I want to begin this letter with a distinguishing mark that Paul leaves in all of his letters. It comes from 2 Thessalonians 3:16-18: Now may the Lord of peace himself give you a peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all you. I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand, which is the distinguishing mark in all my letters. This is how I write. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
The world hates you...do you ever feel that way? I guarantee that we all have at some point. It sucks to think about because God created everything-but the world is of Satan and he is deceiving you all of the time. If you are a Bethel student reading this, you may not experience the hate of the world because of the type of place Bethel is. Which is both good and bad. When you feel like the world hates you, you have nothing to feel bad about. Like I mentioned above. It's a harsh reality. So why does the world hate us?
John 15:18-25: If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not known the ones who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. As it is, they have seen, and yet have hated me and my Father. But this is to fulfill what is written in their law: 'They hated me without reason.'
My favorite part of that scripture is this: "As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world." I love that because as believers we are out of this world. That just gets me fired up for Jesus! We sometimes let the world get to us when we are out of this world. Let that soak in. I want to make it clear that I am not saying that we are so much better than everyone else. We are still made and called to love one another in everything we do. The world hates us but so what? Who cares what other people think. I read a quote in a book a couple of months ago that said, "Are you seriously worried of a kitten and not a lion?" = worrying about what other people think vs. what God thinks. What is a kitten going to do you? Maybe scratch you a frustrate you a little but-which will happen-but a lion? A lion will change your life.
You might be wondering, how might we find joy?
John 16:20-24: Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you: Now is your time to grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
I encourage you, you will experience a great amount of joy. It is coming, and when Christ returns nobody will ever be able to take away your joy. How awesome is this-when that day comes we will no longer have to ask for anything. All we will have to do is ask in Jesus name and God will give it to us.
The next time you experience the hate of the world. Remember this scripture and remember that when the time comes, we will get to experience joy like we never have before. We even get to experience joy now but that joy can be taken away so quickly. Eternal joy is coming!
I want to close with a prayer that Paul prayed for the Thessalonians: 2 Thessalonians 3:1-5: As for other matters, brothers and sisters, pray for us that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you. And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people, for not everyone has faith. But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. We have confidence in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we command. May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Chris's perseverance.
-you are loved-
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