Actions Speak Louder than Words
Perseverance: 1 Thessalonians • Sermon • Submitted
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Introduction (vs.8-9a)
Introduction (vs.8-9a)
We pick up our study of 1 Thessalonians in chapter 1 at verse 8. So far, we have seen the Apostle Paul declare to the Thessalonians of their labor of love. We have also seen how Paul has shared with them they are chosen to choose. If you study this carefully, you can also see that these verses in this short book are relevant to us today in the 21st century and in our church. Listen as I read 1 Thessalonians 1:8-10:
8 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, 9 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, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.
The first few words, “The Lord’s message,” show me that God has delivered His word. Message is LOGOS, which is the word of Christ. That is a pretty awesome way start out isn’t it? The message is not some made up fairy tale, but rather the message declared was indeed the word of the Lord. God has revealed His word throughout scripture.
1 After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision:
“Do not be afraid, Abram.
I am your shield,
your very great reward.”
The message comes as comfort and strength.
10 Hear the word of the Lord,
you rulers of Sodom;
listen to the law of our God,
you people of Gomorrah!
The message comes as a stern warning.
4 Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob,
all you clans of the house of Israel.
The message of the Lord comes to family. To the Thessalonians, the message comes in a way that it is lived and proclaimed. The Bible says, “The message of the Lord rang out.” It is manifested in a way that this phrase gives the image of a sound going forth in all directions. It is like standing on one of our mountaintops and shouting, “God loves you!” and it echoes through the mountains and valleys. How has the word of God rang out from you life and your actions?
Great things happen when we allow the Lord’s message to ring out.
4 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth,
burst into jubilant song with music;
The Lord’s message is multiplied when it rings out. It is well documented that one’s actions do much more talking than the words could ever say. For example, we say over and over that we miss someone coming to church. However, when we tangibly show them how much they are missed, the all the difference is made.
1 And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. 2 Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. 3 For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, 4 they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. 5 And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will.
We see from this passage that the love that was shown made the difference. The Lord’s message rings out, it is manifested and then it is multiplied. In 1 Thessalonians 1:8, there is a phrase that says, “your faith in God has become known everywhere.” Some scholars think this is an exaggeration. They may if say, “Surely this did not mean everywhere!” Well, think about it. The location of Thessalonica was such that the whole world could come through here either by the Egnation Way or by the Thermaic Sea. The culture was rich with all kinds of nationalities represented. To say it is an exaggeration is far from the fact that indeed the message was received everywhere. And we are not just talking about the message of Paul, Silas and Timothy here. We are talking about the Thessalonians and the activity of their church.
It is consistent with what is reported in Romans 1:8:
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.
The point is, when you do the Lord’s work and declare His message with your actions, it gets noticed and revealed to the world. In doing so, the Thessalonians give us three actions that we need to be doing and are relevant to us today.
The Action of Turning From Idols (vs.9b)
The Action of Turning From Idols (vs.9b)
First, there is the action of turning from idols. We see it spelled out in the end of verse 9: “They turned from idols.” The influence of the Thessalonians was enormous. There were descendants of Alexander’s Empire which lasted through the reign of Perseus. This just 200 years prior to the coming of the gospel. There were huge political and economic benefits in this city which led to great influence of pagan idols. Leviticus 19:4 laid out the law about these idols.
4 “ ‘Do not turn to idols or make gods of cast metal for yourselves. I am the Lord your God.
Despite the warning from God’s Law, the people of Thessalonica came under the influence of idols. This would be a good time to reflect on what an idol might be. Many of us think that an idol is a small statue of Budda or some other god. However, an idol is anything that we worship instead of God Almighty. It could be yourself. It could be a car or truck. It could be a job or money. It could be a relationship or even a relationship that is thought up or imagined. An idol is any type of false god that is used in the shades of the departed, apparitions, or phantoms of the mind. It is usually related to something or someone that is not able to be alive. it has darkness around it.
By the way, the opposite of that is very alive and has conquered death. Know anything like that? His Name is Jesus!
The Thessalonians had unreliable information. Psalm 106:36 clarifies what happens with this unreliable information.
36 They worshiped their idols,
which became a snare to them.
If you have ever hunted, perhaps you have used a snare to trap an animal. Once the snare is set, it is very hard for that animal to get away. The same thing happens in our lives when turn to idolatry instead of the Almighty. It becomes undeniable idiotic!
No wonder we have the caution in 1 John 5:21:
21 Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.
Idols are lies. They are false. Paul, Silas and Timothy are reporting how this church in Thessalonica had the reputation of turning from these idols and turning to God.
The Action of Turning to God (vs.9b)
The Action of Turning to God (vs.9b)
That 180 degree turn is the best one could make. It is well understood that if one was turning away from something that he or she would need to turn towards something else. Our writers of this Epistle clearly show that as the people turned from idols, they turned to God. In doing so, they discovered worthy fact about a worthy God. The authors tell us that they chose to “serve the living and true God.” Have you experienced the living and true God? I wonder how you have experienced Him? I wonder if you know that He has raised the dead, healed the sick, mended the broken hearted, and given guidance to wayfaring journeyman. I wonder if you know that He is the living and true God that is able to be the one that:
24 To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—
I wonder if you know the One that called us into a worthy faith.
27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel
I think if we know we turn from the idols in our lives and turn to “serve the living and true God,” we will have a reputation like the Thessalonians. They had a worthy fame. What do people know you for? How does your fame proclaim your testimony?
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
Our actions must speak louder than our words. We must be of worthy fame. This means that we need to have worthy fitness. I need to train in order to be spiritually fit.
7 Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. 8 For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
There are actions that you and I need to be doing to become godly people. I mentioned these Wednesday night in our prayer and praise meeting.
We need to be grounded in God’s Word. This means that we are regularly reading it and studying it. We need to be fervent in prayer. This means we need to pray more than “God be with those that aren’t here” kind of prayers. We need to come to the Lord in fervent prayer.
16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
In fact this is also the pattern of Jesus.
7 During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.
This is something that we we are going to look at closer on Wednesday Night so I hope you will plan on coming to attend.
Our spiritual fitness requires us to be grounded in God’s Word, to be men and women that fervently pray and we need to be connected to authentic community. In other words, we need to be in some type of small group. We have groups that you can be connected to more than just being in worship. We have Sunday School classes, Women’s Missions, Bible Studies, but church we need to develop more. There are some that have not experienced the joy of being connected in authentic community. Let’s develop more opportunities. These are all actions of turning away from selfish idols and turning to God and serving Him as the One true Lord!
The Action of Anticipating the Return of Christ (vs. 10)
The Action of Anticipating the Return of Christ (vs. 10)
Why do we do that?
1 Thessalonians 1:10 tells us exactly why we need to do that:
10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.
We need to practice the action of anticipating the return of Christ. Jesus is coming back. When He does, we will go with Him and reign with Him for eternity. Part of the action we need to practice is waiting.
14 Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord.
You know me, and how I love to wait. I am the most patient waiting person that has ever been created. Right? Absolutely not. I do not wait well, but I am better than what I was. As people of God, we are called to the action of waiting. We are equipped for it by the way.
7 Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.
We are given the spiritual gifts that help us as we wait. Part of that is watching.
7 But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord,
I wait for God my Savior;
my God will hear me.
What a promise! We can wait, we can watch, but while we do, guess what else we can do?
We can work! Even while we wait, there is no time to stop working.
9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Remember, we are working for the Lord!
58 Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
Church, it is time for our actions to speak louder than our words! Our church needs you to do so. Our town needs you to do so. Our county needs you to do so. Our state needs you to do so. Our country needs you to do so! Our world as well, but more importantly, the Kingdom of God needs to do so!