Remind you that no services this
Wednesday night and we're going to have services Friday night
and have a New Year service. We're going to observe the Lord's
table together Friday night and the Harry's are having people
over afterwards. Anyone who all are invited, are
we supposed to bring something? I forgot to ask. Okay, bring appetizer. Lynn asked
me, did you point that out? And I said, no. So that's why
I had a wherewithal to do that. First, Thessalonians. Now, Paul wrote to seven different
churches. He wrote 13 epistles. to seven different churches,
to two of the churches he wrote two epistles. He wrote first
and second Timothy, Titus, which are called the pastoral epistles,
and he wrote a personal letter, Philemon. And these churches
that he wrote to were men and women just like me and you. Don't forget that. Well, they
were living in a different time. I know they were living in a
different time, but they were just like me and you. Let me show
you that in Thessalonians before we look at this chapter, this
book, look in verse 14 of chapter five. Now we exhort you, brethren,
warn them that are unruly. They had people in their church
who were unruly. Insubordinate is what the word
means. Comfort the feeble-minded. The faint-hearted is what the
word means. The fearful and afraid. Support
the weak. There were people there who were
weak. Weak in faith, weak in spirit. Be patient toward all
men. Now, when he said that, that
means there are people in this church you're going to have to
exercise patience with. Verse 15, see that none render
evil for evil unto any man. Now there are some people who
are going to treat you in this church in an evil manner. Don't
pay them back. Now that gives us some idea of
the type of people that were in this church and in every other
local assembly. people just like me and you,
sinners saved by the grace of God who are still sinners. And that's obvious from what
he's saying to this church at Thessalonica, when he says with
regard to these people, these five different descriptions.
Now look back in chapter one, verse nine, He tells us of his entrance when
he first entered Thessalonica. And you know, when I thought
about that, I thought, what has the Lord's entrance been with
me? He entered this place and he tells what the response of
these people were. Look in verse nine, for they
themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you,
how that you turned to God. That's what happened when we
entered in unto you. You turn to God from idols. Now that order is so important. You did not turn from idols to
God. You didn't turn from your idols
until you were first turned to God. And when you turned to God,
you saw idols for what they were, fake gods, idols, and nothing
more. It's not like you were hungering
and thirsting and all of a sudden you saw the vanity of your idols
and you thought there must be something more than this. And
then you turned to God. No, you turned to God. Let me tell you why you turned
to God. He turned you to him. and when you were turned to him
and turned to him you saw idols for what they are idols nothing
more to serve the living and true god and to wait for his
son from heaven whom he raised from the dead even jesus which
delivered us from the wrath to come for yourselves brethren
know how our entrance in unto you was not in vain. Let me just
read these verses. I'm not gonna make any comment
on them. But even after that we had suffered before and were
shamefully entreated, as you know at Philippi, we were bold
in our God to speak unto you the gospel of God with much contention.
Now he's talking about his second missionary journey when he went
to Philippi. And after that, he entered into the church of
the Thessalonians. For our exhortation, was not
of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile, but as we were
allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak. Not as pleasing men, but God,
which trieth our hearts, for neither at any time used we flattering
words, as you know, nor a cloak of covetousness, God is witness,
nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others, when
we might have been burdensome. as the apostles of Christ but
we were gentle among you even as a nurse cherishes her children
so being affectionately desirous of you we were willing to have
imparted unto you not the gospel of God only but also our own
souls because you were dear unto us." Now that is how they came
into Thessalonica, that was their attitude. Now Acts chapter 17
gives us the story of when they first came into Thessalonica.
If you turn with me there for a moment, Acts chapter 17. And when they had passed through
Amphipolis, this is Paul's second missionary journey. He had left
Philippi and when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia,
they came to Thessalonica. where it was a synagogue of the
Jews. And Paul, as his manner was,
went in unto them and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of
the scriptures. This is where his message came
from, the scriptures. And here's what he had to say
from the scriptures opening and alleging. that Christ must needs
have suffered. He must needs have risen again
from the dead. And this Jesus whom I preach
into you is Christ. He's God's Messiah. Now this
is how he came into Thessalonica with this message. And I think
this is interesting. He talked about how Christ must
needs die. I wonder if anybody much in Lexington,
Kentucky is talking about why it was necessary for Christ to
die. Oh, everybody says Christ died, but do they tell why it
was necessary for Christ to die? Why was it necessary for Christ
to be raised from the dead? Now, the preaching is not preaching
from the scripture if it doesn't talk about why it was necessary
for Christ to die and why it was necessary for Christ to be
raised from the dead. Question, why was it necessary?
Because God purposed it. The creation of the universe
was for this event, the life, the death, and the resurrection
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Why did he die? Because he was
guilty. The sins of God's elect became
his sins. He became guilty of the commission
of those sins. And it scares me to even say
that. That's so understandable, but he did. He became guilty
of the commission of those sins and the very justice of God smote
him. Why was he raised from the dead?
Why was it necessary? Because he made full satisfaction. He made complete atonement. Everybody
he died for must be saved. That's gospel preaching. Anything
less than that is not gospel preaching. And that is the way
Paul went into Thessalonica. This was his manner. This is
the way he came into a place that he never preached before.
He came in with that message, this Jesus that I preach unto
you, the one born in Bethlehem, the one who went down to Nazareth,
the one who lived, the one who died and was raised from the
dead. He's Christ. He's God's anointed Messiah. Whoso believeth that Jesus is
the Christ is born of God. And some of them, verse four,
believed and consorted with Paul and Silas and the devout Greeks,
a great multitude, and the chief women, not a few. But the Jews
which believed not moved with envy. took unto them certain
lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set
all the city on an uproar, 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, whom Jason has received. These all
do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there's another
king. Here's their message. There's another king. Caesar
ain't a king. Jesus Christ the Lord is the
King of kings. He's the Lord of lords. Now, that was his preaching.
when he came into that place and as you go on reading he got
ran out of town. He preached there about three
weeks and he got ran out of town that's where he went down to
Berea and the folks from Thessalonica came down to Berea when they
heard Paul was preaching down there and they started an uproar
there and he got ran out of town there and he is turned to back
to 1st Thessalonians chapter 3 Now this happened just weeks
after he got ran out of town. That's when he wrote this epistle.
First Thessalonians chapter three, wherefore when we could no longer
forbear, We thought it good to be left at Athens alone. You
can remember in Acts chapter 17 is when he went into Athens
after he'd been ran out of those places. And he's writing this
just a number of weeks after this took place. And we sent
Timotheus, our brother and minister of God and our fellow labor in
the gospel of Christ to establish you and to comfort you concerning
your faith that no man should be moved by these afflictions.
For yourselves know that we are appointed thereto For verily,
when we were with you, we told you before that we should suffer
tribulation. And even as it's come to pass,
you know for this cause when I could no longer forbear. I
sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter had
tempted you, and our labor be in vain." And that's when he
sent Timotheus. He thought, I wonder what's happened
with these people. This was three or four weeks,
they didn't have internet and phones and things that we have,
and he didn't know what had happened. And he, when he could no longer
forbear, he sent Timothy to find out. if they had continued to
believe. And Timothy came back with this
good report. And that's when he wrote this
epistle to the Thessalonians. I go back to chapter one. Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus
under the church of the Thessalonians. This was a very young church.
It had only been in existence as far as the church goes for
less than a couple of months at the most. But here he is writing
to him and look what he says. Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus
unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and
in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now he gave their geographical
location Thessalonica. But then he gives their spiritual
location. In God the Father. and in the
Lord Jesus Christ. What a place to be. What a place
to be. That's where I wanna be. In God
the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. So when God the Father
sees me, he sees his blessed, only begotten, well-beloved son
in Christ. That's the only place to be.
In God the Father. And in the Lord Jesus Christ,
grace be unto you and peace. Now salvation really is all grace.
Peace from God, our father in the Lord, Jesus Christ. He says
in verse two, we give thanks to God always for you all. He doesn't say. We give thanks
to you. Thank you for being here. I remember
Jack Shanks doing this one time. Preachers say, thank you for
being here. I'm not going to thank you for being here. You ought
to thank God you're here. I like that. I like that. That
very attitude. Thank you. And he's thanking
God, isn't he? He's not thanking. Now, that's
not to say he wouldn't. He loved these people. You saw
that. He treated them as a nurse and a mother. treats her children. I mean, this is not hardness
on his part, but still he says, I thank God for you. I don't
thank you. I thank God for you. We give
thanks to God always for you all making mention of you in
our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, your
labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ,
in the sight of God and our Father. Now you'll notice these three
things he mentions, and this is what every believer has in
common. Remember when Paul said, now
abideth faith, hope, charity. That's what he's talking about
here. And this is what every believer has in common. Every
one of them have faith in Christ, Every one of them have love for
Christ and every one of them perseveres in faith in Christ
and love to Christ. Their hope endures. I love this language. Your work
of faith, you know, only faith works. Nothing else does. Your labor of love, only love
labors, nothing else does. And your patience of hope, your
endurance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of
God and our Father. And then he makes this incredible
statement to these new believers. I mean, these people, he hadn't
known them very long at all. And what he says to them is just
utterly incredible. He says, knowing, Brethren, beloved,
your election of God. Now that's an incredible statement.
You know, with regard to anybody, I believe I'm among God's elect,
but I would almost feel afraid to say to anybody, I know you're
the elect of God. I wouldn't feel very comfortable
doing that, because what if I'm wrong? And when I'm saying that,
I'm not talking about doubting people in the sense that I got
just as much hope in your salvation as I do my own. I'm not talking
about me standing in doubt of anyone, but I am saying that
is an incredible statement. Knowing, brethren beloved, your
election of God. Now, obviously, he had dealt
with election with him when he first came there. That's obvious. And you know, I've been thinking
of the, you know, in the Lord, I don't know when I was first
saved. I've gone back and forth. I couldn't
tell you exactly. I know when I was first saved
is when I first believed the gospel. I know that. But I remember
God using election to shake me up. When I heard that God elected
a people and I understood that. You know what my response was?
Anger. Disagreement. This is not fair. This put me in a position of
being out of, having no control. There's not one thing I can do
to save myself. It's up to God to save me. I
can't do anything. First, anger. Then God used that
to show me that indeed, I've not loved God at all. I've not
loved him for who he was. As a matter of fact, I've hated
him. And you know what I did then? God, be merciful to me,
the sinner. That's why I believe that it's
critically important when we preach the gospel to people,
go to election. Tells who God is. Tells how he
saves. Tells of his character. And that's
what Paul said of these people. He said, I know your election
of God. Now that's, he didn't have access
to the Lamb's Book of Life. Now the Lamb's Book of Life from
the foundation of the world has the names of all of God's elect
inscribed in that book. But Paul didn't have any access
to it. And yet he says to these people, I know your election
of God." Now, he's going to tell them how he knows. But wherever
there's faith in Christ, wherever there's love to Christ, wherever
there's hope in Christ, electing mercy is behind it, isn't it?
Knowing, brethren, beloved, your election of God. Verse 5, for our gospel is I
know 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 men we were among you
for your sake. Our gospel. Our gospel. Now, I love the definite article,
the gospel. The gospel. The only gospel. The gospel of God. The gospel
concerning His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Paul said, I'm not
ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation. The gospel. I love the gospel. But let me tell you something
that I say, I love even more. I love my gospel. When the gospel
becomes my gospel, when it becomes our gospel, you know, I can look
at this assembly. And when I say our gospel, you
know exactly what I mean. We have the same gospel, our
gospel. It's that which is objective,
the gospel, has become subjective when the gospel comes as good
news to you, and it's your gospel. This is my gospel. This is what's
gospel to me. Our gospel. I love the way Paul
says that. Our gospel came not unto you
in word only. Now, what's it mean to come in
word only where he goes on to tell us, but before we go on
to look in first Thessalonians chapter two, verse 13 for this
cause also thank we God without ceasing. Because when you receive
the word of God, which you heard of us, you received it. Not as
a word of men, not as man's. gospel, not as man's thoughts.
This is your thought. This is your take on it. This
is a Baptist view. This is a Methodist view. This
is a Catholic view. This is what's written in our
confessions of faith. This is what's written in the
whatever. That's only coming as man's gospel. And our gospel didn't come unto
you simply as the word of men. This is Paul's opinion, this
is some other preacher's opinion, this is my opinion, this is your
opinion. Our gospel came to you not as the word of men, but as
it is in truth, the word of God. Now that's when the gospel comes
to you, when it doesn't come as the word of man. This is God's
word. This is God's gospel. This is
the very truth of God. Now, when you hear the gospel
as the gospel, you know, it comes from God. You might not be so
sure about yourself, but you're sure about the message. This
is God's message. I love what Paul said in the
next epistle, in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, where he talked about
those people who received not the love of the truth. Now you can receive the truth
and never receive the love of the truth. And that is receiving
the gospel in word only. You just intellectually, cognitively
see how the scripture teaches this, but you don't love it.
Our gospel came not to you in word only. But how, back in our
text in verse five, but also in power. Now, omnipotence. Omnipotence. That's the power
of the word. You know, it took the omnipotence
of God for you to believe. It took the omnipotence of God
for you to be born of the spirit. I mean, this is a powerful thing.
It didn't come to you in word only, but also in power and what
goes with the power and in the Holy Ghost. The power comes from him. This
is a supernatural divine birthing, giving of life. And then he says,
our gospel came to you also in power and the Holy Ghost and
in much assurance. Now, this is not talking about
assurance of salvation. Now, I believe in having assurance
of salvation. You know, when I hear the gospel,
I have assurance of salvation. When I hear the word preached,
I have assurance of salvation. I know I'm saved. And I've said
before, the kind of preaching I love is the preaching that
makes me know I'm saved. If I hear preaching that makes
me think maybe I'm not saved, What I'm doing is hearing somebody
that's pointing me somewhere other than Christ, and that's
what's shaking me up, and I start looking, well, maybe I'm missing
something. I hate preaching like that. I hate it. Oh, I love preaching
that lets me know the Redeemer loves me. I belong to Him. I'm His, and He is mine. Now,
let me tell you this. You'll have assurance here in
the gospel, and as soon as you start saying, well, do I have
assurance? Out the door. It's gone. It's assurance comes
from not from you thinking you're a savior, you're saved. Assurance
comes from looking to Christ. You look to Christ, you have
assurance. You look to your assurance, it
flies away. Happens every time. I know that's so. But he's not
talking about personal assurance. He's talking about much assurance
that this is the gospel. Nothing else is. That's what
it is to hear in, not in word only, but in power and the Holy
Ghost and much assurance. As you know, he says in verse
five, what manner of men we were among you for your sake. It was obvious, Paul says to
these people that, um, You could see we came, God sent
us. You could see it by what manner of man we were among you
for your sake. And he went ahead and told what
manner of man they were in chapter two very clearly. But here's
the point. I'm not interested in hearing
anybody. Now I know no man is sinless,
I realize that. But I'm not interested in hearing
anybody where it's not obvious to me that Christ is there all
and that they know the Lord. If somebody's not like that,
I don't care how sound they may be, I don't care about hearing
them. And that's what Paul is saying. He says, you know what
manner of man we were among you for your sakes, verse six, and
you became followers of us and of the Lord. Somebody says, I'm
not gonna follow any man. Well, you ain't gonna follow
Christ then. It's that, it's that. He said, you became followers
of us and of the Lord. And I love this. Somebody else,
Matt, did you read Hebrews 13 in the study of this? Yeah, both
of you. I thought that this is great. I mean, Hebrews 13 has
been read twice publicly. And one of the verses is obey
them that have the rule over you. And that doesn't mean obey,
render obedience to the things they say. It means listen to
what they're saying. Listen to what they're saying.
Believe what they're saying. Obey them that had the rule over
you, considering the end of their conversation, Jesus Christ the
same, yesterday, today, and forever. Now that's the end of any true
preacher's conversation. I want to see Jesus Christ that's
the same, yesterday, today, and forever. I want you to see Jesus
Christ the same, yesterday, today, and forever. You know, I love
saying this, Jesus Christ never was. He never will be. He is. He's always I am that
I am Jesus Christ the same. That's the end of our conversation. That's the purpose. Don't you
want to just rejoice in Jesus Christ the same? Yesterday, today,
and forever, you became followers of us and of the Lord. Having
received the word, in much affliction. And there was plenty of affliction.
I mean, Paul had to get out of town. They were gonna kill him.
And I don't know what all affliction they had to experience, but you
can bet there was plenty of it. But not only in much affliction,
with the joy of the Holy Ghost, the gospel came as gospel to
them, good news to them. So that you, verse seven, So
that you were examples to all the believe in Macedonia and
Achaia. You became patterns to those
who believed. And here is what that means. Let's go on reading. Here's what
he talked. Here's what he's talking about. You became examples to
all the believe in Macedonia and Achaia for from you sounded
out the word of the Lord. Now that word sounded out is
where we get the word echo from. for from you echoed the word
of God. You see, if I preach, if you
preach the word of God, it's nothing less than echoing what
God's already said in his word. I love what Scott Richardson
used to say, preaching is saying what God's already said. That's
a good definition of preaching. It's saying what God has already
said. From you echoed out, sounded
out the word of the Lord. You simply said back what God
said. Now, I love the way he says this,
for from you sounded out the word of the Lord, not only in
Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place. Your faith to
God were to spread abroad so that we need not to speak anything.
We don't need to tell people who you believe or what you believe,
because you tell them who you believe and what you believe.
You know, whenever somebody knows the Lord, they want other folks
to know the Lord. You really do. You desire for
people to come to know the Lord that saved you. That's your desire. And you pray that God will open
doors for you to preach the gospel that they might believe. Let me quote Scott Richardson
again, and I think it's a good statement. We're in the people
business. I know we're in the gospel preaching
business, that's number one, but we're preaching to people,
aren't we? Men and women, boys and girls, and we want them to
know the Lord. These Thessalonians did. For
from you sounded forth the word of the Lord, the gospel. From
you sounded out the word of the Lord, not only in Macedonia and
Achaia, but also in every place. Your faith to God were to spread
abroad so that we need not to speak anything. For they themselves
show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you. How that
you turned to God. From idols to serve the living
and true God. You turned to God. Now, there's
only one reason you turned to God, because He turned you. And
when He turned you, you yourself turned to God. Now, you did it
because He turned you, but you turn to God, to the living God,
to God as He is, to the God of the Bible, to the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, to His salvation, to His glory,
to the manifestation of all of his glorious attributes which
are in the gospel, you turn to God. And you know what you did
then? You saw everything you believed
before that was nothing more than idolatry, false idols, false
fake gods, wrong beliefs, things that were completely wrong and
completely contrary to God. When you turn to God, you saw
idols as idols. You saw there was no truth to
them. They were nothing. You turn to God from idols to
serve the living and true God. I love what the Lord said in
John 17 three. This is life eternal. That they might know thee, the
only true God. And Jesus Christ, whom thou hast
sent." And here's what we're doing, verse 10, we're waiting
for his son from heaven. You know, I am waiting for his
return. Now, I don't know what's going
to happen in my lifetime. I hope it does. I do hope it does. Somebody once foolishly wrote
a book on The day the Lord would return, and they gave the day,
it was back in the 90s, and Henry Mahan had this response. I love
this. He said, well, I hope it is that
day. I hope he does come that soon, and I do too. We're waiting
on his return. When he shall come with trumpet
sound, oh, may I then in him be found, dressed in his righteousness
alone, thoughtless to stand before the throne. I'm waiting on his
return. Beloved, it doth not yet appear what we shall be,
but we know that when he shall appear, we'll be like him, for
we will see him as he is. Don't you desire that sight,
to see him as he is? And you won't have to look down
in shame, because you'll be just like him. Like David said, as
for me, I'll behold thy face in righteousness. I'll be satisfied,
but I'll wake with thy likeness. were waiting for his son from
heaven, and he identifies him, the one he raised from the dead. I love to think of the resurrection
of Jesus Christ from the dead. I love to think of him being
in that tomb. I love to picture in my mind him laying there dead,
and all of a sudden opening his eyes. You wonder what happened,
was there a big burst of light? I don't know, nobody saw in there,
but the Lord, I know they have all kinds of, what's that, shroud
of, I can't remember what it's called, but I just believe what the Bible
says, but I know he lived in that tomb and God's the only
one that saw it and he walked out of that tomb and the salvation
of every single one of his people was accomplished when he was
raised from the dead. He was delivered for our offenses
and raised again for our justification. Listen to me, justification comes
wholly by what he did. When he was raised from the dead
This sinner was declared made to be without sin, without guilt,
perfect in God's sight. Now that's what he did. He's
the one we're waiting on. He raised from the dead even
Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. We've been
delivered, but don't put your head in the sand. There is a
wrath to come. Now every believer's delivered from that wrath. We
stand before God, justified in Christ, without guilt. But there
is something called the wrath to come. And my only thought
with regard to the wrath to come is, look to Christ. Flee to Christ. Believe on Christ. He said, him that cometh to me,
I will in no wise cast out. Now your responsibility and my
responsibility is not to figure out whether or not we're elect,
or whether or not we've been born again, or whether or not
we're saved. God's command right now is to
believe on His Son. To trust Him as all you need
to make you perfect before God. You don't need to wait for something
to happen. You don't need to wait to become
better. You don't need to wait on anything. Look to Him right
now. That's God's command to you. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and thou shalt be saved. Let's pray. Lord, how we thank you for your
word, how we thank you for your gospel. And Lord, we pray that
we might be among those people who receive the gospel, not in
word only, but in power, in the Holy Spirit, and much assurance. Lord, only you can cause that
to be, and we ask that you would cause that to be. In Christ's
name we pray, amen.