For example, some are shocked that the members of a church act less than perfect. Listen, I am shocked that they are shocked! Anytime you deal with humans, you have to keep in mind that the only perfect person who walked on this earth was the Lord Jesus, and imperfect people crucified Him!
We should never be shocked at the things we see in God’s church. Never! Why? Because while we Christians are endeavoring to live lives of perfection, we have an abundance of evidence to prove we have not reached that level yet.
The apostle Paul certainly recognized that.
Look at Philippians 3:12-14. We read, “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
Every day we, as Christians, grow in grace. But while we are going through this growth period, we sometimes see people who know the Lord as their Savior, but whose lives still reflect a lot of immaturity.
Illus: Let me give you an example. A Sunday school class went on a picnic and the teacher invited everyone to come. But on the day of the picnic he thought about a lady who had been overlooked when the invitations were sent out. It was an oversight, and immediately the teacher went to her house to invite her to the picnic. When the teacher arrived, the woman was furious. The teacher apologized for the oversight, but the woman said, “It is to late, I have already prayed for it to rain!”
This woman was acting childishly!
Remember what Paul said in 1 Cor. 13:11, “When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.”
All churches consist of MATURE and IMMATURE Christians.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could pull out all the MATURE Christians and put them in one church? Wouldn’t that be a great place to worship God?
Then we could take all the IMMATURE Christians and pull them out, and put them in another church building and let them do what they seem to want to do - FIGHT IT OUT!
Illus: However, some of us might be saying, “What a great idea to get rid of those immature Christians.” But if this was done, some would be surprised to discover they would be a part of the IMMATURE CHURCH!
But God does not pull out the IMMATURE or the MATURE of His church. God has a mixture of MATURE and IMMATURE Christians who form His church for a reason.
Illus: If we separated them, then we would not have the MATURE CHRISTIANS in the church to put out all the brush fires that the IMMATURE Christians seem to be always starting, and God’s church would be ridiculed in the news every night.
But when you look at the church of Thessalonica, it almost seems like God pulled out all the mature Christians and placed them in this wonderful church.
It could safely be said that this church is a MODEL for our churches today. Let me show you some things about this MODEL church.
I. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR POSITION
Look at 1 Thess. 1:1. We read, “Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ..”
Notice, Paul said this church was, “…In God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ…”
The New Testament uses the phrase, “In Christ”, seventy-seven times!
WHY IS THIS EXPRESSION USED SO OFTEN?
Because the only place of safety, is “In Christ.” The Church of Thessalonica was “In Christ”.
We have already talked about IMMATURITY, but one of the reasons we have some of the problems in God’s church today has nothing to do with IMMATURITY in the church. It has to do with the fact that in God’s church, many of the professing Christians have NEVER been born again. They are not “In Christ”.
You can be In The LOCAL Church:
• As a MEMBER
• As a TEACHER
• As a DEACON
• As an USHER
• As a PASTOR
and still not be IN CHRIST!
The reason people act like the Devil inside of the church and outside of the church, is because they have never been born again. They are still serving their father the Devil!
Look at what Paul said to Elymas the sorcerer:
Acts 13:10 “And said, O full of all subtlety and all mischief, THOU CHILD OF THE DEVIL, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?”
The Bible makes the Christian POSITION clear in 2 Cor. 5:17, “Therefore if any man be IN CHRIST, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE IN CHRIST?
A. THEY WERE DIVINELY SITUATED IN CHRIST
That is, the situation the church in Thessalonica found themselves in is this: they were SITUATED in the safest place they could possibly be.
Illus: Have you ever watched the reports on television about some of these killer tornadoes that strike certain parts of this country. Suddenly winds up to three hundred miles an hour strike terror in the hearts of men. Everything in the tornado’s path is uprooted. Even asphalt highways are torn to pieces.
Now imagine you were in the direct path of such a tornado. You know that if you do not do something you are going to perish.
WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
We are told that the safest place to be at a time like this is in a storm cellar that has been built in the ground. If you are in the direct path of a killer tornado, packing winds up to three hundred miles an hour, and you do not have such a storm cellar, chances are very good that you are going to perish.
The devil has struck God’s church with his most fearsome blows, but God’s church today still stands, because we find ourselves SITUATED, “IN CHRIST”.
THEY WERE DIVINELY SITUATED IN CHRIST, and...
B. THEY WERE DIVINELY SUSTAINED IN CHRIST
That simply means that when the Devil’s crowd attacks us, they are attacking God Himself.
IN CHRIST, we are sustained by the mighty hand of the Lord!
Before Paul was converted he attacked God’s Church constantly. Look at what God said to him at his conversion.
Look at Acts 9:4,5. “And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, WHY PERSECUTEST THOU ME? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I AM JESUS WHOM THOU PERSECUTEST: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.”
God made it clear to Paul that when he was attacking God’s church, he was attacking the Lord Jesus Christ.
When a church is IN CHRIST, God will sustain that church!
Illus: Remember, before Paul’s conversion he was on his way to Damascus to persecute God’s church, and was trying to wipe it out. But before he could wipe out God’s church, God wiped him out on the Damascus road.
The Lord said to Peter, in Matt. 16:18, “…I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”
The Lord lays claim that the church is “My Church” and anyone who attacks His church is attacking Him, and there is no doubt about who will win that fight.
They were DIVINELY SITUATED and DIVINELY SUSTAINED IN CHRIST.
THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR POSITION, and …
II. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR PRAISE
Very seldom do we meet someone who we just could never say enough good things about. But these Christians were such great Christians, that Paul could not praise them enough.
Paul praised them in TWO ways:
1. HE PRAISED THEM FOR WHO THEY WERE
Look at 1 Thess. 1:2. “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers.”
They were Brothers and Sisters “IN CHRIST”. We ought to be thankful for ALL our Brothers and Sisters who are “IN CHRIST”!
2. HE PRAISED THEM FOR HOW THEY WERE
That is, how they RECEIVED GOD’S WORD.
Look at 1 Thess. 2:13. “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when YE RECEIVED THE WORD OF GOD which ye heard of us, YE RECEIVED IT NOT AS THE WORD OF MEN, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.”
THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR POSITION, IN THEIR PRAISE, and …
III. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR PERFORMANCE
Look at 2 Thess. 1:6. “And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost:”
Illus: The church at Thessalonica was like the old TIMEX watches. They advertised that those watches could “Take a licking and keep on ticking!”
Notice the Word of God says that this church received the Word of God, “In much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost.”
One of the signs of a mature church is that when afflictions come, the members do not pack up and head down the street to some other church to look for greener pastures.
The Bible says they RECEIVED THE WORD IN MUCH AFFLICTION. But notice how they received the Word of God, “…With Joy of the Holy Ghost.”
Did you know that it is the work of the Holy Ghost to help us face the trials of the life with JOY?
THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR POSITION, IN THEIR PRAISE, IN THEIR PERFORMANCE and …
IV. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR PROPAGATION
1 Thess. 1:8 “For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.”
• They did not just get up on Sunday morning and sing, “Throw out the Life Line!” THEY THREW OUT THE LIFE LINE!
• They did not just get up on Sunday morning and sing, “Send the Light!” THEY SENT THE LIGHT!
• They did not just get up on Sunday morning and sing, “We’ve A Story To Tell To The Nations”. THEY TOLD THE STORY!
• They did not just get up on Sunday morning and sing, “This Little Light of Mine, I’m Going to Let It Shine!” THEY LET THEIR LIGHT SHINE!
THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR POSITION, IN THEIR PRAISE, IN THEIR PERFORMANCE, IN THEIR PROPAGATION and …
V. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR PURITY
1 Thess. 1:9 “For they themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God;”
Notice, when these Christians in this MODEL CHURCH got saved, their lives reflected they were saved.
(1) They left the things of idolatry.
(2) They were now serving the TRUE and LIVING GOD. They once served the dead gods, but now the Bible clearly points out that they are serving the TRUE and LIVING GOD.
Conclusion:
If this Church at Thessalonica was a model church, then we need to ask ourselves, “How do we measure up in our local church?”
• Are all of us IN CHRIST? - POSITION
• Are we WORTHY OF PRAISE? - PRAISE
• How are we PERFORMING? - PERFORMANCE
• How is our OUTREACH? - PROPAGATION
• How is our PURITY? - PURITY
I. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR POSITION
A. They were divinely SITUATED in Christ
B. They were divinely SUSTAINED in Christ
II. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR PRAISE
A. He praised them for WHO they were
B. He praised them for HOW they were
III. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR PERFORMANCE
IV. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR PROPAGATION
VI. THEY WERE A MODEL IN THEIR PURITY
