Imagine you are a brand-new Christian in Thessalonica. Passions are running high in your city.
Think back to how passions ran high during covid. If a business owner did not comply with covid guidelines their business license could be taken away.
Feelings were strong on the subject of masking vs not masking.
Feelings were strong on the subject of vaccine vs not vaccine.
Feelings were strong on the subject of social gatherings vs quarantine-ing.
Now imagine these same types of passions running high … but rather they are swirling about the teaching concerning Jesus Christ which has just been introduced to the city.
Imagine you are a business owner. Here you can see a prominent place of business in the city of Ephesus. The statue out front advertises what type of business this is. Now imagine you likewise have a shop in the city of Thessalonica, and you likewise have a statue out front advertising your business.
You have just become a follower of Jesus Christ. Passions are running high about this Jesus. Will your business license be taken away? Will customers still continue to come to your business and purchase your products and services?
Will you be able to make payroll?
Will you have enough to be able to pay your bills?
Will protestors vandalize your property? Will protestors smash your statue and discredit your business??
This is what it was like to be a Christian in Thessalonica.
Paul, Silas and Timothy were only in Thessalonica for a brief time. Paul did not have much time to teach these brand-new followers of Jesus. Passions were running high in the city concerning this Jesus!
Imagine, as a brand-new follower of Jesus, you are learning about faith and the one true God for the very first time. This is all brand new! Imagine your pastor is doing his best to teach you. But passions are running so high in your city that your pastor is driven out of town!
How will you learn now?? Who will teach you now??
Paul, clearly distressed and greatly concerned for these brand-new Christians in Thessalonica, wrote a letter to them. This letter is in our Bible! How cool is that!
“Paul, Silas and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you. We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” – 1 Thessalonians 1:1-3
These brand-new Christians in Thessalonica are given a shout-out in the Bible because of their work produced by faith. Their faith was so real that it worked itself out in life! Their faith was so real it produced action!
How?? How did their faith work itself out in life?
Through love.
“Your labor prompted by love”
And through endurance.
“… and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”
When passions run high, fear can easily run high too. I have no doubt these brand-new followers of Jesus had much to be fearful of. But their faith overcame their fear! Their faith worked itself out in real tangible actions of love. Their faith worked itself out in real, rubber-meets-the-road perseverance … and endurance.
Whoa! That’s amazing faith!
How did these brand-new Jesus followers have such amazing faith?? They hadn’t had time to go through in-depth Bible studies. They hadn’t been trained in deep theological doctrines. They hadn’t taken classes on “how to have faith.” They didn’t even have the Bible, like we do today.
How did they have such faith??
Answer: the Holy Spirit.
“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. … in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
“And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia – your faith in God has become known everywhere.” – 1 Thessalonians 1:4-8
The power came from the Holy Spirit! Their faith was so great because of the power of the Holy Spirit at work in their lives.
Many Christians today have gone through numerous in-depth Bible studies, they have loads of training in deep theological matters, they have taken lots of classes … but they don’t have the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives. They sit around debating and arguing theological points … but they don’t have the power of the Holy Spirit.
It is possible for someone to have all the Bible knowledge in the world … yet have no faith which works itself out in real life. No labor prompted by love. No endurance.
If there is no outworking of faith in one’s life, then there is no the power of the Holy Spirit.
The early Christians in Thessalonica might not have had much teaching or training … but they had the power of the Holy Spirit! And that’s all they needed!
In our own lives today … it doesn’t really matter how many studies we have gone through, or how many classes we have taken. Do we have the power of the Holy Spirit in our life??
Does the Holy Spirit empower our life, as He did the early Christians in Thessalonica, so that our faith works itself out in real life? Does our faith produce action??
Is our life an outworking of love?
Does our faith result in rubber-meets-the-road perseverance … and endurance?
