If you would please turn in your Bibles to 1 Thessalonians 1. 1 Thessalonians 1, if you would please. First Thessalonians chapter one. First Thessalonians chapter one is where we find ourselves this morning. I find it to be only appropriate to follow up last week's message on the portrait of a church with this chapter here. First Thessalonians chapter one, the word of the Lord. Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the Church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God always for you, making mention of you in our prayers. Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God. For the gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit, and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake. And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction with joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became examples to all in Macedonia, Aetia, who believe. For from you, the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Aetia, but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out so that we do not need to say anything. For they themselves declare concerning us what manner of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come." The word of the Lord. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, once again, we approach your throne of grace. We pray you would be pleased to bless this gathering. Father, we thank you for all who are here. Pray your richest blessings upon them. Father, we pray that the worship that is offered to you this day would be pleasing to you, would be worship in spirit and in truth. Holy Spirit, we pray that you would take that which you have prepared for us this morning and that you would graciously apply it to each and every one of us this morning. You know our hearts and minds. You know what's happening in our lives. You know exactly how to administer your word. Jesus, we pray that there's anyone here or anyone listening to this message who has not yet begun to believe in you for the God's promise of salvation, for God's promise of forgiveness for all who place their faith and trust in you. We pray that you would look to the Father, mediating on their behalf, pleading with the Father, asking him to draw them unto himself savingly by granting them saving faith in you. Lord, I pray that you'd be pleased with your servant's work on your behalf. I pray that you would grant me clarity of mind, boldness of speech. Help me to speak accurately, faithfully. Help me to speak your word and your word alone. If I should say anything amiss, I pray your forgiveness in advance. May your people, may my family of faith, may these, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, may they be encouraged in their faith. May they be built up in the most holy faith once delivered to the saints. May you be glorified. May you be honored. May you be pleased with all that is said and done. In your most holy and precious name in which we live and move and have our being, we pray. Amen. Understanding and embracing the biblical picture of the local church is so important for God's people. Understanding what the local church looks like and acts like is very important because it is the Lord God Almighty's good and perfect and acceptable will for his beloved adopted sons and daughters in Jesus Christ to be members of the local church. As believers in Jesus Christ, beloved, the moment we realized faith in Jesus Christ, we became members of the church that is the invisible church. If you remember last week, we noted the invisible church is the body of believers throughout the entire globe. those which we cannot visibly see, the invisible church, God's people everywhere. And so in that sense, once we became believers in Jesus Christ, once we placed our faith in Him, we were automatically, by the power of the Holy Spirit, made members of the body of Christ, the invisible church, the one true church. Our focus last Lord's Day, and again today, is the local church, or we, as we know it to be called as the visible church. And the reason why it's called the visible church is because when God's people congregate together, the body of Christ thus becomes visible to the world. It is identifiable. It could be spotted in one place. Just as in the Old Testament, if you remember, the Old Testament church always had one central location where they met together to worship the Lord, where God was worshiping, that was the temple. Or we could, remember, go back a little further, the tabernacle. And so there's always been a central location where God is worshiped by his people. And so what do we learn? from Acts 2, verse 40 through 49 last week. What is the picture that Luke painted for us in Acts 20, 40 through 47? In the first few strokes of the brush Luke made is seen in verses 40 through 43 of Acts 2. I'll read that for you. Luke writes, and with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, be saved from this perverse generation. Then those who gladly received his word were baptized, and that day about 3,000 souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship in the breaking of bread and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. From these first three verses, from the first few strokes of Luke's painting brush, we see that the local church is one led by godly leadership. It is led by men whom God has chosen. The local church preaches the gospel, calls for sinners to be saved, calls for its members to be separate from the world, from the unbelieving world. It grows in numbers as sinners are obedient to the gospel, repenting of their sin, and believing in Jesus Christ. It holds fast the sound, or we could say biblical doctrine, It is marked by fellowship and prayer. It ministers the Lord's table and the holy baptism by the man of God's choosing. And it is used mightily by God. It is used mightily by God. The next stroke of Luke's brush we see in verses 44 through 45. There Luke writes, Now all who believe were together and had all things in common and sold their possessions and goods and divided them all as anyone had need. Here, beloved, we see that the local church is made up of God's covenant people who come together for worship and to sacrificially minister to one another, tending to their brothers and sisters' needs as they have need. They come together to love God and to love one another by worshiping him and caring for one another sacrificially. So what do we see? What did we see in Luke's last couple of strokes of his brush in Acts 20, 40 through 47? In verses 46 through 47, we read, so continually daily with one accord in the temple, In breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved. And so here we see that God's people met regularly for worship and fellowship. Worship and fellowship that glorified God. As they obediently came together for worship and fellowship, we see that sinners were being saved. Or why were sinners being saved as they faithfully congregated for worship and fellowship? Obviously, brothers and sisters, obviously they were brought by the believers. so that they could hear the gospel, so that they could be exposed to the power of God to salvation, and so that they too can be saved from this wicked and perverse generation. And so the local church is where Christ's minister, preaches the gospel, calls sinners to be saved by repentance and faith, teaches the word of God, encourages the saints, administers the Lord's Supper and holy baptism, unashamedly identifies the unbelieving world as a crooked and perverse generation. And beloved, we need not look very far or very long in what's happening in the world, in and around us, to see that the world of unbelievers is a wicked and perverse generation. Men pretending to be women and women pretending to be men, telling little boys that they can be girls and little girls that they can be boys. This is a wicked and perverse generation. The local church is also a living testimony to the power of God to salvation, because as Christ's under-shepherd preaches the gospel, the Father graciously draws sinners unto himself through saving faith in Jesus Christ, thus adding to the church those whom he grants saving faith. The local church is comprised of God's covenant people who are wholly devoted to the ordinary means of grace. And we identified those accurately last week as godly leadership. They're wholly devoted to godly leadership, to sound doctrine, to attending to the Lord's supper, holy baptism, fellowship, and prayer. Again, the local church, God's covenant people, is known for God working mightily in and through her, who are wholly devoted to assembling on a regular basis for worship and fellowship. That is the picture, that is the portrait of the local church that Luke painted for us in Acts 2, verses 40 through 47. This brings us to today's passage, 1 Thessalonians 1, where we find another portrait of the church. Read with me, if you would, beginning in verse 1, and then we'll look to the Lord in prayer. 1 Thessalonians 1, verse 1, we read, Paul, Sivanus, and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians, in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God always for you, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God. For the gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit, and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake. And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction with joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Aetia who believe. For from you the word of the Lord sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Asia, but also in every place, your faith toward God has gone out so that we do not need to say anything. For they themselves declare concerning us what matter of entry we had to you, and how you turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to wait for his son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come. The word of the Lord. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we pray that you'd be pleased to bless this gathering. and that you would be worshiped as you ought to be worshiped. In your holy name we pray, amen. Again, verse one, Paul, Sivanus, and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians, in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Beloved, here we see The local church is a body of Christians, believers, whose life is hidden in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Again, notice he says, to the church of Thessalonians, in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Their life is in him. The local church is a body of believers who have communion, or we could say who has fellowship. with God as a result of faith in Jesus Christ. Beloved, think this through. Unlike the unbelieving world, we have fellowship with God in Christ. We have communion with him. We are one with him. He is our father and we are his adopted sons and daughters in Jesus Christ. We are no longer separate from Him. We are no longer unreconciled to Him. We have been brought near to Him. We have been brought to be made one with Him. We have communion with our Heavenly Father. We are one with Jesus Christ. Our lives are hidden in Him. So the local church, which is made up of God's covenant people, has her life hidden in God and therefore has communion with the Godhead, the Trinity. What else can we learn about the local church from Paul's words here in chapter one of 1 Thessalonians? Read with me if you would, beginning in verse two. Here we read, Paul writes, we give thanks to God always for you, for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of our God and Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God, for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake." Here in these four verses of Holy Scripture, we see that the local church is a body of believers or God's covenant people whose faith is genuine because it is a faith accompanied by good works in enduring hope and love. Here we also see that the local church is God's covenant people are an elect people. They are a people that have been chosen by God. We are told by the Apostle Paul in Ephesians that it was before the foundations of the world, before Genesis 1.1, before we read the words in the beginning. Before time, space, and history, God has chosen those who would be His beloved adopted sons and daughters in Jesus Christ. Notice what the Apostle Paul says in Ephesians 1, verses 2 through 6. Listen carefully to what Paul writes. He writes, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. In what way or how did our Heavenly Father bless us with every spiritual blessings in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus? How did he do that? Notice what Paul says. He explains it. Just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love, having predestined us to adoption. Beloved, when a child is adopted, When two adults look to adopt a child, who makes the decision? Does the child choose his or her parents? Or does the parents choose the child? Our Heavenly Father has chosen us. predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to himself, why did he choose us? Was there something in us that he saw? No, not at all. Paul says he chose us according to the good pleasure of his will. We've been adopted, we've been chosen because it pleased the Father to do so. To the praise of the glory of His grace by which He made us, He made us accepted in the Beloved. Beloved, we love Him, Scripture tells us, because He loved us first. He chose you, He chose me in accordance to His good pleasure. He chose us because it pleased Him to do so. And so the local church we see thus far painted for us in 1 Thessalonians 1, so far, we see that the local church is a body of God's covenant people whom he chose before the foundation of the world, and therefore we all have communion with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We are his adopted sons and daughters in Jesus Christ, whose faith in Christ is an act of faith. is not a dead faith, it is an active faith. And we know it is an active faith because it is marked by works, it is marked by love, and it is marked by an enduring hope in Jesus Christ. Those are the marks of an active faith. This brings us to verse six. What else does the Apostle Paul say about the local church? Here in verse six we read, and you became followers of us and the Lord, having received the word in much affliction with joy of the Holy Spirit, so that, so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Asia who believe. For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Asia, but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out so that we do not need to say anything. For they themselves declare concerning us what matter of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come. What do we see in these verses? What did these verses tell us about the local church? What can we learn from the Apostle Paul here? The body of Christ looks to both the Lord Jesus Christ and his servants for guidance. That's what we see here. the local church follows her pastor as he follows Jesus Christ. In other words, she considers her pastor's example of faithfulness to Christ and then seeks to do the same. What does Paul say in 1 Corinthians 11.1? There he says to the Corinthians, he says, imitate me as I also imitate Christ. imitate me as I also imitate Christ. Beloved, it has been said, and the principle is here in scripture, that when one is truly converted, that they become disciples of the one through whom they heard the gospel. And so it is not a biblical idea to look and to follow one's pastor as he follows Jesus Christ. What else do we see about the local church in these verses? Here in verse six, we see that when genuine conversion occurs, the gospel is embraced in spite of much affliction or persecution. When genuine conversion occurs, the gospel is believed regardless of one's life circumstances, including hostility from the unbelieving world, hostility that has for its aim, the gospel being rejected. Beloved, we see throughout the gospels, Jesus explained to his disciples that when they go forth and they faithfully declare the gospel, calling sinners to repentance, true repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, there will be those who will reject their word and there will be those who will embrace their word. There will be those who will embrace Jesus Christ, and there will be those who will reject Jesus Christ. There will be those who will turn away from their idols to embrace the true and living God, and there will be those who will hold fast to their idols and reject the true and living God. There's only one of two responses that will happen when the gospel is faithfully proclaimed. And the one who experiences genuine conversion, regardless of the hostility that they receive from their unbelieving acquaintances, friends and family, or we could even say unbelieving assembly, they will truly, genuinely embrace Jesus Christ. And we also see that the genuine convert, even in the midst of much affliction for embracing the gospel, embraces the gospel in the midst of that affliction joyfully. They embrace it joyfully. with a joy that can only come from the Holy Spirit, joy that only the Holy Spirit can give to his people. And so the local church is a body of God's covenant people who joyfully embrace the gospel and are an example to other believers within the church's community as they proclaim the gospel to the unbelieving world, thus setting an example for other believers. You see? The local church, as she faithfully proclaims the gospel to her local community, whether it be Trenton, Taylor, Southgate, Wyandotte, wherever that may be, as she faithfully proclaims the gospel to her community, she becomes an example to her other brothers and sisters in Christ. She sets an example for other believers that they, too, should be proclaiming the gospel to sinners. We also see that the local church is a body of believers who have abandoned idolatry. They have abandoned idolatry for the exclusive worship of the Lord God Almighty as they await Christ's return. the one whom will deliver them from the wrath to come. And so they make a 180. They make a 180. The local church is a body of believers who once were following, pursuing idolatry, whether it's worshiping south, whatever it may be, they make a 180. And they turn their back on the idolatry and they begin to follow Jesus Christ. they worship Him only. The local church is a body of God's covenant people, adopted sons and daughters in Jesus Christ, whom God has chosen before the foundation of the world in eternity past. and whose faith in Christ is an active faith, a faith that is marked by good works, Christ-like love, and an enduring hope in Jesus Christ. The local church is also a body of Christians who are willingly led by both Christ's minister and himself. The local church is also a body of believers whose faith in Jesus Christ perseveres through both the good times and the bad times, through the difficult times and the easy times, through the happy times and the sad times. There's no amount of affliction. There's no amount of affliction or no amount of ease of life that will encourage or cause them to abandon their faith in Jesus Christ. Their faith in Christ, which they received with much joy, the Holy Spirit enabled them to receive it with much joy, perseveres. The local church sets an example before her community. The believing and unbelieving community sets an example. As she proclaims the gospel of Jesus Christ to sinners, she awaits for the glorious return of her living head, Jesus Christ, who will deliver her from the wrath to come. Who will deliver her from the wrath to come upon the unbelieving world. God's judgment will be manifest on the unbelieving world. It is being manifested. on the unbelieving world. We mentioned this multiple times before. At this moment we see Romans 1 vividly unfolding. God is handing people over to their sins. So beloved, that is the portrait of the local church the Apostle Paul paints for us here in 1 Thessalonians 1. Again, the idea that the abandonment of the local church for morning and evening devotions is an aspect of God's good and perfect and acceptable will needs to be outrightly abandoned. It needs to be rejected. Again, the commandment, Hebrews 10.25, is not to forsake the assembling of ourselves as is the manner of some. We see that again in Hebrews 10.25. And so God's people, those who've been genuinely converted, those whom we've witnessed Paul describe this morning, they love the church. You know why they love the church? Because they love worshiping God. And they love being with their brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. They love being with them. Any professing Christian who does not love the local church has good reason to reconsider his or her faith in Christ. Paul, Sivanus, and Timothy, to the Church of the Thessalonians, and in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, We give thanks to God always for you, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ and the sight of God. And Father, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God. For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit, and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake. And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction with joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Aetia who believe. For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Asia, but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out, so that we do not need to say anything. The local church put Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy out of work in regards to preaching the gospel. Paul and Timothy and Silvanus, they didn't say anything. For they themselves declare concerning us what manner of entry we had to you, how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to wait for his son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come. The word of the Lord. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your goodness. We thank you for the wonderful gift of your son, Jesus Christ, who came and secured redemption for all who believe. Father, we pray there's anyone here this morning or anyone listening to this message who has not yet truly embraced your promise of forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ, we pray. that you would be pleased to draw them unto yourself and to grant them saving faith in your Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, in whose name we live and move, have our being and pray. Amen.