I Thessalonians 2:11 “As ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father doth his children, 12 That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.”
A God-called Pastor yearns to fully employ all his God-given gifts (Ephesians 4:8) to exhort, to comfort, to charge the Children of God to “walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory”! For the blessings and joys of such a “walk” are beyond calculation (II Corinthians 9:8); but, the chastisements for disobedience are miserably severe (Ephesians 5:6). But, most importantly, it is just simply our duty to worship and serve the Lord our Merciful and Gracious God; for, “… hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13). It is true that life is often filled with miseries and troubles and heartbreaks and disappointments etc. and our Lord is the Greatest Possible Comforter; but, the context here is what do we do about the heavy burden of “the sin which doth so easily beset us” (Hebrews 12:1) with all its shame before God and the pain it causes. This dreadful sin is no trouble at all to the unregenerate person, but to those who have been “born again” of the Holy Spirit (John 3:1-8), sin brings forth shame and painful heaviness of heart beyond description! In this context, to “exhort” is to ‘call to one’s side’ to teach and strengthen and encourage as a best friend would, as a father would his children. To “comfort” is to console so as to ease worry and sooth anxiety and restore a calm and peaceful frame of mind. To “charge” is to firmly and clearly bear witness to the Truth of God, the Word of God; specifically, as it has to do with the blessed truth that “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” (I Timothy 1:15)! Of all the great things we can know, there is nothing better than the knowledge that it is “Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come” (I Thessalonians 1:10); that is, our Lord and Savior “hath saved his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21), thus from the God’s “wrath” against sin on the last day! We must also keep in mind, that as the Lord warned Ezekiel (Ezekiel 3:16-21), there is indeed another motivation behind a Pastor’s exhortation, comforting, and charge; “the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost” (I Thessalonians 2:16); this “wrath” was the Mighty Hand of God that would shortly come upon that whole part of the world for the chastisement of the wicked and disobedient. The same God reigns today, and His message is the same to us as it was in Paul’s day. It is the same message that Isaiah delivered from God in his day: “If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: 20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” (Isaiah 1:19-20)! Let’s be careful, “Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,” (II Peter 3:3)!