1 THESSALONIANS 1:1-2:16 Speak out the power of God’s words No church is perfect. As has often been said, if you find the perfect church, don’t join it. The moment you or I join the church it will become imperfect! Nevertheless, there is such a thing as a model church – a church that is a good example and an inspiration to others. People will travel from all over the world to learn from this kind of church. The church in Thessalonica was a model church (1:7). ‘Believers look up to you ... all over the place’ (vv.7–8, MSG). It was a church full of faith, love and, especially, hope: ‘They marvel at how expectantly you await the arrival of … Jesus, who rescued us from certain doom’ (v.10, MSG). The church was loved by God (v.4). It was a suffering church (v.6), boldly proclaiming the words of God. The Lord’s message rang out from them, not only in Macedonia and Achaia but everywhere (v.8). This should be our aim and our prayer – to be a church worthy of imitation, where the gospel rings out not only in our own local area, but everywhere. The aim is not empire building, but gospel spreading. Paul does not commend the Thessalonians for the size of their church (we do not know how big it was). Instead, he commends them that ‘you’re the message!’ (v.8, MSG). We see that the message came ‘not simply with words but also in power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction’ (v.5): Words There is a time to speak. It is not enough simply to live out the Christian life. Tell people about Jesus and what he has done. Power Nor are words in themselves enough. We need power. The power of God speaks through you, the Holy Spirit bringing deep conviction to the heart of the hearer. Lives Paul goes on, ‘You know how we lived among you for your sake’ (v.5). Even powerful words will not have a lasting effect unless our lives are consistent with the message. It is not life or lips, but life and lips. You, like the apostle Paul, have been ‘entrusted with the gospel’ (2:4). It is an immense privilege. Proclaim faithfully the words of God, ‘not after crowd approval – only God approval’ (v.4, MSG). Don’t misuse words. ‘We never used words to butter you up … And God knows we never used words as a smoke screen to take advantage of you’ (vv.4–5, MSG). The task of proclaiming the gospel is a great privilege as well as a great responsibility. God has entrusted the work to us. Ultimately you are accountable to him and to him alone. Do not be concerned primarily with whether the preaching of the gospel pleases other people – in all probability it will not – but be concerned that it pleases God. Paul did not simply throw words at the Thessalonians. He was ‘never patronizing, never condescending’ (v.7, MSG). He loved them like a parent – caring for them and sharing his whole life with them (vv.7–8), and setting them an example and encouraging them to live for God (v.12). ‘Like a father with his child, holding your hand, whispering encouragement, showing you step by step how to live well before God’ (v.12, MSG). Speaking the words of God is not always easy. Paul writes, ‘Surely you will remember, brothers and sisters, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you’ (v.9). ‘Toil’ Preaching the gospel involves hard work; ‘working our fingers to the bone’ (v.9, MSG). Some of the work may appear tedious. I think of our amazing ‘A’ team on Alpha, who work from 5pm until 11pm – cooking, cleaning, serving and scrubbing saucepans. ‘Hardship’ The ‘revival’ came at a cost. There was insult, strong opposition, suffering (v.2) and hostility (v.15). But in spite of this there was great joy, ‘You welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit’ (1:6). Suffering and joy go hand in hand in the New Testament. We must not expect one without the other. Many around the world are suffering great hardship for their preaching of the gospel. ‘Working day and night’ Not only is there an intensity about the work, there is also a huge amount to do. In Paul’s case, like most Christians today, he was not a full time evangelist. He was doing two jobs at once. He was preaching during the day and earning a living at night. The Thessalonians recognised that the words of the gospel spoken by Paul were not just human words, but the very words of God (2:13). They had a life-changing impact – so much so that the Thessalonians were willing to pass the message on, in spite of all the suffering and hostility they faced. Lord, thank you for the power of the gospel to change lives. Help us to be willing to share not only the gospel of God but our lives as well. May we continue to see the life-changing power of the words of God.
Posted on: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 04:24:57 +0000
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