A Testimony of Transformation

1 Thessalonians 1 MEV

Paul, Silas, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God always for you all, mentioning you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patient hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of God and our Father. For we know, beloved brothers, your election by God. For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit, and in much assurance, just as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake. You became followers of us and the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit. Therefore you were examples to all who believe in Macedonia and Achaia. For the word of the Lord sounded out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith in God has gone forth, so that we do not need to say anything. For they themselves declare how we were received by you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead—Jesus, who delivered us from the wrath to come.

Thessalonica was the largest and most important city in the region of Macedonia. It had a diverse population in terms of ethnicity, socio-economic makeup, and religious backgrounds. They liked their religions, worshiping many different gods. They were loyal to Rome and when Caesar declared himself a god, they jumped on that and made him the top god of their worship.

Paul wrote this letter to the church in Thessalonica, a church that he helped establish.

Acts 17:1–9 MEV

When they had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. According to his custom, Paul went in, and on three Sabbaths he lectured to them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I preach to you, is the Christ.” Some of them were persuaded and joined with Paul and Silas, including a great crowd of devout Greeks and many leading women. But the Jews who did not believe became jealous and, taking some evil men from the marketplace, gathered a crowd, stirred up the city, and attacked the house of Jason, trying to bring them out to the mob. But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brothers to the city officials, crying out, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, and Jason has received them. They are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.” They troubled the crowd and the city officials when they heard these things. When they had taken a bail payment from Jason and the rest, they released them.

Paul and Silas had come to Thessalonica to witness in the synagogue. While some came to Jesus, the majority rose up against Paul and sought to have him arrested. When they couldn’t find him, the persecuted the guy who let Paul stay in his house!

After Paul left, the Thessalonian church continued to grow, in spite of persecution. Even years later, Paul applauds their faithfulness:

1 Thessalonians 1:6 MEV

You became followers of us and the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit.

When we come to Christ, there is a transformation that happens right then. But it’s not a one-and-done deal. That transformation is a continual process. We have taught on emotionally healthy spirituality and how our discipleship must include learning how to mature emotionally, allowing Christ to transform the innermost parts of our lives. Nothing causes you to grow up more than adversity.

When you’re a kid, you scream that life’s unfair because you were told to clean your room BEFORE you can play outside. When you get older, you are happy if you can earn enough to afford a room to clean. The challenges in live bring perspective.

As we learn to see the world through Jesus’ eyes, so many things appear different to us. We stop seeing people as worthless. We start learning to take responsibility for our choices. We come to understand grace.

Persecution helps us realize what we are willing to stand for—what we are willing to die for. The Thessalonian church discovered the truth about the eternal nature of things. They were willing to endure temporary hardship, even leading to death, so that they could receive the eternal things God has to offer.

Transformed to Testify

The transformation that we experience as followers of Jesus is more than just from being unholy to becoming holy. Our entire purpose for existing changes. Before Christ, our desires were simply to satisfy our flesh. Whatever it takes to be happy and feel good.

When we come to Christ, our purpose and desire is to please him and help others discover what we found in Christ. We are called by God to take the message of Jesus to the whole world. And with that call, the Holy Spirit equips us to fulfill the work we have been called to do.

The Thessalonian Christians did just that. Willingly facing persecution, they went throughout their region to proclaim the good news of Jesus. They shared the gospel to whoever would listen. They did such a good job that Paul did not feel the need to return to the region to evangelize.

The Thessalonians were powerful witnesses. But WHY? What made them so effective?

The Transformation Is the Testimony

In order for testimony to be effective, it has to be verified as true. There has to be evidence to back up the talk. The Thessalonians were telling people about how Jesus can transform a life. They backed up that testimony by demonstrating transformed lives.

These people had been pagans. They had worshiped false gods. They had been caught up in all the sinful stuff that was going on in Macedonia at the time. But they were transformed through the blood of Jesus. They turned away from the idolatry. They abandoned their selfish lifestyles. They were changed for the better. Anyone who had ever known them could see that they were different. Thessalonica was known for its various social classes. They were lines which were not crossed.

… That is until Jesus entered the picture. Now rich, poor, male, female, free, and slave were all living as brothers and sisters. They were fellowshipping together, providing for each other. Some were offended by what they saw, but many saw something beautiful, and they wanted part of it.

Macedonian society saw selfish, self-absorbed lawbreakers transformed into a caring community committed to Christ, willing to face death rather than deny Jesus.

Raul Ries was an angry young man growing up in Los Angeles in the late 60 and early 70s. He was raised in an abusive home, and while he hated his father, he learned to be an abuser. He was selfish and violent whenever confronted. He was convinced to take up martial arts to learn discipline and find an outlet for his temper. This only made him more dangerous as he used his skills to beat up anyone who triggered his temper. He joined the Marines and went to Vietnam, which messed him up even more. When he got home, he charmed a good Christian girl into marrying him and he started his own dojo. But his abusive ways drove his wife to leave him. He actually planned to kill himself when he heard the gospel on TV and gave his heart to Jesus that night.

His wife didn’t believe him at first when he told her. But when he reacted to her rejection with patience and understanding instead of rage, she saw something was different. Selfishness was replaced with compassion and generosity. The testimony of his lips was backed up by the transformation of this life. His wife returned. Everyone who knew Raul was amazed by the transformation. Many of his old friends came to Christ because only a real Jesus could change Raul like that. Even Raul’s dad came to Christ. They turned the dojo into a church, which grew because of Raul’s testimony. Today that church has a congregation of over 14 thousand in the Los Angeles area. All because of the transformation that took place in a violent man’s life.

Our most powerful testimony is not the eloquent message we practice saying as we learn the Romans Road method of evangelism. Rather, it is the lived out transformation, as what God is doing within us manifests in the way we interact with the world and with each other.

Our Trials, Our Transformation, Our Testimony

We have yet to face the kind of persecution the Thessalonian church faced, but we still have our trials. We struggle to pay bills. We deal with family issues. We get older and our bodies begin to hurt from the wear and tear. We experience tragedy and loss. These are the things everybody faces. But on top of these things, we face ridicule and criticism from non-Christians.

The fact is, the world is watching us. They want to see if we truly believe what we claim to.

Some of us have been Christians our whole lives, spending all our time with other church-goers who look and act like us. The outsiders are watching to see how we react to someone who is different.

Others of us came to Christ later in life. The world wants to know just how much we have really changed—if we have changed at all.

The way we respond to trials testifies to who we really are. For that matter, the way we react to success testifies to who we are and what we value.

Let me clarify something. It would be easy to take this message as an endorsement to “let your lives be your witness,” where we excuse ourselves from actually talking about our need for Jesus because we think the way we live our lives should be obvious enough. We need to be bold in our witness, actively proclaiming the gospel. The Apostle Paul asked the Ephesian church to pray for him.

Ephesians 6:19–20 MEV

Pray for me, that the power to speak may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may speak boldly as I ought to speak.

The Thessalonian church was bold in their witness. They took the message of Jesus throughout their region. What made their message effective was that it was backed up in the obvious transformation of their lives.

Can we say the same? Can people see the transformation in our lives that would make them believe that Jesus is real? If they can see the transformation, are we explaining to them how the transformation happened?

Jesus called us to be witnesses. Witnesses bear testimony. Testimony must be backed up with evidence.

Lord, let us be bold in our witness. Help us get over our shyness, our fear of rejection or ridicule. Empower us with your Holy Spirit and enable us to say the right thing at the right time. And as we learn to freely share what Jesus has done in our lives, help us to make that transformation evident to others, so that they can see that you are real and that you really do make all things new.