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Wayne Manago

53 sermons

November 2008

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1 THES 1 8-10 Are You Too Busy Too Serve 2-24-08am

1 Thess 1:8–10

*                "**ARE YOU TOO BUSY TO SERVE?**"*
*                           1 Thessalonians 1:8-10*
IMBC Hobart – February 24, 2008
 
INTRODUCTION:
 
- Is your life busy and hectic? Are you so busy that God at times gets crowded out of your schedule and even out of your life?
 
- I came across an article recently entitled, “/Too Busy To Notice You’re Too Busy/” (Picture) by Alana Tugend that appeared in the New York Times in March 2007. In the article she remarks, “RECENTLY I’ve found myself annoyed by how busy my friends seem. Putting aside the possibility that they are avoiding me, some are so—on the go that they barely have time to tell me they do not have time to talk. Every phone call, no matter how short, seems to be interrupted by several others. That is, of course, if I actually get a live person on the other end of the phone. Skip to next paragraph I consider my life to be somewhat filled and fulfilling. I have a husband and two children, work part time, volunteer, exercise several times a week (well, usually) and socialize regularly. For the record, I do not have a baby sitter, but do have a house cleaner for about four hours every two weeks.”
 
   - I read this paragraph in a book recently and I must admit I was greatly challenged, “I long to know God more intimately. At least, sometimes I do. The rest of the time I am too busy for God, oblivious to the greatness of his glory. But deep down, my heart’s desire is to know and love the God who has always known and loved me. The way to know God better is to study him. The way to study him is to learn what the Bible teaches about him, for all God’s attributes are revealed in God’s Word. Though difficult, the contemplation of God is the most rewarding of all endeavors.”[1] 
- Most likely you will be involved in activities that you really enjoy; and the things that you do not enjoy you will attempt to avoid like the plague.
- When you get involved in certain activities, they will give away the interests that lie deep within your heart.
 
- In fact listen to *Matthew 6:21* there it states, "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." 
 
- The same is also true concerning your spiritual life.
 
- The things you do are an outward evidence or demonstration to those who watch your life; they will give away where your heart truly is.
 
- Would your daily routine demonstrate that you are just too busy for God?
 
- As one person well stated a number of years ago, “/if you are too busy for God-you’re just too busy/!” 
 
- Let’s look at a few activities that encompassed the lives of the Thessalonians in the first century church and evaluate our lives in light of their zeal to make Christ known to everyone they came in contact with.
 
- Let's pray.
 
I. */THEY VIGOROUSLY PROPAGATED THEIR FAITH/* - 
*    1 Thess. 1:8*
 
A.  They Took Time To Make Christ Known to Others.
1.  There can be no discussion as to what was truly important to the lives of those in the Thessalican church; no doubt they were busy in their daily schedules—like we are today.
2.  The source of their message according to *vs. 8* is “the Word of the Lord has sounded forth.”
3.  They were extremely diligent in sharing their faith in Jesus Christ “the message of the Lord” and were diligent in communicating their faith so others could see that it was genuine and life-changing; along with everything else that was happening in their lives.
4.  This was probably reported to Paul by Silas and Timothy when they returned from Macedonia (*Acts 18:5; 1Thess 3:6*) and by Aquila and Priscilla from as far as Rome (*Acts 18:2*).
5.  *Vs. 8* explains how they accomplished the trans-             mitting of the Gospel message to other                          believers.
6.  Faithful believers shared the good news of Jesus Christ with others, who then passed it on to their families and acquaintances (great example for us to follow—are we following it?). 
 
II. */THEIR LIVES DRASTICALLY CHANGED BECAUSE /*   
*/     OF CHRIST/* - "You turned to God from idols" – *vs. 9*
 
A.   The Nature of Their Transformation.
 
1.   The key word is the verb rendered "turned" it is the word that is normally used to describe what the Bible elsewhere calls repentance—they changed direction (*Matt. 3:1,2; 4:17; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 5:31; 20:21*). 
2.   This turning brought them face to face with a            relationship with the true God; the word denotes a total direction of change. 
3.   This word is used by Paul to mark the radical 
        change that came into the lives of the Thessalonian 
        believers when they trusted in Jesus Christ as their 
        Savior.
    5. One commentator points out the importance “…that 
            they turned to God from idols, not from idols to God. It wasn’t that 
            they had become fed up with their idols and then decided to give 
            God a chance. No, they turned to God and found Him to be so 
            satisfying that they dropped their idols.[2] 
    6. Reformation in your life alone just doesn’t work. A 
        person can give up drink, drugs, or crime. But 
        unless he or she turns from that evil to God, no real 
        change can be maintained. Reform, no. Complete 
        renewal through the power that’s all that will truly 
        change an individual.
7. The Thessalonican church was comprised largely of 
    converts from pagan religions and not from Judaism 
    (*2:14-16*); because Jews despised idolatry.
8. The true order of genuine conversion is laid out              
    in *vs. 9:* “turned to God from idols”; Salvation does not 
    begin with the giving up of something but the 
    receiving of someone (Jesus Christ)!
 
B.   The Object of Their Service. 
 
1.   “The living God” – He is a living God as compared to their idols that had no life and were dead.
a.   They realized that their false gods did not hear their prayers nor were concerned at all about their daily lives and activities.
b.   A living God demands a living service.
c.       A Cingalese boy living at Baddegamma, in Ceylon, went one day 
              into a Buddhist temple to offer his evening flower. When he had 
              done so, he looked into the idol’s face, expecting to see a smile of 
              approval; but as the great eyes stared on without any expression 
              of pleasure in them, he thought that so great a god would not 
              condescend to accept a child’s offering. Soon after, a man came 
              in, laid down his flower, turned his back, and walked carelessly 
              away. The boy again looked into the idol’s face, and thought he                       
              should see an angry frown at this disrespect; but the eyes stared as 
              before. He /then /began to realize the fact that the image had no life 
              in it, and was alike powerless to punish or reward. As soon as a
              mission school was opened in the neighborhood he became one of 
              the pupils and was converted to Christ, together with several of 
              his family. He afterwards became a zealous and devoted minister. 
              His name was Abraham Gunasekara. He died, and his son is now 
              the minister of a congregation of Cingalese Christians in Kandy.
 
    2. “the true God” – as compared to that which was 
         Counterfeit and false before Christ in their lives.
 
C.   Three purposes in the Thessalonians' turning to God are given:
 
1.  “To serve a living and true God”
 
      a. The word "serve" means to serve as a slave, and              
          the Old Testament picture is of the perpetual                
          bondslave; a bondslave was the personal property 
          of someone else—you are not your own—you’re 
          God’s!
      b. So complete and real was their conversion to 
          Christianity that their daily lives demonstrated that 
          they were totally “/sold out/” to God because they 
          realized they belonged to Him: yes it was 
          bondage, but a bondage of love.
      c. You should love Him so much that you should only 
          want to do His will for your life. 
      d. Just as sure as night follows day service follows             
          salvation; some follow afar off; but all must follow 
          the Lord.
 
    2. The second purpose, "to wait for his Son from heaven, 
            whom He raised from the dead,"
 
      a. The verb "to wait for" means "/to await, expect,                /
/              wait up for/" and pictures them as people who               
          are eagerly and expectantly looking forward to             
          the coming of Christ—at anytime!!! (when I waited               
              up with the porch light burning for Jared)
b.  The Thessalonian believers are eagerly awaiting 
     the return of God's Son from heaven--and the 
     interesting thing is that they lived like they truly 
     believed it was going to happen!
c.  *vs. 10* makes it clear that the Christian’s hope of            
*     *the return of Christ is rooted in the fact that                
     Jesus was raised from the dead.
d.  Note *Acts 17:31* "Because he hath appointed a day, in            
       which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man 
       whom he hath ordained;  concerning which he hath given 
       assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the 
       dead."
e.  An older commentary made this observation, 
    “Primitive Christianity universally held that the resurrected and 
      ascended Christ would return and their expectancy of this event 
      implied its nearness (Best, p. 83). For Paul to include himself and 
      his readers among those to be rescued from wrath at this future 
      moment (cf. "us," v. 10) shows that they expected this to happen 
      before their physical death.”[3]
d. You and I are to be awaiting the arrival of the                 
    same Jesus whom God had raised from the                    
    dead.
e. Are we anxiously looking for that return as I did for 
    my son’s return home before his curfew expired? 
 
    3. To be delivered from the coming wrath of God; “to 
            rescue us from the wrath to come.” 
 
      a. This past week, Wednesday morning, the news 
          carried the story about an accident on 1-94 that 
          sent a car into a frozen pond after skidding on a 
          patch of black ice; Leonard Roach, a trucker saw 
          the accident and jumped into the freezing waters 
          of the pond and rescued Ernesto Soto, a resident 
          from Gary, from his submerged car.  
      b. We who know our Bibles understand that the 
          wrath of God will be poured out on the unright-              
          eous people because of their failure to trust in              
          Jesus Christ as personal Savior (*John 3:36*;* Romans *
*              1:18*).
      c. But we as believers know and rest in the fact that 
          we have been delivered from God’s wrath because  
          of our faith in Jesus Christ.
      d. Notice what Paul says later concerning this same            
          subject in *1 Thess. 5:9*.
      e. Note the phrase, "from the wrath to come" the 
         preposition "from" means that Christians are kept 
         out of or away from that coming wrath, not 
         snatched out of the midst of it.
      f. I can’t help but think of our study of the book of 
          Revelation and that great verse found in *Rev. *
*           3:10. *
      g. Truly their past was dark and their present 
          dangerous, but their prospect was glorious in 
          Christ (same goes for you if you know Jesus!)
 
CONCLUSION:
 
- Christians are waiting for Jesus Christ, and He may return at any time (His return is imminent).
 
- A local church that truly lives in the expectation of Christ's return, will be:
 
1. Vibrant and alive.
2. A church that is burdened for lost souls. 
3. A church that is concerned about godly                          
    Christian living in the midst of the lost in this world. 
 
- It is tragic when churches forget this wonderful doctrine of the Lord's soon return.
 
- But it is even more tragic when churches believe it and preach it--*but do not practice it*.

\\ ----
[1]Ryken, Philip Graham: /Discovering God in Stories from the Bible/. Wheaton, Ill. : Crossway Books, 1999, S. 3

[2]MacDonald, William ; Farstad, Arthur: /Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments/. Nashville : Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995, S. 1 Th 1:9

[3] Best. Page 93

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