READING: 1 Thessalonians 1-5
“. . . you yourselves became imitators of us and of the Lord.”
1 Thessalonians 1:6
The older I get, the more I think about what I will leave behind when the Lord calls me home. I especially think about these matters because Pam and I don’t have children – and what we leave behind must go beyond offspring. We can’t just leave our heritage and our stuff to our kids.
That’s one reason Paul’s words to the Thessalonians grab my attention today: “You know how we lived among you for your benefit, and you yourselves became imitators of us and of the Lord when, in spite of severe persecution, you welcomed the message with joy from the Holy Spirit. As a result, you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia” (1 Thess. 1:5-7). The missionaries had lived among them in such a way that the Thessalonians saw faithfulness and endurance; they saw a message validated by a lifestyle. With that example in mind, they chose to imitate the missionaries, who themselves imitated Christ (see also 1 Cor. 11:1).
Then, the Thessalonians became witnesses themselves to another generation of believers in Macedonia and Achaia. They became, in John MacArthur’s words, “third generation mimics of Christ.”* Even in times of persecution, they modeled and spoke the joy of Christ. They simply could not keep the story to themselves.
What Paul thus left behind were multiple generations of believers who carried on the work of the gospel beyond him. That’s what Pam and I desire to leave behind, too.
ACTION STEPS:
- Thank God for those who have imitated Christ for you.
- Send a note to someone who has inspired you to walk with Christ.
PRAYER: “Lord, use me to raise up generations of believers.”
TOMORROW’S READING: 2 Thessalonians 1-3
*The MacArthur Study Bible (Kindle Location 305838). Crossway. Kindle Edition.
