10/31/10 9:30 AM, Grant CRC , I Thess. 2:1-12
God speaks to us: “Live a life Worthy of God’s Call”
INTRODUCTION: Paul; begins by claiming his trip to Thessalonica as a success. We read the account of his visit in (Acts 17) and we see that he spent only three weeks with them. This church has been here for 0ver 100 yrs but If you had only three weeks to present the gospel to your neighbor what would you do? How would you do it? What would you say? This question comes to mind. How effective, how successful is our ministry? How successful by God’s standards is our sojourn here at Grant CRC and on the street where you live? On the street where I live? Not just for pastors but for all of you together because we are in this together. Amen. What is important in this passage is what Paul said to them, and secondly, equally important is how they lived among them. Paul and Silas wanted to start a church turning people from paganism to Jesus Christ. That is our purpose here: turning people from secularism and from superficial religion to a deep personal relationship in Jesus Christ. We should be a church of new beginnings; because Jesus isn’t interested in our failures or our short comings or in our sin except to turn us from that bondage of sin and brokenness to a new life in Jesus Christ. He accepts us no matter what our situation is as long as we are seeking to move closer to him. That means bridging a cultural gap, a psychological gap, it means becoming like Jesus by identifying with the broken, sharing our lives with them, loving them and accepting them as Jesus did. He became like us so that we could be like him. Amen. Paul and Silas were men approved by God and I believe that not only are pastors approved to speak about Jesus but all of us are people approved by God. That is why God brings us to this church and why the church exists in the world. Amen!
I. Pure motives.
A. We speak as men approved by God
There must have been others going around promoting religion or new ideas because Paul makes a big point of not trying to deceive them or trick them for unjust gain but they came as men approved by God. That goes on today, turn on your TV. Listen to some, not all televangelists but some. It is no wonder many people are turned off by the church.
B. Not trying to please men.
No. Paul says our motives are pure we are not trying to please men. We did not come to you with flattery or to tell you what you want to hear. Along with Paul we say: No, we are approved by God and we bring you the Word of God. Nothing but the word of God.
C. But God who tests our hearts
1. Paul and us as well say what is pleasing to God. We speak God’s Word, and more obviously we live God’s Word. God is the one who tests our motives, our words, and our actions because he tests our hearts.
2. Paul and Silas clarify their motives and now they turn to relate how they lived among them. It is instructive for us because we struggle with how to relate meaningfully to non Christians and with people who do not attend church.
II. Gentle among you
A. Not a burden
1. We where gentle among you; Lesson #1 gentleness, a fruit of the Spirit. Paul is speaking of the financial burden but I think it is more than that given the example he gives of a mother and a father.
We need to be gentle with people who fall into sin. 1/3 of the couples in America living together are not married. Many are single parent households. Drugs and alcohol, and deviant sexual behavior are rampant and we also find it in the Christian community.
2. Should we be righteously angry about all that? Yes! We should be but condemnation gets us no where. We as Christians need to be the examples for people to follow; we are the light, the salt, and the guide. And we cannot be that example unless we develop a relationship with the person or family God wants us to influence. Paul and Silas were facing what we are facing; Living as Christians in a broken world. How did they do it?
B. Like a mother’s love
1. We treated you “like a mother caring for her children; we loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel but our lives as well because you has become so dear to us”That is a direct quote v.8.
2. So now we have two principles of relating to our neighbors, Gentleness and love. In short sharing our lives with those around us.
C. Our toil and hardship
We worked day and night Paul tells them, “While we preached the gospel of God to you”. There we have a third principle; hard work and perseverance, let’s call it faithfulness. Be faithful! Keep praying for that person God put on your heart keep looking for ways to influence that person. That neighbor! That co worker!
III. Righteous among you
A. Like a Father
Paul says we shared our lives and we lived among you as holy, righteous, and blameless. We were like a father dealing with his children. This whole evangelistic event in Thessalonica is rooted in parental love. The principle of love, “love your neighbor as yourself” keeps coming up and now we add a fourth principle, live holy lives.
B. Encouraging
When we share our lives with others it must be based on parental love, because like a father we are to encourage those around us, not discourage by concentrating on faults but to encourage change, to encourage repentance, to encourage with the Word of God. We encourage people at New Community by hanging in there with them though the indiscretions, past the sin, and the shortcomings and encouraging people to move closer to Jesus by reading his Word as the answer to these problems. The word of God! Is the answer. Amen
C. Live a life worthy
Paul acts like a father; he says we encourage you to live lives worthy of God” the one who calls all of us. Paul and Silas exemplified living worthy of God’s call and they shared it with those who before they came did not know what that meant. God wants you to not only live a life worthy of God but to share it as well.
CONCLUSION: Paul thanks God because the Thessalonians accepted his words as the Words of God. By this passage we see the Word of God at work in the hearts of Paul and Silas and the Thessalonians and today we see his Word at work in our hearts and in our fellow church members. These are the principles we need to practice if we are to be that example of a life worthy of God’s call on us. Generally: Share the Gospel and your life because people you get to know are dear to you. That means: One: gentleness with those overwhelmed with life, and overwhelmed with sin. Two: faithfulness; hard work and perseverance. Three: Live holy lives; righteous and blameless. Four: encouragement; concentrate on salvation and the life that is worthy of God and the quality of life that only God can give us. Fifth: Love; love God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself. Practice parental love, that deep caring for loved ones with your neighbors. I put Love last but in fact it comes first. Principle, 1-4 do not function outside of that kind of love.
This is the bottom line. It is not so much cultural separation from non Christians, It is not our church buildings with its steeple that prevents people from coming, It is not our worship services or our programs or the lack there off that keeps people away. It is our hearts; we need to change our hearts so that we delight in presenting not only the Gospel but share our very lives as well, to all people God places in our path. It is a mater of changing our hearts.
Heavenhigh 