The Leader's Confidence in People: 2 Thess Lesson 12

CTW Eph. 3:14-21

The Spiritual Leader’s Confidence in the People of God

2 Thessalonians 3:3-5

 Would you please stand with me in honor of God’s word as we read 2 Thessalonians 3? Before we read this chapter I will tell you that what Paul is communicating here is his commitment to the spiritual well-being of the people of this church. Paul cares too much about this church and these people to let the integrity, purity, and unity of this church be destroyed by a few people who were not living as they should. Read the chapter.

 It is clear as we read this chapter that Paul is calling the believers in this church to deal with some problem people within the fellowship. This aspect of spiritual leadership is particularly challenging. We have talked about the potential problems associated with addressing problem people within the church. But one of the things that helps the church, and encourages the church to take these difficult steps is the confidence the church has in the leader who calls them to take these steps. The church must know that the leader is doing what is in the best interest of the Lord’s people. The church must know that the leader is depending on the Lord and is listening to the Lord. What the church really needs to know is that the things being commanded by the spiritual leader are coming from the Lord.

What Paul writes in the first five verses of chapter 3, before he commands them to do something he knows will be hard for them, is intended to instill this confidence in them concerning himself. In these verses Paul is establishing the basis for this confidence. He wants them to know that he is totally dependent upon the Lord as he commands them to do this. He wants them to know that he is confident in the Lord’s work in their lives, so that they are ready and able to do this. He wants them to know that he is absolutely committed to their spiritual well-being. 

A church has confidence to follow a spiritual leader whom they know is trusting in the Lord in all he does. This was the theme of verses 1-2 we discussed at length last week. Paul asked for prayer because he knew prayer was essential to the success of his ministry. The spiritual leader desperate for prayer is desperate for prayer because he knows God has to do the work. He asked for prayer that the word of the Lord would spread rapidly and be glorified. He demonstrates his trust in God because he never wavered from preaching the word of God. We might not think of a commitment to preaching the word of God as a demonstration of our dependence upon God, but it is. Paul communicated his trust in God through his desire that the word of the Lord be glorified, not himself. He trusted God to rescue him from his enemies, the perverse and evil men who did not have faith.

A church needs to know that its spiritual leader is completely trusting in God. People need to see that the leader is depending on the Lord to direct, empower, and bless all that he endeavors to accomplish for the kingdom of God. A church will follow the leadership of a spiritual leader in whom this is seen to be true. Paul was going to call these people to do difficult things for the good of the church. He was completely dependent upon God and following the Lord as he calls them to do these hard things.

Today we will dig into verses 3-5 and look at the other important thing a church must recognize in its leaders. Not only does the church need to see that the leader is absolutely trusting in God for what He is doing with the spiritual leader. They also need to understand that the spiritual leader has confidence in them. People need to see that their leader is trusting in what the Lord is doing among the people of the church.

In verses 3-5 Paul is communicating to the Thessalonians his confidence in the Lord’s work among His people. The spiritual leader must have confidence that God will give the people the strength, courage, and wisdom to do the difficult things. Paul is going to command them to do difficult things in the rest of the chapter. It was very important for Paul to communicate this high degree of confidence concerning God’s work in the people of the church. 

A leader should not tell people to do difficult things unless he is confident they have what it takes to do these things. Paul’s confidence was based on the work God had done in their lives. They need to hear Paul say, “I know what I am going to tell you to do is going to be hard, but I am confident you are able because of the Lord’s work in you. I know you are up to the task at hand because I know what God does in His people. I know the Lord’s work in you will give you the confidence and courage and wisdom to deal with the problem people in the church.”

Confidence and courage can be contagious. Paul is instilling confidence and courage in them. But let’s not overlook the reason for Paul’s confidence in the people. Notice the emphasis in these verses. He said, “The Lord is faithful…We have confidence in the Lord concerning you…” “May the Lord direct your hearts…” Paul’s confidence is in the Lord, and it is a confidence in the Lord’s work in these people. It was the work of the Lord in them that would motivate, empower, and strengthen them to remain faithful in these hard things. Paul had confidence that the Lord’s work in them was sufficient.

This is no small confidence. Paul’s confidence is based on the Lord’s faithfulness, which Paul was sure would, “strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” Think about this. The Lord is faithful to strengthen and protect, even from the evil one. This is no small measure of confidence. The evil one is Satan. He is no weak and insignificant opponent. “Strengthen” is “sterizo” in the Greek. It means to set fast, to fix firmly, to make one steadfast in mind. “Protect” is “phulasso.” It means to keep safe, preserved. And all this is from the “evil one.”

The evil one is Satan. Satan is the pride-filled enemy of God and God’s people. His pride was his undoing. He is powerful. He rules an immeasurable army of demonic beings. He is wicked, cynical, crafty, deceitful, fierce and cruel. He loves to set traps, deceive hearts, and sow tares in the church of our Lord. He is a wolf who seeks to destroy the sheep. He is a roaring lion seeking to devour, a crafty serpent working to deceive.

He tempts us to sin. He opposes God’s work. He sifts those whom God permits him to sift. He wants to ensnare us, entangle us in his affairs, and lead us to turn aside from following Christ. Satan is a formidable foe. We are told to be watchful when it comes to Satan (2 Cor. 2:11). We are told to put on the armor of God so we resist him (Eph. 6:11-16). James and Peter both tell us to resist the devil.

Satan is no insignificant enemy. Even with all that Satan is and all he does, Paul’s confidence in the Lord was the He would strengthen and protect His children from this powerful enemy. As powerful as Satan is, his power is no match for God. Paul was confident in the Lord that He would strengthen and protect these dear believers from the evil one. 

The reality is that we are no match for Satan. Our victory over him is not dependent upon us, or our words of rebuke, or our attempts to bind him in the name of Jesus and cast him out of our lives. We don’t command him in the name of Jesus. He laughs at us. Our victory was accomplished because Christ destroyed the works of the devil. Because we stand in Christ, we stand in victory.

All this tells us that Paul’s confidence was no small degree of confidence. His confidence was that these dear believers would not be victims of Satan. Here is the important thing to realize in what Paul is saying. If they would be able to stand faithful in the Lord’s strength and protection against the evil one, they would be able to stand faithful in the Lord’s strength and protection against those who were mere men, who would not align their lives with the word of God. Those living unruly lives were mere men. If God strengthens and protects us from the evil one, will He not much more strengthen and protect us from those who claim faith in Christ but won’t obey the Lord’s commands?

Sometimes we need to hear from those who lead us of their confidence in the Lord regarding His work in us. Some people are afraid to question others about things they see in their lives that don’t honor the Lord. We can be afraid to do what God wants us to do, which is to exhort others to walk away from sin, and to call them to repentance. You don’t need to be afraid to confront sinful or offensive behaviors among the people of the church. The work of our Lord in your heart is sufficient to give you the strength and courage to do the right things to protect the integrity, purity, and unity of His church. 

Paul isn’t just playing some psychological mind game with the Thessalonians. His message is not one that says, “I know you can do it! I believe in you!” He isn’t promoting the power of positive thinking. Paul is just telling these people of his confidence in what God has done in them and is doing for them. He knew how much God had worked in his own life, and what kind of transformation had taken place. He knew God was empowering him to do things he never would have been able to do on his own. He was confident the same power of God was working in the lives of these dear Christians. 

In some ways this may be Paul’s declaration of God’s answer to prayers previously lifted to God on their behalf. Look back at the prayer of 1 Thess. 5:23-24. Paul saw enough in them to be confident in the Lord’s faithfulness. They were sanctified. They were being preserved complete, without blame. Faithful was He who called them, and He was bringing it to pass. Look at the end of chapter 2. Remember this prayer. These believers were, by grace, comforted and strengthened for every good work and word. We should not be surprised that Paul actually believed that these prayers would be answered.

The spiritual leader of God’s people must have confidence in the people. But his confidence is in what God does in their lives. He has this confidence because he knows that what God starts, God promises to finish. He knows God is faithful to do His work in His people. When God starts a good work, He brings it to pass. Paul told the Corinthians that he planted God’s word, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. God does not fail in His work among His people. Therefore, the spiritual leader of God’s people can be sure that if God has begun His work and saved them, God will also do what must be done to get them ready for the tough stuff. It will be the work of God in them that will keep them faithful in and through difficult things.

Paul’s confidence in the Lord’s work in these believers was also the result of how they had responded to his previous commands. He says in verse 4, “We have confidence in the Lord concerning you, that you are doing and will continue to do what we command.” Paul’s confidence in the Lord concerning them was not a baseless confidence. It was a confidence built on their obedience to the Lord. The Lord’s work had produced a church of obedient and faithful people. This was a church doing what they had been commanded.

Nothing will promote confidence in the work of God in the lives of God’s people more than obedience to the commandments of God. Obedient people give evidence of the work of God in their lives. We learned all the way back in our study of 1 John a couple years ago that obedience was one of the reliable evidences of genuine salvation. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” Every spiritual leader shares the heart of the beloved Apostle John and can relate to the words he wrote in 3 John, verse 4. He wrote, “I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.” The spiritual leader who sees his people living obedient lives can be assured of God’s work in them.

Obedience produces confidence. Disobedience produces doubts. This is true both for the people and the spiritual leader. Disobedient people, those whose lives are marked by consistent sinfulness and disobedience, can make no reasonable claim to assurance regarding their salvation. Habitual sin must lead to questions and doubts. If we are often and easily defeated by sin in our lives, we should be willing to examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith. Habitual sin and consistent disobedience to the will of God is an indicator of a serious spiritual problem. On the other hand, victory over sin and consistent obedience produces confidence regarding salvation.

Obedience produces confidence. Disobedience produces doubts. This is also true of the spiritual leader who knows well the condition of his flock. Paul’s confidence in these believers was based on what he knew of them. They were doing what they had been commanded to do, and he was confident that they would continue to do what he commanded. And he was about to command them to do some hard things.

A spiritual leader can have confidence in the people to do hard things, if he sees that they have been faithful to do hard things in the past. It wasn’t that long ago that we studied chapter 5 of the first letter to the Thessalonians. Look back at verses 13-22. If you will think back to our study of these verses we were constantly reminded that these were all imperative commands. They all fit into the category of commands that “say easy, do hard.” If you obey the commandment to “live in peace with one another” and some of those “one another” aren’t so easy to live in peace with, you have done well. The same is true with “be patient with everyone,” and “see that no one repays evil for evil” and “always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people” and “rejoice always” and “pray without ceasing” and “in everything give thanks.” These were not all of Paul’s commands, but they were some of the more challenging ones. Paul says, “you are doing…what we command.”

How do you know someone will be faithful to carry out the commands to do hard things? You simply observe how they have done with other hard things. People who obey God and do hard things, prove that God has done the work of salvation. And the true work of salvation makes us into a people who can do whatever we are commanded to do. Because they were doing what Paul had commanded them to do, he was confident in the Lord concerning them and was sure they would do the things he will command them to do in the future.

Follow the flow of thought through these verses. “But the Lord is faithful…We have confidence in the Lord concerning you…May the Lord direct your hearts…” The Lord is faithful. He will do what He has promised to do. He will finish what He has started. He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. We have confidence concerning you. We are certain of God’s work in you because of the evidence provided by the obedient lives you live. God has done so much, but there is one more thing that needs to happen for them to be ready for what they will be commanded to do. “May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ.”

Verse 5 expresses this desire of Paul for the people. “May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ.” This verse is another benedictory prayer that brings this paragraph to a close. It is a fitting prayer from the heart of a spiritual leader who loves those he leads. It is a prayer for these people that God would take them to the place of blessing, peace, obedience, and security. When we stand in the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ, we are standing in the best place a Christian can abide. 

Notice how our hearts get to this place. Paul asked that the Lord direct their hearts to this position, or condition, or standing. Paul knew that if they were to realize this, it would be because the Lord directed their hearts to this. This is important because, while this is the last verse in this paragraph, the very next verse is a command to do something that will be very challenging for these people. The next verse will direct them to take steps within the fellowship that are going to produce circumstances that are supercharged with emotion and tension. Paul will tell them to walk away from someone in the church whose life is not right with God. It can be stressful and challenging to deal with one who leads an unruly life. Those situations can cause our hearts to race with anxiety. They can be filled with anxiety and emotional upheaval.

Where should our hearts be during these stressful encounters? What is the best position from which to approach these situations? The only place that will sustain us and protect us, and give us peace through this, is the place where we are standing in the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ.

Paul is so strategic in what he writes here. This should not be overlooked. Paul’s prayer is that the hearts of these dear Christians be directed into the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ. To have our hearts directed into the love of God is to have our hearts and mind filled with and dominated by and controlled by the love of God. This request makes perfect sense in this context. This is the best position from which to take the necessary steps to deal with problem people. When it comes time to take these steps against problem people, our hearts need to be directed into the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ. Our hearts need to be controlled by the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ.

If you are an unruly person, and I have to address this issue in your life, it must be obvious that I am coming from the position of the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ. I am addressing the issue because I love you and I want God’s best for you. I am standing steadfast in Christ and I am calling you to do the same. It doesn’t work if I am addressing the issue in your life because I am angry with you. The anger of man does not accomplish the righteousness of God. I must address the issue in your life because I love you with the love with which I have been loved by God. I address the issue in the love of God because I love you and want you to experience God’s best for your life. I address the issue from the position of steadfastness in Christ because that is where I want you to be. That is where God wants you to be.

Dealing with people in the church who live unruly or undisciplined lives is not an unloving thing to do. It is the opposite. The unloving thing to do is to turn a blind eye to the problems and let people persist in their sin. God loves us and this is why He disciplines those who are His true children. Turn to Hebrews 12:4-11. Read verses 4-11. Verse 6 is clear. “For whom the Lord loves He disciplines…” He does not do this out of anger. He does it out of love. If our hearts have been directed into the love of God we will deal with issues from the same motive. While those who don’t like what we say may accuse us of being unloving and judgmental, we know that we do what we must do because we love them.

Paul also prays that their hearts will be directed into the steadfastness of Christ. Again, Paul is very strategic in what he writes. He prays that their hearts will be directed into the steadfastness of Christ because if we are not steadfast, we will not have what it takes to stand faithful against the problem people in the church. Problem people, when confronted and called to repentance, very often resist and push back. Sometimes they just get defensive. Sometimes they can become belligerent. Those who deal with these issues must be standing firm in the steadfastness of Christ.

The word “steadfastness” is “hupomone” in the Greek. This word means to bear up under pressure. This is the quality of character that does not allow one to surrender or back down in difficult circumstances, or succumb under trials. This is the quality of our faith that allows us to remain steadfast in suffering, or in trials of faith, or in difficult duty.

Confronting problem people in the church is difficult duty. Paul prays that their hearts will be directed into the steadfastness of Christ so that the people themselves will remain steadfast in Christ as they do the difficult things Paul is going to call them to do. Only as our hearts are directed into the steadfastness of Christ will we remain steadfast in Christ. If we do not remain steadfast in Christ, we are at risk of being tossed back and forth by every wind of doctrine. We are at risk of being influenced by sinful lifestyles.

The Lord’s church is His bride. He cares about the integrity, purity, and unity of His church. He gives His true church leaders who will shepherd His people. The sheep must see a leader they can follow. He works in His people, making them true followers. Paul has shown us that he is that kind of leader. He has told them of his confidence that they are true followers.

In closing last week I told you I was committed to being a spiritual leader who was dependent upon the Lord. My closing challenge today is to you. If I could see everything in your life, would I have confidence in the Lord’s faithfulness to protect you from the evil one, or would I see evidence that the evil one has some inroads into your life? Would I have confidence in the Lord concerning you, that you are doing what we are commanded to do by the Lord? Would I see that your hearts have been directed into the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ?

Let’s pray.