A Mother's Nurture and a Father's Instruction

Sharing With You the Gospel and Our Lives
(1 Thessalonians 2:1-16; Sunday, October 13; Preaching: Associate Pastor Nathan Snyder)

From Luke’s account in Acts, it seems Paul and Silas only spent a few weeks in Thessalonica before strong opposition against them forced them to have to leave town.  It was an amazing work of the Holy Spirit that in such a small amount of time, a new congregation of believers was born, and that under such difficult circumstances.  Paul mentions in verse 14 how these new Christians suffered much from their countrymen, just as the Jewish Christians in Judea had suffered from the unbelieving Jews.  The Thessalonian Christians had embraced the message preached by Paul and Silas as not merely the words of men but as the very word of God, which of course it was (verse 13).  Paul and Silas had been empowered by God to bring his good news, what Paul calls three times “the gospel of God” (verses 2, 8, 9).  Just as God had given them boldness under stiff opposition to declare this good news of salvation through Jesus Christ (verse 2), so God had empowered these new Christians to embrace that good news with the joy of the Holy Spirit, even while experiencing great persecution (1:4-6; 2:13-14).  Since this was all the work of God, Paul and Silas gave thanks to God for the new faith of these Christians (verse 13).  The credit did not ultimately go to Paul and Silas who brought the good news.  They were just the messengers of God’s word, and it was God who enabled them to proclaim in boldly.  Nor did the credit go to the Thessalonians for receiving that good news.  God graciously enabled them to receive it.  The same is true for us today.  Are we able to receive God’s word in faith?  Tell others the good news?  Face affliction with joy?  Thanks be to God!  This is the grace of God to us.

In the midst of giving thanks to God, Paul spends two paragraph reminding the Thessalonians of the integrity of his own ministry among them and his great love for them.  This might sound strange.  If all the glory goes to God, why is Paul talking so much about himself here?  Paul was likely concerned because circumstances had forced him and Silas to leave after only a short time with the fledgling church.  Perhaps he thought it might look like he had done a drive-by gospelling.  Come into town, fire the gospel at people, win some converts, and then when trouble comes, abandon them.  Paul actually sent Timothy from Athens back to see how the new church was doing (3:1-5) and Timothy had returned with a report before Paul wrote this letter.  Timothy brought a good report of the Thessalonians’ continuing faith and love and their longing to see Paul (3:6).  This was a big encouragement to Paul because he longed to see them as well, and he was eager for them to grow in their new faith.  He genuinely did care about them and didn’t want anyone to think otherwise.  He says in verse 8 that they had become very dear to him, even after just beginning to get to know them before they were abruptly ripped away by godless men who opposed God’s salvation (verses 15-17).

So Paul defended his character and ministry because he wanted the Thessalonians to know that he really did love them.  A related issue here is that as an ambassador of Jesus Christ, the message Paul proclaimed was tied to the life he lived as he proclaimed the message.  What would Paul be communicating if he professed to speak the plain truth of God and yet was found to be using deceitful methods (verse 3)?  God is not an unscrupulous salesman who promises one thing but delivers something else.  His word is true.  When he promises eternal life and love and joy through his Son, he means it.  Or what would Paul be communicating if he proclaimed the glory of God in Christ with his lips and yet was clearly seeking to please people and win their approval and praise for himself (verses 4, 6)?  The gospel is not a display of my glory or your glory.  It is a display of the glory of God through his Son Jesus as he saves hell-deserving sinners such as ourselves through the sacrifice and righteousness of Jesus.  And God calls us to a glorious life of pleasing him, not living enslaved to the wishes of others and trying to please everyone.  Or what would Paul be communicating if he spoke about the free grace of God and yet was angling to get people’s money or making burdensome demands on people (verses 5-6, 9)?  What would Paul be communicating if he spoke about the love of God, but was himself cold toward his hearers (verses 7-8)?  God gives us his grace as a gift to be received by trusting him.  Praise God he doesn’t make hoops for us to jump through to earn his grace and love!  Nor does he treat us as minions in some grand project.  He doesn’t need us but in his love he gives us the privilege of being used for his kingdom work.  He gives us gifts to use in service to one another, but it all comes from him.  It is all a gift of his free grace.  Because Paul loved the Thessalonians and wanted only to be a catalyst for their coming to know the free grace of God in Christ and experience that grace changing their lives through the Holy Spirit, he was eager to defend his character and ministry.  He sought by his life to commend the very gospel he proclaimed and the God who gives himself to us through the gospel, the good news of his Son.  It was because his and his companions’ lives commended the gospel they proclaimed that Paul could say their coming was not in vain (verse 1).

Paul uses two parenting metaphors in his description of his ministry.  In verses 7-8 he says he had been like a nursing mother taking care of her children.  He was affectionately desirous of these new believers.  He didn’t just share the gospel, he shared his own self, his own life with them, because they had become very dear to him.  This is a beautiful picture, and I hope it will sink deep in our subconscious that this is what God is like with us.  He has strong affection for his children.  Child of God, you are very dear to him.  He has a mother’s love for you.  He wants you to thrive and flourish.  His heart longs for you.  And at the heart of the gospel is this message: God has come to share with us himself.  He gave up his life on the cross that he might draw us forever to himself.  We might then ask ourselves this: Do we love and long for one another?  Does our heart toward our brothers and sisters reflect God’s heart toward his children?  Sharing our lives with one another gets messy.  God’s love is messy.  It got messy on the cross.  He has drawn us into his family and we are very dear to him.

In verses 9-12 Paul says he was also like a father with his children as he instructed them and charged them to live in a manner worthy of God who had called them to his own kingdom and glory.  In verses 9-10 we see how Paul himself was seeking to live such a life.  As would a good father, Paul taught by both word and example.  When he urged these new believers to live in a manner worthy of God, he didn’t mean they must make themselves worthy of God.  The gospel is a message of free grace to unworthy sinners who don’t deserve God, don’t deserve to be in his kingdom, and don’t deserve to see his glory.  God calls us sinners to himself, into his kingdom, to enjoy his glory.  This is an amazing privilege!  Likewise, it is an amazing privilege that as citizens now of God’s kingdom, as his very children, our lives reflect on him, and we have the opportunity to live in a way that shows his worth.  An honorable father who loves his children teaches them to live in a way that reflects the honor of the family.  This is what God our Father calls us to.  Think of the words of Jesus: “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).  Of course, these words show our need for Christ’s perfect righteousness because we do not have perfect righteousness apart from him.  But they are also a loving charge from God through his Son to us whom he has adopted now as his children.  We have the privilege of reflecting our Father’s character.  This should not discourage us because he gives us power through the Holy Spirit to grow in this as we look to him for strength.  Walking in obedience is not easy.  Our sinful flesh keeps pulling us back, and as we read in verses 14-16, we may experience opposition in the world from those who displease God and oppose the spread of his kingdom.  But it is the word of God which is at work in us who believe that equips us to grow in obedience to our Father (verse 13).  And we help one another as we share our lives together and speak the truth of God’s word to one another in love.

What do we say regarding Paul’s words in verses 14-16 about the wrath of God on the Jews who sought to hinder his salvation from going to the Gentiles?  Is this contradictory to the love of God we have been speaking about?  The answer is no.  Yet clearly God is not happy when his own people Israel would kill the prophets he sent to them, kill his own Son whom he sent for their salvation, shut themselves out of his kingdom, and try to hinder others from coming in.  Note that Paul is talking about unbelieving Israel here.  Many Jews, including Paul himself, had embraced Jesus as the Christ.  Actually, Paul had been among those trying to squash the spread of Christianity until Jesus mercifully saved him.  But many Jews did not receive God’s saving purposes and tried to stop the gospel going out to others.  When Paul speaks of the wrath of God here I think he is referring to the partial hardening of the Jewish people, meaning God’s giving them over to their rebellion and letting them thrust themselves out of his kingdom.  Paul speaks of this in Romans 11 where he also says that one day God will overcome this unbelief and all Israel will be saved.  In any case, even in God’s wrath here we see his love.  While the unbelieving Jews were opposing all mankind, God would love for all mankind to come into his family.  Have you received the love of God offered in his gospel?  If you are outside God’s kingdom and his family, do not stay outside!  He has freely given himself on the cross for your sins so that even you can come in by his free grace.  He wants to share with you his own life for you to enjoy him and learn to reflect his goodness and righteousness forever.