We also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.
1 Thessalonians 2:13

1 Thessalonians 2:1–16 – … to Serve the Living & True God
Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost – November 1, 2020 (am)
 

One writer said that reading 1Th.2:1-16, our text for today, is like double-clicking on c.1, v.5 (Smethurst 21). There Paul said: 5 … our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. Now in c.2 he’s telling the story of how this happened. And in the process, he has inserted some instruction both explicitly and implicitly regarding how they would best respond in the midst of their trial, in the midst of the opposition they’re facing to the advance of the gospel.

And even though our days of trial are a bit different than theirs, I believe we can benefit from Paul’s instruction here. It’s not really direct gospel opposition we’re feeling today, not here, even though that form of hardship is surely present in our world. Today is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church and I would urge you to keep them in prayer, our suffering brothers and sisters around the world in countries like North Korea, Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, and Pakistan.

But the opposition we feel is different; it’s not persecution per se. In fact, some of what we call gospel opposition might just be our own misunderstanding of the cost of true gospel living, of true gospel responsibility, in this world. One example: we can choose to support some particular political candidate because we believe s/he takes the best stand on an issue we believe in as absolute truth—think of a candidate who is pro-life, anti-abortion. We can tend to perceive that it’s part of our Christian calling not just to vote for that candidate but to support him/her, to campaign for him/her. We can begin to believe that the Kingdom of God, the reign of Christ, is either advanced or impeded as that candidate wins or loses. Then we can feel like we, or all Christians, are facing persecution, spiritual opposition, as people speak against or critique or reject that candidate.

But that’s not persecution. That’s just life in a fallen world, a pluralistic society where conflicting ideas exist. Someone disagreeing with us is not persecution. Someone disagreeing with us strongly is not persecution. Persecution comes when who we are, what we understand and believe to be true is perceived by those in power to be the problem, the threat that needs to be removed, eradicated. There are those who believe that about Christianity these days, but at this point that is not the collective position of those in power here in the US; it’s not the belief of our government like it is of the governments of so many other nations.

Here in our nation, we need to make sure that we don’t get so caught up in the ideological struggles, in the binary thinking of our day, of our culture, that we grow paranoid and believe the system is out to get us, to bury our Christian ideals or eradicate our way of life. We need to make sure we don’t get snagged into the myth, into the destructive lie that the wellbeing of the church, of Christians, of the Kingdom of God, rises and falls with who wins any given election, including this one on Tuesday. We can’t become so entangled in the debates of this age that we let them direct the lines of our thought or shape the course of our lives or alter the source of our hope.

We need to be Christians first, [citizens of another world] first and eagerly [awaiting our] Savior [Who is] from [there] (Phi.3:20), or else we will be of no genuine good to this world we’re occupying while we wait. We need to be Christians first or the message we share won’t have the power to make any meaningful change in this world, or help to build the true Kingdom of God within it. We need to be Christians first just in order to make sure that we remain undaunted in our work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ no matter what happens this Tuesday. And in that pursuit, I believe Paul’s instruction to these Thessalonians here in today’s text could be of great help to us. Let’s pursue that aim in three steps.

Paul Reviews His Gospel Ministry in Thessalonica

One of the key questions to ask toward understanding the letter of 1Th. is: Why did Paul spend so much time reviewing his work in Thessalonica when all that work had happened so recently? That really is a good question. And there must be a good answer to it. The one we suggested last week, which has long been my favorite, is that the fierce opponents of the gospel in Thessalonica were trying not just to hinder the spread of this teaching in their city, but to stamp out any belief in it whatsoever. The method they chose to carry out their plan was to attack Paul’s motives or the method of his ministry. So, he reviews that with these young believers. In fact, this could be a good thematic outline for today’s passage:

·    Paul defends his motives in his ministry (1-6).

·    Paul defends his methods in his ministry (7-12).

·    Paul gives thanks once again (cf. 1:2ff.) for the Thessalonians’ reception of this message (13-16).

And remember from last week, the undeniable change that had taken place in these Thessalonians was proof all by itself of the legitimacy of Paul’s work, of the fact that God had chosen them (1:4), and then saved them. And no expression of opposition could change that.

But maybe there’s another good answer as well. Maybe Paul was doing more than just reminding them that they had seen God at work by His Spirit through His Word there in Thessalonica. Maybe he was putting the challenge they were facing right up in front of their eyes in order to teach them how best to respond to it, to remind them what to do so that they wouldn’t fall prey to the ideological struggles and divisive attacks of their opponents, so that they’d keep their eyes fixed on their [risen Savior] who delivers them from the wrath to come (1:10).

We’ll look for that instruction in a moment but first we need to notice what else Paul said. He and Silas came into town still marked and bruised from their [shameful treatment in] Philippi (2), yet [they were] still [bold] in [the Lord] to declare… the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict (2). They didn’t shy away from the opposition they met in Thessalonica! Who does that? This kind of courage, boldness, does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive (3), Paul is saying—there are much easier, less painful, ways to deceive people!

No, our response to the sometimes violent opposition we face in our ministry is proof that we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, making it clear that we speak to please God, not to please man. God [is our Judge] (4)—[He] tests our hearts. We weren’t looking to feel significant among you, or to dupe you, or to take your money (5), or to be put on any kind of a pedestal among you (6).

No, we came in among you for your own good. [We loved you] (8). We nourished and nurtured you like a nursing mother (7). We [instructed] and [challenged] you like a [devoted] father to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory (11-12). Our conduct [among] you was holy and righteous and blameless (10). You know that, Paul said!

Then, returning to the opening statement of his letter, thus tying this whole opening section together, he wrote: 13 And we… thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers—no mistaking that.

So, what does he want them to do in this season of trial?

Paul Reminds this Church of their Best Response

Those are his next words (14). They’re the same words he used back in c.1 after affirming that the gospel came to [them] as the word of God in power and in the Holy Spirit (1:5). There he said: 1:6 … you became imitators of us and of the Lord…. Here he says: 2:14 … you… became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea…. 1:6 … [Y]ou received the word in much affliction… 2:14 … [f]or you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as [those Judean churches] did from the Jews.

This is Paul’s instruction to the Thessalonians. He’s affirming what they’ve been doing as a means of [exhorting], [charging] (12) them to keep doing it (cf. 4:1). What do you do in response to opposition? You fix your eyes on godly, experienced, trustworthy people and do what they do! You [imitate] them! Sometimes that will mean action, sometimes inaction, sometimes compliant, sometimes resistant, but always prayerful, [Christlike] (10), Spirit-led (cf. 1:6). Follow those who follow Christ and so walk in a manner worthy of God (12).

Reflections on Our Best Response in Trying Times

That was Paul’s [charge] to the Thessalonians. So, how does it help us today? I believe it helps us in at least three ways:

(1) It focuses our eyes in the right direction. It gets us looking toward the Lord first, not the leaders of this world—of government or media or even of the church. It helps us to see and to know that we’re not always going to [imitate] the same person, and not only because no one is always like Jesus but also because, even in challenging times like we’re facing today, the challenge is not always the same everywhere. And even when it’s similar, the best answer still isn’t always clear.

In response to COVID guidelines, some have wondered why we’re not doing here what Grace Community did or Capitol Hill Baptist did? Answer: the circumstances in IL are different than those in CA and DC. We don’t just follow anyone, not even anyone we trust. Our eyes are on Jesus, on the Word of God, from our place and time, and we follow any trusted brothers and sisters we can see up the road between us and Him.

The article from John Piper saying neither presidential candidate is worthy of a vote and the respectful responses it brought from thoughtful brothers in Christ help us all think better about how to be faithful voters. But it also helps us to see there’s not just one way to do that. I’m sure the [Judean] churches (14) were a model to the Thessalonians in different ways and times than Paul (1:6) was.

(2) It focuses our hearts in the right direction. It presses us to call out to God for wisdom and direction and then to trust Him to provide the guidance we need. It helps us discern whether the one we’d best [imitate] is rising up in our own day or from our study of history or directly from the pages of Scripture, where we meet a host of faithful models to follow.

(3) It focuses our hope in the right direction. Times like these are a constant reminder that we may not always be able to see a persuasive example to [imitate] in between us and Jesus. Those times should be rare, but they happen. Yesterday was Reformation Day, the 503rd anniversary of Martin Luther’s nailing his Ninety-five Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg. Who was his example in that very important action? There had been reform movements in the Church before, but none with the unique circumstances Luther faced. He had to entrust himself to God and blaze a whole new trail. And thank God he did! And yet, now that his trail has been blazed, when do we follow it? Is his example the one we should [imitate] each time we disagree with the Church? Surely not! We need to entrust ourselves Jesus the same way Luther did, in order to discern the best example to [imitate], then [imitate] Jesus alone if there’s no one is in our field of vision as we look to Him. But make no mistake, in times of trial, of opposition, of persecution, we follow Jesus with our hope fixed fully on Him. He has made, and shown us, the way.

Conclusion

It’s Jesus alone Who can enable such discernment and Jesus alone has modeled for us what needs to be done. The sacrifice of Christ, His death and resurrection and promise of life can free us from the panic and hysteria that so often plague us during seasons of opposition such that, even if we endure persecution during such times, it deepens our relationship with Him. It spreads far and wide as a testimony to His great salvation just as it did for in the lives of these Thessalonians (1:8). It honors God.

Peter made this point. And the persecution of believers was once again the context as he made it. After affirming that unjust suffering would surely be part of the believer’s experience, Peter wrote: 1Pe.2:20 … if when you do good you suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. We’re set free by Him to [imitate] Him!

So, there is Paul’s instruction: look to Jesus in the trials of this life and imitate those who follow Him.

Next Sunday: 1 Thessalonians 2:17–3:13, Standing Fast in the Lord, Dan Brendsel