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1 Thessalonians 3:5
5 For this [touto] cause, [dia] when I [kago] could [stego] no longer [meketi] forbear, [stego] I sent [pempo] to [eis] know [ginosko] your [humon] faith, [pistis] lest by some means [mepos] [-pos] the tempter [peirazo] have tempted [peirazo] you, [humas] and [kai] our [hemon] labour [kopos] be [ginomai] in [eis] vain. [kenos] KJV-Interlinear
5 For this reason, when I could endure it no longer, I also sent to find out about your faith, for fear that the tempter might have tempted you, and our labor should be in vain. NASB
For this reason, means because of the constant threats of persecution, distractions, enticements, annoyances, and unfair things that occur in this world, Paul was concerned that the folks he had come to know, might be falling away from doctrine.
In this world you will have pressures from four general areas (self, other people, bureaucracies, and environment)
First, from your own volition. You are thinking constantly, whether you realize it or not, your mind is always working and it is influenced by your environment, your experiences, your knowledge, and so forth. You constantly make decisions while you do whatever it is that you do, while you observe or listen to others, while you endure whatever it is that you endure, good or bad, day in and day out.
So your thinking is influenced largely by your day to day life. Doctrine influences your thinking in the right direction, while lack of doctrine moves you in the wrong direction. And it is that wrong direction that causes you trouble.
Second, trouble will come into your life because of other people. Need I say more? People in this world have many opinions and attitudes. People are competitive in the work place and in the social circles. People gossip and back stab, lie and cheat, deceive and misrepresent, and on and on. If you have lived any length of time in this world, you have had people experiences that were not good ones.
Third, the bureaucracies of the world. That is the place where people can give you a hard time and hide behind government bureaucracy, behind company policy, behind something that they think exempts them from responsibility. The big fish eats the little ones and you are the little one. And less than that, you are nothing more than a statistic, a steer in a long cattle chute, expendable because there are many more where you came from.
And fourth, the general environment of life. This includes your disabilities, whether genetic of by accident, the workings of nature in storms or natural disasters, and so forth.
Your volition you can control if you have some semblance of self control. Other people likewise can exercise their self control, but most do not. Bureaucracies are hiding places for those who abuse their power or authority, or exercise their indifference over the masses, whether customers, patients, or citizens.
The last is an involuntary one, where no one has much control over nature or the circumstances or accidents of life.
So whether directly or indirectly, the world has many resources to make your life miserable. It is up to you as to how you will deal with it all.
And when persecution or trouble or suffering enter into your life, then the big question is, ‘How will you react?’
Remember, there are no accidents in life. God controls history and every aspect of your life.
God has a plan. It is called the Divine Decrees. That plan includes every thought, every event, every circumstance, everything you can think of and everything you cannot think of, in life. God has seen the snapshot of your life from the moment of your birth, to the last breath you will take in this world.
In doctrine, if you are wise enough to pursue it, you place your life entirely into His hands. That does not mean that He will fill out your life as you want it, but that He will do whatever is best for you, in order to help you grow up spiritually and advance you to the maximum level of faith and spiritual production possible.
This means that when you look forward in life, you are looking into the unknown. And when life falls on your head, you have to function in your spiritual life, think, and continue to think, and figure your way out of your situation. Doing nothing is not an option. But God has always before you, options. You just have to discover them.
And whether you get by easily in life, or whether God crushes you with extremes, you have to be a Job, and persevere regardless of your hardship, trust in Him, and wait (mentally), while you are proactive with whatever it is that you will do in life.
Paul could not be with the Thessalonians, but then they did not need him in order to stay with their studies.
You likewise, do not need to have your hand held by someone else. The spiritual life, requires your full and daily attention, but one of the objectives of the spiritual life is to make you independent from this world. And that means with regard to your thinking process.
The world may cause you harm or injury or be prejudiced toward you, but the world cannot control your thinking, unless you allow it.
Bible doctrine is your primary resource and power and defense in preventing the world from getting under your skin and defeating you.
