Sermon Tone Analysis

The Lord Jesus is coming again.

This is the basic theme of Paul's first letter to the Thessalonian believers.

The Lord Himself shall come down from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and we shall meet the Lord in the air and so be with him forever.

And all the people said: Amen!

Whether we are asleep in the Lord or alive at his coming, we shall be gathered up when He comes to redeem His Church from the world.

Paul had answered the question of the hour put to him by the believers at Thessalonica.

But Paul, always believing that theology should have a practical side to it, shifts the emphasis from the theology of the 2nd Coming to the nitty-gritty of daily living in light of the 2nd Coming.

Paul is concerned that these believers know that the Lord is returning for them.

He is also concerned about how they live while they wait for this glorious event to take place.

In vv.

12-22 of chapter five, Paul gives the Thessalonian Christians some final instructions on living while they wait for the Lord's return.

It’s solid advise for the church even today!

* While you’re waiting for the Eschaton, live responsibly in relationship with other believers.

* While you’re waiting for the Lord’s return, rejoice always.

* While you’re waiting for Jesus to come again, pray without ceasing.

* While you’re waiting for the 2nd Advent, give thanks in all circumstances.

* While you’re waiting for that Glorious Day, don’t quench the Spirit.

* While you’re waiting for the Day of the Lord, don’t despise preaching.

* While you’re waiting for the Promise of the Parousia, tenaciously cling to what is good, and shun evil.

My first inclination was to expound ever so briefly upon all seven directives.

But you don’t want to listen to a three-hour sermon, any more than I want to preach one, so let me direct your attention to vv. 12-15, which teach us how we are to relate to other specific groups of people in the Body of Christ.

The two greatest commands, on which, according to Jesus, everything else in church life depends, are concerned with relationships—with God first, and one another second.

It is because God is so concerned with the creating of the church as his community, that so much of the New Testament deals with relationships.

Jesus spent about three years seeking to build a small group of followers into a true community.

Virtually 45% of the letters of the New Testament are about how we should get along with one another.

With this in mind, let me outline for you tonight, three specific groups of people within the Body of Christ, and how we are to relate to them.

!

I. WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR HOW WE RELATE WITH CHURCH LEADERS

* /"We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work.

Be at peace among yourselves."/

(1 Thessalonians 5:12-13, ESV)

#. one of the most important relationships in the church is the relationship between church members and their congregational leaders

#. sadly, some of the most serious and persistent problems in the church today revolve around a congregation’s relationship with its leaders

#. how do church members relate to their pastor, the church staff, deacons and other elected leaders?

#. how should the church react to these various leaders?

!! A. THE APOSTLE SPEAKS TO QUALIFICATIONS WHICH EARN RESPECT v. 12

#.

1st, a church leader earns respect by diligently laboring among the flock of God

#. the word labor here refers to hard, manual work which requires exhausting toil and produces sweat

#. spiritual leadership is difficult and weighted with responsibility

#. whether it's a pastor's relationship to his congregation ...

#. whether it's a Sunday School teacher's relationship to their class ...

#. whether it's a deacon's relationship to his families ...

#. all are to be hard-working servants of the church

#. 2nd, a church leader earns respect by exercising charge over the flock of God in the Lord

#. in a Baptist Church, when we call a Pastor or staff member, or elect those from among the congregation to positions of leadership, we are in essence giving them a certain measure of authority over our lives

#. we are committing to such people the responsibility for the congregation’s spiritual well-being and the advancement of God’s Kingdom in our community

* /“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account.

Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.”/ (Hebrews 13:17, ESV)

#. watching over the flock of God ought to be a joy

#. sadly, as some of you know from your own experience, watching over the flock of God, too frequently leads to groaning

#. the word groaning here in Hebrews 13:17 means to sign often and deeply

* ILLUS.

It’s what Jesus does every time the disciples just don’t ‘get it’

#. the phrase exercising charge over in 1 Thes.

5:12, comes from a word that implies a protectorship or guardianship

#. the implication is that church leaders are to be shepherds and not CEOs, ministers and not bosses

* ILLUS.

An ancient Israelite shepherd would go before his sheep to lead them; he would not drive the sheep in front of him.

Church leaders should lead the people of God in the same way: feeding, protecting, and guiding them.

#. the qualification for our leadership is the character and ministry of Jesus

#. it is in the Lord

#.

Christian leaders should also remember that they have been given responsibility for tending a flock that belongs to God, not to themselves

#. leaders are not to exercise their authority like dictators, potentates or primadonnas

* ILLUS.

Remember Diotrephes?

He’s the reason the Apostle John writes his third Epistle.

Here was a church leader who had asserted a heavy-handed leadership over a congregation to its harm.

The Apostle describes him as one who likes to put himself first.

This, of course, is the anthesis of biblical church leadership.

#.

Diotrephes was not overseeing the church in the Lord

#. congregational leadership must always, always, always be expressed in the Lord

#. if we could distill the style of our Lord’s leadership into a single essence, that essence would be servanthood

#. church leaders should diligently labor to be servants to the flock of God

* /“shepherd the flock of God that is among you, ... not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.”/

(1 Peter 5:2–3, ESV)

#. 3rd, a church leader earns respect by admonishing or giving us instruction

#. one of the high callings of a pastor or teacher or spiritual leader in the church is to help others in the congregation to grow in their faith, and in their relationship with the Lord

#. spiritual growth comes primarily by preaching, teaching, and sharing the Word of God

#. this implies that members need to display a teachable spirit toward their leaders

* ILLUS.

Henry David Thoreau once wrote, /"It takes two to speak the truth—one to speak, and another to hear."/

#. and spiritual growth comes by admonishing those who are not measuring up to the fulness of Christ

!! B. THE APOSTLE SPEAKS TO OUR RESPONSE TO CHURCH LEADERS

#. 1st, we are to respect and appreciate them for their hard work among us

#. church work, whether it be teaching a class of 5th & 6th graders, keeping the church clean from week-to-week, or visiting the sick can be hard work

* ILLUS.

Hospital visitation with Bob Moles.

#. church work can be physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausting work

#. if you don't think so, just talk to anyone here who has worked in Vacation Bible School!

#. you need to respect and express appreciation to those who labor among you in your respective congregations

#. church members can often be insensitive to the basic psychological need we all have to feel appreciated for our labor—especially our volunteer labor

* ILLUS.

When Linda and I lived in Adrian, we had young adult woman who was asked to serve as chairperson of the Hostess Committee.

Her chief responsibility was organizing fellowship meals and the annual Senior High School Baccalaureate Dinner.

Michelle had grown up in the church.

When she was asked to serve she was excited about taking over the responsibility because she had some fresh ideas that she wanted to implement.

Well, this was a Baptist Church, and Michelle should have known that Baptists don’t often deal with change well.

Every time Michelle did something, one of the “more mature” and “wiser” ladies of the church would approach her and say, “Ya know, Michelle, we know you mean well, but this is how you ought to do this.”

Translation: “You’re not doing it like I would.”

And these same ladies were so surprised when Michelle decided not to chair the Hostess Committee the next year.

#. while the majority of church workers labor for the Lord's sake, and not for public acknowledgment, a thank you for a job well done can go a long way in motivating a person to further Christian service