For sermons and additional resources, visit STBARTS.COM.AU

1 THESSALONIANS: PREPARING FOR THE COMING KING (TALK 2/7: A LIFE WORTHY OF GOD) SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

CONNECT: How can you embody and proclaim the Gospel more this week? WARM-UP Questions 1. Has anyone ever tried to peddle a product or idea to you with selfish motives? What was the result? 2. Has someone ever tried to attack your character and integrity? How did you respond?

Read 1 Thessalonians 2:1-4 3. What is Paul trying to do in these four verses? Why does he keep recalling past experiences? 4. In v.5 Paul mentions his suffering in Philippi (you can read about it in Acts 16:11-40). What does his

willingness to endure suffering, in order to evangelise, tell us about his message? 5. What sort of doubts about his ministry might Paul be responding to here? 6. In v.4 Paul writes that he and his fellow apostles were ‘entrusted with the Gospel’. What does he mean? 7. What are our responsibilities as stewards or caretakers, entrusted with the gospel message?

Read 1 Thessalonians 2:5-8 8. How does Paul describe the manner in which missionaries to Thessalonica shared the gospel? 9. Can you think of examples of where people use flattery, masks, or people pleasing in order to sell their

ideas? How should ministers of the Gospel share their message? 10. What kind of relationships were formed during Paul’s time in Thessalonica? 11. What do you think Paul means when he writes in v.8 that they shared their ‘whole lives’ with them? 12. How does the love Paul has for the Thessalonians mirror God’s love for us? 13. What is St Bart’s doing to create a sincere, loving, and supportive community? How could we improve? Read 1 Thessalonians 2:9-12 14. Paul worked part-time as a tent-maker to support his ministry in Thessalonica. What does this tell us

about the Gospel and Paul’s motives? How do Christians follow this example today? 15. Is Paul bragging about his own conduct in these verses? Why/why not? 16. Make a list of the characteristics of a minister of the Gospel vs. religious salesmen from v.1-12. 17. What metaphors and analogies does Paul use to describe his relationships in the early church? 18. What sacrifices have you made in order to follow Jesus? What have you gained in the process? 19. What do you think Paul means when he writes: we encouraged you to ‘live a life worthy of God’?

APPLY (this week): How can we encourage each other to ‘live a life worthy of God’ today?

PRAY: Loving Father God, we thank you for your Word written for us. Thank you for your church which has preserved it for us. Thank you for Jesus who gave up his life, so that our relationships with you might be restored and that we might be welcomed into your kingdom and glory. Help us to be faithful ministers of your gospel of grace to our family, friends, and neighbours. In Jesus name. Amen!

For sermons and additional resources, visit STBARTS.COM.AU

1 THESSALONIANS: PREPARING FOR THE COMING KING

(TALK 2/7: A LIFE WORTHY OF GOD) GOING DEEPER RESOURCES

For Families • ‘God’s story: Paul’ by Crossroads Kids Club

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0p0W_Zbt1s

Video • ‘The Ministry of Exhortation’ by Al Pittman

https://vimeo.com/263765874

Audio • ‘Ordinary Saints: Ministers’ from Redeemer Church, Bellingham, USA

http://redeemernw.org/sermon-1-thessalonians/ • ‘The work of the Gospel’ by John Stott

https://www.allsouls.org/Media/PlayMedia.aspx?download=file&media_id=52686&file_id=57934

• ‘Morality of Religious Salesmen’ by Phillip Jensen https://phillipjensen.com/sermons/morality-of-religious-salesman/?player=audio

• ‘Personal Work’ by Leonie Mason http://www.st-helens.org.uk/resources/media-library/src/talk/9729/title/personal-work?hasFlash=true&

• ‘How to have a fruitful church’ by Peter Carolane https://soundcloud.com/merri-creek-anglican/how-to-have-a-fruitful-church-1-thessalonians-21-16

• ‘On Sharing the Gospel’ by Dick Lucas https://resources.thegospelcoalition.org/library/on-sharing-the-gospel

• ‘On sharing your own soul’ by John Piper https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/on-sharing-your-own-soul

• ‘A model worker’ by Mark Chew http://www.holytrinitydoncaster.org.au/resources/sermons/?sermon_id=2235

Helpful Books and Articles • ‘A Compelling Example for Ministry – 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12’ by J. Hampton Keathley, III

https://bible.org/seriespage/4-compelling-example-ministry-1-thess-21-12 • ‘1&2 Thessalonians, Be Ready – Living in Light of Christ’s Return’ by Warren W. Wiersbe

https://www.amazon.com.au/Wiersbe-Bible-Study-Thessalonians-Christs-ebook/dp/B00HE27BSQ

Talk 2/7 (1 THESSALONIANS SERIES): 14/10/18 “A life worthy of God”

by the Rev’d David Browne

Bible Passage: 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12

Well we’re into Chapter 2 of 1 Thessalonians where Paul encourages the people of Thessalonica to live a life worthy of God • Last week we looked at how the Thessalonians had received, embodied and

proclaimed the gospel and how glowingly Paul spoke about this amazing church. • Adam also shared with us a key piece of historical context that’s vital to

understanding this letter • Paul had travelled to the city of Thessalonica, a free, prosperous, and multi-cultural

city and proclaimed from the Jewish scriptures that Jesus is God’s chosen saviour who suffered and died but that he had beaten death!

• Acts 17 tells that the church grew quickly • But then on week 3 of Paul’s missionary visit jealous people rounded up some thugs

and started a riot, beat up the first Christians they could find (because they couldn’t find Paul), and dragged them before the Roman rulers.

• As soon as night fell the Christians in Thessalonica smuggled Paul and Silas out of the city to save their lives.

• Despite this resistance the church grew but as Paul writes to the Thessalonians people are questioning his care for the Thessalonians and his authority as a minister.

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• Isn’t Paul just a coward? Does he really care about you? Is he really qualified to teach you about God, he’s not very rich, impressive, or powerful?

• It’s not just Paul’s character or integrity that is under attack here, it’s the gospel he preaches

• Chapter 2 is a defence of Paul’s ministry but it’s also an exhortation, an encouragement, that the Thessalonians follow his example and live a life worthy of God

• Today we’ll see that a life worthy of God is: • Often FORGED under trial (vv.1-4);

BUILT on loving relationships (vv.5-8); and and SUSTAINED through Sacrifice (vv.9-12).

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#1 FORGED UNDER TRIAL \\ VERSES 1-4

Paul begins this word of encouragement by reminding the Thessalonians of what they already know: “You know, brothers and sisters, that our visit to you was not without results.We had previously suffered and been treated outrageously in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in the face of strong opposition.” (1 Thessalonians 2:1–2)

• It seems Paul is quite fond of telling us what we already know because he does it 15 times in the letter and 6 times in our passage today

• The reason he does this is not because he thinks his readers are forgetful though,

• Paul is recalling a shared memory among his friends in order to remind them of what they had been through together.

• Their faith had been forged under trial,

• Many of the Thessalonians had been humiliated, beaten, and had seen their friends die for their faith

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With the mists of doubt swirling around them Paul is reminding the Thessalonians of what they had been through together and more importantly of the gospel he had preached among them

The gospel Paul shares is the good news of God himself and Paul sees the trial that accompanies this news not as a reason to doubt it but as a reason to trust it:

“For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you.On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts.” (1 Thessalonians 2:3–4)

• The truthfulness of the faith the Thessalonians received is evident in the way in which it was preached.

• Here Paul appeals to the only power he has over the Thessalonians the power of the gospel and the way the gospel informed the way it was preached to them

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• His message didn’t come from a false hope or dodgy motivations, Paul wasn’t some religious huckster trying to dupe the people

• Instead he and his fellow missionaries carried themselves as people sent by God himself, entrusted with God’s gospel, and their actions matched their message

• They weren’t people pleasers looking to dazzle others, they were messengers of the living God, ultimately they lived for Him

The missionaries’ willingness to endure trial coupled with their integrity reminds the Thessalonians that their God is real and can be trusted; their faith is sure

This part of the passage reminds us that faith is often (not always) forged under trial

• Faith that is real and faith that is sure will endure even when times are rough and the chips are down

• This should prompt us to reconsider where we put our trust? !6

• Is our faith a fair-weather faith built on good-advice and promises of prosperity and popularity if we commit our lives to it’s tenants

• Are we listening to people whose motives are dodgy, who use clever word tricks, or who speak to please us rather than God?

• Or is our faith based on the Word of God and on the preaching of faithful people who are motivated by their love for God rather than selfishness?

• In writing of their shared sufferings and trials, Paul reminds these early Christians and us today that when we suffer for Jesus, Jesus is with us

• If you’ve never suffered for the sake of Christ or even been given a hard time for being a Christian then well and good

• But if you have suffered for Christ then Paul’s words to you are this, hang in there, your suffering is not outside the control of God who tests our hearts

A life worthy of God is forged under trial, faith is like a muscle, as it’s put under strain it strengthens and grows

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#2 BUILT ON LOVING RELATIONSHIPS \\ VERSES 5-8

Paul continues to exhort and revive the faith of the Thessalonian church by calling them to build their lives on sincere relationships

He again reminds them of what they already know:

“You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from people, not from you or anyone else, even though as apostles of Christ we could have asserted our authority.” (1 Thessalonians 2:5–6)

• Here he uses negative examples to remind his friends of the sincerity and respect with which he and his fellow missionaries shared the gospel with them

• Thessalonica was an open market of religions and cults

• Clever speakers would flatter their audiences with flowery words and use every trick into the book to gain followers and take their cash

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• But the disciples of Jesus who came to Thessalonica, weren’t looking for praise from people or their money

• They wanted to warn people of God’s judgement and the coming wrath, and to tell them that Jesus is the way the truth, and the life

• They didn’t throw their weight around and use power plays to make people listen

• Instead they came to town and built genuine relationships with the people they were hoping to convince that Jesus rose from the dead

• These relationships took time and energy but they were gospel shaped relationships

• Paul’s next examples are positive:

“…we were like young children among you. Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.” (1 Thessalonians 2:7–8)

• Paul shared the gospel and discipled the people of Thessalonica as if he was an infant

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• The gentleness and innocence with which missionaries to Thessalonica shared Jesus was deeply intentional but never coercive or pushy

• The care, dignity, and respect these apostles showed as they shared their whole lives with their friends was shaped and informed by a deep family type love

• When my son Micah was born the midwives lay him on my wife’s chest and she smiled a smile that I’ve only seen her use for him in their most intimate moments

• Paul freely uses feminine imagery to describe the love he has for his friends in Corinth

• This is the same love that Jesus had for Jerusalem as he approached it and said:

““Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.”(Luke 13:34 NIV)

This is the type of love that is willing to die for the other

• Paul and his fellow apostles didn’t just hit Thessalonica, peddle their religion by their own authority split and run

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• They loved the people who they shared their lives with and were willing to give anything so that they might know Jesus and follow him

I remember the first day Zoë and I visited St Bart’s

I wasn’t really sold on going to an Anglican Church and the sermon was long and the music wasn’t my favourite

But the welcome we received was amazing

Within a couple of weeks we were invited to a join a small group and the people we met there loved us like family not because of who we were

Newly married nobodies from Brissy

They loved us because they loved God and that love extended to us

Those people shared their lives with us and discipled us and help us grow even today

They are the people who we can call on to lend us things, listen to us when we’re sad, or pray for us when life is hard

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Sincerity and healthy relationships aren’t something that pop out of thin air,

Supportive, healthy, christian relationships are built on individual disciples committing to living for Jesus,

As we strive to make and mature disciples of Jesus, we can only do so on a foundation of loving relationships and a passion for living lives worthy of God

#3 SUSTAINED SACRIFICIALLY\\ VERSES 9-12

In verse 9 Paul takes another opportunity to remind the Thessalonians of what they already know, showing them that a life worthy of God is sustained sacrificially:

“Surely you remember, brothers and sisters, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you. You are witnesses,

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and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed..” (1 Thessalonians 2:9–10 NIV)

• Now if you’re like me you may be thinking: get over yourself Paul

• Stop humble bragging about your behaviour

• At this point it’s important to remember two things:

• Firstly in Roman culture weakness was considered shameful and no one attempting to brag would ever speak of their hardships

• Preachers were like rockstars, strutting their power and victorious life, they’d never talk about toil and hardship

• Secondly it’s important to note that the Thessalonians knew Paul

• If Paul’s life didn’t match his example we probably wouldn’t have the letter to the Thessalonians, it would be forgotten as the words of a deluded hypocrite

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Instead the Thessalonians preserved and shared this letter because Paul’s example was countercultural and matched his message

• In v.9 we read of the sacrifices the apostle’s made to share the gospel

• Paul was a tentmaker who worked by day in the marketplace making and fixing tents and preaching whenever he could

• He did this not because he had no right to draw a wage from his preaching

• He did it because he wanted everyone to know Jesus

• Christianity was unique in the ancient world in that it attracted rich people and poor alike

• It wasn’t like the folk religions that allowed poor peasants to buy the little hope they could afford

• The gospel was good news free of charge for everyone and Paul and other missionaries like him worked part-time in order to support their preaching so they didn’t have to ask for money

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• This still happens today as the church planter goes without a wage for a year until his church can support him

• Or when the uni chaplain works part-time as a doctor to support their ministry

• On our staff team here at St Bart’s we have three full-time mums, a doctor, an engineer, a retail worker, a student, and others who use the money they have earned elsewhere to enable them to work for St Bart’s

• Paul sacrificed his right to draw a wage from his preaching in order to remove any barriers to people hearing the gospel

• The final verses of our passage really bring home what a life worthy of God looks like

• Paul knows the Thessalonians have seen, and God has seen, how their conduct revealed the truthfulness of the gospel in their lives

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• Using a father-child image he recalls how the apostles encouraged, comforted, and spurred on the young Thessalonians Christians to live a life worthy of God

• Now this might sound like perfectionism, and we all know that no one is perfect and can live up to God’s standard of perfection

But what Paul is talking about here is different

In the movie ‘As good as it gets’ Jack Nicholson plays: Melvin (a pig of a man) who falls in love with the only waitress in town who can tolerate his behaviour - Carol. Melvin works hard to impress Carol and but eventually he stuffs up big time and Carol tells him she wants him out of her life. In one of the final scenes Melvin tries desperately to win Carol back but gets nowhere until he confesses: “You make me want to be a better man”

Surely if the lover can say “You make me want to be a better man” or the father can say to his children: “You make me want to be a better father” then we can say

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• Jesus makes me want to be a better disciple

• God ! I want to live a life worthy of you

• This is an impossibly high standard of living

• But with the example of other Christians like Paul, and the help of the Holy Spirit, it’s worth a try

• God has lavished his love on us

• This gospel truth is central to the whole book of 1 Thessalonians

• Paul doesn’t want us to live in order to win brownie points or somehow pay God back

• Instead he encourages/exhorts the Thessalonians to live out of the overflow of the love God has for them

• He’s exhorting them to live in response to the gospel

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• A life worthy of God that is (so often) forged under trial, built on loving relationships, and sustained through sacrifice

That’s a life worthy of God!

Let’s pray!

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