So we're in the book of 1 Thessalonians, and we got through chapter one last time, last week, and we're gonna get into chapter two. And my plan is to make it through the chapter. We'll see how things go, but that's what I put together. Let me pray and then we'll talk about the book a little bit and then get into this first section of the chapter. Our Father and our God, we pause before we begin our journey here into chapter two. Lord, I ask your blessing on your word. Lord, even this chapter is gonna tell us of the power of your word to transform lives, to transform communities. So Father, we pray that you do that transformative work in us, Lord, that we will be changed for the better because we spent time with you and in your word. And Lord, we are grateful for that. In Jesus' name, amen. So the letter itself we talked about last week and looked at. I'm not going to read it, but we went through the Book of Acts a little bit, saw that Paul had his ministry there with Silas, and they were ushered out of the city fairly quickly because a riot broke out. And they didn't spend that much time ministering there. And we're going to get to more of the heart of the epistle today. And you start to see that maybe some people were talking, and maybe word even got back to Paul, that some were thinking that he had sort of abandoned the church. They left and didn't really come back, and left them there with just a little bit of teaching that they received. And so he's going to make a little bit of a defense. And it's really, in my estimation, you really get to see the heart of Paul in chapter 2 of 1 Thessalonians. And I think you'll see why I say that as we read it. But let's begin with the first 12 verses. And I'll come back if I reread some of this. But let's look at 1 to 12. This is 1 Thessalonians chapter 2. For you yourselves know, brethren, that our coming to you was not in vain. But even after we had suffered before and were spitefully treated in Philippi, as you know, we were bold in our God to speak to you the gospel of God in much conflict. For our exhortation did not come from error or uncleanness, nor was it in deceit. But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts. For neither at any time did we use flattering words, as you know, nor a cloak of covetousness, God as witness, nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others, when we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children. So affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you have become dear to us. For you remember, brethren, our labor and toil for laboring night and day, that we may not be a burden to any of you. We preached to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God also, how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe. As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father does his own children, that you would walk worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. So let's stop there and unpack that a little bit. So he reminds the church in Thessalonica that before he arrived there, he was in Philippi, where he was treated abominably by the officials there. He and Silas were arrested, and they were beaten, and they were jailed, which is really an illegal thing to do to a Roman citizen, but that's what they did to him without trial. And he left there. When he uses the language in the original Greek here, he says he suffered, he was spitefully treated, and in conflict. That language is the Greek word agoni, which is where we get our word agonize or agony. And so he says, I left Philippi and they left me in agony. And I think he probably had physical agony. You can imagine when he got to Thessalonica, he and Silas probably weren't walking quite right because they were so bruised up from being beaten. But I think he had an inner agony as well. Everywhere he and his company went, it seemed that a riot would follow. He was oppressed. You'll see that he sees Satan's hand at work in anything that would come against the gospel and the advancement of the kingdom of Jesus Christ. But he says in verse 1 there, but even though that's true, I boldly preached the gospel. I didn't water it down. I didn't hold back because I knew it would stir up trouble. I preached to you the full and true gospel of God. He says that over and over again. And he says, and my coming to you, verse 1, was not in vain. It wasn't void. It wasn't empty. I basically let loose the truth of the gospel, even though I know it offends. And look what happened. God birthed a church. And there you are. It wasn't void. It wasn't empty. It was worthwhile. So I see here, for me, it's helpful, and hopefully for you as well, He puts out what I put in my notes as a test of faithful preaching, right? Because he's describing his ministry to them, and he keeps saying that he has two witnesses. He says, God is my witness, and you all are my witness. You know this is true. You were there when I was there ministering, and these things are true. And I jotted down four tests, and these are in the negative. He's saying, we didn't do this, and we didn't do that. These are things that were not a part of his ministry. And the first one is, he says, We didn't come there to please men. We didn't come here as men-pleasers. That wasn't our mission. Our mission was to proclaim Christ crucified and raised from the dead. To let you know you're dead in sins and trespasses. You need to give your life to Jesus Christ. Embrace Him by faith. Repent and come to Christ. So he says that he didn't come there to please men. I can tell you from practical experience that some people rejoice in that message, and they well up. Some people that are hearing the message, sometimes they already came to Christ, and they're like, oh, praise God. I've preached funerals where I left the funeral, and somebody would come up to me and say, you know, brother, I just want to thank you for daring to actually preach and proclaim the gospel at my brother's funeral, because a lot of my family doesn't know the Lord. And so you'll get that reaction, but it also can make people angry. And I've looked out at crowds of people and seen the gnashing of the teeth and the anger on their faces, even at funerals. I've seen that. He didn't go there to please men. He went there to be faithful to the charge that Jesus Christ charged him with, which was to be the apostle to the Gentiles. In John chapter 12, verse 42, it says, Nevertheless, even among the rulers, many believed in him. But because of the Pharisees, they did not confess him. That's a dangerous place to be, to be a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, to repent and come to Him by faith, to believe in the Lord savingly, but refusing to confess Him before men. Why? It says, lest they should be put out of the synagogue, for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. And beloved, that's a danger for everyone in this room, including me. is that we would live our lives for the applause of men. To be the popular kid in school, right? That's what everybody wanted to be. To really, above the praise of God, who sees our faithfulness, that we would speak and do things in a way, maybe that's not of God, that we would receive the praise of men. It's a danger. He says the same thing in Galatians, Paul does, Galatians 1.10. He says, for do I now persuade men, or God, or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ. So keep that in mind. That's the first test. Do we do what we do to please the crowd, or do we do what we do to please God? The second test. He said he didn't come there to flatter anybody. I didn't flatter people when I came and spoke, when I ministered. I wasn't there to flatter. Verse 5. Psalm 12 talks about flattering people, right? And usually we flatter somebody or maybe you've been flattered. My guard always goes up when somebody, I can tell they're kind of flattering me in my day job mostly. My wife doesn't tend to flatter me at home too much, but. She's a godly wife. But, you know, when somebody starts, what do they call that, buttering you up? They're after something, right? They're manipulating you. That's what flattery is. And Psalm 12 talks about this. It says, in this verse 1, Help, Lord, for the godless man ceases. I'm sorry, help Lord for the godly man ceases, for the faithful disappear from among the sons of men. They speak idly, every one with his neighbor, with flattering lips and a double heart they speak. May the Lord cut off all flattering lips and the tongue that speaks proud things." Proud things. In Jude, verse 16, Jude writes, these are grumblers and complainers walking according to their own lusts, and they mouth great swelling words, flattering people, to gain advantage. And that's the end goal of the flatterer, right? I was reading John Piper on this, and I thought this was insightful. John Piper writes, he was actually in an interview, but I have it written in written form. But he writes, flattery does not flow from a sincere delight in the thing that's being praised. It's all external. It's manipulative. It is elicited out of us by some other benefit that we're hoping to get through the flattery. Not by the benefit that we just got from a person's kindness or virtue or beauty or their accomplishment. So flattery is a form of hypocrisy. We try to give the impression that we're being moved by a spontaneous delight in something that we admire, but we are not really being moved by spontaneous admiration. We're being calculating. We are desiring to use praise to get something. Now Paul and ministers are tempted to flatter and play to the rich in the church, hoping that maybe when we need to do that building project, that they feel like they've really been stroked and that they'll give to the cause. I've seen that play out before. Paul says, when I came to Thessalonica, I didn't flatter anybody. I didn't back down from preaching the gospel. I wasn't there to please men. I wasn't there to flatter people. He was there to proclaim Jesus Christ, right? Truthfully. The third negative is I put greed. He uses the word in the New King James, covetousness, right? Verse five, he says, he didn't come under a cloak for covetousness. And he says, God is my witness. Right? He didn't cloak what he was there to do. He wasn't covering up. And what he was really after was money. And you know that the visible church has ministries that are after your money. Right? I was listening to a blues song the other day called David Bromberg. He has a song called I'll Take You Back. Right? His wife or girlfriend or whatever, wrong. It's the blues. wronged him. And he keeps saying, I'll take you back. And he says, yeah, when the sun refuses to sign. And that's the blues piece to it. And he goes, I'll take you back when that TV preacher sends me money, is one of the lines in the song. And I thought, isn't that sad? But that's out there. And I don't have any idea that David Bromberg's a Christian, but that's the impression the world has, right? It's all you preachers, all you want is money. You get up there and you preach and you do what you do, but it's really a cloak. What you're really after is money. You're really coveting something. Or maybe power or prestige or, you know, all these things. Paul says, well, I didn't do that. I didn't come there with a cloak of covetousness. The Bible over and over again instructs the church, but especially ministers. And I think it's because we're prone to it, not to be greedy. I like the King James, not for filthy lucre. And it says that to the pastor and the deacons. One of the requirements of a pastor or deacon is that you're not there for greedy purposes. It's not about the money. It's not about what you can get. You're there to minister to people. And Paul's going to go on and talk about that. So the fourth, first, not pleasing men, second, not flattering, third, not greedy, not covetous, and fourth, not seeking the glory from men. That's verse six. He says, nor did we seek glory from men, either from you We're from others. That's not what we were there to do. That wasn't our purpose, to receive glory and prestige and applause from men. That's not why we're there. Jesus said the same thing. I want to read you, this is John chapter 5, and these are the words of our Lord. In verse 41, Jesus is teaching, and He says this, I do not receive honor from men. But I know you that, and he's talking to people that are unbelievers. He goes, I know you that you do not have the love of God in you. I've come in my father's name and you do not receive me. If anyone comes in his own name, him, you will receive. How can you believe, and here it is, who receive honor from one another and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God? In other words, we're to live our lives to the applause of one. Is God well-pleased with what I'm doing? Is God well-pleased with my ministry? He's the one that we live to honor and to receive the pleasure of the Lord in the way we conduct ourselves. And that's what Paul's saying. And I like that he was able to tell the church, and you guys all know this. And they probably all would have been nodding their heads up and down, because they knew. They were with him for a month or so, a little longer. And they would remember that. He says, and God's my witness. He has those two witnesses. Then he turns to me and says, those four negatives, that wasn't a part of the ministry, and you well know that. And then he turns to the positive, and I think this is one of the sweetest texts in the Bible. I've always just loved this. But when you get to, I'll begin in the second part of verse 6, he says, when we might have made demands as apostles of Christ, right? We could have really carried our clout. We could have said, you know, the Lord God of the universe commissioned us to this, and really kind of lorded it over them, and kind of come down on them with that kind of authority. And he says he didn't do that. And then when he wants to, where do I get, the Holy Spirit's going to give him, like, it's kind of like this. In verse 7, he says, no, we didn't make demands as apostles. He says, but we were gentle. among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children. So affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, it wasn't just the preaching, but also our own lives, because you have become dear to us. Paul's saying, church in Thessalonica, I love you. I love you. And I didn't just preach the truth, although I did preach the truth. I gave you my life, is what Paul's saying. And I think that is the model for biblical ministry. It's not just the preaching of the word, it's giving your life to the assembly, to the church, right? And that's his ministry. I didn't make demands like as an apostle, he says. If I could read a little bit of Jesus's words again, in the Gospel of Matthew, in chapter 20, beginning in verse 25, this is what he instructs the church. He's teaching the church here. And he says, He says, but Jesus called them to himself. He wants to teach him something. This is a listen up moment. Listen to what I have to say. He called them to himself and he said, you know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them. And those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you. But whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave, just as--" Now look at the example he's going to give. just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many." We mothered you, like a nursing mother would love on her own children. And in that day in antiquity, the commentators tell me that it was very common practice to contract and hire a wet nurse to take care of the kids, to feed the kids, and also would have a teaching responsibility as the children grew. And what Paul says is, how much more Would a loving mother take care of a nurse and nurture her own children? And he says that's the example, not the hired wet nurse. I wasn't a hired worker in the church. I was like your mother. I was there to nurture you because I love you. That's what he's saying. Gentle, loving, self-sacrifice. He says in verses 9 and 10 that their walk matched their talk. Right? It's one thing to preach the truth and proclaim Christ and say these things. It's another thing altogether when you watch him after church is over and you're looking at the conduct of his life and saying, well, that doesn't match anything he just preached in the pulpit. Well, Paul wants them to know that my walk matched my talk. And he says that in verse 9 and 10. He says, for you remember, brethren, our labor and toil for laboring night and day that we might not be a burden to you. He had a work ethic. Remember Paul was a tent maker, right? And he did not want, he told the Corinthian church, I didn't want to take any money from you guys. They couldn't lay any accusation that he was there for the money. And he would support himself. He was a tent maker. And he would labor probably at one point in the day maybe as a tent maker, at night as the church or the other way around. But he was working day and night. He and his partners. And then verse 10 he says, you are witnesses And God also, how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe." And they knew that. They would have been nodding their heads up and down. That's right, Paul, we saw the way you conducted yourself. John Stott takes those three words, and he says, I don't want to overdo it here, but they mean three different things. The King James has that first word there as holily. We don't talk like that anymore, holily. But it has to do with being devout and pious, pleasing God, as we looked. The second one there is justly or righteously. That's how we deal with our neighbors, as you saw Paul and his company dealing with other people. And then unblameably, the King James has, which is our public reputation. And Paul says, we were above board the whole time we were with you, and they knew that. Not only does Paul tell them that he had a mothering love for them, which I think is beautiful, but he also says that he had a fathering influence. He's almost basically saying, I'm your mother and your father, is what Paul's telling the church. And that's verse 11. He says, as you know, how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you as a father does his own children. And what's the charge that he's giving to the church? It's verse 12. That you would walk worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. That you'd walk worthy of that calling with which you've been called. Matthew Poole, in his commentary, writes, as he converted them to Christ, he was their spiritual father, but his gentleness was like that of a mother nursing her own children. He considered their weaknesses in their first believing and bore with it. their many infirmities and temptations and afflictions that were upon them. He had compassion over them and supported them under them and cherished them with the sincere milk of gospel truth. And he did all this not for gain, but out of a sincere affection and a willing mind." And then I think he's earned their trust when he then says to them, now walk worthy of the Lord. Walk worthy of the calling with which you've been called, he says to them. And because he has mothered them and fathered them, they can receive that exhortation and take it to heart. That's something you're going to see over and over in the scriptures. I'm going to read you a couple. Philippians 1.27, Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ. Ephesians 4.1, I therefore the prisoner of the Lord beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called. Colossians 1.10, that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. Alexander McLaren actually had a whole sermon on that verse, to walk worthy. And he writes, when we say walk worthy of God, we mean two things. One, do after his example. To walk in the footsteps of Christ. When we see what our Lord did and how he treated people, we're to do similar. And the other, render back to Him what He deserves for what He's done for you. Right? How can we not serve the Lord and walk in His ways after all He's done for us individually and collectively? So then we move on from there to verse 13. I just want to read verse 13. And I want you to see the power of God's Word. And I think a swath of the visible church has fallen away from understanding and really relying on and understanding that the power is in the Word of God. It's His Word that's got the power to change lives, transform people, to save people. It's His Word. So 1 Thessalonians 2.13. For this reason, I also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you welcomed it, not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe. The power of God's Word. I preach through books of the Bible because I believe in the power of God's Word. I have nothing to offer anybody. some advice or whatnot. I didn't really have any wisdom at all until I got saved. And then I realized how foolish I had been all my young life. I thought I had things all figured out. Then I started reading the Bible. And when we come to the Bible and receive it as it truly is, the Word of God. And what he means by that is, you didn't see what I was teaching you as just the words of some man and say, you know, I really like the way Paul carries himself. I want to be like Paul. No, they received it as the very Word of God. That has to do with authority. God's Word is the authority over His church. And guys, I struggled with that. Don't think I get up here and preach some of these doctrines and you're like, boy, Larry's got these views on Scripture. Well, the Scripture's got its own view of itself. I fought against it for a long time because the Bible teaches some stuff that I didn't like. I mean, that's true. And I struggled with some doctrines as I studied the Word, and I finally had to say, I'm done fighting it. The Bible says this, the Bible says that. This is the authority, not me, my understanding of it. It speaks for itself, right? I read commentaries, why not give me some help? No doubt. But it's the Word of God speaks for itself. It's a living Word, right? His Word is living and active, vivacious. Jeremiah 23, 29, God is doing the speaking here through his prophet. He says, Is not my word like a fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces? Can't you say amen to that? God's Word is like a hammer breaking rock. He breaks away from us our foolish thinking of the world, our fleshly way of dealing with things, and He reforms us into His children, into His people. And that never ends. The work of Reformation and the believer, it's our entire life. Sanctification process. We're constantly reforming our thoughts in light of what God's Word says. Here's a passage you know real well, 2 Timothy 3, 16. All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete Thoroughly equipped for every good work. The Word of God is what equips us, right? The Book of Ephesians says the work of the pastor is to really equip the saints for the work of ministry. That you come, and you get your batteries recharged, and you get fresh truth from the Word of God. And then you head out to your week, and you minister to the community. You minister in your workplaces. That's the pattern. It's not a bunch of people hire a pastor because he's the minister. We kind of reverse things sometimes. No, the minister's job is to empower and equip the saints. That's what the book of Ephesians says. In John 6.63, Jesus says, It is the Spirit who gives life. The flesh profits nothing. And then Jesus says, The words that I speak to you are Spirit, and they are life. The words of Christ, right? So God's Word, spoken through His servant, the prophets, the apostles, His preachers, and it's spoken to the hearers. And the hearers don't just look to the pastor and say, I heard what you read. They say, well, when we heard what you read, it was the very Word of God. And that's how the Thessalonians received the Word. And because of that, it transformed them. He's going to go on. We'll look at that as well, the effect of the preached Word on their lives. Isaiah 55.10 says, For as the rain comes down and the snow from heaven, and they do not return there, but they water the earth and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, So shall my word that goes forth from my mouth, it shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it." God's Word is powerful and transformative. The Bible speaks of itself that way. Here's a quote that's kind of a famous quote by Martin Luther. And I didn't say it, so don't get upset with it. But I do want to read it to you. When Martin Luther was asked about the Reformation and how the church was so transformed, this is what he said. He says, I simply taught, preached, and wrote God's word. Otherwise, I did nothing. And while I slept or drank Wittenberg beer with my friends Philip and Armsdorf, the word so greatly weakened the papacy that no prince or emperor ever inflicted such losses upon it. I did nothing. The word did everything. That's true. I don't know about the beer part, but that's true. The effect, verses 14 to 16, For you, brethren, became imitators of the churches of God, which are in Judea, in Christ Jesus. For you also suffered the same things from your own countrymen, just as they did from the Judeans, who killed both the Lord Jesus and their own prophets, and have persecuted us, and they did not please God. and are contrary to all men, forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles, that they may be saved. So as always to fill up the measure of their sins, but wrath has come upon them to the uttermost. John Stott writes, all true churches which belong to God and live in Christ are bound on that account in spite of cultural differences to display a certain similarity to one another. This similarity was not only in the receiving of the word, but also in their suffering for it. He says you became just like the Judean church. And I like that quote. The reason why I read that quote is, and some of you have traveled, I've traveled to many, many countries, and every time I find God's people, it's very similar to the church here. You know, they get up, they preach the word, they love the Lord, they sing praise songs, similar spirit. We have the same spirit, right? And that's what he says of this church. Some don't like what Paul said here. He says quite a bit in the negative about his countrymen, the unbelieving Jews. He says they killed the Lord Jesus, they killed the prophets, they persecuted the apostles. Literally, in the Greek, it means they drove them out. They displeased God. They're hostile to all men, Gentiles, especially the Christians. And they're hindering. They make attempts to hinder the gospel. And Paul says wrath has already come upon them. We don't know what he meant when he said, wrath's already kindled against them. It could be that the beginnings of what led to the 70 AD attack on Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple was already in play, or maybe Paul has some knowledge that that was coming in a few short years. But then Paul ends here with his longing for the church. Verse 17 to 20, But we, brethren, having been taken away from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavored more eagerly to see your face with great desire. Therefore we wanted to come to you, even I, Paul, time and again, But Satan hindered us. For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even You, in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, is coming? For You are our glory and joy. That's a word coming straight from the heart of the Apostle Paul. In other words, he's almost telling the church, don't think I didn't want to come back to you. I did. And whatever the circumstance was that hindered Paul from coming, he sees any attack against the proclamation and the furtherment of the gospel of Jesus Christ as a satanic attack. against the church. He always has that in mind. So we don't know all the details there, but he wants them to know, you know, I love you, I wanted to be with you, I was prevented from coming to you, but understand that you're in my heart. You might not be in front of my face, but you're still in my heart, he says to them. I'll end with this quote from Holman. It says, Paul's metaphor of a mother and father, his defense of his blameless character, and his example of working night and day were not written so others would slavishly follow his exact lifestyle. He was not suggesting the pastor's work nonstop. He wrote these words to help us examine our hearts. The questions we need to ask are, how much does culture or personal pleasure determine my workload, my dedication to Christ and his church, and the time that I give? Are my struggles concerned with personal ambition or the welfare of God's people? Do I love people with the same devotion as a mother? Do I guide them with the tenderness of a father? Am I willing to sacrifice for the sake of others if that is called for? All Christians need to invest their lives in others. We need to examine and measure ourselves against this profile of self-giving and vigorous self-discipline. And that leaves us with a little bit of a challenge, and I'll leave that with you. Let me close with a word of prayer. Our Father and our God, we thank you for your word, Lord. It is powerful, and Lord, it does challenge us. And I pray, Lord, that you would be at work in each individual, Lord, leading us, directing us, Lord. If there's someplace where we've gotten off track with your word and your ways, we pray that you would realign us to you and the truth contained in your word. And we thank you for that, Lord. In Jesus' name, amen. We receive the blessing of the Lord. The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.