Open the Bible

Guest (Male): What you saw in Thessalonica was real people living in tough circumstances whose faith did not buckle under pressure. And I think that’s the kind of faith that is desperately needed even in church world today.

Host (Male): Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith. And Colin, for those listening today, I think they would say, "Yes, that is the kind of faith I want—the kind that doesn’t buckle under pressure."

Colin Smith: Yeah, that’s exactly right, and that’s what we find in Thessalonians, where you have these new believers who immediately face the most extraordinary persecution. They faced violence, they were harassed, legal action. And Paul had to escape from the city and then write to them a short time afterwards. You think, if new believers are going to experience pressure like this, how are they going to stand?

Well, here's the answer: it's God's grace and God's Spirit that are at work in your life. And when a work of God has begun in your life, you know what? You're going to stand no matter what the pressure that comes to you. And we’ve got the marvelous example of that in this letter in the Bible, and I think that's one of the reasons it's given to us.

Host (Male): Well, let’s look at it. We’re in 1 Thessalonians chapter one as we continue the message, "The Urgency of Multiplying Ministry." Here is Pastor Colin.

Colin Smith: Now, I want to suggest to you that deep conviction doesn't fit well with our culture today. See, the prevailing spirit of our generation is one of uncertainty. We have more questions than answers. I almost feel like I want to break out into song, but I promise I will not do that. More questions than answers.

And any person who speaks with any degree of certainty these days is quickly accused of being arrogant. And frankly, none of us wants to be accused of or thought to be proud, so it has become fashionable in church worlds to reshape the gospel in terms of our questions, our searching, and the invitation comes to others to come alongside us and join us in our search.

You have your questions, I have my questions. Let us take this journey together. I want you to notice how far that is from the spirit of the New Testament. "Our gospel came to you," verse five, "not simply with words, but with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction."

See, the weight of Paul's message came across in the conviction that it carried in his own life. For God's plan for the evangelism of the world is not essentially the distribution of books, but the sending of persons, of people who are convinced and therefore, by the work of the Holy Spirit that has brought them to conviction, communicate that conviction as they share the message so that it carries weight into the life of a person who does not yet believe.

James Denney, who writes very helpfully on this letter of Thessalonians, so I guess we'll quote him a number of times in this series, he warns Christians and especially pastors of what he calls the worst kind of atheism. And he says the worst kind of atheism is that which is forever handling holy things without feeling them.

So you see, you're so used to church world, I'm so used to ministry, that the temptation that Denney is speaking about is that we begin to speak of Jesus and gospel and death and resurrection—it trips off our tongue and no longer carries weight or brings awe. That is the worst kind of atheism.

Let us be very careful that we do not speak or act in a way that makes other people think of the gospel as a small thing. See, if someone goes away from one of our services or from your Sunday school class or your small group or a conversation in which you had the opportunity to speak to them about Christ—if they've heard what we say and they go away saying, "Is that it?" then we have misrepresented the gospel. We really have.

And you see, that's the great danger of this kind of, "Well, you know, you just say this prayer, and you just have to believe this." We express ourselves in such a way that we've taken this great thing that God has entrusted to us, this awesome eternal thing that Christ has done for us, this life-changing gospel, and we've trivialized it to a formula.

Now, we all have different styles, and it's a wonderful thing, and God communicates through so many different wonderful styles. Thank God for that. But remember this: whatever your personal style, we must communicate the gospel in a way that fits the scale of the message we are proclaiming.

Now, I've just tried to think about this by way of an analogy. Think about a man proposing marriage to a woman. Now, all of us married guys and those who plan to be married guys have thought about this and either have memories or plans about how we're going to do this and so forth and so on. And I want you to imagine for a moment a man making a proposal of marriage and he does it by voicemail.

And he calls her up and he says, "Hi there, just wanted you to know that I love you very much and wanted to ask you if you would marry me. Get back to me when you have time if this is something that you want to do. Bang." Now you laugh. Why do you laugh? You laugh because the communication is inappropriate to the scale of what is being asked and what is being offered.

When a man makes a proposal of marriage, he knows that he is proposing something that will cost him everything. And he knows that what he's asking of her will cost her everything, right? It will redirect the whole of life. It will change everything.

And you see, as we ask in the proposal of marriage nothing less and offer nothing less than exclusive love and devotion and loyalty for a lifetime, this is precisely how Jesus Christ approaches us, the bride of Christ, offering himself in all that he is.

We must communicate the gospel in a way that is appropriate to the scale of the message. Otherwise, you know what happens? You get people who think they're Christians because they've made some profession, and it remains for the next 40, 50, 60 years at the margins of their life.

And Paul no doubt saw that in other places as we see that in our culture today, and he says, "I want to see the sort of thing that happened in Thessalonica—the birthing of real life-changing faith through the gospel that came to you not only with words, but it came with power and with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction."

So we must communicate the gospel in a way that is appropriate to the message. That means that the approach of the high-pressure salesman is just not fitting, and the approach of the guy in the fair offering a free candy floss to kids is certainly not appropriate either.

Now, think about those with whom you communicate: your children, your grandchildren, your Sunday school class, your small group, your neighbors, your colleagues. What would they conclude about the importance of the gospel from the way that you speak about Jesus Christ? Paul says it came with great conviction, great conviction. It bore great fruit.

Now, notice by the way, it wasn't just in his words that there was this conviction; it was backed up by how he lived. Verse five: "It came through the Holy Spirit and not only in words, but also with power, Holy Spirit and deep conviction. And you know how we lived among you for your sake."

The message that Paul brought about Christ dying to save others was made credible because Paul was spending his life in living to save others. The message that Paul brought about Christ bringing hope was made credible because when he suffered what seemed almost unbearably, he endured and he continued.

So that doesn't prove that Jesus rose from the dead, of course, but it at least brings people to the position of saying, "Well, maybe he's caught on to something that's worth listening to." He backed it up with his life. And when the gospel is communicated with clarity and conviction, we can expect that the Holy Spirit will be at work and that lives will be changed. And that is what happened in Thessalonica. Our gospel came to you. It wasn't just words, but it came with power and with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction.

Host (Male): You’re listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith and a message called "The Urgency of Multiplying Ministry." Now we’re going to pause here, but we’ll get back to the message in just a moment.

Open the Bible is a listener-supported ministry. We’re able to be on the station because of your generosity. And as you give a gift of any amount this month, we want to send you a copy of Tim Keller’s book called "What is Wrong with the World?" And Colin, tell us a little about this book.

Colin Smith: Well, I think everybody’s heard the phrase that a picture is worth a thousand words. And the Bible answers the question, "What is wrong with the world?" with the age-old answer, the unchanging answer, that it is sin that’s got into the human bloodstream.

But you see, what God has done so wonderfully is he speaks to us in language that we can understand. He uses pictures. And what Tim Keller has done so wonderfully here is he’s drawn out the pictures that God has used in scripture to explain what’s wrong with the world, to tell us what sin is and what it’s like.

So for example, it’s like a predator, like an animal. In the story of Cain and Abel, God says sin is crouching at the door, as if it was ready to attack and to destroy. Or it’s like leprosy, which we have in the story of Naaman. This goes through and it gets at the question, "What is it that’s wrong with the world?"

That’s a question that any thinking person really needs to grapple with. And it enables us to grapple with it in a way that we’re able to understand. It’s beautifully written, it’s an easy read, and it answers one of the most important questions we can ever face.

Host (Male): Well, we would love to send you a copy of this book. Again, it’s called "What is Wrong with the World?" as our thanks for your financial support this month. You can give online at openthebible.org or when you call 1-877-OPEN-365. That’s 1-877-673-6365 or openthebible.org. Back to the message. Here is Pastor Colin.

Colin Smith: Let's look now at those who heard more briefly. And remember that just as God works through believers as we communicate the gospel, so he works in the hearts of unbelievers as they hear the message and then imitate our way of life.

Notice verse six: "You became imitators of us and of the Lord. In spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit." Now, think about this: you became imitators of us. The kind of Christians who will be the fruit of your ministry will be a reflection of the kind of Christian that you already are. That's what we're learning here. Paul says you became imitators of us.

The kind of Christians this church reproduces will essentially be the kind of Christians we are or the kind of Christians we become. That's quite a sobering thought. Cold churches produce cold Christians. Churches hooked on entertainment produce Christians hooked on entertainment. You become imitators of us.

Churches forged in the convictions of the gospel produce Christians forged in the convictions of the gospel. Churches committed to reaching the world produce Christians that reach the world. Churches that look inward produce Christians that look inward. You became imitators of us.

Now, that is why you see the kind of ministry we offer will shape the kind of Christians we become, and the kind of Christians we become will shape the kind of Christians we reproduce. I think that's an awesome thought and a great responsibility. You became imitators of us.

Now, remember Jesus makes this principle very, very clear. Luke chapter six and verse 40: "A student," Jesus said, "is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher." So think about the life that you're living in relation to those who you are influencing. Every student will become like his teacher when he's fully trained.

And see how the spirit of Paul is reproduced by the power of the Holy Spirit in Thessalonica. You welcomed the message in spite of severe suffering. You see there, they're Christians just like Paul. For the same Holy Spirit who was working in Paul as he spoke is also at work in the Thessalonians as they receive his message and become imitators of his way of life.

Now, what we have here are really the distinguishing marks of an authentic work of God, and it is a wonderful thing. And I hope it's creating within you already a sense of, "This is what we want. This is what we're looking for God to be doing among us in increasing measure."

And look at the fruit of it. Verse two: "We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father..." Here's the fruit: "your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, your endurance inspired by hope in the Lord Jesus Christ."

And giving these almost as headings at the beginning of the chapter, he spells them out more fully in verses nine and ten. He says we're thanking God for your work produced by faith. What is their work produced by faith? It was verse nine: "to turn to God from idols."

See, faith isn't just saying you believe in Jesus. Faith effects a change in the center of gravity of your life. It leads to turning from worthless things that were at the center of my life and pursuing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, recovering a new sense of mission and purpose for my life. Faith effects that change.

And it leads into service and ministry. What was their labor prompted by love? It was to serve the living and true God, not like independent contractors who say, "Well, I'll do this job and then when I'm finished, I'm done." No, to offer myself as a servant, a slave of Jesus Christ, and to say, "Here's my life. Now you take it and you use it and you direct me into what you want me to do."

And what was their endurance inspired by hope? It was to wait, verse 10, for God's Son from heaven. Never underestimate the power of your enduring great pain as a follower of Jesus Christ, because the world wants to dismiss your faith as psychology. And when you endure pain and still love Jesus, the world doesn't know what to make of that.

Well, the distinguishing marks of this authentic work of God are the basis of Paul's confidence that these Thessalonians really are true believers. Church of Jesus Christ is always a bit of a mixture, isn't it? We gather together hundreds of people, vast majority of whom would say that we believe and regard ourselves in some sense Christian.

But Paul is able to identify the marks of an authentic work of God, and it is his basis for solid confidence that these folks really belong to Jesus Christ. They've got the real deal. And just in these last moments, I want you to see that in verse four. He says, "We know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you." Chosen.

Now, you know the Bible speaks many times about God choosing, electing, predestining certain people. And it sends chills down lots of people's spines. In fact, people get very, very anxious and the church goes very, very quiet even when the pastor says it, despite the fact that it's repeated so often in the Bible.

The reason for that is quite understandable. It gives us all kind of scary questions, because we say, "Well then, how do I know if I am elect, and what could I do about it if I wasn't?" And if you have ever been anxious about questions to do with this theme, I think that you will find great help right here in these last moments of this message in 1 Thessalonians chapter one and verse four.

Because I want you to notice two things. The first is that Paul is sure that these Thessalonian Christians were chosen by God. In other words, it is possible to be confident and to know that you belong to Jesus Christ. This is not something that remains hidden throughout the life of a Christian believer. Paul says, "We know, brothers, that he has chosen you." We know it.

We know it. You say, "Well, how could he know it?" Ah, there's the question. Well, let's read on. "We know, brothers, that he has chosen you because..." So we're going to get an answer now. How do we know? "Because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction, and you became imitators of us and of the Lord. In spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with a joy given by the Holy Spirit."

How do we know that God has chosen you? Because of the effect of the gospel in your life. Warren Wiersbe puts this very, very beautifully and I think simply. I've found this very, very helpful. He says, "Remember that all three persons in the Trinity are involved in the salvation of every Christian: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit."

"As far as the Father is concerned, I was saved before the foundation of the world. As far as the Son is concerned, I was saved the day he died on the cross. As far as the Holy Spirit is concerned, I was saved in 1945 when I asked Christ into my heart." I want to make it very clear this is—I'm quoting Warren Wiersbe. I was not saved in 1945, just in case you are wondering.