A Life in Exile

As I write this final post before drawing everything together next week, I cannot help but be grateful for the written Word of God. May we never take it for granted that we can hold it in our hands! What was once written on scrolls of papyrus or pieces of leather is now found in one volume easily available in bound copies or on devices in digital formats. Today, I’m thinking specifically about letters written to churches and believers scattered across continents and kingdoms. As I’ve recently been cleaning out my garage, I’ve loved reading old letters I’ve found. They are treasures. Well, the letters of Scripture are treasures for us as well, and today we’re going to look at letters written by three different men—Paul, Peter, and Jude—each encouraging readers to remember their teaching and exhortations.

Paul.

Though the first passage is not specifically a letter written by Paul, Luke, in his letter to Theophilus, records a speech made by Paul to the elders of the church of Ephesus. Their church would face hard times in living out their faith surrounded by a pagan community. He knew they must be watchful and aware that people would try to infiltrate their gatherings.

I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Men will rise up even from your own number and distort the truth to lure the disciples into following them. Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for three years I never stopped warning each one of you with tears. (Acts 20:29-31 CSB)

Remembering Paul’s love and prayers for them, they would be on guard and alert against anything that did not align with his teachings of Christ.

Are you encouraged in your faith, knowing that others are praying for you?

The church in Corinth faced many of the same troubles as that in Ephesus. The divisions and struggles of that group caused Paul to write two letters. He longed for them to stand strong in all he had taught them.

Imitate me, as I also imitate Christ. Now I praise you because you remember me in everything and hold fast to the traditions just as I delivered them to you. (1 Corinthians 11:1-2)

They were encouraged to remember not only his words but the way he lived out his faith in their midst.

To the believers in Thessalonica, Paul again expresses, as he did with many churches, his awareness of outside influences that would throw the church into turmoil. They must remember and cling to what they had learned from him in order to stand strong against such attacks.

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him: We ask you, brothers and sisters, not to be easily upset or troubled, either by a prophecy or by a message or by a letter supposedly from us, alleging that the day of the Lord has come. Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits in God’s temple, proclaiming that he himself is God. Don’t you remember that when I was still with you I used to tell you about this? (2 Thessalonians 2:1-5)

How well do we remember what we learn at the feet of our pastors and teachers in the church? Are we quick to forget as we walk outside the doors of the building, or do we reflect on what we’ve heard, reread notes we’ve taken, and turn to deeper studies of the Scriptures we’ve heard? Paul encourages us to remember what we’ve seen in the lives of our leaders and in the words they’ve spoken.

Peter.

Peter’s letters are so encouraging to read, as they are more general in nature and such a wonderful reminder of the man Peter became after Pentecost. In the second of the two letters, he tells us we have everything needed to live lives of godliness. Our charge is to build on the faith we have in Christ by living by his goodness, out of knowledge of his Word, being self-controlled and enduring in brotherly affection and love. Those first eleven verses of that letter are so encouraging, and Peter tells his readers he wrote them as reminders to them.

Therefore I will always remind you about these things, even though you know them and are established in the truth you now have. I think it is right, as long as I am in this bodily tent, to wake you up with a reminder, since I know that I will soon lay aside my tent, as our Lord Jesus Christ has indeed made clear to me. And I will also make every effort so that you are able to recall these things at any time after my departure. (2 Peter 1:12-15)

Isn’t it wonderful that, knowing his earthly life was drawing to a close, the words of this letter would remain and remind all who read it to remain strong in the Lord.

Just as Paul, Peter knew that wherever Christ-followers gathered, they would be subjected to attack from those who worked against the Kingdom of God, so he again says that his letter is to help them remember all he’d taught them and to grow in their understanding of Scripture.

Dear friends, this is now the second letter I have written to you; in both letters, I want to stir up your sincere understanding by way of reminder, so that you recall the words previously spoken by the holy prophets and the command of our Lord and Savior given through your apostles. (2 Peter 3:1-2)

Oh, what a blessing these letters from Peter must have been to the early church. I pray they will be treasured as much today.

Jude.

This short letter from Jude, a brother of James and thus half-brother to Jesus, is written to all Christians and is full of encouragement. The fact that he calls himself a servant of Jesus Christ and remarks that he shares in the salvation of his readers reminds us of the impact Jesus had on his immediate family.

As with other letter-writers, Jude is concerned about the infiltration of nefarious actors in the churches. People up to no good, they must be called out.

Now I want to remind you, although you came to know all these things once and for all, that Jesus saved a people out of Egypt and later destroyed those who did not believe; and the angels who did not keep their own position but abandoned their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains in deep darkness for the judgment on the great day. Likewise, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns committed sexual immorality and perversions, and serve as an example by undergoing the punishment of eternal fire. In the same way these people—relying on their dreams—defile their flesh, reject authority, and slander glorious ones. (Jude 5-8)

Jude reminds the church that just as unbelievers have faced punishment for centuries, those who seek to harm the church and work of Christ will also face judgment for their actions; and believers should see their works for what they are—rejections of biblical authority and truth.

Again, he goes on to talk about the punishment to come for those who reject the gospel of Christ. The church does well to remember what has been written and taught to them on the matter.

But you, dear friends, remember what was predicted by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They told you, “In the end time there will be scoffers living according to their own ungodly desires.” These people create divisions and are worldly, not having the Spirit. (Jude 17-19)

Read and remember.

As we read these letters over and over again, may the reminders given by Paul, Peter, and Jude be engraved on our hearts and minds. Mindful that attacks are sure, we are also confident that we live under the protection of the Spirit of Christ in us. This helps us to read the final words of Jude with renewed hope and confidence in the One we serve.

Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen. (Jude 24-25)

Grace and Peace

If you missed the last Friday Focus post, click HERE, or start from the Beginning.