Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary 1 Thessalonians 1:3

"remembering without ceasing your work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, before our God and Father;" — 1 Thessalonians 1:3 (ASV)

Whenever Paul and his colleagues recalled the threefold nature of the Thessalonians’ progress, they could not stop thanking God. Of course, Paul does not mean that they thought of nothing but the Thessalonians. He rather uses the hyperbolic “continually” to indicate their intense interest.

The words “before our God and Father” show the sincerity and genuineness of this remembrance in prayer. Some in the Thessalonian church had questioned Paul’s motives in dealing with them. So at the very outset, he dispels this suspicion, and he confronts it more directly in chs. 2–3 (cf. 2:5, 10; 3:9).

The substance of what Paul and his colleagues remember about the Thessalonians is summed up in three words: “work,” “labor,” and “endurance.” In turn, these three reflect three qualities of Christian character: “faith,” “love,” and “hope.” The exact nature of the “work [GK 2240] produced by faith” is a combination of direct missionary work (cf. 1:8), acts of goodness toward others (cf. 4:9–10), and loyalty to Christ in the face of severe persecution (1:6; 3:3–4, 8). “Faith” (GK 4411) indeed manifests itself on a broad front. For Paul to appreciate works is not surprising. Even in Romans, so notable for its repudiation of any system of justification by works (Romans 3:20–21, 28; 4:4–6), Paul finds occasion to speak of “work” as the essential fruit of the believing life (Romans 2:7; Romans 13:3; Romans 14:20; cf. 1 Corinthians 3:14; Ephesians 2:10; Titus 3:1). This emphasis aligns him with James regarding Christian living and the absolute necessity of works accompanying faith to prove its vitality (James 2:14–26). Indeed, wherever genuine faith is present, it works (Galatians 5:6).

“Labor” (GK 3160) that is “prompted by love” approximates the meaning of “work” but with a connotation of extraordinary effort expended. Love as it is meant here does not stop with ordinary effort, but goes the second mile and even beyond for the sake of another. “Labor” is more distinctly spiritual service— beneficial efforts to help the sick and hungry and intense devotion to spreading the Gospel despite persecution (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:8; 15:10, 58; 2 Corinthians 10:15; Galatians 4:11). However it showed itself, one thing is certain: a great spirit of selfsacrifice was present, because this is inseparable from Christian “love” (GK 27).

The supreme example of such loving self-sacrifice comes from no less than God the Father and his Son Jesus (15:12). This is no mere emotional response prompted by the desirability of the person loved, though feeling certainly is not absent from it. It is ultimately traceable to the will of the one who loves, for he or she determines to love and does so regardless of the condition of the one loved. Such is God’s love for us, and so must be the Christian’s love for others, if “labor” is to result. Remembering this attainment of their readers, Paul and his helpers had additional cause for thanking God.

“Endurance” (GK 5705) is the third visible fruit that evoked thanksgiving.

This is an aggressive and courageous Christian quality, excluding self-pity even when one encounters severe trials in living for Jesus Christ. Endurance accepts the seemingly dreary “blind alleys” of Christian experience with a spirit of persistent zeal. It rules out discouragement and goes forward no matter how hopeless the situation. Such endurance is possible only when one is “inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” “Hope” (GK 1828), especially in the certainty of the return of Jesus Christ, is the only adequate incentive for this heroic conduct. Confidence about the future braces the child of God to face all opposition while persevering and continuing in the spread of the Gospel. Jesus’ return and the encouragement it brings to believers are major themes in both 1 and 2 Thessalonian (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 3:13; 4:13–5:11; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 2 Thessalonians 1:4, 7, 10; 1 Thessalonians 2:16).

These three Christian virtues—faith, love, and hope—occupy a large place in early analyses of Christian responsibility (cf. 5:8; 1 Corinthians 13:13; Galatians 5:5–6; Colossians 1:4–5; et al.). The expectation was that in every life faith would work (Galatians 5:6; James 2:18), love would labor (Revelation 2:2, 4), and hope would endure (Romans 5:2–4; Romans 8:24–25).