We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing.
2 Thessalonians 1:3 NIV
Increasing Faith and Love
There were no announcements, no proclamations from church pulpits, no headlines marking the moment. But sometime over the past few years, the balance appears to have tipped: for the first time since Confederation, Christians no longer make up the majority. Two surveys in 2023 — one by the International Social Survey Programme and the other by the Non-Religion in a Complex Future Project — found Christian affiliation had slipped to 44 percent, down from 53 percent in the 2021 Statistics Canada census. Fresh data from spring 2025 places it even lower, at 42 percent.
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One of the signs of being a follower of Christ is loving God’s people. We gain such encouragement from our brothers and sisters in Christ who stand together with us in our walk with Jesus. I’m a part of a men’s Bible Study on Saturday morning at my church and I love this group of men, from 19 to 90 years of age, from all different backgrounds, who gather together to study God’s Word and encourage each other. The apostle Paul couldn’t be with the believers in Thessalonica, but he loved them dearly. Many had come to know Christ through his ministry there. So, he writes them in 2 Thessalonians 1:3: “We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing.” As these believers met together, their faith was growing, their love for one another was increasing. How necessary is Christian fellowship – as it was for them, so it is for us. May your fellowship with other Christians this weekend be rich and encouraging.
These have been words from the heart.
Bob Beasley