Be With Me: 7 Minutes of Biblical Wonder

What good is eternal comfort now? Does eternal comfort do anything practical for me in the here and now? Silas makes an argument that attaching ourselves to eternal comfort, gives us current comfort, which results in GOOD WORDS AND GOOD WORKS.  Wait, so something from another place (heaven), and another time (eternity) and from another Person(Fr and Jesus) can make a difference in what I SAY TODAY and what I DO TODAY? Exactly.

Listen to one of the highlights of my life: strapping in to a DC-10 simulator with my knowledgeable brother. We flew HARD that day, having first attached ourselves to the aircraft with a 5 point harness.  You'll hear why it is critical to firmly affix ourselves to eternal comfort, so we can do all the flying hard of Christianity.  This is the foundation that produces a good word and a good work today.  Thank you for listening.  Subscribe for a daily blast at bewithme.us or write me at [email protected]

A people get a spiritual prize they did not win; they receive a trophy they did not merit; they get GLORY they did not EARN.  Such is Christianity.  

Then, there is Christian COMMUNITY, where one can stand nearby and WATCH this happen. Paul Silas, and Timothy are doing just that with a young Church they planted a year or so ago. The spiritual reality they see causes them to THANK God.  They Thank God for witnessing the receiving of a glory that wasn't earned by the young church; that is, they see that God's activity is REAL.

If you are in a community of people where you can watch this happening, be thankful.  If you are not yet in such a community, start to find one this Sunday or Wednesday night.  bewithme.us subscribe for a daily podcast after you hit the link and listen 7 minutes to this one.

Today we'll hear about a group of people that refuse to love the truth; that do not believe the truth and that even take pleasure in doing the wrong thing. These are people who have the "FOREVER BUS" of being with God forever come by, stop in front of them, and open the door. They have agency and choice and opportunity, at least for a time, to GET ON THE BUS.  And yet, they REFUSE the loving of God, His ways, and His people.

Needless to say, there are consequences of such refusal.  Trust me, you won't "like" any of them. But they are out of our paygrade.  This is a matter for the sovereignty of a holy God who only does the right thing.  Our problem is that we just don't understand eternity right now, so we'll probably judge incorrectly. 

The point is to BE ON THE FOREVER BUS.  Take the current, temporary, opportunity to LOVE THE TRUTH, Believe the truth and do the right thing.  Don't refuse the opportunity when it is right in front of you. Get on that bus. There's only one bus.  Don't miss the chance. Please share, like at bewithme.us and bewithme.us@gmail, apple, google, Spotify, podcasts, etc.

A spiritual FOREVER BUS is coming to this earth.  In it, Jesus is going to gather up believers and those who believed until their deaths. From then on, they get to always be with the Lord.

The Thessalonians are worried they missed the bus.  You gotta love 'em that their INTENT is to be ON THE BUS.  They've got some bad teaching on the matter and they are rattled.

Paul tells everybody to calm down.  First, there are some clear, definable, and dramatic events that nobody is going to miss. A certain "man of lawlessness" who has up to this time been restrained is going to be allowed to be revealed.  He'll make the most of it and oppose, destroy, and seek exaltation and even worship.  He'll seem like a real big deal, but the real Lord will destroy him with "the breath of his mouth." We'll all say, "Oh, he was nothing..."

Listen 7 minutes for a very dramatic story.  Get your ticket to be on the bus.  Subscribe and share and comment. bewithme.us   [email protected]

After finishing a flash forward to the day of justice, the day of judgment, (and for the believer: the day of non-judgment;) Paul states that it is with this END IN MIND that his prayers are formed.  That is, a view of that day informs the prayers that he has today.

• that God would make you worthy of His Calling (He is the agent, the mover, the Caller, and He does what He desires)
• That God would fulfill every resolve for good that you have (that He would view favorably every step you'd take towards responding well)
• That God would fulfill every "work" of faith (for the work of the Christian life is to believe and believe according to His revelation.  This is hard to do.)
• That God would be glorified in this (that His character and His characteristics might be more easily seen by the world)

Join me for seven minutes. Let's learn about God together. Then subscribe at bewithme.us so you can have another taste of seeing Him tomorrow too.  Listen to the podcast.

God's justice is featured in today's passage.  It affect believers NOW and LATER.  It affects those opposed to God NOW and LATER. Let's find out how in a 7 minute podcast. We are heading toward marveling. We will be marveling at God's activity, God's character and the display of God's characteristics.

Believers get what they have always wanted: to be with Him forever.
Non-believers get what they have always wanted: to be separated from Him forever.

So in case you can't quite see it from here, know that there indeed will be a day of complete justice.  Join me in marveling at that day in the presence of God.  

Make a comment after you listen.  bewithme.us [email protected]

Another great place to start is right here.  Listen for 7 minutes a day as we walk through the book of 2 Thessalonians one bite at a time.  Click on the hyperlink for today's episode or subscribe for a daily email at bewithme.us

Paul is grateful about the brothers and sisters. He is directionally grateful in sending his thanks TO GOD.  This beats just a warm feeling in his belly. 

He leaves us with a couple of pointers about prayer. We lowered the bar a few podcasts ago to un-complicate prayer.  Just mention them.  It is a great place to start.  Today, we are reminded about frequency of prayer.  Think of a scale: 0 is maybe thinking about or planning to someday pray. 1 is praying for somebody ONCE. 2 is twice. 3 is often. 4 is constantly.  Our charge today is to move wherever we are on this scale up a notch.  

Thank you for being here.  Come back tomorrow!  See you then for another 7 minutes.

Imagine walking through 1st Thessalonians in 7 minute segments of consideration. 
Imagine 26 thoughts of summary that put the whole arc together. 
Imagine this as its' own 7 minute episode.  
Imagine that the link is right here for you to click on and be encouraged.

Imagine no further! 1 Thessalonians is summarized right here for all of us. If you are new to the podcast, then consider starting with Season 8, Episode 1 to walk and work your way through the book.  

Thank you for reading.  Thank you for listening.  Thank you for all the hard work of believing and doing that is Christianity.  Like Paul to the Thessalonians, "I love you guys! Keep going!"
Subscribe at Bewithme.us or [email protected].  The podcast is available for free subscription on every podcast provider.  Yes, we just give this stuff away.

Are you in a Christian Community?  There is no such thing as Christianity without community.
Are you in a Community of AFFECTION? Your community should be characterized by warmth and affection as you regularly check in with each other from the battle that is the Christian Life.
Are you praying for the GIANTS and the not-so Giants of the faith?  Who of us does not need it? Who of us isn't occasionally weary or faint-hearted?
Does your life reflect a PRIORITY of exposure to the Word? There is always a correlation of spiritual growth with regular, ongoing, exposure to His Word.  Join me tomorrow as we conclude 1 Thess and then begin our wondering about 2 Thess. Please listen to the podcast.  You'll find it wherever you like to listen.  Encourage others to consider walking 2 Thess with me. bewithme.us  [email protected] apple, google, spotify, podcaster, deezer podcasts.

Paul leaves his first letter to the citizens of Thessalonia with a blessing.  It is a prayer, it is a plea, it is a charge and it is based on the character of God.  I have stolen this prayer for you.  

In it, we find a God who has come down to make a peace that otherwise would be impossible;  we find God Himself personally  acting on our behalf; we find a finished, completed work; we find an ongoing work; we find our spirits and our often forgotten bodies included under favor; we find this blessing going on until the "period" at then end of the sentence of world history; and we find all of this true because of the reliability of His character and characteristics. 

This is the blessing I will pray for you at the end of 7 minutes.  Please listen and then subscribe and share. Bewithme.us or write at [email protected]