Counted Worthy

1 Timothy 4-5; 2 Thessalonians 1-3

“Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring. All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering.”

2 Thessalonians 1:4, 5

Rather than avoiding or escaping suffering and persecution for the gospel, Paul encouraged the Thessalonian Church that God was using this persecution to prove them worthy of the kingdom of God. The early church believed persecution for the sake of Christ was a high honor because that was the same path Jesus Christ walked (Acts 5:41). Our salvation is by grace alone and it is only the righteousness of Christ given to us which makes us worthy; however, we are then given the honor of testifying to Christ’s presence in our lives by following Christ in his mission. Suffering for the gospel should be normal, honored, and evidence that we, too, are worthy of Christ’s kingdom. Clear witness for Christ is increasingly costly in the “Christian” West.

Will we be found worthy?

“Lord Jesus, you are worthy of any price. Your kingdom is what I seek, for your glory.”