For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of boasting? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming? For you are our glory and joy. 1 Thess. 2:19-20
Hang on a minute, a man could say that his Christian friends were his hope, joy and crown : his glory and his joy?
Hmmm. Must have been living in some kind of love that’s nearly unknown today.
Ian Vincent 
December 10, 2007 at 1:33 am
I love this chapter, bcos it reveals the heart of what we, Jesus’ church, are supposed to “be”.
This type of self-sacrificing love, which these guys had, is the only type of authority we should recognize and be a part of. God set the standard with those guys, and He hasn’t changed.
May this word “work effectually IN us” , in changing us into the image of Jesus Christ, for it is the living and powerful Word of God.
ian.
December 17, 2007 at 5:04 pm
Do we value some friends (in the Lord) over others? Has the Lord granted us the right to be partial or to deny all partiality? (Read 1 Timothy 5:21 and James 3:17.) The question this verse begs is this: is it God (Who) or tradition (that) is determining whom we value and fellowship with on a Spirit-led basis? How sad that so many of today’s Christians follow a ‘that’ (tradition) more so than they do a ‘Who’ (God). Worse, whenever the Words of God are reverenced less than man’s tradition, they become of “no effect” in our lives (Matthew 15:6; Mark 7:13): and without their light (for are they not a lamp unto our feet), saints are blind to their sin (of following tradition more than God).
Wonderful posting, brother. The Word of God speaks volumes in one verse.
December 19, 2007 at 11:40 am
Certainly, we shouldn’t value some brothers or sisters over others, being partial.
The Lord ordering our relationships, and our interactions and fellowship, is another thing, eh.
Amen brother to your post.