The Gospel Hope

I know that I have mentioned before that during my college years, I spent my summers working for a custom harvester. The man that I worked for would take a couple of combines down to the very southern border of Oklahoma and then fall the grain harvest north, hiring his machines out to farmers to take in their grain. I mainly served as a truck driver for him, hauling the grain from the fields to the large grain elevators in nearby towns. The truck that I drove had a speed governor installed on its engine. I could push the petal right to the floorboard of that truck if I wanted to, but that truck would not go above 60 miles per hour because that was the speed that the governor was set at. It worked nearly as good as a cruise control. I could put the pedal down flat and just drive.

Involvement:

That governor completely controlled the speed of that grain truck. This morning I want us to ask what should govern our lives in a similar fashion?

Context:

This is our third sermon in our series through 1 Thessalonians. By now, if you have been with us for the past two, you know that Paul wrote this letter in response to a very encouraging report that he had received from Timothy. Paul, Silvanus (or Silas as he is also known in the NT), and Timothy had had to leave Thessalonica very quickly because of intense opposition from the Jews in the city. They had only been in the city for a short time, but during that time, they had seen several people come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ and form the core of an infant church. Paul had sent Timothy back as soon as possible to see how these young believers were doing. In response to Timothy’s glowing report Paul has begun this letter with an expression of thanksgiving for God’s work—God had caused the gospel message to produce real spiritual life, that life was growing, and as we will see today even reproducing…the gospel lifecycle was moving along in a glorious fashion.

Since the verses that we are going to look at today round out this thanksgiving that Paul has been expressing, I think it will be useful to back up a bit and reread the verses that we have already looked at in the previous weeks…let’s back up and read verses 2–7 of 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 <read 2–7>

Paul has thanked God for the gospel product in their lives—the evidence of spiritual life that is on display in their work of faith and their labor of love and their steadfastness of hope. He has thanked God for being the Source of the gospel product in their lives, displaying His divine electing love by creating their positive response to the gospel that has resulted in both their salvation and their example to other believers even while suffering tribulations of their own.

Preview:

And this brings us to our verses for today, the final verses in chapter 1 of this letter. The Thessalonians are going through seriously hard times…the people who hated the message of Christ that Paul and the other messengers introduced to the city have not softened in their attitudes toward those who have decided to believe the message. Yet, we will see this morning that the difficult circumstances that are surrounding the Thessalonians have not governed their actions. Instead, it is the gospel that they have believed that is governing them. The gospel has given them hope that is unaffected and even supersedes their circumstance.

Application

What struck me as I was preparing this passage over this past week was how much this message is applicable for us today. We are beginning to face increasing levels of social hostility because of our belief in Jesus Christ. I really believe that we can anticipate progressively hostile circumstances around us if we hold on to the truth of the gospel without apology…in other words, we may soon be modern-day Thessalonians, surrounded by hostility and tribulation…we need the lesson that we can learn from the original Thessalonians, the simple lesson that the hope produced by the gospel should completely govern our lives.

The hope produced by the gospel should completely govern our lives. Now, our lives are pretty complex places…to say that they should be completely governed by gospel hope is a big statement; it may also be a bit too open-ended for us to really wrap our minds around so this morning we will notice three specific things that gospel hope should produce within our lives if our lives are completely governed by it…one item from each verse.

Transition from introduction to body:

Let’s read our three verses this morning…<read 8–10>.

The hope produced by the gospel should completely govern our lives. In verse 8 we see the first thing that should be produced by gospel hope;…

BODY:

I. Gospel hope should produce bold proclamation of Christ to others, v. 8

As we saw last week and read just a few moments ago, the Thessalonians had become examples through a large area of the Roman Empire surrounding their city. In verse 8, Paul tells them what has led to this situation. It is possible that they were not even aware that their faith in Christ had had such a wide-spread impact, but it had and Paul tells them why…because they had boldly proclaimed Christ to others, “the word of the Lord has sounded forth.”

The term, sounded forth, has the idea of reverberating out in strong and clear tones. You might think of bells chiming from a bell tower or a trumpet blasting out before the entrance of a king. There is no mistaking the sound; it is clear and distinct and carries a message filled with meaning.

Illustration

As most of you know, the town I grew up in was very small…around 300 people. Our town, as is the case with many rural towns, had a volunteer fire and ambulance crew. Our town had a fire truck and ambulance stored in a central building with several people’s homes nearby connected to the emergency number. When a call came for help came in, the first person to the building would set off a very loud siren mounted to the roof of the building that could be heard throughout the whole town. When that siren went off, any volunteer members anywhere in town would drop whatever they were doing and rush to the building. Within a few minutes the vehicle would be on the move because the need for help had sounded forth…that is the idea of this word.

The word of the Lord had sounded forth so clearly from the Thessalonians that everyone in the broad region far beyond the city had heard its reverberation.

Transition:

Looking carefully at the verse, I believe that there are two ways in which the proclamation of the gospel would have occurred. First of all, there would have been…

A. Proclamation through direct statement

People knew that the Thessalonian believers believed in Jesus Christ; they could only know this if the believers were actually telling people that fact through direct statement. Of course, the context of the previous verses suggests that some of those direct statements would have even been made in the face of open hostility and with the clear understanding that making statements about Jesus Christ would result in tribulation. Yet, that is what they were doing…they were telling people about Jesus, accepting any tribulation that resulted from proclaiming Him.

Application

Let’s ask ourselves, are we doing that? Are we proclaiming Christ? Now, I am not talking about posting vaguely religious sounding memes on Facebook. I’m not even talking about liking religious blogs or posting verses of the day. I am also not talking about taking certain political stances that align with biblical principles. What I am asking is whether or not we are directly telling people about the gospel hope that is found through faith in Jesus alone? Is the “word of the Lord” sounding forth from our mouths through direct statements to people who do not know Him? A genuine gospel hope produces boldness. Not proclaiming Christ through direct statement is cowardly, the exact opposite of boldness.

Transition:

Bold proclamation of Christ to others begins with proclamation through direct statement. It also, though, includes…

B. Proclamation through indirect reputation

I have to wonder if the Thessalonians were surprised to hear how far word of their faith had traveled. Sure, there is likely a bit of hyperbole involved when Paul says that people “in every place” knew of their faith, but it is clear that he means word of their faith had traveled far beyond Thessalonica. Certainly, the Thessalonians had not had the opportunity to talk to all of these people throughout the region about their faith in Jesus, but their faith was so remarkable… standing in the face of tribulation as it was…that their reputation was carrying the “word of the Lord” further than even their lips were able to take it. Their lives were reverberating for Christ.

Application

How about our reputation? When unbelievers think about us do they think of a people who are so sold out for Jesus that they really can’t quite understand us? When other believers think of us do they become encouraged and joy-filled at what God is doing in our lives? We all have an indirect reputation that travels further than we ourselves travel. What does our reputation proclaim about Jesus?

Transition:

The hope produced by the gospel should completely govern our lives. Gospel hope first of all should produce bold proclamation of Christ to others. This proclamation should come through direct statement as well as indirect reputation. Both forms of proclamation should be causing others to know about the hope that we have through the gospel.

In verse 9 we see a second item that should be produced by gospel hope;…

II. Gospel hope should produce a complete change of goals in our lives, v. 9

Imagine the Thessalonians’ surprise when Paul tells them in this verse that everywhere he goes, he keeps hearing other people reporting that they have already heard about how he and Silas and Timothy were received by the Thessalonians when they came to that city…that there in Thessalonica was a group of people who listened to the gospel message that Paul and the others brought, who believed it, and who have now responded to it with transformed lives. Specifically, what he kept hearing is that the Thessalonians had changed the direction that their lives were taking…see that word “turned” there in verse 9?

Illustration

There were several times…more than I care to really confess…after Grace and I moved into our current house that I found myself making a left off of Ryan Road a mile early. The drive home was slightly unfamiliar; I didn’t know the landmarks on my new corner yet; and…I tend to drive somewhat distractedly at times, thinking about other things. I would suddenly discover that I had turned onto on the wrong street and would not be finding my house on the one upon which I and my vehicle were at the moment. Guess what I did? I turned around. I didn’t keep going; I made a conscious choice to go the other direction back towards Ryan so that I could try again.

That is the idea of the word “turned” there in verse 9; it reflects a deliberate choice on the part of the Thessalonian believers…a choice that was so significant that it was now what they were known for.

Transition:

A deliberate choice to turn in one’s life involves a change of goals, a change with two components spelled out in this verse that should resonate with us today because of our gospel hope. First of all, there should be…

A. Change toward a pursuit of God

In the case of the Thessalonians, it is clear that the majority of the new believers were from a Gentile background. Prior to Paul and company arriving, they really didn’t know anything about the true and living God. But when they learned of Him and the relationship that they could have through faith in Jesus with Him, they made the conscious decision to pursue Him; in fact to “serve Him because He is living and true. The word “serve” in this verse literally means to “serve as a slave.” Pursuing God involves every aspect of our lives because we are now the slaves of God.

Application

Have you made this conscious decision in your life? Are you pursuing God? Are you serving Him? It takes work to truly pursue God. Pursuing God is not covered by coming to church on Sunday morning. Pursuing God is not even covered by reading our Bibles daily so that we can check it off a list; pursing God is not doing anything simply so that we can look like good Christians. Pursuing God is actively pursuing a relationship…spending time with Him, getting to know Him, and living in a way that makes Him happy.

Illustration

There are times when Grace and I just want to be together. We enjoy a quiet evening sitting on our deck with each other. That is because we both enjoy pursuing our relationship with each other. The same must be true for God if we are truly living in light of genuine gospel hope.

Transition:

There must be a change toward a pursuit of God. Yet, because this is part of “turning” the pursuit of God must be coupled with…

B. Change toward a rejection of all else

The Thessalonians did not add God onto everything else that they were already living their lives for. When they were unbelievers, they were idolaters…they had been living their lives in pursuit of idolatry in various forms. They could not pursue God without rejecting everything that had been the goals of their lives prior to God.

In fact, it is this single reason that the Thessalonian believers were now hated within their city. The Roman Empire was a very open-minded, tolerant society. They were very flexible in allowing people to worship any and all deities that they wanted to…the bumper sticker that said “Coexist” was posted on the back of many a Roman chariot. The only thing they couldn’t tolerate was a group coming along and saying that there was only one true and living God and who would therefore refuse to acknowledge the pursuit of any other gods as being valid. The only thing not tolerated was an absolute. Much like today.

Application

But unlike today, the Thessalonians understood that pursuing God meant that they could not continue to pursue the other life goals that had been set before them from a framework of idolatry. Our problem too often is we fail to recognize that our unsaved life was a life that was structured around the pursuit of idolatry. The idols of America are subtle idols: success, money, relaxation, comfort, fame, respect, ease, and so forth. In America these idols are pursued relentlessly, not by burning incense in temples, but rather by offering up ceaseless hours of our lives in pursuit of them. Yet, make no mistake about it, these are idols and we must reject them if we are going to turn to God.

Now, I am not saying that you all need to quit your jobs and go into full-time ministry. What I am saying is that you must, because of the gospel hope what governs you, no longer live for the pursuit of these idols. Money, comfort, fame, ease, even retirement; these are not to be your ultimate goals in life. You can have only one ultimate goal; that is to be the pursuit of God. You cannot add God to the pursuit of these others; you must reject all these others as your life goals and pursue God. You are now to work at your job in pursuit of God. You are bow to spend your time of relaxation in pursuit of God. You are now to utilize your retirement in the pursuit of God. This is what a complete change of goals requires. Have you turned to God from idols so that you are now serving a living and true God?

Transition:

The hope produced by the gospel should completely govern our lives. The gospel hope should produce a complete change of goals in our lives. We change toward a pursuit of God and a rejection of all else as our ultimate goal in life.

This then leads to the third item found in verse 10,…

III. Gospel hope should produce an eager anticipation of our future, v.10

The Thessalonians turned to God to serve Him (v. 9) and to wait (v. 10). That word “wait” sums up the patient endurance of hope that governed their lives under the gospel. It is a word that carries the idea of eagerly and expectantly looking forward to the coming arrival of someone who is expected at any time.

Illustration

Think of the picture of a child who has been told that his out-of-town Grandma and Grandpa are arriving after lunch for a long-awaited visit. As soon as lunch is over, that child is perched on the chair right next to the front window waiting for the car to pull into the driveway that will bring Grandma and Grandpa…after all; he knows there will most certainly be a present arriving at the same time because there always is.

Transition:

This was the Thessalonians…they were eagerly waiting with great anticipation; the same kind of anticipation that we should have. Yet, based upon what Paul tells them, what should we be anticipating? Again, we can identify two things in our verse. First of all, there should be an…

A. Anticipation that our living Savior will return

We are waiting for a Person…a Person that is identified in a number of ways in this verse. He is God’s Son. This points to an inner relationship that He has with God and expresses that this Person is divine.

He is “from heaven.” Heaven is the place where He is located now, the place of His present rule. Yet, He is coming again to earth…that is why we wait with eager anticipation.

He has been “raised from the dead.” His resurrection guarantees that He is able to return because He is not buried in a grave somewhere; He is a living Person.

He has a name: Jesus. We are waiting for a historical Person; the Man from the region of Galilee who was hung on the cross in Jerusalem nearly 2,000 years ago. A man as well as divine.

And He is the One who rescues us. We call this Person that we are waiting for our Savior because He will rescue us from the wrath to come. Our sin warranted the full wrath of God. Jesus, when He went to the cross took that wrath upon Himself for all who place their faith in Him.

Application

I hope that each one of you is in that group…that you have placed your faith in Jesus as your Savior. If not, talk to me following the service this morning. Allow me to explain how you can bow before God today and accept Jesus’ death on the cross for your sins so that He can save you from the wrath to come.

This is Jesus, our living Savior who will return. There is nothing in the text that suggests how soon this may occur. We know that historically it has been nearly 2,000 years since Paul wrote this letter. Yet in the original language of this letter, the word “coming” or “to come” is in the emphatic position. This positioning suggests that Paul expected the original readers look for the Lord’s return during their lifetimes. We certainly should be doing likewise. He is coming and it could be, as the hymn says, that He is coming today.

Transition:

Our gospel hope should produce an anticipation that our living Savior will return. It should also, secondly, produce an…

B. Anticipation that our enemies will be judged

The Thessalonians were going through tribulation. They needed to persevere in the face of that tribulation. The message of encouragement that Paul sent to them was the reminder that they would be rescued from the wrath to come. The focus he sets before them is not one of eternal glory at this point, but rather the reminder of the final destruction of their opponents.

Application

We can be encouraged by this thought as well. As the potential for tribulation increases in our world, we will find it increasingly an encouragement to remember that our enemies will not get away with their hatred of our Savior. Yes, we can and should pray for their salvation so that our enemies will become our brothers and sisters. And we should proclaim the gospel to them for that purpose. But if they do not accept Christ as Savior, we can rightly take solace in the fact that whatever evil is committed against us because of our linkage to the name of Christ will find proper retribution within the wrath of God. We do not need to take retribution ourselves…in fact, we dare not do so because God has declared that He alone has the right to take vengeance. But we can none-the-less endure because we are confident that He will do that very thing on our behalf…in fact, it is our Savior who will come as the righteous Judge exacting vengeance upon all who have stood against Him and His body.

Life is certainly hard at times. It is hard to be a Christian in a world in rebellion against our God and that therefore hates our Savior. But praise God, the hope that we have through the gospel assures us that our future will make it all worth it. Like Paul in 2 Cor 4:17, we can consider that this “momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.”

Transition from body to conclusion:.

Gospel hope should produce an eager anticipation of our future. It should produce an anticipation that our living Savior will return and it should produce an anticipation that our enemies will be judged.

CONCLUSION

The hope produced by the gospel should completely govern our lives.

Much like that governor that completely controlled the speed on that grain truck I drove during my college summers, the hope produced by the gospel should completely govern our lives.

Three specific items that should result from gospel hope in our lives: 1) Gospel hope should produce bold proclamation of Christ to others, 2) Gospel hope should produce a complete change of goals in our lives, and 3) Gospel hope should produce an eager anticipation of our future.