The Power of the Gospel and How it Spreads

The Power of the Gospel and How it Spreads 1 Thessalonians 1:4-10 August 16, 2020 The Big Idea: Paul celebrates with his friends the power of the Gospel in God’s choice to save. Now, as Christians, he lays out how imitation and reputation are both beautiful parts of how God opens people to the Gospel. They are instruments He uses to help us grow and bring glory to Him. 1 Thessalonians 1 (ESV) 1 4 For we know, brothers loved by God, that He has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. 6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8 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. 9 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, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. 5 What We Need to Know About How People Become Christians ü Salvation is Born Out of God’s Love for Us 1 John 4:19 – any love we have for God is because He love us first! ü Salvation is Experienced Because God Chose Us and Draws Us to Himself John 6:44 (ESV) “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” Ephesians 1:4-6 (ESV) ü We are Saved Because the Gospel Came to Us (v. 5) Romans 1:14-16 ü Most are Saved When Someone Presents and Explains the Gospel (v. 5) o … not in words alone o … but in power [dunamis] o … in the Holy Spirit o … and with full conviction ü We are saved when there is a response of faith in Jesus alone as the One who can save us. [Acts 16:31] How We Grow Spiritually and the Gospel Spreads ü We “imitate” a faithful Christian – and the Lord – “received the word” ü We then become an “example” to others ü The Gospel spreads, in part, through the “good gossip” about how we are living … o How we deal with “affliction” o Our “joy” o Our kindness, respect, and generosity o Our rejection of “idols” and submission to the “living and true God” – “to serve the living and true God” o Our faithful and hopeful endurance as we wait and long for the return of our King and Savior, Jesus (v. 10) ü We stay focused on Jesus, our deliverer (v. 10) “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’ ” - Abraham Kuyper