The Easy Life?

 

“Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone, and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith, that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know. For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain.”

1 Thessalonians 3:1-5 ESV

 

Christians in America are conditioned to believe that we should have it easy. And we have, in fact, had it easy throughout our nation’s existence. We’ve been able to worship freely and to live out our faith without any real challenges or difficulties.

 

We’ve had it so easy that we’ve come to believe this is the way it’s supposed to be. We’ve come to believe that an easy life is the blessing of God that results from our faithfulness. We will sometimes go as far as equating the ease of our life with our level or strength of faith.

 

Nothing, however, is further from the truth. Although an easy life is certainly a blessing, in a sense, it is not indicative of our spiritual maturity. Nor is it a sure sign of God’s blessing.

 

Paul mentions in chapter 2 of 1 Thessalonians that the believers in that city had been suffering for their faith. They had been suffering for their faith just like the believers in Judea. Suffering was something that automatically went along with faith in Christ.

 

We see this truth in the above passage as well. Paul had sent Timothy to the Thessalonians to check on them. He had sent Timothy to strengthen them in faith. And he did so out of fear that the enemy may have lured them from faith by way of their affliction.

 

He recalls how he’d shared with them that they were destined to suffer affliction. They had been appointed to suffering. And this suffering had come to pass.

 

Everywhere the church has existed, suffering has typically come to those who believe in Jesus. And this has been true not only in history, but also today. Our brothers and sisters in Christ all around the world are well-acquainted with suffering.

 

As we read the words of Jesus, particularly in the gospel of John, he makes it clear that this is normal for the believer in Jesus. It results, he tells us, from our association with him. As the world responded to him, so does it respond to us. And as the world treated him, so will it treat us.

 

This, then, is something that we must expect. It isn’t something that we should find unusual or abnormal in any way. As believers in Jesus, we too are destined to suffer affliction.

Our Only Boast

 

^“But since we were torn away from you, brothers, for a short time, in person not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face, because we wanted to come to you—I, Paul, again and again—but Satan hindered us. For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? For you are our glory and joy.”

1 Thessalonians 2:17-20 ESV

 

We live in a very selfish culture. We live in a culture of self-seeking people and behavior. We live in a culture where the ultimate goal of most is both status and recognition.

 

For this reason, we boast in our accomplishments. We brag about our successes. And we put our achievements on full display.

 

We boast, for example, in our education. We boast in the awards and honors we’ve received. We boast in our wealth. And we boast in our status, in relation to others.

 

As believers, this tendency to boast doesn’t seem to fade. It remains. We maintain a continuing desire to boast before both God and man.

 

We boast most often about our behavior. We boast most often about our obedience. And we tend to boast about our perceived status.

 

We boast in the fact that we don’t smoke, drink, or chew, and that we don’t go out with girls who do. We boast in the fact that we attend church every week and that we read our Bible daily. We boast in the fact that we teach Sunday School, that we’ve assisted with the youth group, and that we serve on the church council.

 

However, as believers, our boasting should be found not in our perceived successes.  It should not be found in our perceived obedience. And it should not be found in our perceived spiritual maturity.

 

As we look at the above passage, we see the source of Paul’s boasting before Jesus. We see the source of his joy, as he stood in the Lord’s presence. And it didn’t have anything to do with his own personal sense of righteousness.

 

The source of his boasting was the Thessalonians, themselves. The source of his joy was the Thessalonians, themselves. The source of his hope was their faith and salvation.

 

When I say this, I don’t mean to imply that he was taking the credit for their salvation. He rejoiced in the fact that they had received the salvation of the Lord. And they were dear to him as they had done so through his ministry.

 

In the same way, when the Lord comes, we cannot boast in ourselves. When we stand before the Lord, we cannot boast in any of our perceived accomplishments. We can boast only in the salvation that God has provided. We can boast only in the salvation he’s granted to others. We can boast and rejoice only in the work that he has accomplished through us for the salvation of the lost.

Receiving the Word

 

“And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers. For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and oppose all mankind by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved—so as always to fill up the measure of their sins. But wrath has come upon them at last!”

1 Thessalonians 2:13-16 ESV

 

 

When someone shares an idea that is different than our own, or when someone shares an idea that makes us uncomfortable, we respond by saying: “Well, that’s your opinion!” We simply dismiss them. We dismiss them, telling ourselves that it’s only the idea of a man.

 

This makes virtually any idea easy to dismiss. Man, after all, is fallible. Man, after all, is imperfect. And, for this reason, any idea that comes from man is likely to be wrong.

 

This is something that can hinder the work of ministry, as well as the work of God in our own life. As the Word of God is proclaimed, it is often dismissed as nothing more than an opinion. It is often dismissed as nothing more than the teaching of man.

 

For this reason, it’s viewed as something that is fallible. It’s viewed as something that’s potentially flawed. It’s viewed as something that is deficient and lacking.

 

However, as we see in the above passage, it was received differently by the believers at Thessalonica. When Paul and his companions brought to them the Word of God, they received it as just that. They received it not as the word of man, but as the Word of God himself.

 

And this was not only something that they confessed. It’s something that was expressed in their lives. Believing it to be the Word of God, they became imitators of the believers of the congregations in Judea. Believing it to be the Word of God, they suffered for their new faith, just like the Jewish believers.

 

This leads us to ask ourselves an important question: How do we receive the Word of God? Do we receive it as the word of man? Do we receive it as the opinion of man? Or do we receive it as the Word of God himself?

 

If we receive it as the word or opinion of man, we’ll continue to dismiss it. This is especially true when it contradicts something that we already believe to be true. And it’s especially true when it makes us uncomfortable.

 

But when we receive it as the Word of God, it’s able to transform our lives. It will do so because, only then will we receive the conviction it brings. It will do so because, only then will we receive the hope that it gives.

Don't Be Their Excuse

 

“For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers. For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.”

1 Thessalonians 2:9-12 ESV

 

As Christians, and as congregations, we have a tendency to shoot ourselves in the foot. As a people who sincerely desire the salvation of the lost, and as a people who are making every effort to reach out to them, we have a tendency to put off those to whom we’re ministering. We have a tendency to be demanding of those who have come to learn more about Jesus and the gospel we proclaim.

 

When I say this, I’m not referring to the preaching of the law. I’m not referring to the fact that we talk about sin. We must, after all, present both the law and the gospel if people are to receive Jesus in faith. I’m talking, rather, about things in our behavior that turn them away.

 

We often seek to burden those new to our congregation. We push giving too hard and too soon. And we push them too hard in terms of involvement in the church.

 

In addition to this, our behavior is often unbecoming to those who have yet to receive the gospel or are new to our faith. In some cases, we are abrasive in terms of our behavior. And, in others, it seems to them that the faith which is displayed in our life doesn’t match that being proclaimed to them.

 

As we look at the words of Paul, above, we see that these are things he avoided. He worked night and day that he might not be a burden to them while he proclaimed the gospel of God. He didn’t seek financial support from those to whom he was reaching out. In addition to the support he received from congregations that were already established, he worked quite literally as a tentmaker to make ends meet. This, of course, is the source of the term “tentmaker” that we use today, referring to those in ministry who are bivocational.

 

He also says that his behavior, along with that of his companions, was righteous and blameless. In saying this, Paul is not claiming to be without sin. He is saying, however, that they were in no way hypocrites. They authentically lived out the faith that they proclaimed to the people.

 

These are things that we must consider as we reach out to the lost. It must not appear that we are trying to gain at the expense of those with whom we share. And, at the same time, the faith that is seen must match that which we proclaim.

 

Although we must take care to proclaim both the law and gospel in all their purity, we must make sure that we do not come off as selfish or greedy. We must also live a life of ongoing repentance and faith before those to whom we are ministering. We must do all that we can to ensure that we are not the reason that others reject the message of Christ.