Love Local

Lead Vocalist (Joel)

Welcome & Announcements (Bubba)

Good morning family!

Ask guests to fill out connect card

2 announcements:

1) 2025 Budget Packets

If you’re a PBC member, you should have received a digital copy of the 2025 budget proposal via email last week, but if you’d like a paper copy you can pick one up at the welcome desk when you leave.

If you have questions about the budget proposal, please talk to an elder or a finance team member as soon as possible, because we cannot amend the budget from the floor at our members meeting.

2) Members Meeting, 11/24

The budget and a few other matters will be voted upon during our next meeting at 6 PM on 11/24.

3) Volunteers still needed to help with OCC Collections Week

Please sign up at the announcement board or by scanning the QR code on the screen or in your bulletin

Now please take a moment of silence to prepare your heart for worship.

Call to Worship (2 Sam 22:2-4, 7 (p 20))

Prayer of Praise (Phoebe Garcia)

Christ Our Wisdom

A Christian's Daily Prayer

Prayer of Confession (Joel Whitcomb), Failure to encourage

Assurance of Pardon (Ezekiel 36:25-26)

Jesus Draw Me, Ever Nearer

What A Friend We Have in Jesus

Scripture Reading (1 Thess. 2:17-3:13)

You can find it on page 1173 in the black Bibles

Pastoral Prayer (Bubba Jones)

Prayer for PBC—Culture of loving one another

Prayer for kingdom partner—Christ Fellowship Church (Peter Hess)

Prayer for US—Veterans

Prayer for the world—Thailand

Pray for the sermon

SERMON

START TIMER!!!

It doesn’t take incredible observation skills to see that public identification with the local church is experiencing a significant decline in our nation.

In their 2023 book The Great DeChurching Jim Davis & Michael Graham write: “More people have left the [American] church in the last twenty-five years than all the new people who became Christians from the First Great Awakening, Second Great Awakening, and Billy Graham crusades combined.” [1]

What’s even more alarming is that this phenomenon has rapidly increased in recent years, especially among the youngest Americans.

With such a drastic shift like this, the fact that you’re here at a Sunday morning is very old school.

When you tell people you’re going to church they may look at you as if you said you were going to Blockbuster or Radio Shack.

But we don’t love the local church because it’s popular or cool.

We love the local church because Jesus loves the local church.

And in our text this morning, we see an example of what it looks like to love the local church.

Turn to 1 Thessalonians 2:17

About twenty years after Jesus ascended into heaven, the Apostle Paul planted a church in the town of Thessalonica.

Shortly after the church was started, Paul and Silas were forced to flee the city.

But even though Paul had to leave, he still loved this church.

And from his example we see what it looks like to love the local church.

The Big idea I hope to communicate this morning is that We will thrive to the degree that we love the local church.

In our text I want you to notice Five Ways Paul loved the local church in Thessalonica:

In verses 17-18, he shares his desire to spend time with the church,…

in verses 19-20, he speaks favorably about the church,…

in chapter 3 verses 1-3a, he sacrificially gives to the church,…

in verses 3b-8, he seeks holiness in the church, and …

in verses 9-13, he strives in prayer for the church.

But before we unpack these, I need to address three main groups of people hearing my voice this morning:

Perhaps some of you aren’t Christians at all. I hope you see the love illustrated in our text and you are drawn to saving faith in Jesus, who is in Himself the perfect example of love.

Some of you are Christians, but you’re not members of a local church. As we study this passage, I hope you’ll ask yourself how you’re going to follow the example in this passage without belonging to a local church. I hope you will leave this morning eager to pursue membership at PBC or some other gospel-preaching church.

Most of you are members of this church. You have a very clear, direct application from the text to love the people in this church family as Paul demonstrates.

Alright let’s begin. If you want to love your local church well, you will follow Paul’s example and...

1) Spend TIME with your church

Years ago when I was a young dad I heard a preacher talk about the importance of spending time with your kids. He asked, “which is more important: quality time or quantity time?” Is it more important to spend a lot of time with your kids, or to make sure the little time you spent with them is really good?

His answer surprised me. He said both.

He said, “Dads, if you don’t spend a large quantity of time with your kids, then you’re not going to get quality time. You can’t just manufacture a quality time moment if you don’t regularly spend time with your kids.

And that’s not only true for your relationships with your kids. It’s true for all relationships.

Which is why Paul’s example is so helpful for us...

1 Thessalonians 2:17–18—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.

Notice how much Paul wants to spend time with these Thessalonian Christians.

He looks back to the moment he and Silas were forced to leave, and he views it like being torn away from his family.

The word literally means to be orphaned.

Because he desired to be with them so strongly, Paul was zealous with an overwhelming desire to see them again.

It reminds me of the early days of Covid-19 when we were unable to gather together. Remember those early Zoom calls when it was so encouraging just to see each other’s faces? Or the drive-in communion services when we interacted with one another through windshields? It seems so silly now, but we had an eagerness to be together!

Is that the way you feel about your church now?

If you’re feeling disconnected from this church family, here me clearly: you will struggle having quality time with God’s people if you don’t prioritize quantity time with God’s people.

Through the years when I hear people say they feel disconnected from the church it’s usually because they ARE disconnected from the church.

After almost 13 years as a lead pastor, I’ve had many conversations with church members wondering if they should find another church because they’re feeling disconnected. My advice is almost always the same: lean in before you bow out.

Often the solution is really simple: spend time with God’s people.

Before we move on, I want you to notice one thing in verse 18. Paul says the reason he was unable to return to Thessalonica is that Satan hindered him.

You might be thinking, wait what?!? Can Satan do that?!? Apparently yes.

We have no idea how Satan hindered Paul, but rather than speculating on that I want to ask you the Christians in this room a question: Would Satan even bother trying to hinder you from spending time with God’s people?

Does Satan look at you and say, “Why would I bother with him? He is already hindered enough by the NFL, fishing, youth sports, the convenience of a livestream—I don’t need to get involved!”

One pastor said this, “You don’t need to go to church to be a Christian. You don’t have to go home to be married either, but your relationship will suffer if you don’t.”

Loving your local church well means spending time with your church.

But we must also follow Paul’s example and...

2) Speak FAVORABLY about your church

Long, long ago, in the early 2010’s people used to buy these things called news magazines. There was a particular news magazine called Newsweek that was once very popular that released a cover story entitled Forget the church, follow Jesus.

SHOW NEWSWEEK COVER

Talking about the church in this sort of way has become incredibly popular in America over the past few decades. There are plenty of people who say they love Jesus, but they hate the church.

But the truth is, if you really love Jesus you will love His people.

Jesus says this quite clearly in...

John 13:35—“By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

You cannot love Jesus if you hate His bride, the church.

Paul demonstrates his affection for the Thessalonian Christians by writing about his love for them in his letter.

1 Thessalonians 2:19–20—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.

Paul is overflowing with love and encouragement for this local church in Thessalonica.

Imagine a hard-working employee, eager to greet the boss when he returns from a business trip. Why is he so eager? He wants to show his boss what he’s been able to accomplish while he was gone.

In a similar way, Paul says to the Thessalonians: “I’m excited about Jesus’ return because I want to show him you guys! You’re the crown of my boasting, you’re the reason why I’m excited!”

Is that the way you speak about your church?

Do you leave here on a Sunday morning praising God for the good you saw here? Or are you complaining about all the things that went wrong?

Is this the way you speak about the people in your church?

I realize that we certain people here may get on your nerves for one reason or another.

But you need to remember these are blood-bought sons and daughters of the King of Kings!!!

In his book, The Weight of Glory, C.S. Lewis writes this: “The dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship . . . . There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal.” [2]

Does this mean we should only say positive things about Christians? What about when your church is doing poorly? Should we just overlook all the mess and only speak favorably?

Not at all! Even Paul will regularly exhort and admonish believers when they’re living in disobedience. But he takes every opportunity to encourage them also.

It’s much easier to receive rebuke when it is softened by regular encouragement.

Loving your local church well means speaking favorably about your church.

But we must also follow Paul’s example and...

3) Sacrificially GIVE to your church

Even though Satan himself hindered Paul from going back to check on this church he loved, Paul was not going to give up.

1 Thessalonians 3:1–3a—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.

Paul was eaten up inside about being separated from the Thessalonian Christians.

So he did the next best thing after going to Thessalonica himself. He sent his co-worker Timothy.

Paul says this about Timothy in...

Philippians 2:20–22—For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know Timothy’s proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel.

In those verses we learn two things about this guy Timothy:

First, Timothy was Paul’s best co-worker.

I once heard about a missionary family who received a care package from their church. And in the care package was a ziploc bag filled with used tea bags. The church had justified sending used tea bags because they figured that was better than anything the missionaries could find in their country.

That is not the way Paul gave to the Thessalonians. He didn’t send his scraps. He had nobody better to send than Timothy.

Second, Timothy was like a son to Paul.

For Paul to send Timothy was like a father sending his own son.

And remember, Paul is sending Timothy to a city that is persecuting Christians!

The bottom line here is that Paul is sacrificially giving to this church. What about you?

In our church covenant we promise to regularly give of our time, talents, and treasure to support the ministry here.

How are you doing here, PBC members? Are you sacrificially giving to support this church.

Loving your local church well means sacrificially giving to your church.

But we must also follow Paul’s example and...

4) Seek HOLINESS in your church

Parents, what do you want more than anything for your kids?

Is it good health? A long life? A great education? A successful career? Wealth? Fame? Popularity? Acceptance? Happiness? A spouse?

As best as we can tell, the Apostle Paul never had children. He was a lifelong single.

But he did have many spiritual children—the men and women all around the known world he led to saving faith in Jesus.

And if you asked Paul, “What do you want most for your spiritual children?” I believe he would answer without hesitation.

I want my children to be holy. I want them to look like Jesus.

You catch a glimpse of that beginning in...

1 Thessalonians 3:3b–4—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.

When Paul and Silas were in Thessalonica, they kept warning the new Christians there that they were going to suffer affliction.

Not a Christian or new to Christianity: Following Jesus will eliminate your suffering. . . eventually.

If you give your life to Jesus, a day is coming when you will no longer suffer.

But until that day, life is hard.

As Jesus said in...

John 16:33b (NIV)—“… In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Christians get cancer. Christians lose their jobs. Christians bury loved ones. Christians experience the pain of singleness. Christians get falsely accused. Christians get persecuted.

We do not follow Jesus to eliminate our troubles in this life. If you’re a Christian, you know that often our troubles multiply when we begin following Jesus. We follow Jesus because we love Him, because we truly believe He died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead. Because we believe the day is coming when He will rescue us and make all things new.

We invite you, friend to turn from your sins and trust in this Jesus today. But don’t put your faith in a lie. Don’t believe the TV preachers who tell you following Jesus means you’ll be healthy, wealthy, and wise. Believe Jesus who repeatedly warned us that the life of a Christian is a life of suffering.

Even though Paul warned the Thessalonians the same thing, he’s genuinely concerned about them.

He had to leave Thessalonica when the persecution intensified, so he’s in the dark about how the Christians he left behind were doing.

That’s why he sent Timothy—his greatest partner in ministry—to Thessalonica.

1 Thessalonians 3:5—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.

Paul was concerned the Thessalonians would be tempted by Satan to give up on Jesus.

He feared that—like the rocky ground in Jesus’ parable—these men and women who professed Jesus would fall away when the suffering became too hard.

Thankfully Timothy came back to Paul with an encouraging report...

1 Thessalonians 3:6–8—But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us, as we long to see you— for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through your faith. For now we live, if you are standing fast in the Lord.

It’s shocking in a way that Paul is incredibly comforted by Timothy’s report. Even though some of these dear Christians have lost their jobs, their families, and their lives—Paul is still comforted. Why? Because they haven’t lost their faith. They’re still faithfully following Jesus. They’re still pursuing holiness.

PBC Family: I know some of you are really suffering today. I wish I could take away your pain. But I will gladly be comforted—even if you’re hurting—just to know that you’re still faithfully following Jesus!

What’s the lesson for us to learn from Paul’s example?

More than anything else, we should want this local church to be holy.

That means we’ll talk about how we’re doing spiritually. That means we’ll keep each other accountable when we’re tempted. That means we’ll pray together, read Scripture together, check up on each other, and more.

Loving your local church well means seeking holiness in your church.

Finally, we must also follow Paul’s example and...

5) Strive in PRAYER for your church.

Paul concludes this chapter with another prayer for these believers in Thessalonica:

1 Thessalonians 3:9–13—For what thanksgiving can we return to God for you, for all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God, as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith? Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

Notice three ways Paul prays for this church:

He prays for God to increase their faith.

Paul prays for love to increase their love.

Paul prays for God to grow them in holiness.

Paul—and you—can confidently pray like this because God is so eager to respond to our prayers.

J.C. Ryle puts it this way: “The Lord is far more willing to hear than we are to pray; far more ready to give blessings than we are to ask for them.” [3]

How often are you asking God to bless this church?

Do you pray for God to increase our faith?

Do you pray God would help us to increase and abound in love for one another?

Do you pray God would help us to be blameless in holiness?

Loving your local church well means striving in prayer for your church.

Before we conclude, I want you to consider the perfect example of loving the church.

In 1 Corinthians 11:1 Paul said this to a group of Christians in another church: Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

That’s our ultimate goal. Not to follow Paul—as important as his example is—but to follow Jesus.

Jesus is the perfect example of spending time with His people. He spent time with Samaritans, lepers, tax collectors, prostitutes, and a ragtag band of hard-headed disciples.

He’s the perfect example of speaking favorably about His people. Even though Jesus is the eternal Son of God, He speaks gently and kindly to His people.

He’s the perfect example of sacrificially giving to His people. He gave His life in our place. What more could He possibly give?

He’s the perfect example of seeking holiness in His people. He shed His blood—not only to save us from our sin, but to make us holy.

He’s the perfect example of striving in prayer for His people. The night He was betrayed He was laboring in prayer for His people, even sweating drops of blood. Even on the cross He was praying for those who murdered Him.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

All My Boast Is In Jesus

Celebration of Baptism

Benediction (Jude 1:20-21 (p 163))