Keys to Peace in the Church

PRAYER

I’ve tried to take time at the beginning of each message in this series on 1 Thessalonians to review the last message or two, in order to help set the context for the next one. Context is important, as you know, and the Holy Spirit led Paul to say things a certain way, and in a certain order. We can see the direction and flow of his epistle when we take time to consider the context, and how one topic leads into another.

As I’ve mentioned many times, this Thessalonian church was experiencing ongoing spiritual warfare. Every day was an exercise in faithfulness through adversity. As a result, it became especially important for them to distinguish between “friend” and “foe.” And so it is with us.

At the end of chapter 4, Paul made it clear that Christ is coming back for ALL His saints. If you and I are saved, we are on Christ’s side! He has claimed us both, and that means you and I have something very precious in common. In the beginning of chapter 5, Paul reminds the Thessalonian believers that the judgment of God will fall suddenly upon the lost…but the saved are not appointed to wrath.

With this teaching, the Thessalonians could look around at each other and know that they were all loved and claimed by Christ, they were separated from the world, and they were protected as a result. If the church of the Lord Jesus Christ is going to be a place of joy, fruitfulness, and refuge, these distinctions need to be made! As fellow saints and fellow members of this body of Christ, we have a lot in common. We are chosen in Him, we are saved by Him, we are loved by Him, and we will be caught up together by Him. Those who resist the gospel of Christ are on the devil’s side, and one day the wrath of God will fall on His enemies, and they will be forever defeated. The church of the Lord Jesus Christ is a place of spiritual blessing; it is a place of shelter from a wicked world. It is a place that is safe from God’s wrath. It is important for God’s people in His church to see the difference between “us” and “them”! (This doesn’t contradict the need to evangelize, of course. But it does fit perfectly with God’s intention that His church be pure.)

After Paul encourages his readers in 1 Thess. 5:11 to comfort and edify each other, he shifts the focus slightly. However, keep the context in mind as we read our text for tonight.

1 Thessalonians 5:12–13 KJV 1900

And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves.

After drawing clear lines to distinguish between the saints and the lost in Thessalonica, Paul gives them instructions that will contribute to peace among themselves. Explain the connection of vs. 12-13 with peace (“prerequisites”).

Tonight we’ll consider, “Keys to Peace in the Church.”

I. Peace Is Important

“And we beseech you, brethren...”

Beseech: To entreat; to supplicate; to implore; to ask or pray with urgency.

Paul’s next instruction—like much of what he has already written—was urgent, not just from him, but from Silas and Timothy as well. “From brethren to brethren, we beseech you...”

This is important! This isn’t just a recommendation; it’s not a “shortcut” in life, or something that will make their lives a little easier. Peace is a blessing that has no price tag. The devil is waging war, but God’s people may still have His peace. It is wonderful peace.

Philippians 4:7 KJV 1900

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

II. A Portrait

Paul is describing someone specific in verse 12. Notice the three parts of the description.

1 Thessalonians 5:12 KJV 1900

And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you;

A. Them which labour among you

Visible

“Them which labour” is a visible thing. Labor isn’t always conspicuous, but if you’re looking, it is visible. Those who labor among us are visible.

Present

“Among you.” Paul doesn’t say, “Them which labor among us.” This isn’t a statement about Christians generally. This is specific to this Thessalonian church. They had people which labored among them. Those laborers were visible and present.

Current

“Them which labour.” Not “labored,” or “will labor.” This labor is current and ongoing. (Paul doesn’t say we should disregard past labor, but this particular statement is about those who are still laboring.)

B. And are over you in the Lord

Paul builds on this description of his. Not only are these individuals busy in labor/service, they are over the other saints.

Present tense

“ARE over you...”

Over you

Greek: to lead; rule over; manage.

1 Timothy 3:4–5 KJV 1900

One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)

1 Timothy 3:12 KJV 1900

Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

1 Timothy 5:17 KJV 1900

Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.

Being “over” or managing/ruling something includes responsibility and accountability!

In the Lord

This simple phrase is both limiting and sobering. Paul isn’t talking about civil government. He isn’t talking about the family. He is writing to a church. He is talking about authority over the church members. He is talking about the pastor(s).

It is limiting

This phrase is limiting because God is no respecter of persons. The pastor is not over the rest of the church because he is smarter, or nobler, or generally better. He is “over” because God put him there. Outside of his position, he is not over anyone. He is only over “in the Lord.”

It is sobering

Paul invokes the Lord’s name because THE LORD put the pastor there. The Lord gives him his authority. His authority is from God. He is God’s chosen man to be over God’s people. The gravity of such a position should sober us.

C. And admonish you

Paul mentions edification and exhortation several times in this epistle. He mentions “admonish” once, and any form of it only four times in ALL of his epistles. Admonition is more rare.

Admonish: To warn or notify of a fault; to reprove with mildness.

Acts 20:31 KJV 1900

Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

1 Corinthians 4:14 KJV 1900

I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you.

Paul, as an apostle and pastor, possibly used admonition fairly often. God equipped and called him to such a ministry. Notice the difference between those verses and this verse!

1 Thessalonians 5:14 KJV 1900

Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.

Sometimes it is necessary for the saints to warn or admonish each other. We ought to be willing to do that when the Holy Spirit leads. But that is not the norm for most church members. However, it is much more common for the pastor to do.

A pastor’s job is to admonish at times; it is more his job to do than anyone else’s. He must do it with grace and meekness, but he must also do it with authority and boldness. He is called to deliver’s God’s message, and God’s message often includes a warning.

Ezekiel 3:17 KJV 1900

Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.

Do we see and understand the picture that Paul is painting? All of us ought to be busy in serving God alongside each other, but Paul isn’t writing about all of us. You might have several people in your life that warn you from time to time, but that doesn’t mean Paul is talking about them. There are God-called preachers in this church that labor among us, and may warn us, but that doesn’t mean they are over us in the Lord. Who fits that full description? Only the pastor.

D. Know him

“And we beseech you, brethren, to know them...”

How well do you know your pastor personally? How much do you know about his blessings and challenges? He doesn’t share everything (none of us does), but do you try to get to know him? It’s easier to be apathetic or critical when you aren’t very close to your pastor’s situation. It’s hard to pray for your pastor when you don’t know him. It’s hard to fellowship with him if you don’t spend time getting to know him.

“I’m not comfortable doing that.” “I don’t have time.” “He doesn’t spend time with me like that.” “I doubt I could be of help to him.” “I tried that once, but nothing seemed to come from it.” We can have all kinds of excuses. But Paul says, “We beseech you, brethren, to know them...” Will you do this? I guarantee you that it will be a blessing to your pastor. And I think you just might gain a blessing in return!

III. Intentional Appreciation

1 Thess. 5:13 “And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake.”

It’s not hard for me to appreciate a stunning sunset or a scenic panorama. I don’t need to be told to do that. Unfortunately, the Holy Ghost thought it was necessary to have Paul write that church members need to esteem their pastor very highly in love for their work’s sake. This tells me it’s possible to not do it. Sometimes our appreciation needs to be intentional, because otherwise it wouldn’t happen.

Esteem: to think; to account; to judge; to suppose.

This is a choice to value something. It is purposeful. There are many things in life that we value instinctively and naturally. But we can also take things for granted…or worse yet, devalue them. The pastor is well aware of this tendency—he notices when he is devalued! And Paul says we must not give in to this tendency.

Very highly

Not just esteem/value: to esteem highly! Not just highly—very highly! There are many things in life that I appreciate, but I don’t esteem them very highly. Paul is describing something that ought to be very precious to us.

In love

This love is “agape.” It is charity. We briefly walked through 1 Cor. 13 a few weeks ago to see the things that charity and does. Here are some of those things.

It is longsuffering

It is kind

It envies not

It is not self-promoting and proud

It doesn’t rejoice in iniquity

It rejoices in truth

It bears all things

It is trusting

It is faithful

It is enduring

It is reliable

Charity is defined by what it does. Love includes feelings of fondness, but Biblical charity is not mere fond feelings. It is revealed by its demonstration of its Godly characteristics.

For his work’s sake

This love isn’t hero worship. It’s not mindless or without condition. We ought to love our pastor for his work’s sake. He is over us in the Lord, he is laboring among us, and he admonishes us. This is a good work! It is God’s work, and we ought to esteem that work and the man who does it, very highly.

How can we do this? It’s safe to say that the more you get to know ANY sinner, the more flaws you will perceive. That’s why this esteem and love needs to be intentional. God doesn’t give us perfect pastors. But the God who gives pastors is perfect, and He knows what we need. His work is a great work, and the men who have surrendered themselves to God for the accomplishing of His work ought to be loved and esteemed very highly. We are to love God’s man because he is God’s man. Not for what he used to do. Not for what we hope he will do, what we want him to do. We are to esteem him very highly in love because he is God’s man, employed in God’s work.

IV. Be At Peace

1 Thess. 5:13b “And be at peace among yourselves.”

As our nation is demonstrating so emphatically, we cannot have peace between us if we do not have peace within us. And so it is with a church. We cannot have peace among us, if we do not have peace in our hearts and lives. It’s not an accident that Paul puts these two sentences together:

1 Thessalonians 5:12–13 KJV 1900

And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves.

In Paul’s words of instruction we find these elements:

An appreciation of the Lord’s work that is being done among us

An acknowledgement of God’s authority over me and over my church, including His leadership of us through His man

An appreciation of God’s correction and warning in my life

An acknowledgement of the importance of not taking these things for granted, and failing to intentionally and fully appreciate them

The choice to demonstrate my love and appreciation for God’s man, and the work that he does

If these things are true of us, we will be agreed with each other! We will be joyful in what God is doing! We will be obedient in many things to the Father, and so we will have inner peace with Him. And it will be natural to have peace with other like-minded saints in the church.

If we refuse to observe these things, we will have inner turmoil and conviction. And we will not be able to have true peace in the church.

Is peace only about these elements? No, but if we will follow these things, it will make peace a much simpler proposition.

Do you esteem your pastor very highly in love? If so, how do your actions demonstrate that? Paul was beseeching the Thessalonians to do this; it is no less important for us today. Peace is a wonderful thing! It is God’s desire that it be here, in BBC.