A little while ago, I produced a verse by verse series in Philippians. I really enjoyed that exercise and have been wondering if I should take on another book. Well it turns out that 1 Thessalonians is the victim of my machinations, and hopefully, the thoughts produced by this fantastic book will edify and encourage the reader.

As with Philippians I am going to limit each post to one verse, and hopefully produce a short, succinct read for my friends who follow.

1 Thessalonians 2:6 Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ.

Paul continues in his defense of the critics in Thessalonica, and this verse brings up a topic of discussion that may be instructive for us.

Authority of an Apostle

Paul brings up the possibility of a demand (or the right) of an apostle. First off, this “demand” (δύναμαι dýnamai) or assertion of authority upon the church needs to be defined within the limits of Paul’s discussion.

Is he claiming an apostle can demand glory (δόξα dóxa) from people? Is he directing the church, (and his detractors), that the apostles of Christ have the right to demand honor or dignity?

Or might he also be reaching back to the previous verse in demanding support for the ministry he has entered? My reader will have to consider the argument for financial support as a possible demand the apostle may refer to. Personally, I do not read this demand as one for financial assistance.

For some thoughts on the teaching of financial assistance for the professional Christian, I would refer you to earlier posts I published as I tried to understand this topic. Salaried Pastors? A discussion with a Pastor.

I will suggest that Paul is speaking of an honor that should be afforded the apostles, and that he has the right to demand this from his people.

Incredible! Paul could demand, in that he had the right to receive honor from his people. He had sacrificed his life on the altar of Christian service to his Lord, and to the people he brought the gospel to. To honor the apostle as he has served the people should be considered a natural reaction of a sane and thankful people.

Let me ask my reader a question.

Try to remember the last time someone demanded respect from you? Was there any reluctance in your spirit? If you did not respect and honor the person before the demand, did you suddenly commence to respect, honor and dignify the leader after the demand?

Paul had the right to receive glory, respect and honor from his church. Paul states that he does not seek this glory. His detractors are actually using what is a rightful claim as an excuse to defame the apostle. Yet Paul did not seek it, though he had every right to.

Rights and Self Denial

Which brings me to the tension for every Christian in their relationship of rights and self denial.

As a believer, we are afforded certain rights, some of us experiencing this privilege more than others. Factors such as the nation we live in, the class of people we live among, the wealth we may accrue and other issues provide believers varying degrees of rights. Nevertheless, all believers have a choice to make when it comes to exercising whatever rights we possess in relation to our call to love sacrificially, to give up what is ours for the sake of others.

What is more difficult is that Paul often used his rights to further the gospel. Consider his right as a Roman citizen in the beating he took in Philippi. He took the beating and imprisonment, not mentioning his citizenship, yet when it came to his expulsion from the city, he used it to his (or possibly the churches) benefit. (see Conditional Security – Philippians 1:3-11 for a possible discussion Paul had with the officials of Philippi)

Truly we need the wisdom of God to know when to exercise our rights, how to best exercise those rights, and the strength to deny the forcing of rights in order to gain the respect we deserve and not simply demand!

May God have mercy on our lives and provide us the wisdom and strength we so desperately need. Thank you Jesus for such an example, and for providing the apostle as an example for us all.

---

Follow Considering the Bible on WordPress.com

Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion.