Paul is often expressing in his Epistles how thankful he is for fellow believers.
Phil 1:3-5 KJB "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;"
This teaches us also that we should pray as well for other saints, primarily for their edification, that they will continue the work of the ministry, that they will grow in grace, that they will be comforted in the word etc.
We should be thankful for any time that we can spend with fellow believers- in person, over the phone, in texts and social media. Spending time in person together with fellow believers for Bible study is most ideal.
We should be thankful also for any believing family and friends that we have, even if we don't agree with them on doctrine or if they have chosen to live worldly. We are not thankful for their bad doctrine or their carnal living, but we are thankful that they are believers who belong to Christ! They are still members of Christ's body and we will spend eternity with them in the Heavenly places.
Paul was thankful for the carnal believers at Corinth, but spent most of his epistle to them addressing their behavior and how they needed to change their thinking so that they would walk in the Spirit instead of after the flesh.
Cor 1:4 "I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;"
And even the legalistic Galatians, Paul was thankful for them but was also correcting their bad doctrine:
Gal 4:19 "My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you, I desire to be present with you now, and to change my voice; for I stand in doubt of you."
And in Ephesians Paul gives us a wonderful prayer that we ought to pray for fellow believers:
Eph 1: 15-19 KJB "15 Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints,
16 Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers;
17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,"
Even as a group of believers, Paul expressed that he, Silvanus and Timothy were thankful for all of the believers at Thessaloniki
Thessalonians 1: 1-4 KJB "Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
2 We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;
3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;
4 Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God."
And from Paul to Timothy personally he says,
2 Timothy 1: 2-4 KJB
2 To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
3 I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day;
4 Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy;
5 When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.
So as believers we really should be so thankful for all of our fellow believers!
Video
Comments