kingdom of God.

The Thessalonians Christians were fearful that the persecutions they were enduring meant that they had missed the Second Coming of Christ and were thus experiencing the judgment of Christ on the wicked. Paul had written his first letter to the Thessalonians to assure them that Christ would rapture the church before the judgment of the wicked and to encourage them that they had not missed the rapture.

Paul writes this second letter to address this issue again. The church was enduring severe persecution. Additionally, there were false teachers who claimed that Christ had already returned. The pressures of persecution and the confusion caused by false teaching had caused the church to fear again that they had missed the rapture.

Paul writes this letter not to elaborate on all the details of the Second Coming and the particulars of the antichrist but as a pastor to his church, to encourage them to hold tightly to God's word with confident hope.

The main idea of this passage is: Do not be alarmed by false teachings or fearful of powerless threats but trust in the sovereignty, authority, and power of God.

Paul is not writing to rebuke the church or shame them for their fear but rather to warn them of the danger of being deceived and distracted by false teaching.

From both false teaching and biblical ignorance, many today struggle with fear and anxiety that steal their confident hope and joy in the Lord. So, how can you keep from being deceived and distracted by false teachings?

This passage provides three warnings to help you avoid being distracted by false teachings. Do not be alarmed by false teaching, fearful of the power of false prophets, or deceived by Satan.

Salvation is not transactional but transformative. When God calls you to salvation, it is a calling to believe and be transformed by the power of God to accomplish His will and bring glory to His name.

In the secular world, you become very accustomed to transactional relationships. Unfortunately, not only do many people approach their most intimate relationships with a transactional mindset, but many also attempt to relate to God in a similar manner. However, God does not negotiate or bargain, nor can God be manipulated or deceived. It is impossible to receive God's salvation through any form of human transaction.

When you believe in faith and are saved by God, you are transformed by the power of God for the glory of God. In 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12, Paul prays with confidence in God's will for the Thessalonian church to continue being transformed for His glory.

How does salvation transform your life? These verses illustrate two fundamental ways in which salvation transforms a Christian's life. That is, salvation transforms what you are and what you do.

Christians endure the present with confident faith in the coming of Jesus, who will rightly judge the world, rescue the saints, and reveal His full glory. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians to encourage the saints who were enduring persecution. The encouragement is that Jesus is coming again to rescue the saints and judge the wicked.

Thinking of the vengeance and judgment of God is uncomfortable for many Christians. So, how should you respond to the coming judgment of Christ?

This passage is both an encouragement to Christians and a warning to unbelievers. To believers, it encourages you to have confident faith, and to unbelievers, it serves as a warning of God's coming judgment.

This passage encourages the saints to endure the present with confident faith in who Jesus is and what he will do. To unbelievers, it is an urgent plea to repent.

When you think about helping, ministering, and serving others, you tend to think first about what you can do, give, or assist with. However, these opening words of Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians remind the church that your ministry is your own testimony.

What impact should your testimony have on other Christians? This passage identifies two ways that your testimony should impact other Christians.

TXTThe desire of God is not that you would be insulated or isolated from the world but that you would be a living testimony to God’s truth in and to the world.

Every Christian experiences a tension between desiring to be separated from the world and obedience to proclaim the gospel to the world. Throughout history, there have been excesses on both sides of this tension. Sometimes, Christians have overemphasized separation from the world and sought to isolate themselves from the world and restrict contact with non-Christians. At other times, Christians have overemphasized ministry to the world and abandoned holiness and the requirements of faith and obedience in a foolish attempt to make the gospel more worldly appealing.

The Christian who attempts to isolate themselves from the world disobeys God’s command to be a gospel light and witness to the world, and the Christian who seeks at all costs to be appealing to the world disobeys God’s command to live lives of holiness.

Whether you are a recent high school graduate preparing to enter the working world or attend college, or an adult working a secular job, every Christian must wrestle with this tension that comes from living a holy life for Christ while living in an evil world.

This is the very issue that Jesus is praying about in John 17:14-19. He does not pray that God would take Christians out of the world, but while they are in the world, keep them holy and obedient to the faith.

In this sermon, pastor Ben Smith preaches from John 17:14-19 on how you can be in the world without becoming like the world by seeking godly affections, resting in God’s power, and being set apart by God.

The book of 2 Timothy was written by Paul to Timothy as a letter of instruction as to how he was to pastor and lead the church. This passage (4:1-5), is often used when giving a charge to a newly ordained pastor – and rightly so.

Yet we should not see this passage as only speaking to or applying to pastors. The books of our New Testament were mostly letters written to encourage individuals and specific churches in their living out of the gospel. Being inspired by the Holy Spirit, the church recognized that these letters were instructive for the whole church and thus passed them around to others for their edification. Thus with a passage like this one, we can appreciate how it speaks to a particular group, but we must not lose sight that all of scripture is instructive and beneficial to the whole church.

2 Timothy 4:1-5 commands us to preach the word, minister the word both for God's glory and man's blessing.

Presently there is great confusion about the church’s ministry of worship. Today, many think of the worship ministry of the church as a product of consumption. Thus the main determining factor of attendance for many is founded on personal preferences of music style, preaching style, and formality or informality of the church’s liturgy. Attendance is not understood as an integral part of one’s spiritual life but rather an option equal to all other calendared events.

In this passage, Paul is writing to the church as to how they are to live and interact with other believers in the church. Verses 19 and 20, reference the public worship of the church and the whole passage is instructive for our understanding of worship.

Church discipline is a subject that makes many uncomfortable. This may be because the church has not been faithful or consistent, some have used the cover of church discipline to abuse, or so little is understood about it, that there is much misunderstanding. Regardless of how uncomfortable it may cause us to be, we must reckon with the fact that this is the teaching of Jesus. May our heart's desire be to faithfully obey the word of God - even the parts that make us uncomfortable.

This passage follows a very significant moment in the life of Peter. Jesus had asked his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter replied with the powerful confession: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” In verses 18-19 Jesus responds to Peter’s confession. Jesus declares that on this confession of Peter, Jesus will build His church. In this passage, we see that the church is founded on Jesus, sustained by Jesus, and is the testimony of the gospel.

The issue of the sanctity of life is throughout scripture. Job is the oldest book in the Bible. In this passage, Job makes a defense of himself in response to his friends who have accused him of sin. As a part of his defense, he testifies to the most basic of truths – the sanctity of life.

As we have lived through the COVID-19 pandemic and all difficulties that it has brought to the church, we have had to think critically about what it means to be a church gathered for worship. Can the gathering of the church be substituted with a virtual alternative? Is it required for the church to be together? What is the difference between hearing preaching live from the pulpit and watching or listening online? Hebrews 10:24-25 calls us not to forsake the gathering of the saints. It compels us to continue in our faithfulness and gives us a deeper understanding of why we gather and the holy significance of our gathering together as a church.

In this passage, Paul encourages the church to rid itself of sinful rebellious members. I think this passage is instructive to us as individuals as well. Each of us must constantly work to rid our lives of the corruption of sin. As we begin 2022 let us consider how we can make a fresh start towards righteousness.

The birth of Jesus is an amazing event. His birth is why we celebrate Christmas. As Matthew retells the birth story, he repeatedly reminds us that these events were the fulfillment of the prophecies that foretold of the coming messiah. Even the family’s escape to Egypt and return to Nazareth (2:13-23) were part of God’s perfect plan. But amazing as the birth and all the events around it are – the birth is not the end of the story.

The birth of Jesus is important but why He was born is even more important. Matthew 3 begins to tell the story of who Jesus is and why Jesus was born. Jesus is the Lord of all creation. The Lord of all creation came to die that we might be saved

Habakkuk knew that the judgment of God was coming. He knew there was no way to avoid it. He would likely die before God restored the people to the land. These were hard days. They were not going to get better in his lifetime. And yet Habakkuk ends this book with some of the most hopeful and joy-filled words in all of scripture.

Habakkuk had joy even in the brokenness of his present situation because he was looking toward the salvation of God that would come with the birth of Jesus.

The desire of every generation is world peace. Since the fall of man, there have been attempts, plans, and efforts to create lasting peace. There have been historic periods where there was reduced open hostility and conflict but not since Adam and Eve walked out of the garden has there been a moment of true lasting peace. The very first sin recorded in scripture after leaving the garden is murder.

It does not matter how strong your army is, or popular your government is, or wealthy your people are there will never be peace among men this side of heaven. But the news is worse than just the continued conflict between men. The Bible declares that our sin has made us enemies of God and under His righteous wrath. Man is not at peace with God.

The prophet Isaiah spoke to a rebellious and sinful people that there was coming a day when a child would be born – a son would be given that would cause the people who walk in darkness to see a great light and the people who are under the wrath of God to know peace through the Prince of peace.