Confidence in Our Gospel

1 Thessalonians 1:4-10

As we observe the lives of those transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we notice a pronounced impact in their lives as that Good News becomes regnant. Perhaps the greatest display of the working of the Faith is the confidence it engenders among those observing believers. Paul, writing to a pressured and persecuted church, spoke of such confidence. It is interesting to note that he does not speak of their confidence in the Gospel, but he speaks rather of his confidence in the Gospel. We know, brothers… is the manner in which the Apostle initiates this portion of his letter. All that follows in the remainder of this chapter is but expansion of his confidence in the impact of the Gospel message in the life of that congregation. Examine with me the passage that we may discover what gives us confidence in our Gospel.

We May Be Confident That The Gospel Demonstrates Power [Our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake – v 5]. Election is perhaps the most controversial doctrine of the whole of systematic theology. How do we know whether an individual is chosen of God? Paul speaks of his confidence in God's work among the Thessalonians, noting certain great evidences of the power of the Gospel. Eijdovte" – We know – is an expressive word which speaks of more than mere knowledge. The root verb stresses intuitive certainty. However, Paul states that his certainty is founded on observations of the manner in which the Gospel effected these saints.

Paul was confident that God loved the Thessalonians and that He had chosen them because the Gospel the missionaries had preached impacted on the listeners with evident power, with demonstration of the blessing of the Holy Spirit, and with deep conviction. In short, Paul saw the impact of the Gospel in the lives of these men and women as they heard that Good News. The Gospel reveals God's Power, demonstrates the presence of The Holy Spirit, and is received with Deep Conviction. In this way we see God at work in listeners.

If my preaching, if indeed our witness, is mere words, we had as well cease the charade of Christianity immediately. It is precisely because the preaching of the Word finds residence in some hearts that we are encouraged to preach the Gospel and to witness to God's grace. There is a tendency to depreciate words in this day in which the visual is exalted. Accustomed as we are to sound bites, it is difficult to believe that words are important. Words are necessary to interpret images. The Gospel is itself a word or message; the Gospel is actually the Word [v 6 KJV], the Word of the Lord [v 8 Phillips], and the Word of God [2:13]. Words matter. Words are the building blocks of sentences by which we communicate with one another; and the Gospel has a specific content which demands articulation.

Those who claim they see no such evidence of the power of the Gospel are perhaps confused because they seek that which has never marked the presence of God. What power is it that marks the Gospel of Christ? The Gospel is attended with power – dunavmei. The Gospel penetrates hearts by the internal operation of the Holy Spirit. It is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that the Word can penetrate mind, heart, conscience and will. The Word of God is the Sword of the Spirit. No one of us ought ever to attend a service of worship without praying that God will work in power during that service to penetrate the will of fallen mankind. None of us ought ever to attend a service in this church without praying that the power of the Spirit will be demonstrated in conversion of the lost and building up the saints.

The Gospel also comes with deep conviction. One of the great criticisms of the preaching of this day is that so many seem able to listen without evidence of any impact by what is preached. When did we last witness deep conviction resulting from the preaching of the Word? When did we last see sinners – both good people and bad people – convicted of sin? Perhaps that is the reason many today question their salvation and seek dramatic signs as evidence that God is among them. Were we convinced that we are great sinners, we would acknowledge that we required a great God. But having convinced ourselves that we are but little sinners, we need but a little God. We seem to have adopted the position that we have aberrant behaviours, character flaws, personality quirks, anything and everything but sin ruling in and ruining our lives. Thus we join the church instead of being placed within the church by Him to whom we submit as Lord. I state without equivocation: the Gospel, when preached in power, produces conviction. Where there is little conviction, it is certain there has been little power.

One reason I insist that the Gospel must produce deep conviction among those turning to Christ is that it is blessed by the presence of the Holy Spirit, and according to Jesus the work of the Holy Spirit includes convict[ing] the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgement [John 16:8]. Let me clarify a point of some considerable importance. We often speak of some preacher as having a powerful delivery or as enjoying great results whenever he speaks. The truth of the Word, its impact on hearers, the conviction with which we speak, all come from the Holy Spirit. He opens our hearts; He illuminates our minds. His inward witness produces conviction. Without His witness, ours is futile. Whenever you see a man preaching with power, you know that it is the Spirit of God who is working; the man is but a tool.

The characteristics of authentic preaching are power, conviction, and truth. Each alike springs from the work of the Holy Spirit. Then Paul added, You know how we lived among you. The claims made for the Word were not unsubstantiated. The ministry Paul, Silas and Timothy exercised among the Thessalonians was public, being witnessed by the entire community and especially by those now included within that assembly. God grant that our ministry, our evangelism and our witness, be characterised by power, conviction, and truth as was the ministry of the Apostle.

We May Be Confident That The Gospel Develops Perseverance [You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia – vv 6,7]. Paul invested considerable time describing his preaching of the Gospel. Now he provides an equally full description of the receipt of the Gospel. What impact does the Gospel received produce? The secret of our confidence in our Gospel lies its receipt.

The first of four evidences of the effective work of the Gospel is that it is received in spite of severe suffering. One sure evidence that the conversion is real is that the believers stand firm. Bunyan, in Pilgrim's Progress, depicts both Christian and Pliable when they came to the Slough of Despond as falling in the mire. Pliable began to say Is this the great road you are talking about to the great country you are going to? I am going back to the country I came from. As we look at him we know that he was not elect. But Christian, though sinking in the Slough of Despond, finally pulls out, covered with dirt, yet with his face toward the heavenly city, and that is a token that he is elect of God.

The authentic Gospel always arouses opposition. Recall the warning of the aged Apostle of Love? Writing of false professors John warns us: They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us [1 John 2:19]. The measure of faith is perhaps best seen in what is required to stop a man. Those who desert the Faith reveal by their desertion that they never were part of the Faith. There are no used-to-be Christians.

Jesus spoke of the fact that not all seed would be productive [Matthew 13:1-9]. Some seed would be snatched away by the evil one. Some seed would find shallow soil and quickly wither without root. Other seed would be choked out by worries and the deceitfulness of wealth. What is perhaps most encouraging to us as we review the parable Jesus told is the knowledge that most of the seed took root and eventually produced a crop resulting in a bountiful harvest.

So it is with true believers, they welcome the message in spite of severe suffering. Persecution did not deter the Thessalonians, nor does persecution deter any true believer. I know that some of you have no doubt faced opposition. Your presence is an evidence of the veracity of the Gospel and is evidence that you are chosen of God. I know that among us are some who have experienced subtle hostility from friends and colleagues. Your presence here is evidence of the reality of God's love for you.

I love the missionary hymn, I Have Decided to Follow Jesus. I love the words to that hymn, especially the second and third verses of the song.

The world behind me, the cross before me;

No turning back, no turning back.

Tho' none go with me, I still will follow,

No, turning back, no turning back.

So it is with all who choose Jesus: though they walk alone, they persevere; though they seem to forsake every comfort of the world, they persevere. So it is with us, and even this gives us great confidence in one another.

The second evidence that the Thessalonians were elect was that they received the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. The same Spirit who gave power to the preachers gave joy to the converts. Should we be surprised that the new believers experienced joy? Is not joy one of the fruits of the Spirit? Wherever the Gospel goes and people respond, there is joy. There is joy in heaven among the angels over sinners repenting, and there is joy on earth among the people of God. The pattern of outward opposition and inward joy has been oft repeated in the long history of the church.

Permit me to take note of the distinction between what the world prizes and what the Spirit confers. The world seeks happiness; the Spirit gives joy. The former is transient, ephemeral, dependent upon external conditions. The latter is settled, enduring, independent of outward conditions. Never once does God promise happiness, promising instead joy – the joy of the Holy Spirit, which is the possession of the saint alone.

Paul listed earlier a third evidence of election when he said of the Thessalonians that [they] became imitators of [the Apostles] and of the Lord. A profound change came over the lives of the converts. They followed the example of the teaching of the Apostles and of Jesus. When they welcomed the message, theirs was no mere intellectual acquiescence in the truth of the Gospel; theirs was a complete transformation of behaviour. No one can be born from above, no one can be regenerated by the Spirit of God, no one can be saved, without a radical transformation of life.

We note Jesus' life and agree that we should imitate Him, but we probably do not pay sufficient attention to Paul's repeated insistence throughout the epistles to imitate him [1 Corinthians 4:16; Galatians 4:12; Philippians 3:17; 4:9; and 2 Thessalonians 3:7]. We ought each to aspire to so live that our lives are worthy of imitation. As a congregation we should aspire to have among us men and women who so closely follow the Lord that we can each point to them as worthy models for new believers. I grieve that we have come to a day in which the church has become so desperate for models that she holds forth as models of godliness men and women whose sole recommendation is earthly talent. We are so desperate to hold our youth that we point to individuals whose reputation is based, not on righteousness of life, but on abilities in the world. Let us aspire to so live that we may model Christ and that others may point to us. Our young are dying for models.

The fourth and final evidence of the election of the Thessalonians is that they themselves became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The imitators were imitated. Those who adopt Christ and His Apostles as their model inevitably themselves become models to others. There is something within this clause which may go unnoticed if we are not cautious. Model is singular, probably signifying that the entire congregation served as a model. While we should indeed aspire as individuals to be models of Christ, collectively, as a congregation, it should ever be our aspiration to reflect the fullness of Christ among us.

We live in a wicked day in which the Gospel has received a bad rap from the press. Preachers have distorted the Gospel, twisting and contorting that precious Word for their own gain. Is it any wonder, then, that so many professing believers are likewise devoid of confidence in the Gospel? Is it any wonder that the church of this day is filled with men and women who question the work of God in this day? Nevertheless, a review of the mission to Thessalonica will quickly encourage readers that where the preachers are marked by truth, conviction and power, the converts will be marked by joy, courage and obedience. Let nobody say the Gospel is devoid of wholesome effects!

We May Be Confident That The Gospel Demands Proclamation [The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell 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 rescues us from the coming wrath – vv 8-10]. Paul says, The Lord's message rang out from you … your faith in God has become known everywhere. ajf! uJmw'n ga;r ejxhvchtai oJ lovgo" tou' kurivou. Ejxhvchtai, found in no other place in the whole of the New Testament, is derived from h\co" an echo or noise. The verb can mean to sound, ring, peal, boom. Like thunderclaps breaking across the landscape, the Lord's message boomed out from the centre of Thessalonica.

The impact of this preaching was that your faith in God has become known everywhere. Directly, the Lord's message rang out, while indirectly their faith in God has become known everywhere. Two methods of dissemination of the Gospel are noted here – they preached, but their faith became known. There is an important lesson here. We are a media conscious generation. We know the power of the mass media. Consequently, we assume that evangelism will never be successful unless we employ the media. By print and tape, by audio and videocassettes, by radio and television, we endeavour to saturate the world with the Good News. Rightly so! Surely no sane person would quarrel with this ambition. We should harness to the service of the Gospel every modern medium of communication available to us.

We must remind ourselves there is another, a more effective way, to evangelise. This method requires no complicated electronic gadgetry; it is quite simple. It demands no complex organisation; it is spontaneous. Neither is this method expensive; it costs precisely nothing. The method is the excited transmission of the Good News from mouth to mouth as people relate the impact the Gospel is making on others. In Thessalonica, the result of this gratuitous publicity was tremendous. We do not need to say anything about it, for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. One translation has dealt with the passage thusly: We do not need to tell other people about it: other people tell us… [JB].

What was this news spreading about the Thessalonians? According to verse eight it was their faith in God, but according to verse nine what people were hearing and reporting was what kind of reception you gave us and how the Thessalonians were converted! Conversion is then detailed by the presentation of three obvious evidences: (1) a decisive break with idols; (2) an active service for God; and (3) a patient waiting for Christ. The three steps are summed up in the verbs you turned … to serve… and to wait.

The circumstance presented is not an either/or condition; it is a both/and situation. Those converted to the Faith soon discover that they cannot be silent. As they declare the grace of God with their mouths, others are taking note both of the message they are declaring and of the changes observed in their lives. Especially do observers, those occupying the world around us, take note of what we no longer do, but also of where we now find our greatest joy and of the sense of expectancy which marks our lives.

As Christians, the elements which held us in thraldom, the addictions which once marked our lives and the unrighteous aspects which once ruled, no longer have power over us. Whereas we may have once lived for power, position, possessions, prestige, or pleasure, we now live for another, nobler purpose. We turn from the beggarly elements of the present world to serve God. Take note of this one great fact: service to God, if not divorced from slavery to the world, is meaningless. When combined with a determination to be pure in life, however, service to God has great impact on the watching world. Above all else, we find ourselves beginning to look upward expectantly. Christ is coming again, and we dare not be caught unawares. We want to please Him.

I want every listener to be confident of his or her own salvation. I want every listener to be confident that God does save those who come to Him in faith. There can be no confidence if Christ is not your Master. But if you have trusted Christ, rest confident in His love; and the surest evidence of His love will be seen in the review of your life since you believed. You will recall that since you trusted Him you have not been long deterred from pursuing Him. Though you may have stumbled along the path, you have not been utterly cast down.

Consider that you were given the joy of the Holy Spirit. You became imitators of the Apostles, reading the Word and applying it to your heart; and thus you became an imitator of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Walking in His way, you began to endeavour to so live that you were a model to yet others. You discovered that the longer you served Him, the greater was your confidence.

I do wish to apply the message in such a way that believers are comforted and outsiders are confronted. Saint of God, you who have looked to Christ for grace and life, it is precisely in refusing to be enslaved by the elements of this world that we discover confidence. It is precisely in seeking to serve Christ that we obtain even greater confidence. It is precisely in looking upward, expecting Him momentarily, that we grow ever more confident in His choosing. I urge you, for the sake of your own peace, live so as to be a model of Christ today. For His Name's sake, I urge you to do right. Though the stars fall out of the heavens, do right.

You who have yet to become a Christian, there is no power in my words, but the Spirit of God even now calls you to heed the words of the Gospel. If you are still serving the things of this world, whether power or position or possessions or pleasure, you are an idolater. Know this, that every idolater shall experience the judgement of God forever and ever. The Word warns: Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God [1 Corinthians 6:9,10].

But it is not necessary to be so judged, for God has provided a way of salvation by faith in His Son. That same passage continues with a beautiful and a glorious word of hope portrayed what against what once was true. That is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of God [1 Corinthians 6:11]. There is forgiveness in the washing, in the sanctification, in the justification offered in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Holy Spirit.

The message of Life is this: At just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly… God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [Romans 5:6,8]. Therefore, If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved… for “Everyone who calls on the Name of the Lord will be saved” [Romans 10:9,10,13]. Believe today and be saved, joining this holy band who waits in expectation for the return of their great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.