Tonight we're going to start
a new study in the book of 1 Thessalonians. The message tonight will be an
introduction to this wonderful epistle. Let's read the first
five verses of chapter 1 where we see Paul's salutation to the
born-again blood-washed saints at Thessalonica in verses 1 to
2. But let's read the context of
those two verses by reading the first five verses. Paul and Silvanus
in Timotheus, under the Church of the Thessalonians, which is
in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be unto
you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We
give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you
in our prayers. remembering without ceasing your
work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord
Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father, knowing,
brethren beloved, your election of God. For our gospel came not
unto you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Ghost. and in much assurance, as you
know what manner of man we were among you for your sake." Here is some historical background
for the city of Thessalonica. It was a very large and populous
city, a very flourishing city during the time that Paul wrote
this epistle. It was located at the intersection
of two major Roman roads, one leading from Italy eastward called
the Ignatia Way, and the other from Danube to the Aegean Sea. So it was set in the middle of
two very, very important Roman roads. And it was near the Aegean
Sea, right on the Aegean Sea. And Thessalonica's location and
use as a port made it a very prominent city. There was a lot
of trade. that came through there, a lot of trade. So it was very
prominent. In 168 BC, it became the capital
of the second district of Macedonia. And later, it was made the capital
and major part of the Roman province of Macedonia. So when the Greeks,
the Greeks actually made it a prominent, used it as a prominent city,
becoming the second district of Macedonia. And later, the
Romans made one. in 146 B.C., the Greeks made
it a very prominent city in 168 B.C., and then the Romans made
it a very prominent city, a major port of the whole Roman province
of Macedonia in 146 B.C. And in 42 B.C., after the battle
at Philippi, Thessalonica was made a free city. It was made
a free city. And today it is the site of the
modern city of Thessaloniki, it's called, Thessaloniki. And
it's the second most important city in Greece. And it's home
currently to over a million inhabitants right now. And I found out, too,
that there's not much of the old ruins left, because being
the way people are, they built on top of the old ruins, just
like they did in Jerusalem. So there's not been a lot excavated
in the city itself. The Apostle Paul came to this
city after he'd been at Philippi and he stayed about three weeks
at this city. And he preached every Sabbath
day and his ministry was blessed. His ministry was blessed to the
conversion of some Jews and a multitude of Greeks. And we know that's
all by the power of the Holy Spirit of God. So God mightily
used him in the city of Thessalonica. He sent him there, didn't he?
He sent him there because there was lost sheep there. And he
preached the gospel and it was used. The words preached were
taken by the Holy Spirit of God and used to convert a multitude.
Again, a multitude of devout Greeks as well. And many of the
cheap women of the palace. And all this laid the foundation
for this church. It laid the foundation for this
church. Turn, if you would, to Acts chapter 17. Acts chapter
17. We'll read of it here. We'll see this in the scriptures
in verses one to 10 of Acts 17. Acts 17, verses one to 10. Now, when they had passed through
Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica. where was
a synagogue of the Jews. And look what it says. We know
Paul, whenever he went into a city, he went right to the synagogues,
didn't he? And he preached the gospel as he was given utterance. And Paul, as his manner was,
went in unto them. And three Sabbath days reasoned
with them out of the scriptures. So three weeks. Three weeks he
reasoned with them out of the scriptures. 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. He's proclaiming
him as the Messiah. He's the Messiah, he's the anointed
one. And notice Paul didn't mess around, he preached Christ and
him crucified. He says Christ must needs have
suffered and risen again, so he preaches his death, he preaches
his resurrection, and he preaches that he's the Messiah, that he's
the Messiah. And some of them believe, Look
at that, there's a miracle of grace. God granted some of them
faith to believe, and some believed. And consorted with Paul and Silas
of the devout Greeks, how many? A great multitude, a great multitude
of Gentiles, just like you and I, of Gentiles. And of the chief
women, not a few. But the Jews, which believed
not, moved with envy. Oh, they were mad. They were
upset at the preaching of the gospel of Christ. You know, because
it probably affected their pocketbooks. And they were moved with envy.
They probably thought this guy is going to take all our following
away. Well, gospel preachers don't have a following. We just
preach Christ. We just preach Christ to whomever
shows up. We preach Christ and him crucify.
Look at this. They were filled with with envy. But the Jews, which believed
not, moved within, and he took unto them certain lewd fellows
of the baser sort. So they got some ruffians, some
people they probably wouldn't have even been with, some guys
that could come and rough up the apostle and maybe threaten
him. But little do they know that
if God be for us, who can be against us. They don't know that. If God before us, who can be
against us? And look at this. Certain lewd fellows of the baser
sort and gathered a company, so there was a large group of
them, and set all the city on an uproar. Oh, they got everyone
stirred up. And assaulted the house of Jason
and sought to bring them out to the people. And when they
found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the
rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside
down are come hither also." Oh, so news had spread. From that
statement, news had spread about Paul preaching the gospel of
the Lord Jesus Christ. And look, they call us the people
who turned the world upside down. All Paul did was preach Christ.
Oh, but it turned the world upside down for these unsaved people,
didn't it? Now, the people who God saved are rejoicing, but
these other folks, they're pretty upset, aren't they? And they
say, these that have turned the world upside down are come hither
also, whom Jason hath received. And these do contrary to the
decrees of Caesar, saying, there's another king, one Jesus. Also,
now they're They're hitting the political aspects of the Roman
society because Caesar was not only king over the Romans, he
was worshipped as a god. And so now they're bringing the
fact that Paul's preaching another king, but little do they know
Paul's preaching the king of kings and the Lord of lords.
Paul's preaching the one who has control over all the kings
that have ever lived. They're like putty in his hands. Look at this. And they troubled
the people and the rulers of the city when they heard these
things. And when they had taken security of Jason and of the
other, they let them go. And the brethren immediately
sent Paul and Silas by night unto Berea. who coming thither
went into the synagogue of the Jews. So Paul, the brethren send
Paul away by night, and they come to Berea, and what's Paul
doing? He goes right to the synagogue. He's not discouraged at all,
is he? I'm going to go preach Christ here, right to the synagogue,
beloved. He's called to preach and proclaim
the gospel. And that's what he's going to
do. Now look at verses 13 and 15. We see that the Jews of Thessalonica
followed them to Berea and stirred up the people there. But when the Jews of Thessalonica
had knowledge that the word of God was preached of Paul at Berea,
they came thither also and stirred up the people. They left Thessalonica
to go all the way to Berea to stir up the folks there just
because Paul's preaching the gospel. Oh my, oh my. And then immediately the brethren
sent away Paul to go, as it were, to the sea, but Silas and Timotheus
abode there still. And they that conducted Paul
brought him unto Athens, and receiving a commandment unto
Silas and Timotheus, for to come to him with all speed they departed. They did this all because Paul
preached the gospel. They pursued him to Berea all
because Paul preached the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace.
That's how much the Jews hated him. That's how much they hated
the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. So there's nothing new
under the sun. When men really hear about the
absolute sovereignty of God, they have one or two reactions,
don't they, when they really hear it? They either turn to
Christ by the gift of God, which is faith. Or, man, they just,
they get mattered and a wet hornet. They get angry. They get angry. They get angry. And Paul preached, what did Paul
preach? He preached the sinner's only
hope, whether you're Jew or Gentile, the Lord Jesus Christ. He preached
the perfect sin-atoning work of the Lord Jesus Christ. He
held nothing back. He held nothing back. He preached
that the Lord Jesus Christ, God incarnate in the flesh, when
he came to this world, he accomplished salvation for his people. He
obtained eternal redemption on the cross for his people. That's
what he preached. And he preached that the Lord
is risen again for our justification. And that right now he's seated
at the right hand of the Father. And these people got upset and
angry. Upset and angry. They pursued
Paul all the way from Thessalonica to Berea. So we see then that
Silas and Timotheus sent Paul, so it seemed, by sea into Athens.
But he was led by the brethren to Athens. Look at this. And
immediately the brethren sent Paul away. Look at verse 14 of
17. And then immediately the brethren
sent Paul to go to to go as it were to the sea. But Silas and
Timothy, Timothy's abode there. So they they made it look like
they were sending Paul to Athens by the sea. But they actually
led him away, beloved, to Athens, because this mob wanted to kill
him. They wanted to kill him. So Silas and Timotheus send Paul,
so it seemed by the sea unto Athens, but he was led by the
brethren to Athens. Look at verse 15, and they that
conducted Paul brought him unto Athens. And having received a
commandment unto Silas and Timotheus for to come to him with all speed,
they departed. So Paul sent them back with a
message to Silas and Timothy to come back as soon as you can.
Come and see me in Athens as soon as you can. Now, remember,
all this is falling out. Just like in the life of Joseph.
All this is falling out according to the sovereign will and decree
of God, all of it. All of it. It's all falling out
according to his plan and purpose. And he sends his servants where
he wills. He sends his servants, he sends his preachers to where
he wants them to be. And they are sent to preach and
proclaim the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's what they're
sent there for. To preach Christ and him crucified. To preach
gospel of God's free grace in Christ. And then we see, We see
as a result, if you read further down in 17, you'll see as a result
of God sovereignly sending Paul to Athens, he preaches the famous
Mars Hill discourse about the unknown God. You'll see that
if you read further down in Acts 17. My oh my, so we see God's
sovereign hand. He had him go to Thessalonica,
he had him go to Berea, and he has him go to Athens, and he
preaches at Mars Hills. My, oh my. And all this again
is falling out according to the purpose and will of our sovereign
God. All according to his will. So we clearly see how God moves
his preachers from one place to another. All according to
his sovereign will. All according to his sovereign
will. And they are sent again to proclaim the gospel of God's
free grace. That's what they're sent to do.
And Timothy, we know, eventually went to see Paul, but he was
sent to Thessalonica, too, to preach to the new church that
had started there. As a result of Paul preaching,
he was sent there to preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ
to them. And to proclaim Christ alone
to them. And Timothy returned to Paul, who was at Corinth,
with good news. with good news, good news of the faith of the
Thessalonians and good news of their love for Christ and good
news of their love for the gospel and good news of their love for
the brethren. And this letter is a result of that, of him hearing
that news, of him hearing that news. Now the design of this
epistle is to encourage the saints at Thessalonica. They're under
afflictions and sufferings for what they believe. It's to exhort
them to stand fast in the Lord, to abide by his truths and ordinances,
and to live a holy life in conversation towards God and towards one another.
And Paul instructs them concerning the resurrection of the dead.
He concerns them concerning the second coming of Christ, doctrines
which are very important to the Lord's people. and bring great
comfort to the Lord's people, to the saints, as we go through
sufferings and as we see our brothers and sisters in Christ
persecuted for what they believe, sometimes even unto death, sometimes
even unto death for their faith in Christ Jesus our Lord. So
what mercy God's people have received, what mercy we've received
in Christ, The born again saints of God receive in Christ a full
pardon of all their sins. And take note or see tonight
that this is true of all of God's saints. This is true of all of
God's saints. We will see as Paul writes to
this very young church, that he does not shy away from teaching
strong doctrine either. I remember somebody told Spurgeon,
they said, well, you shouldn't preach election. to a young church. Well, Paul preached it, we're
gonna see, not tonight, but as we study this next week, actually,
where she had, Paul tells them about their election of God.
And this is maybe a three or four week old church. And me
and the church being ecclesia. So he didn't refrain from preaching
doctrine, strong doctrine to them. We should always proclaim
the truth of God's word, always. So there's great doctrines which
are through this book. And they bring great comfort
to the saints of God. Great comfort. And again, Paul
doesn't shy away from giving the saints strong meat. He brings
forth the election of God and how the gospel of God came to
them in power. Not in word only, but in power
of the Holy Spirit of God. and in much assurance. So he
doesn't even shy away from talking to young believers about the
assurance that they have in Christ. Because that's foundational,
isn't it? And even we who have grown in the Lord through the
years, I'll tell you what, I still like to hear more and more how
I'm secure in Christ. Because I know how sinful I am.
And I love to hear that I'm secure in Him. that it's all about what
he's done, is it so for you? I hope it is, because it's a
great comfort. It's a great comfort for God's
people. Oh my. And he also brings forth,
we'll see as we study through this book in later chapters,
the coming of the Lord called the day of the Lord, the day
of the Lord. And here also bring forth the
resurrection of some to eternal joy and some to eternal damnation. Some to eternal joy and some
to eternal damnation. And again, I want to bring this
point forth as we study this wonderful book. You'll hear me
repeat it as we study this book. That even though this book was
written to the saints at Thessalonica in 51 AD, it applies to all of
God's children all through the ages. It does. All of God's children
through every generation We see in verse 1 and 2 that Paul's
salutation to this church is much the same as in his other
epistles, except that he does not identify himself as a servant
of Christ, or as a prisoner of Christ, or even as an apostle.
Let's look at verse 1. Paul and Sivenius and Timotheus
unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and
in the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be unto you and peace from
God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. So we see that Paul groups
himself in with Sivenius and with Timothy in his greetings. Even though he is the inspired
author of this epistle, even though he is an apostle, he groups himself in with his two
brothers, his fellow preachers. And remember, this was a young
church. This was a very young church. And think of this too,
no one had rose up And as we've seen in other assemblies through
studying the word where Paul's apostleship was questioned, that
hadn't happened here. That hadn't happened here. And
he he was now well known to the Thessalonians, having by God's
sovereign will and purpose established the church there. And he sent
Timothy there to preach. He sent Timothy there to preach,
which we know was God's will. We also see here in this greeting,
Paul's humility. Paul's humility. It's bought
forth. He identifies himself with his
fellow laborers in preaching the gospel. He just groups himself
in with them. This is possibly the greatest
preacher that ever lived. And he's just grouping himself
in with his two brethren who preach the gospel as well. See,
what Brother Scott Richardson said is true, right? The ground
of the foot of the cross is level. There's no little bumps for preachers.
There's no little bumps for anybody else. It's all level, beloved. It's all level. We're all saved
by grace. Now some, like myself, are called
to preach the gospel. It is a great honor. It's a great
honor. But you see here, Paul just says,
I'm a fellow laborer with my brothers in Christ. I'm a fellow
laborer. I'm a fellow laborer with you
all. I'm called the priest of the gospel. Again, it's an honor
I can't even give words to. But we're all saved by the same
grace. We're all regenerated by the Holy Spirit of God. We
all have the same Savior. We all have the same Father,
we who are in Christ. It's absolutely wonderful. So
Paul just groups himself in with these two faithful ministers
of the gospel. And he knows that it's only by
the grace of God that they are what they are. He knows that. He knows that. And Paul mentions no titles before
his name or even before the names of Silas and Timothy. He doesn't
put any titles on them either. These are all three men faithful
ministers of the gospel of God's amazing grace. And he did not
put titles upon his treasured friends who were his co-workers
in the ministry. He didn't call them Dr. So-and-so.
He didn't call them Reverend So-and-so or Bishop So-and-so. No, they're all servants of the
Most High God. And it's considered to be the
greatest honor that could be bestowed upon a sinner saved
by the grace of God to be a minister of his gospel. And every preacher
feels that way. Every true preacher sent from
God, we feel that way. It's the greatest honor that
can be bestowed upon us in our life. But they also know that all the
glory goes to Christ. They also know that all the glory
goes to Christ, their Lord, not to them. They're not seeking
the praise as a man. They're not seeking that they're
not in the ministry for a monetary gain. No, beloved. They were seeking the Lord's
sheep. They were seeking the Lord's sheep. They were on the
trail of God's sheep and they were preaching the gospel. For
the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. And for the good of his people.
And we clearly see who Paul's writing to again, as he pens
by inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God in verse one, that he's
writing to the people of God called the church. Now the Greek
word for church there is ekklesia, which again is a called out assembly.
It's the people, not the building. It's the people. So Paul and
Silvanus and Timothy's unto the Ecclesia, the called out assembly
of the Thessalonians, which is in God, the father and in the
Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be unto you and peace from
God, our father and the Lord Jesus Christ. So we see that this epistle is
addressed to God's people. In Thessalonica. It's addressed
to God's people. in Thessalonica to the church
of the Thessalonians. And again, this is not the building.
This is the people. You have to keep saying that,
because folks, they equate church as being going to church in the
building. No, church is the people. The ecclesia is the people. It's
the building we meet, and we're so thankful for our building.
We are, it's wonderful. But the church is God's people,
the ecclesia, the ones who are called out of darkness. into
the marvelous light of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, all
under the preaching of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, of
salvation in Christ, plus nothing in us. And some of these members were
Jews and a large number were Gentiles, men and women from
all walks of life. from all walks of life. Some
were wealthy, but most were very poor. Most were very poor. Some were well educated, but
many were illiterate. Some had honorable, worldly positions,
and others were not even known by those who were recognized
as the elite. They just didn't even exist to
them. Some were very moral in their
unregenerate state, and others had no morals at all. Some lived
as harlots and thieves and robbers. We know that because Paul writes
and says, in such were some of ye. Now you're washed, he wrote
that in Colossians. Now you're washed, now you're
born again. Now you're saved. One thing is true of all these
saints. One thing is true of all these
saints. And the saints of all the ages. One thing is true. One thing is true. They all came
the same way. They all came through the same
door. And that's the Lord Jesus Christ. They all came through
the same door. And they all have the same great
Redeemer. They all have the same Mighty
Savior. His name is the Lord Jesus Christ.
And this is true of all the saints of all the ages. All the saints
who Paul is writing to have by faith come to Christ. And we
know that's God-given faith. They've come to Christ. They
were made willing in the day of God's power and they fled
to Christ. They confessed that they were
sinners in need of God's sovereign mercy. All of them came by the sovereign,
irresistible, drawing power of God, the Holy Spirit. All of
them. All of them came confessing that
they had nothing to glory in except the Lord Jesus Christ. All of them gloried in Christ's
perfect work of redemption that he accomplished by himself. For them. and they esteemed others better
than themselves. They embraced one another as
brothers and sisters in the family of God. Now I ask you, is this
not true of every born-again, blood-washed saint in all the
ages? Is this not true of the saints
of God through generation and generation and generation? We
all feel the same way, all of us. It doesn't matter who we
are or where we are or what we are. None of us have anything
that would merit salvation in Christ. None of us. And we know we have nothing to
offer God to make us accepted in His presence. Nothing of ours. We all know
that. And they knew that too. They
knew that too. But thanks be to God for the
fact that it is Christ who has made us to differ. And just as
we know that, the Thessalonian saints knew that. They knew that
truth too. And everything we have comes
from our great God. And knowing that, why would we
glory as if we had not received it? And all of God's saints, beloved,
All of God's saints come to Christ the same way. The saints at Thessalonica
came by the sovereign, irresistible, drawing power of God the Holy
Spirit under the preaching of the glorious gospel of the Lord
Jesus Christ. By God's almighty power, the
gospel comes to us, not in word only, but in power, just like
it did for them. And that's how it comes to every
one of God's sheep. And even after we're saved, it
still comes to us that way, doesn't it? As we're being taught by
God, as we're growing in the grace and knowledge and truth
of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are born again, beloved, by
the almighty power of God, the Holy Spirit. By God-given faith,
we come to Christ. By God-given faith, we flee to
Christ. We embrace him as our creator.
We embrace him as our redeemer. We embrace him as our savior,
beloved. We embrace He who became a man so that by His perfect
obedience to the will of the Father, He could establish a
perfect righteousness for us. And we embrace Him, don't we?
By faith, we embrace our Savior. And we embrace Him as our only
salvation, who satisfied the holy justice of God in our place
by the laying down of His life. The sinless one died for sinners.
And we embrace him as Savior, who obtained eternal redemption
for us. We embrace him as our risen,
exalted King, who is not only our sovereign Lord, but he is
sovereign over all. He is King of Kings, and he is
Lord of Lords. And we bow our knee to that by
faith, don't we? Acknowledging that truth. Acknowledging
that truth. And we see in our text that Paul
brings forth that God's church, his ecclesia, his born again,
blood washed people. It says. Is in God, the father,
look at let's read the verse one again, Paul and Sylvanias
and Timothy is under the Church of Thessalonians, which is in
God, the father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. And what does this
mean that all of God's saints, his chosen people, are in God
the Father, and we see also in the Lord Jesus Christ. Well,
beloved of God, we were in the Father's eternal purpose. We
were in the Father's eternal purpose in the salvation of his
elect. We were in the Father's promise of a particular people
who were given to Christ, his darling son. We were in the Father's eternal
love when He penned our names in the Lamb's Book of Life. We were in the Father's covenant
plan when He predestinated us into the adoption of children
in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. We were in the Father's
perpetual trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to meet all the conditions,
all the conditions of the eternal covenant of grace when he sent
his son to this earth to do his will. And we were in the father's full
pardon of sin granted to all those who were redeemed by the
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, who shed his blood for the everlasting
covenant. And we know he's a lamb slain
from the foundation of the world. So what comfort God's people
can glean here. We were in the father's will.
We were in the father's will when he by his sovereign power
begat us with the word of truth. Oh, what comfort for God's people.
We see the father's comforting concern for his born again people.
What comfort for the heirs of promise. That's who we are. The
heirs of promise. of the immutability of his counsel.
And when he gives us an understanding that he cannot lie, that he cannot
break his promise to his son, which is his promise to us, in
and through the Lord Jesus Christ, what great comfort we can gain
in that. What great comfort. And what strong comfort this
is for the sinner who's fled to Christ, who's our refuge,
our only hope. We have no hope outside of Christ.
And it is he who has entered into heaven itself there to appear
in the presence of God for us. And our text also says that the
church of God is in the Lord Jesus Christ. Beloved, we were
chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. We were chosen
in him before the foundation of the world. We were crucified
with Christ, Paul says. I'm crucified with Christ, nevertheless
I live, yet not I, but the life that I live, I live by the faith
of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me, Galatians
2.20. We were crucified with Christ
when his blood was shed for our sins. Beloved, he endured the wrath
of God for his promised children. He satisfied the holy justice
of God for us. We were in Christ when he was
buried and when he rose again for our justification. Leaving
all our sins in the sea of God's forgetfulness. Washed clean in
his precious blood. Never to be remembered again. My, when he ascended into heaven,
we were in Christ. Do you know the scripture says
we're already seated in the heavenlies with Christ? Some people could say, how is
that possible? Well, he knows the end from the beginning. Oh, my. Oh, my. He sat down on the right hand,
the majesty on high. Well, he will where he will allow
absolutely nothing to separate us from him. I think. He will allow absolutely nothing
in this world. To separate, we are as people
from him. And he says, I will know why
is cast out by people. That's comfort. That is great
comfort, God's people. And never forget that our God
loves his chosen people with an eternal, everlasting love. It's not like love on this earth.
It's an eternal love. It's an everlasting love. Look at the last part of verse
one. It says, grace be unto you and peace from God, our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ. We see here the correct order
is grace always precedes peace. Grace always precedes peace. Without the grace of God, there's
no peace with God. If He does not bestow His sovereign
grace on we hell-deserving sinners, then there will not be, nay,
there cannot be any true peace from God in our souls or in our
innermost beings. We who are the people of God
know. And we have experienced that God's grace is sovereign
grace, haven't we? We've experienced that. We've
experienced that, and if it's not sovereign grace, it's not
God's grace. That's just true. And God will not allow not even
one little stitch of man's works to be sewn into the perfect robe
of Christ's righteousness, not even a stitch. Romans chapter 11 turn if you
would there Romans as your own place we're turning in we'll
come back here to first Thessalonians Roman Romans chapter 11 Romans
chapter 11 verses 5 and 6 Romans chapter 11 verse 5 and 6 not
a stitch of man's righteousness. will be in that perfect robe
of Christ. Look at verses 5 and 6. Even
so then at this present time also there is a remnant according
to the election of grace. Grace, God's unmerited favor. And if by grace and it is no
more of what? Works. No more works. One's either saved
by grace or they're not saved at all. Otherwise, grace is no more grace.
But if it be of works, then it is no more grace. Otherwise,
work is no more work. So let's go back to 1 Thessalonians
1 and 2. We'll read this and then we'll
close. Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus unto the church of
the Thessalonians, which is in God the Father and in the Lord
Jesus Christ. Grace be unto you and peace from
God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, Paul brings forth
that the Thessalonian saints were in God, the Father, and
in Christ Jesus, the Lord. And we see here that he desires
that God's grace and peace would be upon them. And he assures
them of his prayers for for them and his thankfulness for them. We see that in verse two, we
give thanks to God always for you, making mention of you in
our prayers. Beloved salvation is by the grace
of God. It's by the grace of God, through
the perfect, finished, redeeming work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Any effort, anything on man's
part absolutely destroys the meaning of the word grace. Destroys
it. And Jesus Christ is every believer's
peace, isn't it? We don't have peace outside of
Christ. I got a text from a friend of mine, a dear brother in Colorado,
Jacob. And he was telling me about a
young man from Germany that's here, and he's freaking out about
what's going on in America. Now, we should be concerned about
what goes on, but we know who's in control, don't we? And I told
Jake, I said, there's a case of a natural man with no hope. with no hope in God. We have
a sovereign God. He is in full control. And all
things are happening and all things are working out according
to his determinant counsel. And we believe that is grace,
folks, we believe. And we we we rest in that, don't
we? Otherwise, we'd be going crazy.
Right. But we rest in it. The Lord's
in full control. I can trust Him. Even if I get
anxious about what's going on, I can trust Him. He's in control. He's not only in control of my
life, but He's running the whole thing. My, what a great God we
have. And that's our Savior, beloved.
That's our Lord. And He's our peace. And he's
the only one who we have peace with God through the Lord Jesus
Christ. The only one we can have peace with God is in and through
the Lord Jesus Christ. So to God be the glory, beloved.
Great things he hath done. Great things he hath done for
his people. Great things he hath done. Pardon
of all our sins. And to spend eternity in glory
with him. Heaven will only be heaven because
the Lord Jesus Christ is there. That's right. Because he's there,
glory to his name. Heavenly Father, we thank you
for allowing us the privilege of gathering together. Oh, Lord,
we never take it for granted. What an honor and a privilege
it is that we can come and worship in thy name and look into the
scriptures and rejoice at the wondrous things that you have
done, oh Lord. that you planned and purposed
and executed. And we thank you, Lord Jesus,
we who are your people. That your word, your precious
gospel didn't just come to us in word, oh Lord, but it came
in power. In the power of the Holy Spirit
of God. And we praise your mighty name,
oh Lord, for what you have done. For the fact that it did come
to us in power, knowing that it is all from thy sovereign
hand. Glory to you, May we worship
you while we're here on Earth. We know one day when we depart
from this world, this body of death, oh Lord, we will worship
you forever with all the fellow blood-bought saints. Glory to
your name. We love you because you first
loved us in Jesus' name. Amen. Okay.