"in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Right now, the world finds itself in the midst of a major health crisis, the likes of which most of us have never seen. The Coronavirus has spread throughout the world, infecting hundreds of thousands and bringing our sense of normalcy to a grinding halt. But today's passage reorients our perspectives about times like these, holding out good news that persists even in the midst of a global pandemic. Notice that our text says "in everything give thanks." The words "in everything" are really big, so big in fact, that they even cover global pandemics like the coronavirus. This passage says at least 4 things to us about hard times.
We can be honest about hard times. Notice, our passage does not say "for everything give thanks." In other words, our text does not call us to grudgingly pretend the Coronavirus or the devastation it has caused is somehow good. Coronavirus is a natural evil and should be lamented as such. As Christians, we are called to need to weep with victims, alleviate suffering, and call sickness evil.
We can look for God’s goodness in hard times. “In everything give thanks” means our Father always offers us something worth giving thanks for, even in times like these. Even the chaos and devastation of a global pandemic cannot separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. In the form of a command, this passage holds out the amazing promise that no matter how bleak life looks, the light and life of God’s mercies will always come shining through. No matter twists and turns of life, God-loving presence and promises, over our lives remain unshaken.
We can know God sees us in hard times. "for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." The words "for you" are not general but particular. With laser-like precision, God’s will focuses down upon the particularities and peculiarities of your life’s circumstances. He has carefully crafted and adorned each chapter of your life with tailor-made blessings meant to put a praise on your lips and gratitude in your heart.
We are joined to Jesus Christ in hard times. "for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." This is really the crux of our passage. Everything turns on the fact that God’s will for us is “in Christ.” Apart from Christ, we would have every reason for despair in the face of a global pandemic. But even global pandemics must bow before the overruling purposes of the risen Christ. As God the Father wrote the chapters of our lives and chose the praiseworthy gifts he would bestow, he did it with a view toward the glorious inheritance he would give to us in Christ. He saw Christlikeness as the end of our journey and chose the praiseworthy gifts that would bring us to that end. So we are called to give thanks because the everlasting love of Christ ever remains as the praiseworthy power and purpose of our lives.
Dr. Tony Evans offers a helpful illustration. Oysters suffer affliction when a grain of sand becomes lodged inside their shells. The sand irritates the oyster, like a thorn in the flesh. To bring some comfort to their anguish, they begin to coat the grain of sand over and over again, never ridding themselves of the grain just coating it. Over time, that coating over the gain of sand becomes a pearl. Never forget that the most beautiful, elegant, priceless pearl is the result of an irritated oyster. We give thanks in everything because, even when God allows us to suffer, he is yet producing something beautiful, elegant, and precious. He is producing in us the image and glory of his own beloved Son. We can be grateful at all times....even hard ones.
Questions for reflection:
What message can it send when we don’t lament with victims of evil? Name two simple ways you can work to alleviate the sufferings we see among our neighbors?
How have you seen God’s steadfast love carry you through past difficulties? Name at least two different adversities. Take a moment and thank the Lord for his past faithfulness.
How might it change our attitudes to discover that our hard times must submit to God’s will for us in Christ? In prayer, take a moment to thank God for his present faithfulness, ask Him to open your eyes to even more of his mercies in your life, and to fill your heart with even more gratitude.