TEXT
: 1 Thessalonians 1 :
2-10
TITLE : “The Testimony of a church filled with the power and joy of the
Holy Spirit “
DATE
: 5th February 2012
We conclude our
prayer week with this text that speaks of the church at Thessalonica in Greece . This is a church , we are told , that was prayed for
regularly by Paul , Silvanus and Timothy ( 1:1) . Wonderful spiritual
fruit were manifested in this congregation. Despite much affliction , there was the joy
of the Holy Spirit . Prayer and the
Holy Spirit - that has been our focus in
Prayer week . We find here a
very winsome picture of a church. We want to be imitators of such a church. (1:6)
We begin by taking a look at the historical picture and
the context :
The first letter to the Thessalonians is apparently Paul's first written letter to a church. Paul had planted this church on his second missionary journey
( Acts
17: 1-10 ). In this city Paul
and Silas saw both, fruitful work in terms of conversions (“many devout Greeks
and not a few of the leading
women” - Acts 17:4) ,
and also much opposition from the Jews in Thessalonica. This was one of the cities from which they had to escape by night, fleeing
to the city of Berea ( Acts 17:10) .
And now that they could not be physically with
them , apart from writing letters such
as these, the main work of Paul and his friends was “ to
always remember them in prayer before
God the Father” ( 1 Thess 1:3) . Eastside Baptist Church
has assumed a similar responsibility in praying regularly for our churches in Namibia. This
was Paul’s habit for all the churches which he had
established by the grace of God [1].
He encouraged the churches likewise to
also pray for him and for the spread of
the gospel .[2]
Why did the
gospel come to this city, Thessalonica , which was in the main very resistant
to the gospel ? We do not have to search for the answer. It is right here: God had a chosen, an elect people
in this city ! They would respond to the gospel message brought to them by Paul , Silas and
Timothy . Verse 4 :
[4] For we know, brothers loved by God, that
he has chosen you, [5] because our gospel came to you not only in
word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction…”
. They
are now among the many nations , tribes and language groups presented
before the eternal throne of God ( Rev 7:9), and when you get to heaven , you
shall see them there .
The gospel had an
impact upon a good number of people in
this city BECAUSE God , by His Holy Spirit made them responsive . The gospel that
was
preached (in word ) to them
did not fall on deaf ears . These
words came “also
in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction…” . These words weren’t just great and profound words such as were common among the great Greek
orators. These words were empowered by
the Holy Spirit . They sank
deep into their hearts , and changed
their wills and they brought
forth a renewed life . Can you say that God’s Word has done and is doing the same for you ?
And so they became
imitators of their teachers , who were
in turn imitators of the Lord Jesus
Christ (1:5; 2:14 ; 1 Cor 4:6).
We also take note that
they had received the Word ( they
became Christians ) in the
midst of some very heavy trials . To
understand these trials we must read Acts 17: 1-9
17:1 Now when
they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica,
where there was a synagogue of the Jews. [2] And Paul went in, as was his
custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,
[3] explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer
and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is
the Christ.” [4] And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and
Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading
women. But the Jews were jealous, and
taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an
uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to
the crowd. [6] And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason
and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men
who have turned the world upside down have come here also, [7] and Jason
has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar,
saying that there is another king, Jesus.” [8] And the people and the city
authorities were disturbed when they heard these things. [9] And when they
had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.
Do you see what happened here ? As a result of hearing
and accepting the gospel , the believers (Jason is mentioned
specifically) were physically attacked
and intimidated by a Jewish contingent in the city who instigated the
Greek city fathers. These dear believers continued
however in an undiminished joy of
the Holy Spirit . (1:6)
It is hard for us
here in Namibia to conceive of such a happening. But this is
certainly the norm for those who become
Christians in many Muslim dominated nations. Recently we
have heard how Iranian
believers are being harassed [3]:
Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani was arrested in
Rasht on 13 October 2009 for protesting the regime's plans to force Islamic
education on all children in violation of the constitution. He has reportedly
been sentenced to death. Furthermore Pastor Yousef's wife, Fatemeh (Tina)
Passandideh, was arrested on 8 June 2010 and is in solitary confinement in Evin
Prison. The authorities have threatened to put the couple's children, Yoel and
Daniel, in an Islamic institution.
A group of 15 new believers were travelling by bus to the provincial town of Bojnoord on 18 July
2010. Security forces were informed and ambushed and arrested them in the city
of Mashhad. After a week of harsh interrogation, believers who signed
'confessions' were freed on conditions including due payment of all bail. Mr
Reza (48, also known as Stephen) and Mr Ehsan Behrooz (23) refused to
co-operate and so remain incarcerated in the 901st branch of the Revolutionary
Court in Mashhad.
It is remarkable that such
people persevere and go on loving and
serving God. This is the power
of the gospel . This is the work
of the Holy Spirit . When Christians survive under such
inhuman pressure even with joy , then God the Holy Spirit is at work strengthening
them and comforting them in their trials. This is what Daniel had experienced in the lions den (Dan.6). When
Christians have joy even under
affliction then we know that there is a
God in heaven who knows how to comfort
and keep His people !
There are people among us who have suffered because God has granted this to them. They know what the
Scripture is talking about when it
speaks about affliction in the same breath as the joy of the Holy Spirit .
Paul speaks about this
in Philippians 1:29 : “ For it has been granted to you that for the
sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake…”
. Assurance of salvation is best
experienced under affliction . When you have come through a
great trial and you are still standing ,
you know that God is real and that He is your Helper ! That is why you must learn to embrace your sufferings
. God is at work in them. God sometimes
takes us through a severe disciplining and pruning process
- SO THAT we may know that we are His beloved , legitimate children. (Hebr 12: 5-11 )
What we have before us here in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 is a prayer of
thanksgiving to God for these
Thessalonians who had been powerfully touched
by the gospel and who had subsequently become such a remarkable model of a
vibrant church in Macedonia and Achaia
and even beyond ! ( vv 7-10 ) – all this in the midst of
suffering . This is real faith .
Behind this real faith
is the work and person of the
Holy Spirit and the prayers of God’s people . The ministry of prayer and the Holy Spirit go hand in hand . In fact , we may be certain that were people are involved in earnest prayer , the Holy Spirit has
stirred them to do it . The Holy Spirit is the “senior partner “ in this relationship.
We need to remind ourselves that we do not receive from God because we pray but we receive from
God because the Holy Spirit helps us to pray. I
showed you that when we worked
through Romans 8:26,27 . [26] Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not
know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us
with groanings too deep for words. True, sincere prayer is by the power of the Holy Spirit .
The Holy Spirit is
the energiser of the church
. Paul says in Col
1:29 that He labours with His energy
. We can preach the Word of God , but unless
the Holy Spirit helps us , those
inspired Words come no further than
the “ear gate“. The Holy Spirit alone convicts , converts and effectively
comforts sinners. WE need Him to
apply the truth to our hearts. The congregation needs the Holy Spirit to listen effectively . The preacher needs the Holy Spirit . John Calvin who is often described as the Theologian of the Holy Spirit apparently
always ascended his pulpit with these words : “ Come Holy Spirit…!”
Paul teaches the Ephesians to pray in the Spirit at all times ( Eph
6:18) . It was the Holy Spirit who spoke to those assembled in worship in Acts
13:1-3: “ Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul
for the work to which I have called them .”
The immediate response to this was prayer , fasting and consecrating
them for the work to which
God the Holy Spirit had directed
them .
Prayer that seeks
the help of the Holy Spirit is not
disappointed . God rewards those who
seek Him ( Hebr 11:6) . The book of Acts illustrates
this . We saw that last Sunday evening as we studied Acts 4 :23-31.
And now as we consider the work that we must do as a church
, consider these lessons well and ask yourself :
1. What can this church REALLY
do on earth for heaven’s sake
without the help of
the Holy Spirit ?
2. What can you REALLY do
without the help of the Holy Spirit
?
Sadly , it appears that we can do many things without the Holy Spirit . People do get a sense of purpose and satisfaction working in the church. But
that is not necessarily something
that glorifies God . You can serve tea , do door steward ministry ,teach
Sunday School , do crèche etc , you can preach - all
for the satisfaction of your own ego , but
there will be no genuine power in your activities unless
the gospel moves you by the power of the Holy Spirit to do whatever you do with real joy
and conviction , and in the Name of Jesus . There is a difference between giving a cup of cold water (or tea)
joyfully in the Name of Jesus , and giving a cup of cold water (or hot
tea) because you are simply on a duty list . Brother
Lawrence, a 17th century monk wrote
a Christian classic
entitled “Practising the presence of God” . He basically worked in the kitchen of the monastery, and he remembered this as he trained himself to peel potatoes to the glory
of God !
Such was the disposition of the Thessalonians . They became
examples to the believers in Macedonia
and Achaia . This may have had an
effect upon the Macedonians of whom Paul reports in 2
Corinthians 8 &9 . They were also hard pushed in their poverty , and yet we read how
earnestly and joyfully and cheerfully they gave out of their poverty . Who made the difference ? It was
God , Christ … the Holy Spirit in them ! Giving
becomes a pleasure when God is in
it !
So here we have a church
that was prayed for . Here we have a
church in and through whom the Holy Spirit was pleased
to work in those days . And it became known everywhere . This was an
exceptional church by virtue of the One
who helped her so greatly! And she was
helped in prayer by others !
The lesson is very
simple : Seek the help of the Holy
Spirit in prayer for all that you do in Jesus Name .
Brothers and sisters
: Pray until you see Him at work
and in charge of your life and the church’s life . Pray until you see that joy on
each others faces . There is nothing
greater than seeing that . That
is a church in the hands of God . That
is what God wants . That is what we want
. Amen !
[1] Rom1:8-10 ; 1 Cor
1:4 ; Eph 1:115-23 ; 3:14-19 ;
Phil 1:3-11; Col 1:3-14; 1 Thess 1:2-3; 2 Thess 1: 3-12 ; 2 Tim 1:3 ; Phil 4-6
[2] Rom
15:30-32 ; 2 Cor 1:11 Eph 6:19,20 ;
Phil 2:19 ; Col 4:2-4 ; 1 Thess 5:25 ; 2 Thess 3:1,2 ; 1 Tim 2:1-8
[3] ASSIST
News Service (ANS) - web site at: www.assistnews.net
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