Paul's Exhortations to the Thessalonian Church 2nd Letter Volume 8

Paul Prays that the Name of Jesus Christ be Glorified by the Saved & Forgiven Sinners in the Church @ Thessalonica

2 Thessalonians 1:12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. KJV

Only by virtue of what Paul acknowledged to them in the last study/commentary that he prayed for them always of having their faith in Jesus Christ be worked out in power can they do what Paul prays here for them with these words, "That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Thessalonians 1:12) (KJV). God the Father is not going about the population of humanity randomly selecting what appears to be pretty good or even very good human beings to save and give them a place in His Heavenly Kingdom, but on the contrary, He is now through and by only the Gospel of our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ and any persons acceptance of the Gospel calling out a group of sinners and placing them in the 'Church' or the Body of Christ. Therefore, by doing this, His only motivation is that His Son Jesus Christ be glorified upon the earth by the sinners (now made saints through the new birth) by being the actual 'new creatures' (2 Corinthians 5:17) that they have been now made into.

Our world categorizes people in many ways by their ethnicity, gender, socio-economic status, where they were born, where they live, and many other non-essential and very unimportant things as seen by God who created all of these people, for He only sees two categories of human beings and they are sinners and saints. The sinners are made up of every person living without a relationship with Jesus Christ by virtue of coming to His Bloody Cross only for the forgivness of their sin and being born again, born anew, or born from above as our Lord Jesus said very clearly to a very zealous religious Jewish man named Nicodemus, "Jesus answered him, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, that unless a person is born again (anew, from above), he cannot ever see (know, be acquainted with, and experience) the kingdom of God." (John 3:3) (Amplified Bible) and the saints are of course every person who has done just what was mentioned above.

Now Paul wants these newly made saints to have their faith worked out of them in power that they would now bring glory to the Name of Jesus Christ by the way they live amongst the people who still have not come to Jesus Christ. This little English word 'name' is translated by the Greek word onoma meaning a name (literally or figuratively), (authority, character). In other words, when someone declares that they belong to Jesus Christ there are certain distinguishing qualities that should be a part of their life and of their belief system imbedded in their inner man or inner woman as our Lord Jesus said of those who believed in Him with these words, Once more Jesus addressed the crowd. He said, I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not be walking in the dark, but will have the Light which is Life. (John 8:12) (Amplified Bible). There must exist in their/our lives a love for our Lord Jesus Christ and for His word and a deep, demanding, and dedicated desire to rightly divide His Holy Word (2 Timothy 2:15) to keep the enemy from  distorting the truth and disgusing it. We have seen in the past as well as the present that many are deceived and have taken this very Bible and perpetrated, performed, and pulled off some of the most horrible atrocities imaginable, example the so-called Prophet in Utah who has married many wives and even young girls as young as 13, this is not that which glorifies the One True God Jesus Christ, but he declares that it is God/Jesus who directs him.

Paul is praying that they/we would live peacably with all men, getting out the Word of God, making known at every opportunity the Gospel of Jesus Christ which is the only way to Heaven period. Jesus Christ is glorified in His redeemed sons and daughters when they/we never compromise the truth of the Gospel, when they/we live a blameless life in this world (Philippians 2:15), and when they/we joy in the reproach brought to us by unregenerate mankind as the Apostle Peter so eloquently declared it with these words, "Beloved, do not be amazed {and} bewildered at the fiery ordeal which is taking place to test your quality, as though something strange (unusual and alien to you and your position) were befalling you. But insofar as you are sharing Christ's sufferings, rejoice, so that when His glory [full of radiance and splendor] is revealed, you may also rejoice with triumph [exultantly]. If you are censured {and} suffer abuse [because you bear] the name of Christ, blessed [are you--happy, fortunate, to be envied, with life-joy, and satisfaction in God's favor and salvation, regardless of your outward condition], because the Spirit of glory, the Spirit of God, is resting upon you. {On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.} But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or any sort of criminal, or as a mischief-maker (a meddler) in the affairs of others [infringing on their rights]. But if [one is ill-treated and suffers] as a Christian [which he is contemptuously called], let him not be ashamed, but give glory to God that he is [deemed worthy to suffer] in this name." (1 Peter 4:12-16) (Amplified Bible).

"The Lord Jesus Christ is not some religious leader that we follow as the Buddhist follows the teachings of the man Buddha (who is dead) or the Muslim follows the teachings of the man Muhammad (who is dead), but we have been inhabited, indwelt, and imbibed with the One and only Living God who made and created everything visible and invisible that exist, so then it is our right, reward, and recompense that we will receive also glory from Him as the great Prophet Isaiah said with these words, '[But] in that [future Messianic] day the Lord of hosts shall become a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty to the [converted] remnant of His people' (Isaiah 28:5) (Amplified Bible) and these words also 'And the nations shall see your righteousness {and} vindication [your rightness and justice--not your own, but His ascribed to you], and all kings shall behold your salvation and glory; and you shall be called by a new name which the mouth of the Lord shall name. You shall also be [so beautiful and prosperous as to be thought of as] a crown of glory {and} honor in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem [exceedingly beautiful] in the hand of your God.' (Isaiah 62:2-3) (Amplified Bible)." Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

"On the other hand, there is glory accruing to perfected saints in Christ. 'And ye in Him.' There will be a union so close as that nothing closer is possible, personality being preserved, between Christ and the saints above, who trust Him and love Him and serve Him there. And that union will lead to a participation in His glory which shall exalt their limited, stained, and fragmentary humanity into 'the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.' Astronomers tell us that dead, cold matter falls from all corners of the system into the sun, drawn by its magic magnetism from farthest space, and, plunging into that great reservoir of fire, the deadest and coldest matter glows with fervid heat and dazzling light. So you and I, dead, cold, dull, opaque, heavy fragments, drawn into mysterious oneness with Christ, the Sun of our souls, shall be transformed into His own image, and like Him be light and heat which shall radiate through the universe. Brethren, meditate on your calling, the fact, its method, its aim, its obligations, and its powers. Cherish hopes and desires after goodness, the only hopes and desires that are certain to be fulfilled. Cultivate the life of faith working by love, and let us all live in the light of that solemn expectation that the Lord will judge His people. Then we may hope that the voice which summoned us will welcome us, and proclaim even of us, stained and undeserving as we rightly feel ourselves to be: 'They have not defiled their garments, therefore they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.'" Alexander MacLaren

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...

Sincerely in Christ,

Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…