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1 Thessalonians 1:8–10 ESV

For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among 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 delivers us from the wrath to come.

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Have you ever heard the story of the Gospel Blimp?

Some years ago, there was a little book written titled The Gospel and Other Modern Parables. This book is written in cartoon style. The main story is "The Gospel Blimp."

In this story, a Christian couple - George and Ethel become concerned for the salvation of their next-door neighbors. But they do not know how to reach them.

George and Ethel have some other Christian friends over to their house and they get the idea of a blimp that carries gospel messages. Maybe reading those messages would help this next-door neighbor to hear the Gospel!

It is an involved story and we don't have time to tell it all. But the church spends a massive amount of money on a blimp to carry gospel messages. Then they decide to "bomb" the city with gospel tracts from the blimp.

They hire a commander to preach and sing gospel messages from the blimp. The city at first thought the idea was novel, then they became increasingly angry.

The tipping point came when the blimp was broadcasting a gospel message and somehow its signal took over all the other television and radio signals in town.

But instead of scrapping the gospel blimp, they began a PR effort to gain the good will of the town. Soon the blimp began carrying messages like:

"All have sinned. Don't be a litter bug."

"Put on the whole armor of God. Fasten your seatbelts."

"I am the Way. And my way's the American way."

"Ye are the salt of the earth. Don't forget to vote."

Then one day, George and his wife invited various Christian friends over to their house again.

George noted that it had been three years since that first picnic where the Gospel blimp idea was saved. And guess what? His neighbor had gotten saved.

George's Christian friends were astounded. And then excited. What message on the blimp had caused these neighbors to get saved? Was it the tracts, or the loud, blaring messages from the blimp?

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George's neighbors explained that they hated the blimp. They were annoyed by it. But when the wife had to go to the hospital for the second time, Ethel began to visit her.

George and Ethel invited the husband over every night for supper. Then one night, George and Ethel shared the gospel. Long story short: the couple accepted Christ as Lord and Savior.

What is the point of this parable?

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As followers of Jesus who have received God’s love and grace, we should desire that others might hear the Good News and their lives be changed also.

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Unfortunately, sometimes Christians go through all sorts of convoluted efforts to share the Gospel. Sharing the Gospel truly isn’t that hard.

In fact, while we should learn various scriptures that can be used to present the Gospel message, one of the most important elements of sharing the Good News is our personal testimony.

This is what we see in our text this evening. The transformed lives of the believers in Thessalonica had a powerful impact on their community and their world.

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You may recall the Paul went to Thessalonica after his jail experience in Philippi. Paul only ministered in the city of Thessalonica for 3-4 weeks before the Jews became so jealous that they started a riot.

The believers quickly and wisely sent Paul and Silas on their way, and they next visited Berea who were commended for studying the scriptures to prove what Paul was teaching. After opposition there, Paul left and went to Athens.

So, while Paul only visited Thessalonica for a few short days, a strong church was born. Despite opposition this church faced, they lived faithfully and courageously for Jesus.

Thessalonica was a key city in the Mediterranean. The southern edge of the city rested on a natural harbor and was located on a major trade route, making the city an important seaport.

These features of the city probably factored into the reason why the conversion of these Christians spread so quickly and widely.

But… in our text Paul emphasized that the reason why the word of the Lord sounded forth (and the word here spoke of a trumpet blast) was due to the dramatic transformation that occurred in the lives of those who had converted to Christ.

Big Idea: A transformed life is our best testimony of God's grace.

It is almost funny reading what Paul says about the Thessalonian’s faith in Christ. Paul was used to being a missionary, sharing the Good News, and telling others how God’s grace changed people’s lives.

But now, instead of telling others about God’s grace at work, Paul simply listened as other people told him how God was a work in the Thessalonian believers.

Notice three things our scripture teaches us about the change God’s grace makes in the believer’s life.

God's grace at work in our lives gives us…

1. A new direction

1 Thessalonians 1:9 ESV

For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols…

Someone has written:

Modern missionaries, especially in areas of ‘animism’, which is now usually termed ‘traditional religion’, know all about the power of idols, and of the spirits which are believed to lurk behind them.

A tribe’s traditional idols have a tremendous hold over the people’s minds, hearts and lives. For centuries they have lived in superstitious dread of them and in obsequious submission to them.

The very thought of breaking away from them fills them with alarm, as they fear the spirits’ revenge. And the more sophisticated idols (that is, God-substitutes) of modern secular cities are equally powerful.

Some people are eaten up with a selfish ambition for money, power or fame. Others are obsessed with their work, or with sport or television, or are infatuated with a person, or addicted to food, alcohol, hard drugs or sex.

Both immorality and greed are later pronounced by Paul to be forms of idolatry, because they demand an allegiance which is due to God alone. So every idolater is a prisoner, held in humiliating bondage.

Then, through the gospel and the grace of God, in many cases suddenly and completely, the prisoner turns to God from the idols (whether superstitious or sophisticated) which have so far controlled his or her life.

The experts call it a ‘power encounter’, for it is a personal encounter with Jesus Christ in which the spell of the idol is broken and the superior power of the living and true God is demonstrated. People are amazed and filled with awe, and they spread the good news.

Stott, J. R. W. (1994). The message of Thessalonians: the gospel & the end of time (pp. 39–40). InterVarsity Press.

We know this truth and understand it. We speak of repentance as making a 180 degree turn in life. But I wonder if sometimes we unintentionally discount the radical change that is made because so many of us have grown up in the church and haven’t gone out deep in sin.

Or, I wonder if sometimes the church in general doesn’t see the radical change because we don’t call or expect people to make such a break with sin and the world.

There are some extremes that Christians have leaned into over the years as far as forsaking the world for Christ. We do not need to make those same mistakes. But we should recognize that our allegiance to Jesus does not allow for compromise with the world.

We are headed a new direction. We no longer live for the pleasures of this world. The idols of materialism, etc. must be forsaken. There is only one God, and He is our God!

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God's grace at work in our lives gives us…

2. A new devotion

1 Thessalonians 1:9 ESV

For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,

What made the believers’ newfound faith so startling to their world? It was their devotion to God - the living and true God.

In every religion, one can find more and less devoted followers of believers. In the Muslim religion, there are those who are fanatically loyal to the point of becoming suicide bombers in the name of their religion.

Then, there are others, when they have the opportunity, who still bear the name of Muslim, but do not follow all its teachings.

The same is true of Catholics… and the same is true of evangelical Protestants, people like us who accept God’s Truth that Jesus is the only Way, Truth, and Life and that we can only be saved from sin by putting our faith in Christ and his provision on the Cross.

There are those who are truly devoted… and there are those who want the name, the identity, but don’t want to live the life.

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The point is not how much one is devoted to one’s faith or religion. The point surely is not the idea that if we sincerely believe - regardless of who or what we believe - that we will go to Heaven.

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No! There is only one way to the Father, and that is through Jesus Christ!

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Our level of devotion is not necessarily proof positive that our faith in Christ is well founded. But it is proof that there has been a definite change in our lives.

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This consistent, passionate devotion indicates that something truly is real about one’s testimony. It indicates that their faith, their testimony, is worth checking out more.

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One must still be convinced by the Truth of God’s Word in order to be converted. Their faith must be placed in Christ. Their hope of salvation is only as good as the object of their salvation.

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But our devotion - or lack of it - to Christ either gives a ringing endorsement of the Gospel, or it reveals the lie of our profession.

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Again, if we do not display a deep devotion to Jesus it does not mean God’s Word is untrue. But it does raise suspicions about our testimony.

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Consider it from this angle: if we say Jesus has changed our lives, but we show little appetite to communicate with him regularly, little desire to share with his family, little concern to live according to his precepts, and little passion to further his mission in the world, what kind of testimony do we give?

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The church of Thessalonica provided a powerful testimony to the world as they totally forsook the idols and ways of their world and devoted themselves to serving God!

At the 1989 World Congress on Evangelism, or Lausanne II, in Manila, testimonies from Christians around the world were highlighted by the witness of a Chinese believer who had been imprisoned for his faith.

Demeaned as a human being and isolated from human contact, his cell was in a dark dungeon and his work assignment was to clean the sewers deep in the underground darkness.

He told of standing up to his knees in human waste going about his repulsive work. But against the stench and pollution of the sewer, he began to sing,

I come to the garden alone, While the dew is still on the roses, And the voice I hear Falling on my ear, The Son of God discloses, And He walks with me And He talks with me And He tells me I am His own And the joy we share As we tarry there, None other has ever known.

When his captors realized that they could neither break his spirit nor put out the brightness of his song, they released him to tell his story far and wide. Needless to say, wherever he went, revival followed and village after village came to Christ.

McKenna, D., & Ogilvie, L. J. (1993). Isaiah 1–39 (Vol. 17, pp. 136–137). Thomas Nelson Inc.

God's grace at work in our lives gives us…

3. A new desire

1 Thessalonians 1:9–10 ESV

For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among 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 delivers us from the wrath to come.

At one time, these believers had been focused on pleasing the false gods of the land. Motivated by superstition, fear, possibly even greed and envy, they sought the pleasure and help of various gods to help them survive in a difficult world, even to thrive.

Their focus had been on themselves. They were focused on life in this world, pleasures that could be experienced, money, toys, and treasures that could be accumulated.

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Now, their hope and desire was in another world. They were not living for Self; they were living for Christ. Their focus was not on the ground, but the sky.

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Notice, they were waiting for God’s Son from heaven. To wait might suggest a passive doing nothing, but scripture teaches us that our waiting for Christ’s return is anything but.

Rather, we are called to serve the Lord faithfully, ministering to those in need and sharing the Good News, just as Paul noted was true of these believers.

Furthermore, our waiting for Christ’s return includes an active watching, looking for signs of his appearing.

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Yes, there have been those who have taken the waiting for Christ’s return to an unhealthy extreme.

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We must not be so heavenly minded that we are of no earthly good.

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But if we are so bound to the things of this world, we will not be ready to leave when Christ returns. May we never be like Lot who tarried when he heard of his city’s coming doom or like Lot’s wife who turned back with longing for her city as it experienced God’s judgment.

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Rather, may we patiently, faithfully, actively watch and wait for Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

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Yes, God is a God of love and grace and mercy, but God is holy, just, and full of wrath for sin. Today is the day of salvation, but soon God’s judgment will come.

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Our testimony in Christ is validated and amplified when we demonstrate that our true hope and desire in life is to be ready for Christ’s return, that our true passion is to live in God’s presence for eternity.

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In today’s terms, the church of Thessalonica had gone viral. The story of how they had forsaken the idols of this world to serve the one true God, patiently waiting and watching for Christ’s return had spread far and wide!

Big Idea: A transformed life is our best testimony of God's grace.

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Sometimes, we feel like our testimony of the change God’s grace has made is not that dramatic. Maybe we even doubt the power of the Gospel.

We are tempted to dress up the Good News in fancy clothing. In a figurative sense, maybe even literally at times, we use Gospel blimps to shout the message and bomb the community with tracts.

The truth is that our life, transformed by God’s grace, provides a powerful testimony to our sinful work.

God's grace at work in our lives gives us a new direction, a new devotion and a new desire.

His name was Bill. He wore a t-shirt with holes in it, ratty blue jeans, and never wore shoes; this had been his wardrobe for his entire four years of college. He was esoteric and very, very bright, and had recently become a Christian while attending college.

Across the street from his campus was a well-dressed, very conservative church. One day, Bill decided he wanted to attend a church service and walked in the front doors of the church. The service had already started, and Bill made quite a spectacle as he walked down the aisle, looking for a seat.

Unfortunately, the church was completely packed on this particular day, and he couldn’t find a place to sit. By now, people were looking a bit uncomfortable by his presence, but no one said anything.

Bill walked closer and closer to the pulpit and when he realized there was no place to sit, he squatted down and sat right on the carpet at the front of the church.

(Although this might be perfectly acceptable behavior at a college fellowship, this kind of thing had never happened in this church before.)

The tension in the air was thick. Then, from way at the back of the church, an elder slowly began making his way toward Bill. This particular elder was in his eighties, had silver-gray hair, and always wore a three-piece suit. While known to be a godly man, he was also very elegant and very dignified.

He walked with a cane and, as he walked toward Bill, everyone whispered among themselves, “You can’t blame him for what he’s going to do. How could you expect a man of his age and background to understand a college kid sitting on the floor?”

It took a long time for the man to reach the boy. The church was utterly silent except for the clicking of the man’s cane. All eyes focused on him. The minister couldn’t even begin preaching until the elder finished what he set out to do.

Suddenly, the church saw the elderly man drop his cane on the floor. With great difficulty, he lowered himself and sat down next to Bill; he was not satisfied that Bill might worship alone.

The congregation was overcome with emotion. When the minister gained control of himself, he said, “What I’m about to preach, you will never remember. What you have just seen, you will never forget. Be careful how you live; you may be the only Bible some people will ever read.”

(“An Unspoken Bible,” n.d.)

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The challenge our scripture is similar: may we live each day conscious of that fact that our lives are an advertisement of the Gospel - God’s grace and power.

May we then live in such a way that our advertisement of the Good News is not confusing or conflicting, but truly reveals the glory of our Lord and Savior!