Reading With the People of God #15 Purposeഉദാഹരണം

The Purpose of Strengthened Hope and Loving Pursuit

In Song of Songs 2:8-17, the beloved’s voice rings out with joyful confidence and eagerness, calling to their love with urgency and delight. This passage captures the vitality of love’s pursuit and the beauty of mutual longing. Love is not passive; it moves us forward, awakening purpose and passion in our lives.

At the same time, Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians begins with encouragement and a call to steadfast faith amid trials. The church is reminded that their suffering is not meaningless but part of God’s refining work, producing hope and perseverance. This strength-filled hope undergirds a purposeful life, anchored not in despair but in the certainty of Christ’s justice and return.

Today’s readings invite us to consider how love and hope work together to fuel our purpose—love that calls us forward, and hope that sustains us through challenge.

As you read, the introduction to 2 Thessalonians, which follows, will provide valuable background, helping you understand the context of Paul’s message and the encouragement it offers to believers facing hardship.

II Thessalonians Introduction

Paul pens this letter from Corinth also, probably about six months after sending off his first to the fledgling church in Thessalonica. They continue to have questions about the end times so Paul takes some time in writing more on this subject. Here he adds certain signs that will precede the second coming of Jesus, meant to assure them that the time was not yet.

Because of the persecution the Christians were experiencing, they were associating it with the judgment to follow Christ’s return. Others had stopped working because they thought the second coming was imminent, so they were idly waiting for it, perhaps thinking to continue on as before, which showed a lack of faith. Paul addresses these issues as he did in his first letter to them. Both letters are concerned with faulty conduct and faulty eschatology, which Paul hopes to correct with the truth given to him by the Lord.

* Introduction contributed by Jinet Troost

Reflection Question:
How does your hope in God’s justice and love shape your purpose when life feels difficult or uncertain?

Prayer of Illumination:
Lord, strengthen my hope and awaken my heart to pursue You with passion. Help me to trust in Your justice and faithfulness, even when the path is hard. Open my mind and spirit as I read Your Word today, and guide me into living with purpose through Your love and grace. Amen.