NOTES for Th1 1:2-3

Sometimes the definitions Paul uses may seem somewhat strange. Active faith is more or less understandable; Paul repeatedly said, and not only he, that faith without works is only empty words. But "the persistent labor of love" (not "labor with love," but precisely "the labor of love"), as well as "the steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ" (what in the Synodal translation sounds like "the patience of hope"), can easily raise questions and bewilderment. Indeed, in our world love is usually connected with feelings and emotions; when we say that we love something, most often we mean that we like it. Unfortunately, we often "love" our neighbors in the same way, as long as they please us. The authors of the biblical books usually understand love as a relation in which we desire good for our neighbor, whether he is likable to us or not. Still, relations are one thing, and persistent labor is somewhat another. Works of love are understandable, but how can the relation itself become work? In the situation of the untransformed world this probably does sound somewhat strange. Though even here relations still have to be maintained, otherwise they gradually collapse. But for the Kingdom the maintenance of relations proves especially important; here it is truly a separate work, and a very serious one. For the structure of the Kingdom is formed precisely by relations; their depth and strength not only determine the fullness that will be opened to the one who builds these relations, but also the measure of the fullness of the Kingdom's revelation to the world, the depth of the Kingdom's spiritual influence on the untransformed world. Then "steadfastness of hope" also becomes more understandable: in an ordinary situation hope essentially means trust in someone who has made certain promises and confidence that the one who made them will not deceive, whether God or man. But in the Kingdom trust alone is not enough; here confidence presupposes not simply inner knowledge but intention. The very intention that is also the basis of every relation. And intention is always effort, even if, when steadfastness is at issue, it is directed toward preserving what external forces are trying to destroy. Paul, as we see, describes all relations among Christians not as relations among inhabitants of the untransformed world, but as relations among residents of the Kingdom. For it was completely obvious to him that Christianity is life in the Kingdom brought into the world by the Savior.