I saw this painted stone by the side of the path on my walk today:
With the pandemic continuing to dominate news headlines, and children out of schools, the number of brightly colored stones bearing positive messages like this has been growing. The problem is that there is no foundation for happiness included in the message. It’s not like we have a “happy switch” that we can turn on in an instant. We see the stone, we think “that’s a good idea, we will be happy!” we flip the switch and boom! - we are happy! I have no doubt of the good intentions of those who created and placed these stones. But they are fundamentally useless because they give no reason why I should be happy. In fact, without Christ in this world, no-one has a formula for lasting happiness and how it may be experienced - so the message is essentially a vague and empty wish, and that makes me sad, not happy.
Then I came across the verse above in my readings. On the surface, perhaps, the advice it contains seems almost as trite as the mantra on the stone - “Always rejoice! Be thankful in everything!” By presenting the verses in isolation as I have above, I have committed one of the more grievous offences of Bible exposition - I have lifted them clean out of their context. As an old adage says, “a text out of its context is a pretext”. So let’s fix that:
These verses come from the last chapter of Paul’s first letter to the church in Thessalonica. In the earlier sections, he has explained carefully what the Lord has done to them through the gospel:
- 1 Thessalonians 1:4–5 — For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction…
- 1 Thessalonians 1:6 — And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit,
- 1 Thessalonians 1:9 — For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,
- 1 Thessalonians 2:13 — And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.
- 1 Thessalonians 3:2–4 — and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith, 3 that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. 4 For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know. 3:6–8 — But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us, as we long to see you— 7 for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through your faith. 8 For now we live, if you are standing fast in the Lord.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:1 — Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:9 — Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another,
- 1 Thessalonians 5:9–11 — For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.
So, they had been chosen by God, received His word with a joy given to them by the Holy Spirit, even though enduring much affliction. They turned their backs on worthless idols to serve the true God, being convinced that what Paul and friends had taught them was God’s Word and not man’s. This was obvious to them, because like a sharp, two-edged sword, the Word was active among them. They had stood firm in the faith during affliction, even when the missionaries had had to leave them for a while. They had continued to live in a way that was pleasing to God, and were radiant with the love of Christ for one another - they were concerned to encourage one another and to build each other up.
“So,” Paul says, “rejoice! Be thankful!” No longer an empty and trite expression, but something that the Thessalonians had every reason to do, given what God had done and was continuing to do in them and among them. This is how Paul and Silas were able to sing joyfully in the jail in Philippi, isn’t it? They reviewed all that God had done to save them, their current spiritual blessings and their future hope. A few shackles couldn’t take away the joy of those things!
What about us? Can we rejoice always and give thanks in all circumstances? Yes, we can! This isn’t some secret that only a few special believers discover (and then write books about!). Look at what Paul did for the Thessalonians - he reminded them of just some of the amazing things God had done for them (the complete list would fill several libraries!) and then says, effectively, “rejoice and be thankful in these things!”
We need to keep our blessings in sharp focus, because they will cause our hearts to well up in thankfulness and joy whatever our outward circumstances may be.
There’s an old hymn that encourages to do just this in its refrain:
Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your blessings, see what God has done;
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
Recently, I have seen some in our church on specific occasions encouraging us to say what we are thankful for (I think Drew and Lisa posted something like that in the chat at the beginning of the service on Sunday). It’s a great idea at all times, clearly, from what we have seen today - but especially when the conditions around us might tempt us to become discouraged. So why don’t we start counting our blessings, tell others about them and see if the Lord doesn’t surprise us too?
