2. The association of His name with the Father's.
fllerander Maclaren
SERMON TWENTY-SEVEN
EVERLASTING CONSOLATION AND
GOOD HOPE
Now our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts, and establish you in every good word and work.
—II THESSALONIANS 2:16-17
THIS is the second of the four brief prayers in this letter. We do not know the special circumstances under which these were written, but there are many allusions, both in the first and second epistles, which seem to indicate that they specially needed the gift of consolation.
I. THE DIVINE HEARERS OF THE PRAYER.
A. The Recognition of the Deity of Jesus Christ Was a Familiar
Truth to the Thessalonian Christians.
1. The accumulation of His august titles. The first striking thing about this prayer is its emphatic recognition of the deity of Jesus Christ as a truth familiar to these Thessalonian converts. Note the solemn accumulation of His august titles, "Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself."
2. The association of His name with the Father's.