Seeking for the help of the Lord,
I direct your prayerful attention to the first epistle of Paul,
the Apostle to the Thessalonians, chapter 1 and verse 4. Knowing, brethren beloved, your
election of God. 1 Thessalonians 1 and verse 4. Election is a precious truth
that's set forth in the Word of God. And we are not told when
we come into this world who are elected and who are not. but
it is vital for us to know that we are actually elected of God,
chosen of God. And the Apostle was able to say
concerning these Thessalonians that they were elect, and that
they knew that, he knew that. And in this portion, this first
chapter, He gives, and this is the inspired word of God, He
gives the reasons, the basis, upon which they and we may know
our election. We read the account in Acts 17,
which gives the background to this epistle. The apostle had
come to the Thessalonians He had preached to them, and there
were those of the Jews and Gentiles that believed, and there were
those that did not believe. And they persecuted them, raised
up a dispute amongst them, and assaulted the house of Jason. And Paul and Silas, then they
went away by night to Berea, and Then the Jews, the unbelieving
Jews, they came there too, and so he went on further to Corinth. And he then sent, being very
concerned how these new believers at Bethel and Icah were faring
under the persecution, and he thought as well that he'd just
gone away and deserted them. He sent Timotheus back to them. And you can actually read that
in the third chapter of this epistle, reading verse two, chapter
three, from verse one. Wherefore, when we could no longer
forbear, we thought it good to be left at Athens alone and sent
Timotheus, our brother and minister of God and our fellow laborer
in the gospel of Christ to establish you and to comfort you concerning
your faith." And it was when he then came back and told the
apostle what he had seen, what their faith was, and the effect
of the preaching, that then he writes to them this epistle from
Corinth, and we have this record of how he had heard of the blessing
of God. and writes to himself to encourage
and to strengthen those in Thessalonica. It's easier for us to pass over
the fact that these here in Thessalonica were very new Christians, first
generation Christians. If we had those coming into our
chapels, who had been idolaters, they didn't know anything of
the gospel at all, and they heard the word preached, and it was
immediately blessed to them, they left their idols, they claimed
to Christ, they embraced the Christian faith, and at the same
time, they were greatly persecuted, ridiculed, attacked, And yet
in spite of that, they still kept on. We think it to be an
amazing thing that one that had only just so recently come to
faith could stand that opposition and to keep going. And this is
the picture that we have here, and it is showing the power of
God, the reality of the work of God. This is not just man's
work, this is God's work. But each of us, we also need
to know what the Apostle is saying here to the Thessalonians. We need to know our election,
and our election is known by our calling, and by the fruits
of that calling that are set forth in this chapter. So I want
to look firstly, just two points, firstly, at the doctrine of election
itself, and then secondly, the election of the Thessalonians
and how it was evidenced. Firstly, the doctrine of election,
which is set forth in many parts of the scriptures of truth. the
Apostle Paul, especially speaking of it when he writes to the Ephesians,
he says to them in the first chapter that according as he
hath chosen us in him, that is in the Lord Jesus Christ, before
the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without
blame before him in love, having predestinated us unto the adoption
of children by Jesus Christ to himself according to the good
pleasure of his will." And we have Paul when he writes to the
Romans speaking of election in the case and using the example
of Jacob and Esau that before they were yet born, and before
they knew good or evil, that the purposes of God according
to election might stand, it is said, Jacob have I loved, and
Esau have I hated. We have when the apostles, Paul
was preaching, at one a time we read that some believe the
word spoken and some believe not. Another occasion it is set
forth, as many as were ordained unto eternal life believed. In Romans chapter 8, we have
a beautiful chain. Those that were foreknown, He
did predestinate. And those whom He did predestinate,
then He called. And those whom He called, then
He justified. And those whom He justified,
then He glorified. and there's a chain and those
links are joined together and where you get the calling then
it shows the foreknowledge of God and the predestinating and
it shows also that we are justified and shall be glorified. That's
why the calling is so important. It's the key that joins what
is in the past and what is in the future. It is those that
have been redeemed through the precious blood of Christ shed
on Calvary's tree that are the ones that the Lord shall call. Really, those that are redeemed
in Psalm 107, that the redeemed of the Lord say so, are the same
ones that the same Lord gathers from all nations of the earth. He knows who are his. The kingdom
of God standeth sure, having this seal, the Lord knoweth them
that are His. We also have some other beautiful
indications of the election of God in Jeremiah 31. 3. Yea, I have loved thee with an
everlasting love, and therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn
thee. 4. That everlasting love is set
upon a people. 5. We also have the Lord saying
for whom he dined, I lay down my life for the sheep. 6. Other
sheep I have which are not of this fold, them also must I bring. Speaking of the fold of the Gentiles,
But he speaks of those in John 10 that did not hear his word. He says, ye are not of my sheep,
therefore ye hear not my word. So he was not laying down his
life for them. The Lord's payment is a just
weight, a just balance, that is set forth in both Proverbs
and Ecclesiastes. He is not a payment for something
of which he shall not receive. The Lord is a just God, and so
that which he does is effectual. Those for whom he died and endured
the wrath of God for, they most certainly will be gathered. They are the elect of God. We
think also of the words spoken to the Philippian church, he
which hath begun a good work in you will perform it unto the
day of Jesus Christ. It is God that instigates salvation,
and He instigates it because of election, not because of anything
in us. Our calling is not instigated
by us responding to the word of our own free will or of a
supposed duty faith. It is the instigation of God. We see this with our Lord after
he had insisted in John 3 of the new birth, he gives in John
4, 4 actual life examples of the new birth. They are all different. but they all show a work of which
the Lord is the author of. Beginning with the woman at Wella
Samaria, he must needs go through Samaria. We find the same with
the calling of the disciples, the apostles, he goes past them,
he bids them follow him. We have the same with Zacchaeus,
that appointed time where he comes, looks up, Zacchaeus is
in his tree, come down, I must dine at thy house. The Lord knew
where he was, he drew him, and we read our Lord saying in John
6, that no man cometh unto me except the Father which hath
sent me, draw him, and I'll raise him up at the last day. Why does
the Father draw any to the Son? Not because of anything good
in them, but because they are chosen in Christ. They are elect,
therefore they are drawn. Again, it is pointing to that
which is done from the foundation of the world. Our Lord Jesus
Christ is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
He says, again in John 10, Thine they were, Thou gavest them me. And he's speaking of a covenant
people, a people given by the Father to the Son to redeem. We think of the very name of
the Lord Jesus Christ. His name shall be called Jesus,
for He shall save His people from their sins. A people already
that are His people, already given Him. already foreknown
and already loved. The election then is a divine
truth and set forth in the Word of God. When Paul writes to the
Thessalonians the second time, he says to them, But we are bound
to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of
God the Lord. because God hath from the beginning
chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit
and belief of the truth, whereunto he calls you by our gospel to
the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. God has and let people a chosen
people, and it is those for whom He died, and it is those that
then are made known by their calling. And that is why the
Gospel must be proclaimed and preached in all the world before
all people, and that it is the Spirit that makes that word effectual. He that hath an ear, let him
hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. And so, knowing
this doctrine of election, knowing this truth, knowing really that
it is the only way of salvation, and the reason for this is knowing
the sinfulness of man. If it were that man had some
capability of receiving spiritual things and responding to the
gospel in and of himself, savingly, then you might say there's not
a need of election. But when we read in the Word
that the natural man receiveth not the things of God, neither
can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned, and
that men are dead in trespasses and sins, remember in Ephesians
2, you hath he quickened. Who quickened? He quickened,
God quickened, made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins. The dead know not anything. It
goes back to the very first sentence, in the day that thou eatest thereof
thou shalt surely die. Not partially die, not have a
little bit of death, but enough spiritual life to respond to
the gospel so that we accept God's payment for our sin. Know
that the death is a complete Death, spiritually, and we have
it naturally, and then eternally. And it is because that all have
sinned and come short of the glory of God, there's none that
doeth good, no, not one, that the Lord Jesus Christ must be
the author and finisher of our faith. We do not have faith ourselves. All men have not faith, we are
told, in the inspired word. but faith cometh by hearing,
and hearing by the word of the Lord. So, I want to look secondly
at how the election of the Thessalonians was actually evidence. When we
have the inspired word of God saying, knowing brethren beloved,
your election of God, then there must be those things that are
put here, and there are in this chapter that we've read, that
clearly give not what we think are tokens, but what God says
are tokens, what are the things that shall we look for in eternity
and before the judgment throne, that we ourselves might have
the assurance that we might know that we are the people of God. Bunyan, in his Pilgrim's Progress,
he sets forth those that walked along with Christian and hopeful,
and one was called Ignorance, and he just hoped that things
would end up alright at the end, but he didn't want to know about
the things of God at all. We can have those that are fatalistic
and say, well, what will be, will be. If I'm saved, I'm saved. If I'm not, I'm not. And that
is not a evidence of election or true faith at all. You have
those also that are basing their hope for heaven upon their own
good works that we have told again in Ephesians, by grace
you're saved through faith. and that not of yourselves it
is the gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast. And
so there are those that are looking or thinking or hoping that they
have salvation, but it is not based upon the word of God. And so I want you to look very
carefully at what the Word of God itself says concerning the
evidence of election. There are seven main points and
each one relates to the verses here in this chapter. The first
one is in verse 3 which the Apostle speaks of as the fruits of the
work of God within them, the fruit of faith. This is what
he's remembering, and he gives thanks in his prayers for them. He's not just giving thanks just
in a general way, but for specific things that he sees or has heard
to be in them. And amazingly, the first thing
He's not saying just faith, but the works of faith. This, of
course, is what Luther stumbled with in Romans. He says that
we are justified by faith and not by works, which is true. It is by faith in Christ's finished
work that we are saved. But then when we are saved that
way, Then as James rightly puts out, he says, you show me your
faith without your works, and I will show thee my faith by
my works. But faith without works is dead. And so faith is an active thing. He evidences the works of Abraham,
who again, Paul says, He was justified by faith, not by his
works, but by his works he was made perfect because he took
his son Isaac and he brought him to Moriah and he would have
gone through with the sacrifice if God had not stopped him. He
didn't just stay where he was and say, I believe that God will
raise him from the dead. He actually went and did it.
And I remember Mr. Ramsbottom in one of his books,
he gives a little illustration of a tightrope walker speaking
to someone who was very praising of his abilities to walk on a
tightrope. And he said that he could even
push someone in a wheelbarrow on a tightrope. And he said,
I could do that over Niagara Falls. I could push someone over. He said, do you believe that?
He said, yes, I believe you could do that. But he wouldn't get
into the wheelbarrow. And the thing is that you can
say you believe something, but if you're not prepared to trust
and to lean all upon it, it's not really proved at all. And
so the very first thing that Paul is saying what he is, remembering
their works of faith, things that they were actually doing.
And James, he puts it to simple things. If a brother or sister
be naked and you just say, well, go and be warmed, we're praying
for you, the Lord will provide for you, but you've got money
in the bank and you've got food and you don't give it to them,
that is not, where is your faith? You should be actually doing
that and giving them what you have. And that is the evidence
given. And you think of what the Lord
did as well, when he says, verily those that have given a cup of
cold water in the name of a disciple, verily they shall not lose their
reward. That's a small thing. How easy
it would be to overlook that which a sinner has done to help
another of the Lord's dear people And they've done it by faith.
They've done it because they love the brethren. And we read
in John 1 that if we say that we love God, whom we have not
seen, and yet we do not love man whom we have seen, his brother
whom he has seen, how is that a real love? He that loveth him
that begat, that is God, loveth him also that is begotten of
him. And that love will be shown in
works of faith. And so we have as well, not only
the works of faith as mentioned, but a labour of love. And again
it is joined together, that constraining love of the brethren, love of
the Lord, And He constrains to do what the law would never constrain
us to do. It's lovely when you see the
fruits of love. We pass from death unto life
because we love the brethren. To do it for love's sake. And
then we have as well that patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ,
in the sight of God and our Father. that hope that they had in the
Lord. And remember through the tribulations
and troubles as well to have that hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. And so the first thing, the first
evidence is fruits. By their fruits ye shall know
them. Those things that come out of
the calling election of God will be those things that Paul remembers
here in prayer. The second thing is in verse
5, and this is how the gospel came to them. He says, Our gospel
came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the
Holy Ghost, and in much assurance, as ye know what manner of men
we were among you for your sake. He's been preaching to them,
and well, the Corinthians, they often despised him. They said
his speech was contemptible, his bodily presence was contemptible,
and he wasn't coming as a great big man and a great orator. He said that the conversion,
it wasn't in me, it wasn't by persuasion and by wonderful preaching
and persuasive preaching, he's emphasising that, that was not
what was used. Some people might think that
that, you know, to have powerful preaching like that, that's a
great asset to the word, but actually you could, if you were
converted under a sermon like that, you'd have that thought,
was it just the eloquence of the minister? Was it just his
persuasion? Was it just the atmosphere of
how he was preaching that converted me and not the Holy Spirit? Well,
what the Apostle is saying to these Thessalonians, he says,
you know what manner of men we were. That's not what it was. That's not what happened, how
the Word came to you. This is how it came. It did come
in Word. It did come in that way. And we read in Acts 17, Verse
3, opening and alleging that Christ must needs have suffered
and risen again from the dead and that this Jesus whom I preach
unto you is Christ. A little summary of the gospel
of Christ's death and resurrection again and preaching him as the
Son of God, as Christ, as the Savior, as the Redeemer, and
to the Word did come in Word. We can read it in the Word of
God in Word. You can read a summary of that
Gospel in the First Epistle of Corinthians, Chapter 15. where
again the apostle simply sets forth the life, death, and resurrection
of our Lord and the witnesses that saw him risen from the dead. And then we have as well when
he preached, Peter preached to those at Cornelius' household. Again, a very summary of the
gospel, the Holy Spirit fell upon them. It is set forth in
words. But the apostle says here that
it didn't come in word only. In another part he says they
received the word, not as the word of men, but as it is in
truth, the word of God, the word of the Lord. And so they received
it in power. This is why the Apostles had
to tarry at Jerusalem until they were endued with power from on
high. So the Apostle says we waited
for this power. Now when we are preaching we
look to see that power, we look to see the effect of it and we
have seen it with you Thessalonians. We have seen the power of God
working in you whilst it didn't work in some others. And certainly
in Thessalonica, you had those others pursuing them right through
to Athens, having a go at them, causing great disruption. Why
didn't the power come on them? Why didn't the Word have an effect
like that with them? The sovereignty of God, the sovereign
choice of the people elected, and then when the Word is preached,
who that word is blessed to with divine power. So it came in power. It really had an effect. Changed
the heart, renewed the will, turned the feet to Zion's hill. And so then it was also in the
Holy Ghost. You might say, why in both? Why mention both? Isn't the Holy
Ghost the one that brings the power? Yes it is, that brings
the power. But The emphasis on the Holy
Ghost, we have in Psalm 110, that the work of God is right
from the womb of the morning, it is a holy work. The new birth
is a holy birth. And the work of grace, right
from the very start, is a holy calling. Without holiness, no
man shall see the Lord. It will have a sanctifying effect,
effect that cleanses, washes and points to the holiness of
God. It's the one attribute of God
that in the Word of God is set for three times. holy, holy,
holy Lord God Almighty. None other attribute is not stated,
the love of God, the love of God, the love of God. No, it's
the holiness that is emphasised in the word of God. And so a
true conversion, a holy conversion, we have to look for that holiness
in a new convert. it will deliver, it will cause
one to be aware, as the Apostle Paul was, of all the unholiness
of his nature, all of his lusts, his evil desires, all of those
things, the holiness searches and finds out. And so the Apostle
notices that it had this effect, it also came in much assurance,
and I understand this, Not so much the assurance that they
knew then that they were a child of God or that they were elect,
but much assurance that the word that they heard was really the
truth. They weren't listening to Paul
and thinking, well, not sure whether it's true or not, not
sure whether it's real or not. They were persuaded that the
truth that he set forth were real, vital truths for their
soul, the only way of salvation, they were persuaded of that. You may ask ourselves, have we
received the Word of God? Do we know it when it has come
in power? Has there been those times it
has not touched us, and other times it has? Times it has a
real effect, and other times it hasn't? Have we known what
it is? It has worked in us that which
has been of a cleansing nature, for it has brought us the persuasion
that those truths that are set forth are real, vital truths
of God. Now the other way is what Peter
was charged with is the following cunningly devised fables. I really
tremble sometimes in preaching the Gospel because I think it
was Bonner said, one of the worst dangers to the Church of God,
and to do the most damage, is a minister to get up and to articulate
all the truths of God exactly as they are, but in a dry, unfeeling
manner, in a manner that really says, hear these truths, They
don't really move me, I'm not really passionate about them,
I don't really believe them. It'd be like having a fire in
the building, and the difference between the minister saying,
well brethren, you know, there's a fire in the building at the
back, we better get out, you know, we better move out, and
the difference between that and saying, fire, fire, get out!
You know, just the way that it's said would convey, there's the
same thing that's said, there's the urgency, then that is heard
much better. And so Bonhoeffer was saying
we can do in the ministry such damage if we ourselves are not
convicted, if we ourselves are not passionate about what we
believe and the danger of being out of Christ, of not having
these tokens of election, of not being found in Christ, but
a solemnity to be found outside of Christ at that last day. to
really speak of these things as if they weren't vital and
important. You know, I was at Bethesda earlier
this week, and one of the dear friends, after the devotions,
he said to me, you know, he said, he said, some people, they wonder
whether they are saved or not, whether they are believers or
not. But he says, at my age, he said,
I want to know. He said, I have eternity before
me. He said, I want to know that
I'm one of the Lords. And we do. I said to him, well,
we need not be his age. We can be much, much younger.
We do not know what a day will bring forth. And we do need to
know. And the Word of God clearly sets
forth before us, we may know. It is not something just given
to a select few, but we may, through the Word of God and through
how it's set forth as in this chapter, that we may know and
assure our hearts that we are His people, that we are elect
of God. Well, there's a third token here
in verse six. and that is they became followers. Followers of them, that is Paul
and Timotheus, Paul and Silas, and of the Lord. What a wonderful
thing. You know, Paul says, be ye followers
of me as I also am of Christ. When our Lord in John 8, he had
those that believed on his name, he said to them, if ye continue
in my word, Then ye shall be my disciples indeed, ye shall
know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. And so a
disciple indeed, a disciple is a follower, a true follower,
is one that continues in the word of God and follows in the
word of God. Here the Apostle saw this effect
of his preaching and he marks it as being one of those marks
of election is one that has become a follower of the Lord and a
follower of the Lord's people, follower of the Word of God. Then we have a fourth one in
verse 7. They were a And perhaps just
to backtrack a bit there in verse 6, it is speaking of a holy joy
as well, the joy of the Holy Ghost. So it's not just a following
without joy. They know something of the joy
of the Lord, something of that word touching them. Then were
the disciples glad when they saw the Lord, unto you which
belief is precious. We're going back then to verse
8, or verse 7. They were examples to other believers,
so that ye were examples to all that believe in Macedonia and
Achaia. Do notice that some of these
evidences here, they're not from within. They're not looking at
us and saying, Am I elect? Am I a child of God? This is
other people looking at us and they see the effect of the Word
of God. Here is an example. Paul himself
says, I am an example. Be ye followers of me as I am
of Christ. He says to King Agrippa, I would
that thou was not almost but altogether such as I am, except
this change. He wouldn't wish on him his chain,
his bondage, but he desired to be like he was. And so these
Thessalonians, they were examples to all that believed. The effect
of the word upon them was really to be seen by others and noticed
by others, not hid, not held under a bushel. but a light that
was set upon a hill. And so it's a showing what a
true conversion was to be like. And there's another in verse
eight. We have, for from you sounded
out the word of the Lord, not only in Macedonia and Nicaea,
but also in every place. Your faith to God, Lord, is spread
abroad, so that we need not to speak anything. When our Lord
cured, like the mad Gadarene and others, He said, Go home
to thy house, tell what great things God hath done for thee
and had mercy upon thee. Immediately those new converts
became ambassadors for Christ. You think of the woman at the
well of Samaria, come see a man that told me all things that
ever I did, is not this the Christ? Is not that an election, evidence,
where there is one having received through a blessing themselves,
and they see others that haven't got it, and they tell them about
it, and would have them to know of it. It's almost as a natural
thing, if one has five-hound the pearl of great price, if
one has found the blessings of the Lord, they want to recommend
the grace of God to others. I know when the Lord first worked
in my heart, first blessed my soul, I barraged my own siblings
who weren't living in their own house or living 200 miles or
so away with letters and with readings and trying to get them
to see what I saw and what I believed that they would believe and wondered
why they couldn't see it and why they didn't appreciate my
letters. But there will be this desire to spread that and not
just keep to oneself what has been shown to us. And Paul includes
this in this mark of an election with these Thessalonians. Then we have in verse 9, for
they themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had
unto you. So those that were hearing of
their faith and those speaking to, they were again reinforcing
what effect that preaching had had, how that the word had entered
into them, And then it's added this, how you turn to God from
idols to serve the living and true God. Now with us, there
may not be that great change, because we're not brought up
to, as idolaters, but all of us have many things that we do
idolize, and what the main thing is here, they've seen a difference.
they'd seen a change. If we'd have read further, in
Acts 17, we would have read, our Paul spoke to them at Athens,
those who had a whole number of altars, and then an altar
to an unknown God, and he declared unto them whom they ignorantly
worshipped. And so, the work of God was turning
from a false faith to a true faith, The work of God turned
the children of Israel on Mount Carmel from Baal to the true
and living God. And so this again is another
evidence. By nature we are ungodly. We do not serve the living God.
By grace we have the same spirit as Joshua. As for me and my house, we will
serve the Lord. And really this, in effect, was
what the Thessalonians, they were doing. They were serving
the Lord, not their idols. How does that bring us? Do we serve the Lord? And is
that our desire? As for me and my house, we will
serve the Lord. We'll walk in His ways. Well, there's another one. There's
a last one. And that is to wait for His Son
from Heaven. whom he raised from the dead.
The Apostle Paul, writing to the Corinthians, chapter 15,
first epistle, combating the error that there is no resurrection
of the dead, he said, if in this life only we have hope in Christ
with all men most miserable, and here is another evidence,
is that there's a looking for that which is to come. In Hebrews
11 we have the long list of those who lived and died by faith.
And we have a little summary in the middle of that, verses
13 to 16, where they had these things in common. They saw the
promises are far off and they embraced them. And they confessed
that they were strangers and pilgrims in the earth, and they
that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And so these Thessalonians, they
were seeking a country, they were seeking the Lord's return,
they were looking for Him to come again, He that delivered
us from the wrath to come. And so these are the inspired
evidences of election, the fruits of the work of God, the fruits
of the calling of God, the work of the Holy Spirit in a sinner's
heart, as put in the divine stamp upon it. If these fruits are
found in us, then we also know our election of God. This is
the calling of God, this is a new birth, this is a conversion,
this is a real change, put in different ways in other parts
of scripture, maybe other things added or shown in a different
way, but in this specific chapter and in this context, these are
the points that the Apostle is highlighting. Now may the Spirit
bear witness this evening in some of your hearts, that you
also are elect, that you know these evidences, that there are
some of those that the Lord would shine upon, things that you've
done, things that you've said, people that you've spoken to,
that which is the stamp of the reality of God to be upon it. Knowing, brethren, beloved, your
election of God, may we give the Lord no rest, May we ask
Him, Lord, still, give me a token, Lord, for good. Shine upon thy
work, shine upon thy work of grace. Make it sure with me,
whose I am and whom I serve. Really, once called, once begun,
we should not always need to go right back to a beginning,
but we should have a daily walk and desire to daily walk with
the Lord, and that we might follow after Him and to be with his
people here and to be with his people above in heaven when he
comes again. May the Lord add his blessing.
Amen.