But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.
2 Thessalonians 3:3 ESV
But the Lord is faithful… this phrase is a regular occurrence throughout the Bible. It is obviously a phrase that everyone needs to hear on a regular basis. My faith is oftentimes weak and fragile. My heart will lean toward doubt, especially when confronted with adversity, trials, and struggles. When life often appears to be going against me, it is then that I need to hear and be reminded of my faithful God.
But it’s not just God’s faithfulness that Paul is reminding us about. The result of God’s faithfulness is that He will establish and guard me. He is the one that must and will accomplish this in me. For all my striving and obedience and desire to serve the Lord, I am unable to do this. Only God working in and through me by his Spirit will establish and guard me.
And why do I need to be guarded? It is the evil one that is lurking and plotting and scheming to harm me. It is the evil one, the world, and the flesh that seek to destroy me. It is easy to forget that the enemy is always ready to attack me when a weakness is exposed. It is the enemy that continually pokes and prods to test me for areas of struggle.
But God… He will establish me and guard me. He will only allow the enemy to go so far. Establishing and guarding does not mean that life will be carefree and simple. No, the Lord uses these trials and adversity to expose my weakness and bring me to humility before him. To establish in my heart his Spirit living and reigning to bring glory to Christ. In my humble faithful obedience, Jesus is glorified. As I cast off my pride and self-centeredness, the Lord brings humility and obedience. He establishes and guards me. He calls me to action to demonstrate the good news of salvation through Christ alone both through my words and my deeds.
Journal Entry // October 01, 2021