1Th 1:5-6 | KingComments | STEP | . You have seen in the previous section that with the Thessalonians the evidence of the new life was manifested impressively. To Paul it was unmistakable that people who live in such a way, are children of God. It provided him the clear evidence that they have been chosen. Paul will now justify that determination. That’s why he starts with the word “for”, i.e. now comes an explanation on the previous statement. What the Thessalonians revealed in their lives of faith was not due to a training where they learned how you could live as a Christian. No, the gospel had come to them, not with mushy talks like it is often preached today. In such a preaching you hear nothing about repentance and confession of sins before God. ‘That only drives people away’, is what they say. The purpose of that kind of preaching is to adopt a Christian pattern of behavior which gives you added value and enables you to become successful, better than the people around you. Words are then a big box of tricks out of which you can present what people like to hear. But that is not what Paul has taught them. He of course has used words to preach the gospel. Yet he did not do it as if it were a friendly offering that could be accepted or refused at will. Convinced as he was of the seriousness of the preaching, he preached powerfully. The power of his preaching has nothing to do with his vocal tone, producing a considerable amount of decibels. The power has also nothing to do with works of power which he might have done. That is absolutely not the case here. No, he preached in the consciousness of God's power, the power of the Holy Spirit. Only through Him hearts can be convicted. It goes even beyond that. The Holy Spirit could work through them so fully that Paul and his companions preached “with full conviction” without a shadow of doubt. And notice that he does not say ‘how we have preached among you’, but “what kind of men we proved to be among you”. He also points to his life that they had seen when he was with them. His life and teachings form a whole. His life supported his preaching. What he preached to others, he practiced himself. In all that, he did not seek his own interests, but the interests of the Thessalonians – he did it for their sake. The effect of a preaching so full of assurance and brought by people who are fully of it themselves, is great. They had “received the word” and that “in much tribulation”. In the parable of the sower the Lord Jesus tells about someone “who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy”. The Lord explains that such ‘seed’ has no root and that with the very first opposition this ‘believer’ quits ( ). That was quite different with the Thessalonians. The effect on them was not ambiguous. You did not need to wonder whether they were truly converted. There are some remarkable effects that are noticeable. First, they have become “imitators” of the preachers and of the Lord. Newly converted people first see the preacher and through him they see the Lord Who is being preached. In Acts 3 you see an illustration of that. There Peter says, with John, to the lame: “Look at us” ( ). Then the healed lame man entered the temple with them ( ). And some verses further it says that “he was clinging to Peter and John” ( ). In order for you to know how to live as a Christian you must orientate yourself. You need someone as an example. It is the same as with learning in physical growth. A child learns to walk and talk by imitating. A good model or example is therefore of great importance. Do you also have good examples? Go after them, whether in your environment or in biographies of people who consistently have followed the Lord Jesus. If there is a healthy spiritual growth, the preacher will more and more disappear out of the picture whereas the Lord gets more and more attention. The preacher will never point to himself, unless he can refer directly to the Lord Jesus Himself ( ). The preacher will never want to bind people to himself and want to make them dependent on him. The preacher is just a man who can also go wrong. The Thessalonians know what they are getting into. They have received the Word while great pressure was exerted on them. I am afraid that many Christians in our part of the world are unaware of this and therefore so little get to a life of full dedication to Christ. Instead of succumbing to the pressure and picking up their old life, the Thessalonians had experienced the “joy of the Holy Spirit”. You see here that outward oppression and inner joy go together. These things cannot be explained well. It is something you have to experience. Have you ever experienced that joy? . They therefore became an example themselves for all other believers in a wide surrounding area, after they had received the Word and became followers. Besides, the word “example” is written in the singular. This seems to indicate that the Thessalonians were not so much individual examples, but that they were an example as church. If you looked at them, if you looked at their whole church life, regarding their conduct and confession, their way of dealing with each other and their attitude toward the world, then you could have seen what being a Christian really meant. Being an example for other believers implies that other believers have yet to learn new things or to unlearn unwanted things. But Paul did not have to write about that to the other believers. What the Thessalonians were reflecting, said enough. I must admit that I am jealous of that. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the local church to which you and I belong had such an appearance? I think we can recognize ourselves more in “all the believers in Macedonia” to whom the Thessalonians were held as an example than in the church of the Thessalonians. Let the example be a spur for you and me to live our lives as Christians just like the Thessalonians did. . The word “for” at the beginning of shows in what way they had become examples. The Thessalonians did not withdraw themselves in isolation to enjoy only for themselves what they had received. After they were convicted by the power of “the word of the Lord”, they trumpeted the same Word forth. That is the meaning of “sounded forth”. The Word of the Lord – and not their own opinion about it – has done its work in their lives. There is an expression that it is applied to people who speak about the gospel but do not live accordingly in practice: your actions speak so loudly that I cannot hear what you say. With the Thessalonians it was different. Their actions spoke so loudly that everyone could hear the gospel of the Lord. I would like to conclude this section with a word about “the word”. This is already the third time that we hear about ‘the word’. In it is about the word of the gospel, i.e. the content. In it is the Word that has been received, which caused their lives to be changed and made resistant to any pressure. Here, in , it is “the word of the Lord”. That puts the emphasis on the origin. Because of the addition 'of the Lord’ ‘the Word’ also points to the authority of Him Who is its source ( ). You will also encounter other additions, for example: the Word of God ( ), the Word of His grace ( ), the Word of life ( ) and the Word of faith ( ). We live in a time of words. Words bring revolutions in countries and histories. We have been granted the privilege to possess a Word that is more powerful than any human word. It is a Word that works powerfully. It is a Word of life. Therefore: Read the Word and live accordingly! Now read Thessalonians 1:5-8 again. Reflection: Can it be said of you that you have become a follower of Paul and of the Lord?

‏ 1 Thessalonians 1:5-6

Followers and Examples

1Thes 1:5. You have seen in the previous section that with the Thessalonians the evidence of the new life was manifested impressively. To Paul it was unmistakable that people who live in such a way, are children of God. It provided him the clear evidence that they have been chosen. Paul will now justify that determination. That’s why he starts with the word “for”, i.e. now comes an explanation on the previous statement.

What the Thessalonians revealed in their lives of faith was not due to a training where they learned how you could live as a Christian. No, the gospel had come to them, not with mushy talks like it is often preached today. In such a preaching you hear nothing about repentance and confession of sins before God. ‘That only drives people away’, is what they say. The purpose of that kind of preaching is to adopt a Christian pattern of behavior which gives you added value and enables you to become successful, better than the people around you. Words are then a big box of tricks out of which you can present what people like to hear. But that is not what Paul has taught them.

He of course has used words to preach the gospel. Yet he did not do it as if it were a friendly offering that could be accepted or refused at will. Convinced as he was of the seriousness of the preaching, he preached powerfully. The power of his preaching has nothing to do with his vocal tone, producing a considerable amount of decibels. The power has also nothing to do with works of power which he might have done. That is absolutely not the case here. No, he preached in the consciousness of God's power, the power of the Holy Spirit. Only through Him hearts can be convicted. It goes even beyond that. The Holy Spirit could work through them so fully that Paul and his companions preached “with full conviction” without a shadow of doubt.

And notice that he does not say ‘how we have preached among you’, but “what kind of men we proved to be among you”. He also points to his life that they had seen when he was with them. His life and teachings form a whole. His life supported his preaching. What he preached to others, he practiced himself. In all that, he did not seek his own interests, but the interests of the Thessalonians – he did it for their sake.

1Thes 1:6 The effect of a preaching so full of assurance and brought by people who are fully of it themselves, is great. They had “received the word” and that “in much tribulation”. In the parable of the sower the Lord Jesus tells about someone “who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy”. The Lord explains that such ‘seed’ has no root and that with the very first opposition this ‘believer’ quits (Mt 13:20-21). That was quite different with the Thessalonians. The effect on them was not ambiguous. You did not need to wonder whether they were truly converted.

There are some remarkable effects that are noticeable. First, they have become “imitators” of the preachers and of the Lord. Newly converted people first see the preacher and through him they see the Lord Who is being preached. In Acts 3 you see an illustration of that. There Peter says, with John, to the lame: “Look at us” (Acts 3:4). Then the healed lame man entered the temple with them (Acts 3:8). And some verses further it says that “he was clinging to Peter and John” (Acts 3:11).

In order for you to know how to live as a Christian you must orientate yourself. You need someone as an example. It is the same as with learning in physical growth. A child learns to walk and talk by imitating. A good model or example is therefore of great importance. Do you also have good examples? Go after them, whether in your environment or in biographies of people who consistently have followed the Lord Jesus.

If there is a healthy spiritual growth, the preacher will more and more disappear out of the picture whereas the Lord gets more and more attention. The preacher will never point to himself, unless he can refer directly to the Lord Jesus Himself (1Cor 11:1). The preacher will never want to bind people to himself and want to make them dependent on him. The preacher is just a man who can also go wrong.

The Thessalonians know what they are getting into. They have received the Word while great pressure was exerted on them. I am afraid that many Christians in our part of the world are unaware of this and therefore so little get to a life of full dedication to Christ. Instead of succumbing to the pressure and picking up their old life, the Thessalonians had experienced the “joy of the Holy Spirit”. You see here that outward oppression and inner joy go together. These things cannot be explained well. It is something you have to experience. Have you ever experienced that joy?

1Thes 1:7. They therefore became an example themselves for all other believers in a wide surrounding area, after they had received the Word and became followers. Besides, the word “example” is written in the singular. This seems to indicate that the Thessalonians were not so much individual examples, but that they were an example as church. If you looked at them, if you looked at their whole church life, regarding their conduct and confession, their way of dealing with each other and their attitude toward the world, then you could have seen what being a Christian really meant.

Being an example for other believers implies that other believers have yet to learn new things or to unlearn unwanted things. But Paul did not have to write about that to the other believers. What the Thessalonians were reflecting, said enough.

I must admit that I am jealous of that. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the local church to which you and I belong had such an appearance? I think we can recognize ourselves more in “all the believers in Macedonia” to whom the Thessalonians were held as an example than in the church of the Thessalonians. Let the example be a spur for you and me to live our lives as Christians just like the Thessalonians did.

1Thes 1:8. The word “for” at the beginning of 1Thes 1:8 shows in what way they had become examples. The Thessalonians did not withdraw themselves in isolation to enjoy only for themselves what they had received. After they were convicted by the power of “the word of the Lord”, they trumpeted the same Word forth. That is the meaning of “sounded forth”.

The Word of the Lord – and not their own opinion about it – has done its work in their lives. There is an expression that it is applied to people who speak about the gospel but do not live accordingly in practice: your actions speak so loudly that I cannot hear what you say. With the Thessalonians it was different. Their actions spoke so loudly that everyone could hear the gospel of the Lord.

I would like to conclude this section with a word about “the word”. This is already the third time that we hear about ‘the word’. In 1Thes 1:5 it is about the word of the gospel, i.e. the content. In 1Thes 1:6 it is the Word that has been received, which caused their lives to be changed and made resistant to any pressure. Here, in 1Thes 1:8, it is “the word of the Lord”. That puts the emphasis on the origin. Because of the addition 'of the Lord’ ‘the Word’ also points to the authority of Him Who is its source (Acts 15:36). You will also encounter other additions, for example: the Word of God (2Cor 2:17 ; 2Cor 4:2), the Word of His grace (Acts 14:3 ; Acts 20:32), the Word of life (Phil 2:16) and the Word of faith (Rom 10:8).

We live in a time of words. Words bring revolutions in countries and histories. We have been granted the privilege to possess a Word that is more powerful than any human word. It is a Word that works powerfully. It is a Word of life. Therefore: Read the Word and live accordingly!

Now read Thessalonians 1:5-8 again.

Reflection: Can it be said of you that you have become a follower of Paul and of the Lord?