2 Thessalonians 2:13-17--Stand Firm

2 Thessalonians 2:13-17
English Standard Version

Stand Firm
13 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. 14 To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 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.

​16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, 17 comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

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Paul gives thanks to the God for the brothers and sisters in Thessalonica because they are part of God's Elect that He chose to be part of His firstfruits (the first and the best of the harvest that were offered as a sacrifice unto the LORD that showed the belief that more and better fruit and continued fruitfulness were coming and that the LORD would provide for the needs of His people all year long).

Paul says they are sanctified (made holy and set apart for God's plans and purposes) through the work of the Holy Spirit and by their belief in the Word of God which tells us the truth.  We were called through the gospel that we would not know had Jesus not done it all for us and the Holy Spirit revealed it to us.  So then, God deserves all the glory for our salvation since it was His work from before the beginning of time to save us as a people unto Himself.  We must simply hold fast to this truth and our identity that is found in Him and the work that He has completed and what He has proclaimed to be true, for He is the Truth.  This truth is passed down from generation to generation by both the spoken worth of those who share their testimony and the gospel with us, and with the written Word of God.  We too should hold firm to the teachings of the apostles and Scriptures.

It is only by the truths that Paul expressed here that the hearts of the Thessalonians could be comforted that Christ did not abandon them, forget about them or miss them, nor did He lie to them about His return.  He is certainly coming again, and it will happen suddenly when we don't expect it (this is the meaning of the word that is often translated "soon," but it means "without warning.").  We should not try to so much look for the signs (though we will understand they were there after the fact but live every day as if He might be returning today.  The one who began a good work in us will be faithful to complete it.  He will bring about the transformation in us that makes us into the image of God the Son and impart to us eternal life that only the Son deserves, but that we receive as co-heirs of every good thing that belongs to the Son.  We should take comfort in this and conduct ourselves in such a way where our actions align with our identity and we who are being made like Christ walk in His ways and His words as well so that others see Him at work in and through us.  This is what it means to be Christian and controlled by the Spirit of Christ (the Holy Spirit) so that as the Spirit works in and through us, people see Jesus alive in us and they cannot deny the power of His resurrection that is both alive today and able to make the bad to be good and the dead to be alive.