Tawa Baptist

Affirmation

Scripture: 1st Thessalonians 2:13-20

Video Link: https://youtu.be/FeNmfDe5CBE

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Affirmation of faith
  • Affirmation of belonging
  • Affirmation of relationship
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Affirmation, it is so important to us as human beings. To affirm something is to declare it to be true. When we affirm we uphold, confirm or ratify what is true.

At the core of affirmation is making something or someone firm, strong or secure.

When you complete a course of training, you receive a certificate to affirm that you are qualified in your chosen field.

When you buy a house or a car, you sign papers to affirm that you are the legal owner of the property.

When you pray the Lord’s prayer, saying ‘Our Father, who is in heaven…’, you affirm that you are loved by God and made in his image.

When you get married, you exchange vows to affirm your love and commitment to one another.

When you worship God, whether that is by singing or giving your time and money or obeying him in some way, you affirm his worth.

When you give someone a word of appreciation, you affirm the good you see in that person. 

When you attend a funeral, you affirm that the life and passing of the deceased matters.

When you listen to someone with empathy, you affirm the value of their thoughts and feelings.  

We could go on but you get the point: affirmation is about upholding the truth. It makes people and relationships stronger, more secure.

Today we continue our series in Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians, focusing on chapter 2, verses 13-20. The Thessalonian believers were going through a difficult time because of their faith in Jesus and so Paul affirms them and his relationship with them. From verse 13 of chapter 2 we read…    

13 And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe. 14 For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews 15 who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to everyone 16 in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last. 17 But, brothers and sisters, when we were orphaned by being separated from you for a short time (in person, not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you. 18 For we wanted to come to you—certainly I, Paul, did, again and again—but Satan blocked our way. 19 For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? 20 Indeed, you are our glory and joy.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

As you have probably picked up by now, the new believers in Thessalonica were getting a hard time for becoming Christians. They were suffering in a variety of ways and to make matters worse, Paul, Silas and Timothy (who had introduced the gospel of Jesus to them), had been forced to leave prematurely.

The Thessalonians were in a vulnerable position and needed strengthening.

So Paul, who loves them very much, declares what he knows to be true…

Paul affirms the Thessalonians’ decision of faith;

Paul affirms their belonging to God’s people;

And Paul affirms his relationship with the Thessalonians personally.

Affirmation of faith:

First let’s consider Paul’s affirmation of the Thessalonians’ faith.

You may have heard the expression, ‘spill the tea’. The ‘tea’ in this metaphor is some piece of news or inside information about a particular subject. And ‘spilling the tea’ means sharing the news. Preaching the gospel is ‘spilling the tea’ about Jesus. 

When you make tea, to serve to others, you begin by putting some tea leaves in the pot. Then you pour some hot water into the pot with the tea and let it brew for a few minutes.

Once the brew is just right you can pour the tea into individual cups. Some people like milk or sugar with their tea, others are happy to have it black. Some like it in a dainty floral cup and others prefer a mug.

Whichever way you take your tea the main purpose is to drink it.  If someone pours you a cup and you don’t drink it, well that’s a bit odd, even a bit rude. When you drink the tea though, you show trust in the person who made it and affirm the other person’s hospitality to be true. You strengthen your friendship.

To make this analogy plain, God is the one who makes the tea while Paul, Silas & Timothy are like the tea pot. They are the vessel which carries God’s word.

The gospel message about Jesus is like the tea leaves and the hot water is the Holy Spirit. God’s word and God’s Spirit go together. The tea leaves of God’s word need to brew in the water of God’s Spirit for a little while before being served.

Or, to say it another way, the words we read in the Bible only become the living Word of God to us by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit of God that makes the Word of God real and alive for us. We can’t drink the tea of God’s word without the water of his Spirit.

The individual tea cups are the human heart or mind. Our hearts and minds are vessels or containers for holding the tea of God’s Word & Spirit.

When someone spills the tea, about Jesus, we have a choice. We can receive the hospitality God offers, drinking his tea down (in faith) to our inner most being. Or we can close our hearts and minds to God’s word. 

The Thessalonians chose to receive the tea of God’s word through the tea pot of Paul, Silas & Timothy.

As Paul affirms in verse 13, you received the word of God, which you heard from us, and accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God,

In other words, with the help of God’s Spirit, the Thessalonians trusted Paul’s message and accepted it (or affirmed it in their hearts) as God’s word.  

Paul notes that the word of God is indeed at work in you who believe. When you drink your cup of tea it goes to work in you. It hydrates your body and refreshes you, it gives you a lift. God’s word is like that. God’s word goes to work inside the heart of the individual believer and among the community of believers.

In verse 13 Paul is affirming the Thessalonians’ decision of faith. Maybe some of the Thessalonian believers were having second thoughts, due to all they had suffered. Maybe they were thinking, we got this wrong. But Paul affirms their decision as true. He is saying, you all got it right.

It’s one thing to speak positive words of affirmation to yourself. That has its own power. But it’s something else altogether when someone you respect speaks words of affirmation to you. That is even more powerful.

When I was a kid I played school boy rugby. For most of my career it would be fair to say I was pretty useless. And when you are useless the coach doesn’t waste his time with you. No potential there.

But by the time I reached the fourth form, which is year 10 at high school, I started to understand the game a bit better and put more effort in with training and skill development. It made a difference. The coach noticed.

After seven years of playing the coach actually spoke to me one on one, giving me some pointers on other things I could do to improve. It was just a small thing but it was so affirming. It said to me, ‘I believe in you. I think you’ve got potential kid’. Didn’t quite make it to the All Blacks, but that’s not the point.

The point is, affirmation from someone we respect has real power. It makes us stronger and gives us confidence.

At some stage in your journey of Christian faith you will have questions and doubts. You won’t always feel particularly strong. Don’t let it throw you. It is to be expected.

The trickiest doubt we might face in life is self-doubt. Put yourself in the path of other Christian believers who are a little further down the track than you. Hopefully, if they are listening to this sermon too, they will speak words of affirmation to you, declaring truth over your life (like my rugby coach did for me).

That’s one of the reasons it’s so important to stay connected to a church and not go it on your own. It creates opportunities for affirmation. Church is one of the ways God makes us stronger.         

Sometimes a little opposition and struggle is another thing God uses to firm up our faith.

Affirmation of belonging:

Navy divers do a training exercise called the mud run. This involves a team of divers running through mangrove swamps knee deep in mud. It’s hard yacker. The mud sucks and claws at you, making your every move a huge effort.

Not only does this natural resistance training build physical fitness and strength, it also builds bonds between the team members who help each other. The idea isn’t to be the first individual over the finish line. The idea is to get the whole team across the line together, no one left behind.   

From verse 14 Paul writes…

For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews 15 who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out.

Paul is saying here that the Thessalonians’ suffering is actually an affirmation that they have a place of honour among God’s people. They (even though they are mostly Gentile believers) belong alongside the first Jewish Christians, because they have suffered the same things for the same reason.

Far from being a cause for doubt, the Thessalonians’ suffering for their faith is in fact a sign of solidarity with Jesus, the prophets and the churches in Judea.

Paul is basically saying, you are in good company, for you walk in the footsteps of God’s faithful people. What an affirmation of belonging.

Paul uses the strongest terms he can to denounce the behaviour of those Jews who opposed the gospel of Christ, saying from verse 15:

They displease God and are hostile to everyone 16 in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last

Now, it needs to be acknowledged that Paul’s words in these verses, have been subject to some grievous misinterpretation over the centuries. John Stott points out how one of the early church fathers, Chrysostom preached eight virulent sermons against the Jews, comparing them to animals.

In the Middle Ages the church (or part of it at least) created four repressive regulations forcing Jews to live in ghettos and wear distinctive clothes.

Then there is the embarrassment of the crusades when Jewish villages were ransacked. Not to mention Martin Luther’s writing (in 1543, toward the end of his life) in which he called for Jewish synagogues to be burned and Rabbis silenced.

When we, in the 21st Century, read Paul’s words under the shadow of the Jewish holocaust of the 1940’s, we may wish to edit verses 15 & 16 out of our Bibles.

But that is to misunderstand Paul’s heart. Paul didn’t hate the Jews. He would be horrified to think his words were misused in this way. Paul himself was Jewish. He loved his own people and would have given anything for them to be saved, as Romans 9-11 makes clear.

Paul’s point here is that by opposing the spread of the gospel among the Gentiles, some of the Jews (not all of them, just the extremists) were working against God’s purpose. Paul didn’t say this to incite violence against his own people. He said it to affirm the truth of God’s purpose, which is to save people of all nations.

You see, when we affirm that something is true, we are by implication saying the opposite is false. By affirming the Thessalonians’ faith and belonging as true, Paul was (at the same time) saying those opposed to them were wrong.

Paul’s use of strong and emotive language points to the depth of his conviction on the matter. If any of us had received the 39 lashes, five times, as Paul did (for preaching the gospel) we might use even stronger language.

Paul’s words here are not a license for anti-Semitism. His mention of God’s wrath gives all people cause for restraint. We do not need to take matters into own hands. God’s purpose will prevail in the end. The Lord will see that justice is done. Leave judgement to him.     

Having affirmed the Thessalonians’ decision of faith and their belonging to God’s people, Paul then goes on to affirm his relationship with the Thessalonians, personally.       

Affirmation of relationship:

Which of these terms describes a close relationship do you think?

Colleague, client, boss, acquaintance, best mates, golfing buddy, employee, cousin, Facebook friend, brother, sister, father, mother.   

I suppose it depends on one’s personal experience to some degree, but calling someone your best mate usually indicates a closer relationship than client.

Likewise, brother, sister, father or mother would normally suggest a closer relationship than colleague or Facebook friend.  

Listen to the words Paul uses to describe his relationship with the Thessalonians…

17 But, brothers and sisters, when we were orphaned by being separated from you for a short time (in person, not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you.

Paul thinks of the Thessalonians as his family. He calls them brothers and sisters. What’s more he feels orphaned apart from them. In contemporary English an ‘orphan’ is someone who has lost both their parents. But in ancient Greek, the word ‘orphan’ also referred to parents who had lost their children. [1]

Paul is affirming his relationship with the Thessalonians using strong terms. Paul longs to see the Thessalonians face to face with the same intensity that a parent longs to see a lost child, or a small child longs to see a lost parent.

I remember being separated from my mum, in Chartwell Square, when I was about four years old. Chartwell Square is a shopping mall in Hamilton. At first it was an adventure but when I got back to our Mark 1, Ford Escort and discovered she wasn’t there, I was beside myself. I needed to see her face to face, in person. I felt like an orphan, anxious and alone in the world.       

Paul says that although he and the Thessalonians are separated in person, they were not separated in thought. Not a day has gone by where Paul didn’t think of the Thessalonians and wonder how they were. When you love someone, when you care about them, your thoughts are always peopled by them. 

Despite his intense longing to see the Thessalonians, face to face, Paul’s every attempt to return to them was blocked by Satan. It is unclear exactly what Paul means here.

The English word Satan comes from a Hebrew word meaning adversary, as in an adversary of God. Sometimes in the Bible the word Satan refers to the prince of demons (like a fallen angel). Other times it simply means someone (perhaps a mortal human being) who is opposed to God’s purpose.  

Whatever Paul may have meant by the term, in this context, he continues to use strong emotive language to make the point that it wasn’t in his power to return to see his Thessalonian family.

In verses 19 & 20 Paul writes…

19 For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? 20 Indeed, you are our glory and joy.

The Winter Olympics has just finished. Our most successful ever. Two golds and a silver. This was the first Winter Games in which New Zealand ever won gold. The dedication, commitment, hard work and skill the athletes put into winning those medals was huge. The joy of realising their goals matched their effort.  

The crown Paul refers to in verse 19 is not a royal crown. Rather it is the victor’s crown. In ancient Greece the winners of various events at the Olympic Games were crowned with a laurel wreath. It was their equivalent of a gold medal.

When Paul talks about the Thessalonians being our hope, our joy and our crown, it’s like he is saying, ‘You are our gold medal. We have worked so hard, suffered so much and been committed for so long to win you for Christ. We don’t want to lose you now.’

Paul is essentially affirming the high value he places on the Thessalonians and the relationship he shares with them. 

Conclusion:

This morning we have heard three of Paul’s affirmations for the Thessalonians. Three messages of strength. Let me finish with two questions for you. Firstly…

What truth do you need to affirm?

Perhaps, if you are struggling at the moment with ill health or grief or some other thorn in the flesh, you need to affirm the truth that God’s grace is sufficient for you.

Perhaps, if you are fearful about the things happening in our city and world today, you need to affirm the truth that God is in control, he’s got this.

Perhaps, if you are too hard on yourself, suffering from a brutal and relentless inner critic, you need to affirm the truth that you are loved and accepted by God.

Perhaps, if you are feeling a bit isolated or misunderstood, you need to affirm the truth that you are not alone, you belong to God and with his people.

My second question for you is this…

Who needs your affirmation?

Perhaps someone you haven’t seen in years.

Perhaps someone you see every day.

Perhaps someone at work or school.

Perhaps someone in your family.

See the good in that person. Declare the truth of it. Make them stronger.

Let us pray…

Spirit of Jesus, fill us with your grace and truth that we would be firm and steadfast in our faith, giving strength to one another. Amen.  

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • What is affirmation and why is it important? Think of a time when someone affirmed you. What did they do or say? How did this make you feel?
  • What is the difference between reading the Bible and receiving God’s word? 
  • What does Paul mean when he says, ‘the word of God is at work in you’? How has the word of God worked in you and among you? What difference did it make?
  • How are we to understand 1st Thessalonians 2:14-16? How does a wider reading of the New Testament (e.g. Romans 9-11, Matthew 5:43-48) help inform / guide our interpretation of 1st Thessalonians 2:14-16?  
  • How does Paul affirm his relationship with the Thessalonians? How do you think this made the Thessalonians feel?
  • What truth do you need to affirm?
  • Who needs your affirmation?  

Some affirmations of Jesus (from Matthew 5)…

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

[1] Refer Gordon Fee, NICNT Thessalonians, page 105. 

Tawa Baptist

Genuine

Scripture: 1st Thessalonians 2:1-12

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Paul’s message is true
  • Paul’s motives are pure
  • Paul’s manner is caring
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

How do you know something is true? How do you know it is genuine, the real deal, and not fake?

Well, some statements are provable by doing the math. If the numbers add up, then you know it is true. If they don’t, then you know it is false.

For example, if someone says, ‘the sum of two consecutive whole numbers equals an odd number’, then we can test the truth of that statement by simple arithmetic.

Five plus six equals eleven. 20 plus 21 equals 41. Three plus four equals seven. Pick any two consecutive whole numbers, add them together and you will always get an odd number.

We don’t need to calculate every combination of consecutive numbers. After a while, we will see a pattern emerging and (with some confidence) can say the statement is true.

Mathematics is pretty cool like that. It makes you feel safe because it follows rules and gives you relative certainty. Unfortunately, maths has its limitations. Not all things can be proved by arithmetic or algebra.     

Today we continue our series in Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians, focusing on chapter 2, verses 1-12. In this passage Paul offers proofs that he is genuine and his message is true.

You may remember how Paul and Silas faced opposition in Thessalonica and were forced to flee in the middle of the night. Paul, Silas & Timothy were the real deal, they were genuine. But their opponents spread malicious rumours about them to discredit them and discourage the new believers.

Paul knew he had to defend himself, not so much for the sake of his own reputation, but more for the sake of the Thessalonians’ faith. This is what Paul says in defence of himself and the Thessalonian believers…     

2 You know, brothers and sisters, that our visit to you was not empty. 2 We had previously suffered and been treated outrageously in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in the face of strong opposition. 3 For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. 4 On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts. 5 You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. 6 We were not looking for praise from people, not from you or anyone else, even though as apostles of Christ we could have asserted our authority. 7 Instead, we were like infantsamong you.

Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, 8 so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well. 9 Surely you 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. 10 You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. 11 For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, 12 encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

In these verses, Paul defends himself against the slander of his opponents. In particular, Paul defends his message, his motives and his manner. Contrary to what his accusers were saying, Paul’s message is true, his motives are pure and his manner is caring.

Paul’s message is true:

I have here a can of L&P. How might we know whether this can actually does contain Lemon & Paeroa?

Well, if you can see the label, then that gives you a clue. It says L&P on the outside. I’ve drunk enough of these to take the label on good faith and trust that it does in fact contain L&P. I’ve never opened a can of L&P and tasted sand.

But imagine if our experience of soft drinks was a bit patchy, less reliable, so that sometimes the contents were not same as the label said. How would I know if it did contain L&P and wasn’t just full of sand or water or something worse?

Well, the only way to know for certain is to open the can, pour the contents into a glass and have a taste. [Open the can and take a sip]. Yes, this is L&P.    

Apparently, one of the accusations against Paul was that his message was erroneous, false, untrue or empty. The first thing Paul says to refute this is: You know brothers and sisters, that our visit to you was not empty.      

In the same way that I know this can contains L&P, because I’ve actually tasted it for myself, so too the Thessalonians know Paul’s message is true from personal experience.

As we read in chapter 1, verse 5, last week, the Thessalonians didn’t just receive the gospel by hearing Paul’s words. They experienced the power and the deep conviction of the Holy Spirit, confirming the content and truth of the gospel.

Paul doesn’t need to come up with some elaborate argument to prove his point. He simply reminds his readers of the truth of what they themselves experienced. He keeps saying things like, ‘you know’ and ‘you remember’ and ‘you were our witnesses’.      

Sometimes, in our busy-ness, we can become detached from the facts of our lives. Maybe something bad happens in our day and our minds get stuck thinking about that one bad thing. Or maybe nothing especially bad happens but we begin to worry that it will.

One strategy to help reconnect us with the reality of God’s goodness in our lives, is stopping to reflect on what went well during the day and thanking God for that. You could do this thankfulness exercise while you are eating dinner with others or perhaps by yourself just before you go to bed at night.

Remembering what we know to be true helps to silence the voice of fear and conjecture. It restores our perspective.    

Verse 2 adds strength to Paul’s claim that his message is true where he says…

We had previously suffered and been treated outrageously in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in the face of strong opposition. 3 For the appeal we make does not spring from error…

In Acts 16 we read how Paul and Silas were stripped naked, given a severe beating (with whips) and then thrown in jail, without any sort of trial or procedure of justice. A short while later they were released. Most people would go home licking their wounds after an experience like that and Paul might have as well. But he doesn’t.

Paul doesn’t enjoy suffering and would rather he didn’t have to. So why does Paul dare to carry on proclaiming God’s message of good news about Jesus?

Because he knows the message he shares is true. And Paul knows his message is true because it comes from God. And he knows it comes from God because God has helped them to continue proclaiming the message in the face of strong opposition. Without God’s help Paul & Silas could not have continued.

In verse 4 Paul writes: we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts.  

Paul has done the maths. Jesus suffered opposition for his message and so it follows that Paul, a servant of Jesus, will suffer for proclaiming the same message. God’s help for Paul and Silas, in their suffering, is evidence that Paul’s message is from God and therefore is inherently true.

Paul’s message is true and Paul’s motives are pure.

Paul’s motives are pure:

Some of you here may own some gold. Perhaps a gold wedding ring or a necklace or some other piece of jewellery. Maybe you have wondered whether it is real gold or a fake.

When I googled ‘how to test gold’ on the internet, the first piece of advice that came up said, ‘If it floats in water, it’s not real gold’.

Straight away I thought to myself, ‘the internet must think people are stupid’. Most metals will sink if you put them in a glass of water. Not everything that sinks is gold.

So I kept looking and found some other tests. I’m not sure how accurate they are.

Apparently, you can test the authenticity of gold by putting it in vinegar. If it changes colour then it’s not gold.

What’s more, gold doesn’t rust, which I think is probably true because I’ve had my wedding ring for over 30 years now and it has never shown any sign of corrosion or discolouration. (And I’ve washed a lot of dishes in that time.)

Then there is the ping test. If you drop a piece of gold on a hard surface it will make a high pitched pinging sound. That certainly works with my wedding ring.

If your gold jewellery has the letters GP stamped on it then that stands for ‘gold plated’, which means it’s not pure gold.

The other thing you can do to test the purity of gold is hold a magnet close to the gold. If the magnet attaches to the gold, then the gold contains other metals.

To be completely certain I guess you would have to take your gold to an accredited specialist to have it scientifically tested.               

From verse 3 of Thessalonians chapter 2, Paul writes…

3 For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you… 5 You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. 6 We were not looking for praise from people, not from you or anyone else, … 7 Instead, we were like infantsamong you.

Paul is talking about his motives here. He is saying they were as innocent and as pure in heart as babies.

In the first century (as in the 21st century) there were people who peddled philosophy or religion for some kind of personal gain. They may have done it to make money or to make people like them or for some other ulterior motive.

Jesus warned there would be false teachers. This is what the master said…

15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.    

In reflecting on Jesus’ words here about false prophets I can’t help but make a connection with the protest movement in our city at the moment. If we apply Jesus’ parable to this situation, then the fruit we’ve seen from this protest so far is fear, intimidation and a careless disregard for social responsibility.

Our politicians are receiving death threats. Kids walking to school are being spat on. People who choose to wear a mask are being verbally abused. Businesses are being forced to close. The courts, the police, the university, the transport system and residents have also been negatively impacted by this.

The fruit is not good. I’ll let you do the math.

We pray for a peaceful resolution soon.

Returning to Paul. We know Paul’s message and motives were genuine because the fruit of Paul’s life was good. In verse 10 of Thessalonians 2, Paul writes: You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed.

Holiness is about being whole, being one, having integrity, being the same on the inside as you are on the outside (like my L&P). Righteousness is about relating to other people in a right way and being blameless is about doing no harm. The three go together. They speak of good fruit and therefore point to pure motives.

Verse 9 tells how the Thessalonians witnessed the way Paul, Silas & Timothy worked with their own hands to provide for themselves, so they could preach the gospel, freely.  9 Surely you 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. 

On this occasion at least, Paul chose to be a volunteer. This speaks volumes for the value of volunteering one’s time in support of God’s kingdom.

Does this mean that anyone who accepts payment for doing missionary or church work is not a genuine representative of God? No, of course not. Paul himself says in 1st Timothy, “For the Scripture says, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,”and “The worker deserves his wages.”

Paul had every right to expect recompense for his work but he chose not to, under the circumstances. The situation in Thessalonica was not an established church. It was a pioneering church plant in a hostile context. Paul supported himself because he didn’t want to be a burden and he didn’t want to give his opponents any ammunition. He didn’t want anyone saying he was doing it for the money.

Paul says, we never used flattery and nor did we try to trick you. The gospel message is good news but it is also quite uncomfortable, even painful to hear at first. The gospel forces us to face the inconvenient truth about ourselves.    

Paul’s message was not cargo cult or prosperity doctrine. Paul wasn’t saying that accepting Jesus would be easy or make them rich. Paul was quite clear that accepting Jesus as Lord meant dying to oneself, picking up your cross and following him. Paul’s honesty, in talking about the hard parts of the gospel, testified to the purity of his motives and the genuineness of his character.   

Any organisation these days, that produces financial statements, needs to have those statements audited (or at least reviewed) to ensure the accounts give a true and correct picture of the financial position and everything is in order.

The independent auditor looks beneath the surface of the financial statements to check whether the figures can in fact be substantiated. This includes taking a look at the accounting processes, what’s underneath. Once they are satisfied everything is in order, they give it their seal of approval. The auditor is a professional and unbiased witness. 

In verse 4 Paul talks about God being the one who tests our hearts. In other words, God (like an auditor) looks beneath the surface to check our unseen motives. God is a witness to our inner life.

In verse 5 Paul goes on to say that God is his witness. Paul is confident that God won’t find anything untoward in his motives. We are reminded of David’s words at the end of Psalm 139 where David says:

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Knowing God cannot be separated from knowing yourself. The two go hand in hand. The less we know ourselves the greater the risk of hurting others. We all need God to be the auditor of our heart. We need him to gently show us what motivates us so we can better serve his purpose.

Paul’s message is true, his motives are pure and his manner is caring.

Paul’s manner is caring:

If motives are about what’s happening inside a person, what’s driving them, then a person’s manner is about the outward way they relate with or behave toward others.

In the movie The Sound of Music, Captain Von Trapp has a very formal, strict and cold manner with his children, at least at the beginning of the film. He relates with his kids like a sea captain might relate with his crew, not like a father at all. Captain Von Trapp’s manner is distorted by his grief.  

Fraulein Maria, the children’s nanny, has a very different manner with the children. She is warm and kind, encouraging and caring. She comforts them when they are scared and gently guides them in a good path. Maria’s manner brings the best out of the children and indeed warms the Captain’s heart and heals his grief.  

In verse 7 Paul describes his manner of relating with the Thessalonians. Paul is much like Fraulein Maria. Paul says: Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, 8 so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.

There is a real tenderness in Paul’s words here. The Thessalonian believers were brand new Christians, toddlers in the faith. Paul, Silas and Timothy cared for their spiritual needs in the same manner as a mother nursing children.

Paul continues the parenting metaphor in verses 11-12 where he says…

11 For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, 12 encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.

Notice the verbs Paul uses to characterise the manner in which he relates as a spiritual father to his Thessalonian children: encouraging, comforting and urging. (Like Fraulein Maria)

To encourage literally means to put courage into someone. Children need courage to face the world, they don’t need fear. I believe we put courage into people by being there for them, being reliable. In that way the child learns they are not alone. If you know you are not alone, you can be brave. We also put courage into children by trusting them and speaking good words into their life and soul.

Children need comfort from their fathers too. Comfort is about showing kindness and tenderness, especially when a child has gone through a difficult time or had a hard knock. Comfort isn’t about doing everything for our kids. It’s not about spoiling them. Comfort is one of the tools, in our parenting tool box, for managing fear.  

And urging is about pointing people in the right direction; helping them to find the right path. Notice that it’s urging and not controlling or forcing or driving. As human beings we feel a natural urge or motivation to make decisions which are in line with our values. So the key to urging is instilling good values, from the inside out.

Paul’s manner (his way of relating) with the Thessalonians is consistent with his message of God’s love.

Whether you have biological children of your own or not, you can still relate to others younger in the faith by caring for them, encouraging them, comforting them and urging them to live lives worthy of God’s calling.   

Conclusion:

When Paul’s name and reputation were slandered by his opponents, he responded by reminding the Thessalonian believers of their experience of him. They knew first hand that Paul’s message was true, his motives were pure and his manner was caring.

Paul was genuine. He was the real deal and he provides a model for us.  

Let us pray…

Loving Father, guide us in the truth. Purify our hearts. Help us to live our lives in a manner worthy of your calling. Through Jesus we pray. Amen. 

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • How do we know something is true? How do we discern truth from error?
  • Why did Paul feel it was necessary to defend himself against the slander of his opponents? How did Paul do this?  
  • What can we do to reconnect with the reality (the facts) of God’s goodness to us personally?
  • How do we know Paul’s motives were good / pure? What motivates you? If you are not sure, how might you find out?
  • What do we notice about Paul’s manner in relating with the Thessalonians?
  • How might we encourage, comfort and urge others in their life and Christian faith?  
  • At end of each day this week, think of three things that went well and give thanks to God for those things.
Tawa Baptist

Change

Scripture: 1st Thessalonians 1:4-10

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Chosen
  • Convinced
  • Committed
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone. My name is Jerome. Will told me you are studying Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians. He thought I might be able to shed some light on the subject. You see, I lived in Greece during the First Century. I knew Paul. He told us about God’s love and that changed everything.

Change, transformation, it’s all around us. Tadpoles becoming frogs. Caterpillars becoming butterflies. Seeds becoming trees. It’s wonderful really, how in the process of changing each of these things becomes more itself.  

It was so good to receive Paul’s letter. He remembered us. I won’t read you the whole letter now, just a short section of it, my favourite part. Paul writes…   

4 For we know, brothers and sistersloved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. 

6 You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.

7 And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. 

8 The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore, we do not need to say anything about it,

9 for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,

10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.

Hearing those words of Paul’s for the first time was so affirming, so reassuring. It still fills me with a feeling of warmth all these years later. Paul saw the change in us and he understood the cost of that change.

Chosen:

The change all started, of course, because God chose us. Isn’t that amazing, we were chosen by God. Think about it. What were the chances of Paul speaking to us? There were 200,000 people in our city of Thessalonica and God arranged for his messenger, Paul, to speak to us. It’s like we won the lottery.

Or, it’s like when you go to the beach to collect shells. There must be millions of shells along the seashore but every now and then one catches your eye, so you bend down to pick it up and take it home. We are chosen from among many.

But the truly remarkable thing is, we weren’t that special. We were like you, just ordinary everyday people. (No offence.) There was nothing exceptional about us that would catch the eye. Of all the people in this world, why would God choose us?

I remember the day I first met Paul. We were in the market place and there was this short bald man, repairing a tent. He had a calmness to him, an assuredness. And then he spoke to me. ‘Could you pass me that tool there please?’ So I did. And that’s how we started. Him asking for my help.

The marketplace is not a safe place. You have to be on your guard. But Paul was different. Somehow I felt I could trust Paul. His face was weathered, his hands calloused and his eyes had seen some pain. So I invited him home and that’s when he told us (our whole family) about the God of love.

God chose us because God loves us. And God loves us because God is love. God can’t help but love people. When God loves, he is simply being himself.

Now some might think we are a bit full of ourselves believing God chose us. (Tall poppy syndrome I think you call it.) ‘Why would God choose you and not me?’ they might say. But that is missing the point. Being chosen by God doesn’t make you better than anyone else.

God chose us for a purpose. Unlike the shells you take home from the beach, which end up collecting dust and being forgotten, we actually serve a useful purpose. God has a plan you see. His plan is to redeem all of creation. God chose us to help others know his love and power.

And Paul’s letter tells how we Thessalonians are serving God’s plan of salvation. I’ll read that part again. This is what Paul said about us:

7 And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.  8 The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere.   

Isn’t that amazing. Even though we hadn’t left the city, people everywhere throughout the Roman Empire, knew about our faith in God. Our little church had become famous. Even people like you, on the other side of the world, have come to know about us. We became a model for other churches to follow.

It’s not that we were bigger or better than others. It was probably because we were ordinary and unexceptional that God chose us. If God is willing to choose and use us, then the bar isn’t set very high. He can work with anyone and that gives everyone hope. The Kingdom of God is accessible to all who truly believe.  

The point is, God’s election (his choosing) isn’t about who’s in and who’s out. No, God wants everyone to be saved. Being chosen by God is about knowing we are loved by God, knowing we belong to God and knowing we serve a purpose in God’s plan of salvation.

Love, belonging and purpose. Pretty valuable gifts really.  

Convinced:

I wonder, when tadpoles become frogs and caterpillars become butterflies, does the transformation happen automatically?

Becoming a Christian is not automatic, not in my experience anyway. God does choose us (it starts with him) but we also have choices to make. Becoming a Christian requires us to make a few changes and we human beings usually need a bit of convincing before we embrace change. 

It was strange hearing Paul say that God loved us. We had never heard anything like that before. It was hard to accept at first. We worshipped lots of gods and none of them loved us.

The gods we worshipped needed to be appeased. We gave them our time, our devotion, our worship, our food and our money, as payment in return for them not hurting us. The pagan gods were like the mafia running a protection racket.

Paul told us there is only one true God and he is a kind and loving Father. He doesn’t need us to provide for him. He wants to provide for us. He doesn’t want us to cringe in fear of him, always looking over our shoulder, always worrying about the worst. He wants us to learn to trust him. This blew our minds.

It was hard to imagine this invisible God of love, until Paul told us about Jesus. Jesus shows us what the God of love is like. In fact, the Spirit of Jesus convinces us of God’s love.

Not only that but Jesus shows us how to live, how to be fully human. If we are the caterpillars, then Jesus is the fully formed butterfly. If we are the seeds, then Jesus is the fully grown tree, bearing fruit. Jesus is the picture of what God intended human beings to change into. We are to become like Jesus.

We had lots of questions for Paul. I wanted to know how we could possibly relate to God as a Father. I couldn’t imagine having that kind of relationship with God. Paul explained that, as well as representing God to humanity, Jesus also represented humanity to God.

In other words, Jesus did for us what we could not do for ourselves. Jesus lived a life of perfect, willing obedience to God the Father, on our behalf. Which means we are able to get close to God through Jesus.

Paul was an intellectual giant and he lost us sometimes with the things he said. But Silas (Paul’s companion) had a way of breaking it down so we could understand.  

Silas translated Paul’s thought like this: Being friends with Jesus gives us a back stage pass to God. Jesus speaks directly to God for us and says, ‘They are with me, Dad’. God the Father treats us like family because of Jesus.

When Paul told Jesus’ story, the way Christ was betrayed, arrested, falsely accused, beaten, mocked, scourged and crucified, the room went very quiet. Thessalonica is a free city but we had seen the cruelty of the Romans. The images of men dying on crosses were tattooed on our brains. You don’t easily forget the sight or the smell.

Something in my spirit was burning, as Paul spoke about Jesus’ grace in the face of such injustice. ‘Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.’

When Paul said that Jesus’ forgiveness on the cross extended to us also, I remember feeling a bit offended at first. I mean, when someone says they forgive you, they basically mean you’ve done something wrong. I didn’t think I was an especially bad person. I’d never killed anyone. Did I really need Jesus’ forgiveness?  

Then it occurred to me. If not killing anyone was my measure of being a good person, then I was a long way from the God of love. Love isn’t just refraining from murder. Love requires more from you than that.

The older you get, the harder it is to maintain the illusion of your own goodness. 

As I thought about Jesus on that cross, I felt something sharp, cutting me to the core, like a boil being lanced. Jesus died for me. That is the power of God’s love. In that moment my strength was undone by the weakness of God, my pride laid low by the humiliation of Christ.

We were convinced by Paul’s message. There was no guile, no deceit in him. But it wasn’t just the things Paul said. We were convinced also by the Spirit of love and truth at work in and among us.

It was exactly like Paul describes in his letter: our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.

Committed:

Knowing we were chosen by God and having been convinced of God’s love, there remained only one thing for us to do: commit wholeheartedly to God.

And so that’s what we did.  

Paul sums up our conversion well when he writes: you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son [Jesus] from heaven,   

Turn, serve and wait. That may sound simple enough but, for us Thessalonians, it required a significant commitment. Turning away from idols comes at a cost, in the short term at least. Longer term though, the benefits of worshipping God far outweigh any cost.

To understand the cost of the changes we made, you have to understand how idolatry works. Pagan religions are based on fear. Pay your dues and the gods will look after you. Don’t pay your dues and all hell will break loose. It’s an unreliable system built on lies and superstition.

Some of the people in our city made life difficult for us, when we gave up worshipping idols, because they were afraid of losing their power and position. You know how many tradesmen make their living by sculpting idols? To say nothing of the men who exploit the temple prostitutes. Idolatry is a money making racket.

Of course, people can make idols out of anything. Their career, their following on Instagram, their investment portfolio, sex, beauty, you name it.

I haven’t seen anyone bowing down to a statue, while I’ve been here, but I have seen people bowing to the idol of individualism and personal freedom. (I saw it on your TV news this past week.) Freedom is a good thing but we are not free to do whatever we want. We were set free to love God and our neighbour.

Anything that we make more important than God, that’s an idol and idols always end up breaking your heart. Worshipping the true and living God, putting him first, yea, it’s difficult at times but in the end God heals your heart. He makes it whole again.   

Yes, we suffered greatly for giving our exclusive loyalty to Jesus, but we wear that suffering like a badge of honour. I wouldn’t say we were happy about it exactly, but God gave us the strength, the energy, the attitude to deal with it.

Greater is the power is in us than the power that is in the world.

You can’t always expect the Christian journey to be plain sailing. It takes real commitment to stick with it through the doldrums and the storms. Silas taught us to enjoy God. Delight in him. Enjoying God, taking pleasure in his presence and remembering all his benefits, feeds your commitment. It keeps you going.  

The other thing that supports your commitment is keeping the end in sight. Whatever difficulty you are facing now will not last. This pandemic you’re in, it too will pass. Jesus is coming back to make all things new. That’s a sure thing.

In the twinkling of an eye we, who trust in Jesus, will be changed. These caterpillar bodies will be transformed, resurrected. But it won’t be an awkward or ill-fitting change. The change God’s Spirit creates makes us more fully ourselves.

‘How do we know this?’ you ask. We know it because God raised Jesus from the dead. Paul had seen a vision of the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus. It sounded incredible but, on the lips of Paul, it rang true.

Paul was absolutely convinced of the fact and had the scars to prove it. The authorities had whipped him, in the city of Philippi just a few weeks earlier, for talking about Jesus like this.

Whatever else you may think of him, Paul was the real deal. Paul was a walking advertisement for the suffering of Christ. He was our model. 

As hard as it was, being shunned by our neighbours and threatened by the authorities, we could handle it because we knew we were on the right side of history. It is the risen Jesus who rescues us from the coming wrath.

Yea, that’s right. The day of God’s wrath is coming. Paul didn’t say this to scare us. He was simply being open and honest so we aren’t blindsided.

Some of you may be wondering, how do we reconcile the God of love with the God of wrath? Well, there is nothing to reconcile really. It’s the same God.

God’s love and wrath are perfectly compatible. In fact, you can’t have God’s love without his wrath. God’s wrath is actually an expression of his love.

In talking about God’s wrath we should not imagine a grumpy old man, losing his temper and flying off the handle in a rage. God’s wrath is measured by his justice and controlled in his mercy.

Simply put, God’s wrath is his steady and uncompromising opposition to evil. 

You see, because God is love, he cannot abide evil. God is pure goodness and light. The God of love is against injustice and cruelty. Yes, God is patient and longsuffering but he will not indefinitely tolerate that which is harmful to his creation. It is not loving to condone evil.

God does not negotiate with evil. He is simply going to destroy it.

The risen Jesus rescues us from being annihilated along with evil. Being in Christ puts us on the right side of history.

Conclusion:

Where I come from church goes all day, that’s how committed we are. But I understand your culture is different. You are not used to listening for long periods of time, so I will stop shortly.

Let me finish by saying this. Although Paul wrote his letter to our church in Thessalonica around 2000 years ago, it also contains God’s word for you today.

You, the people of Tawa Baptist together with all believers in Christ, you have been chosen by God to serve his purpose of salvation. You (together) are here in this time and place in history to bear witness to the love and power of God.

Be convinced of God’s love for you and for the wider world out there. Being convinced doesn’t mean having all the answers. There is quite a lot of mystery attached to our faith. There is quite a bit we don’t yet understand. That’s okay. You don’t need to have all the answers. But you do need to know you are loved by God. You are his. You belong to him.

Finally, commit yourselves wholeheartedly to the God of love, revealed to us by the Lord Jesus Christ. Make the true and living God the number one priority in your life. But don’t stop with one grand gesture of commitment. Nourish your commitment going forward. Feed it. Keep your commitment alive by enjoying God and looking forward to Jesus’ return. 

Let me pray for you…

Father God, we pray for these your people. May they know they are chosen for your purpose. Convince them of your love. Sow in them a deep awareness of your truth. Nourish their commitment to you as they delight in your goodness and look forward to Jesus’ return. We pray these things in and through Christ, our Saviour. Amen.   

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • Why did God choose the Thessalonians? (How did God use them in service to his purpose?)
  • Put yourself in the shoes of the Thessalonians, many of whom came from a pagan background. What do you think it would have been like for them hearing about the God of love for the first time? 
  • How were the Thessalonians convinced of the truth of the gospel? (E.g. that God loved them and Jesus had risen from the dead.)
  • What did Christian conversion look like for the Thessalonian believers? Was their experience of conversion similar to yours or different? How was it similar? How was it different? 
  • What is God’s wrath? How is this compatible with God’s love?
  • How can we nourish our commitment to God? (E.g. what practical things can we do to enjoy God and delight in him?)
Tawa Baptist

Connected

Scripture: 1st Thessalonians 1:1-3

Video Link: https://youtu.be/pZPJgH83KFI

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Connected in God
  • Connected in prayer
  • Connected in experience
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone and happy Waitangi Day.

Sometimes, when your internet connection drops out, you have to wait a few minutes watching the dots make a little circle until the wifi comes back online. We can become impatient because we have to wait a few seconds but the inconvenience of a buffering internet connection is nothing really. In years gone by, before the internet, people separated by the tyranny of distance had to wait months, even years, to receive word from loved ones.

Last week we began a new sermon series in Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians. By way of introduction, we looked at Acts 17, which is Luke’s account of how the Christian church got started in the city of Thessalonica, which is in Greece.

Today we get into the letters themselves, looking at the opening verses of First Thessalonians, in which Paul reconnects with the Thessalonian believers, by letter, after having not seen them for several months, perhaps a year. From verse 1 of First Thessalonians we read…

[From] Paul, Silas and Timothy,

To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you. 2 We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers. 3 We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

In these three short verses we note how Paul makes three quite profound and enduring connections with the Thessalonians. Paul shows how he, Silas and Timothy are connected to the Thessalonians in God, in prayer and in experience.  

Connected in God:

You may remember, from last week, that Paul & Silas had to leave the city of Thessalonica after certain people stirred up trouble and put pressure on Jason and the other believers.

Paul and his companions then went to Berea and from there to Athens. Paul was naturally concerned for the well-being of the Thessalonians and so he sent Timothy back to see how they were getting on.

By the time Timothy returned with his report, Paul was probably in the city of Corinth. As you can imagine, this journey would have taken months on foot. After hearing what Timothy had to say, Paul wrote his first letter to the Thessalonians to reconnect with them and to offer some guidance and encouragement. 

The experts aren’t sure exactly but they think First Thessalonians was probably the second letter Paul wrote to a church, depending on when you date his letter to the Galatians. Paul’s affection for the Thessalonians is clear. Despite being relatively new converts and despite having suffered for Jesus, the Thessalonians’ faith (their connection with God) was strong.

In verse 1, Paul addresses the Thessalonians in an interesting way. He refers to the Thessalonian church as being in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Being ‘in Christ’ is a favourite saying of Paul’s, but he wouldn’t normally start a letter this way or talk about being ‘in God the Father’ in the same breath.

The word translated as church is literally assembly, as in a gathering of people. So the assembly or the gathering of believers is in God. What does that mean? Is it like when the teachers at school say the assembly will be in the hall? Well, not exactly. Paul isn’t talking about the physical location of the Thessalonians. He’s talking in spiritual terms.  

Paul is reconnecting with the Thessalonians by affirming they are not alone. They are as close to God and to Jesus as you can get. They are in God. God is the source of their life, the ground of their being.

The Thessalonian assembly (or church) is in God, like a tree is planted in soil. If you take the tree out of the soil it will die. Keep it in the soil and it will thrive, drawing its life from the nutrients in the ground.

Or to use another analogy, the Thessalonian church is in God, like a school of fish is in water. Take the fish out of water and they soon die. Keep the fish in water and they live. God and Christ provide the right spiritual environment for human beings, much like water provides the right natural environment for fish. 

William Barclay uses the metaphor of air. He says that being in God (or in Christ) is like being in air. Not only is the air all around us (as close as our skin) but when we breathe, the air is inside us as well.

That’s how close and life giving God is to the Thessalonians, as close as air. That’s why their faith is thriving, despite the persecution they are experiencing for being Christians. Their physical or material life might be poor, but their spiritual life is rich.

By affirming the Thessalonians’ closeness to God and to Jesus, Paul is basically saying he is close to them as well. In verse 3 he talks about our God and our Jesus. Even though they are about 576 km’s apart (geographically speaking) they are close in the Lord, for Paul & Silas & Timothy are in God as well.

There are three crosses on the wall behind me. The crosses remind us of Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection. I can’t see the crosses at the moment because I’m facing the other way. But I know they are there because I’ve seen them before. Now, I might forget they are there because I’m focused on something else but that doesn’t change the fact that they are still there.

You know sometimes we lose sight of God’s nearness and grace. We get busy with something or other and God passes out of our awareness. If God is out of sight and out of mind for too long, it may feel to us like God is absent or distant.

That subjective feeling can have a very real effect on us. It can mislead us into thinking that we are not loved by God or that God is angry with us or that he doesn’t care. But our feelings and perception are not always reliable. Like the crosses on the wall behind me, God doesn’t cease to be close to us just because our back is turned and we are thinking about something else.

We human beings need to turn and face God, regularly. We need to do tangible things to remind ourselves of God’s nearness and grace.

Those things might include starting the day by reading a chapter from the Bible. Or stopping three times a day to be still and pray. Or spending time with other believers, or singing songs of worship or listening to sermon podcasts. Whatever it is that puts you in touch with God again.

Paul is eager to reconnect or, more accurately, to insist that he and the Thessalonians were never disconnected, as verse 2 implies.

Connected in prayer:

At home we have a wall hanging. One of Robyn’s friends from school gave it to her. It reads: Prayer, the world’s greatest wireless connection.

Before the internet there was prayer.

In verse 2 of chapter 1 Paul says: We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers.      

Prayer is eternal. Prayer is beyond the confines of time and space. In prayer, we draw close to others and to God. Prayer is about connection.

By keeping the Thessalonians in their prayers, Paul, Silas and Timothy were never apart from them. 

Prayer isn’t just the words we say to God. The larger part of prayer is listening to God. I have come to believe that prayer is also about the burdens we carry with and for others. When we pray for others we, in some way I think, connect with them and make their burden lighter.

I can’t give you any scientific or empirical evidence for this. But, anecdotally, people who have been going through some difficulty and have had others in the church praying for them, have said things like: ‘I feel lighter’ or ‘I feel like I’m being carried by people’s prayers’.

The flip side is that sometimes we can feel a bit weary after praying for others, like we’ve been doing some heavy lifting. At the same time, praying for others can also release us from the burden of our own problems and the tiredness which comes from always thinking about ourselves.

So while praying for others does take some effort, there is a mutual benefit on the whole.  

One of my cousins was really into scuba diving, when he was younger. He loved it. One day he was down fairly deep underwater and his mate got into trouble. My cousin kept his head and shared his breathing apparatus; you take a breath I’ll take a breath sort of thing. They returned to the surface slowly, to avoid getting the benz. Thankfully they made it up before my cousin’s tank ran out too.

Perhaps keeping others in our prayers is a bit like that. A friend finds themselves in deep water and in trouble. Maybe they are in so much distress or pain they can’t find the words or the faith to pray themselves. So you pray for them.

In praying for your friend like this, you are sharing your spiritual oxygen tank with them, at least until they reach the surface and can breathe (or pray) again themselves.    

That’s what intercessory prayer is; praying on behalf of others. We, who believe in Jesus, are priests. Interceding for others in prayer, with God, is what priests do. It is what Jesus (the great high priest) does.

Whether we are praying for ourselves or others, the risen and ascended Jesus knows our deepest needs and desires. He hears the inarticulate cry of our heart, asking God the Father for what he need. So even if we don’t know how to pray or can’t find the words, Jesus does know and has just the right words.    

Is there someone you know who needs you to share your oxygen tank of prayer with them?

Connected in experience:

So, even though they are apart physically, Paul and the Thessalonians are connected spiritually, in God and in prayer.

In verse 3, Paul goes on to point out another connection he and his companions share with the Thessalonians. They are connected in their experience. Paul writes…

We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

When we remember something, we are reconnecting with our experience of what we are remembering. Memory is a powerful form of connection. It brings the past into the present. It brings people, we haven’t seen in a while, close.

When I was at intermediate school one of my friend’s, Mark, had an older brother who sometimes used to pick us up in his Datsun 160B. Mark’s brother, Richard, used to play Dire Straits music in his cassette player; Tunnel of Love, Romeo and Juliet and so on. Very cool when you are 11.

Sometimes when I hear a Dire Straits song from the 80’s, I remember the Datsun 160B and my friendship with Mark, even though I haven’t seen Mark in over 30 years. It’s funny how a familiar tune or sight or smell can reconnect you with your past. Memory is a powerful transporter.

Dire Straits have a song called ‘Brothers in Arms’. In the second verse the singer remembers the connection forged with his mates on the battlefield…

Through these fields of destruction, baptisms of fire. I’ve witnessed your suffering as the battle raged high. And though they did hurt me so bad, in the fear and alarm, you did not desert me my brothers in arms.

The connections made through a shared experience of suffering run deep and live long in the memory.

As we heard last week (in Acts 17) the Thessalonian believers stood their ground under fire and did not desert their faith in Jesus, remaining loyal to Paul, Silas and Timothy. Their suffering for Jesus together is what connects them.

And when we suffer for Christ, we too are connected to other believers (around the world and throughout history) who have suffered for their faith. 

Three points of connection Paul makes when remembering the Thessalonians:

Their work produced by faith, their labour prompted by love, and their endurance inspired by hope

Faith, love and hope come to the surface in Paul’s letters a number of times, most famously in First Corinthians 13 where Paul writes, and these three remain: faith, hope and love, and the greatest of these is love.

Faith, hope and love are to Christian spirituality what oxygen, heat and fuel are to fire. They are indispensable, we can’t do without any one of them.

Faith, hope and love are about connection you see. They connect us to Jesus and to each other.     

Looking more closely, what does Paul mean by the Thessalonians’ work produced by faith. Idle faith, faith that sits around and does nothing is not true faith. Genuine faith finds expression in acts of Christian service and good deeds.

Those who did the online services in early January may remember John Tucker’s sermon about Jesus turning water into wine at a wedding. John made the connection between faith and work when he pointed out how the servants did what Jesus asked of them, filling the jars with water.

Filling each of those 120 litre jars of water was repetitive, time consuming, mundane, tiring work. And it may have seemed pointless too, when the problem wasn’t a lack of water but a lack of wine. Yet the servants did what Jesus asked of them, in faith. And Jesus did something very special with their work produced by faith.

Those of us who serve Jesus are connected through the work we do in faith that Jesus will use it for God’s saving purpose.           

Paul remembers also the Thessalonians’ labour prompted by love. The Greek word translated as labour here refers to hard labour, real back breaking toil. The kind of labour that puts blisters on your hands and sends you to bed early.

As Leon Morris says, the phrase labour prompted by love directs our minds to the unceasing hardship borne by the Thessalonians for love’s sake.

Those of you who are parents of small children understand about labour prompted by love. Caring for babies is exhausting. You are up all hours of the night feeding and changing nappies and working all day putting bread on the table or doing house work. It’s hard yacker. But you do it for the love of your family and through your labours a deep connection is created between parent and child.     

We are reminded of Jacob who laboured seven years for his father-in-law, Laban, so that he could marry Rachel. But those seven years seemed to him like just a few days because of the love he had for her. Romantic love gives you wings. 

Of course, the love Paul has in mind in Thessalonians is not romantic love, it is agape love. Not the love of seeking to possess something but a self-giving love. God’s love is always giving.

The Thessalonian believers did it tough for the love of Jesus. They were persecuted and harassed for becoming Christians but they handled it for love’s sake. Paul, Silas and Timothy also did it tough, working during the day with their hands to support themselves, then feeding the new born believers with God’s word in the evenings. It was hard graft.  

Thirdly, Paul remembers the Thessalonians’ endurance inspired by hope.

Hope is forward facing faith. Hope believes something good waits in our future. The Christian hope is that Jesus will return in glory one day to make all things new. Our hope is a future eternity without suffering or pain, where God wipes away every tear from our eyes, no more war or hunger or pandemics.

But getting there is a marathon, not a sprint. Hope of a better future gave the Thessalonian believers the strength to endure their present sufferings.

How is your hope at the moment? We are two years into a global pandemic and about to face a tidal wave of omicron cases (so we are told). We need the endurance inspired by hope. God has got us through this far. He will see us through to the other side.

Conclusion:      

Looking at the whole of verse 3 again we note that your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love and your endurance inspired by hope are all in our Lord Jesus Christ.   

These things which connect us and support our life are not done in our own strength.  Nor are they hidden in some treasure vault beyond our reach. No, they are in Christ, whose Spirit is as close to us as the air we breathe.

So this spiritual connection does not depend on us. Nor does it depend on our changing moods or feelings. Our connection to God the Father and to one another depends on Jesus. Which means it is a reliable connection, not subject to buffering.

Our job is to remain in Christ. As Jesus says in John 15…

5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 

Let us pray…

Father God, we thank you for the connection we share with you and each other, through Jesus. Help us to remain in Christ and to draw strength from him, that we may bear the fruit of faith, hope and love. In Jesus we pray. Amen. 

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • Why do you think Paul is eager to reconnect with the Thessalonians? How do you think the Thessalonians may have felt receiving Paul’s letter and having their connection/relationship with Paul, Silas & Timothy affirmed/renewed? 
  • What does it mean to be ‘in God’ or ‘in Christ’?
  • How do you turn to face God? What tangible things do you do to reconnect with God’s nearness and grace?
  • Have you ever felt light (or carried) in some way by the prayers of others? How do you feel after you have spent time praying for others? Is there someone you know, at the moment, who isn’t able to pray for themselves and needs you to share your oxygen tank of prayer with them? 
  • Discuss/reflect on Paul’s three phrases in verse 3. That is: your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love and your endurance inspired by hope. What do each of these phrases mean? Can you think of ways in which these three things have been (or are being) worked out in your life? 
  • Is there someone you need to reconnect with? Or, to put it another way, is there someone who needs you to reconnect with them? How might you go about reconnecting?