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“may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all” (1 Thess. 3:12, NKJV)
Sometimes it seems that the apostle Paul cannot contain himself. He bursts forth in unbridled expression. We see that in his letter to the Romans. After spending three chapters considering the glories of God’s sovereign grace and electing purpose, he erupts in spontaneous wonder and praise.
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! ‘For who has known the mind of the LORD? Or who has become His counselor?’ ‘Or who has first given to Him And it shall be repaid to him?’ For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.” (Rom. 11:33–36)
Paul’s ejaculations of awe remind us that there is nothing pedantic about the doctrines he is espousing. He is acutely aware of the God to whom he is pointing and for whom he is writing. He writes not as a dispassionate observer but one who is intimately engaged.
We find something similar at the midpoint of his letter to the Thessalonians. Paul has expressed affection for them and explained his movements. He has detailed his gospel ministry among them. And now without preface, he erupts in prayer.
“Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you. And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.” (1 Thess. 3:11–13)
Paul casts the desire of his heart to see the face of his beloved Thessalonian church upon the God who is able and the Lord Jesus whose kingdom he serves. He is writing to the saints but his plea is to God.
But Paul knows full well that, though he himself is absent from them, the Spirit of God is with them. His prayer on their behalf is twofold.
One, he wants the Lord to cause in them an overflow of love. He is not satisfied with a steady stream. No, he wants the banks of their heart to overflow. He does not want a mere supply of love. He wants an abundance of the fruit of love, so that the entire community might feast and be amply supplied with this expression of the grace of God.
Two, Paul prays for this lavish love with an eye to their foundation and edification. He wants them rooted and built up in Christ as they await His return. The apostle prays something similar in his second letter to the Thessalonians. “Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work” (2 Thess. 2:16–17).
It is telling that Paul identifies love as the means to establish their hearts in holiness. That suggests that for us to grow in holiness we should cultivate love in our hearts. The more we love God, the more dedicated and committed we will be to Him and His kingdom. The more we love our brethren and our neighbor, the more we will manifest the love of Christ.
If love is a fruit of the Spirit, how can we cultivate it in our lives?
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
