Alba 9-24-2023
THE GOSPEL CHANGES LIVES
I Thessalonians 1:4-5
Three boys in the schoolyard were bragging about who had the better father. The first boy says, “My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper. He calls it a poem, and they give him $100.”
The second boy says, “That’s nothing. My Dad scribbles a few words on a piece of paper. He calls it a song, and they give him $1,000.”
The third boy says, “My Dad is even better than that. He scribbles a few words on a piece of paper, calls it a sermon, and it takes 6 or 8 men just to collect all the money!”
Well, hopefully the sermon was worth it. And it was, if it presented the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because the gospel changes lives. And when it does, it is noticeable.
Edgar A. Guest wrote a poem that is rather familiar. It says:
“I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day;
I'd rather one should walk with me than merely tell the way.
The eye's a better pupil and more willing than the ear,
Fine counsel is confusing, but example's always clear;
And the best of all the preachers are the men who live their creeds, For to see good put in action is what everybody needs.”
That's just the beginning of the poem, but it illustrates the need for the good news of Jesus Christ to make a difference in a person's life. And when one truly believes the gospel, it will show in the way a person lives.
That's why the apostle Paul was able to say when he wrote in I Thessalonians 1:5 that the Christians there knew what kind of men they were among them for their sake. Paul, and those with him, were examples of the change that the gospel makes.
And he saw the change it brought to the Thessalonians who believed the gospel. He says in I Thessalonians chapter one that he remembered, “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”
Then in verses four and five he says,“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.”
1. Let's look at these verses more closely. He first speaks of their “election by God.” There are those who say that God has predetermined or predestined certain people to be His. But that leaves others out, even though God, in His Word, says that “God is not willing that any should perish.”
(II Peter 3:9)
And in Revelation 22:17 it says, “The Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” (KJV)
And, of course, John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
But that's the key, isn't it: “Whoever... believes in Him”, in Jesus. That is God's predetermined plan. The word election means “the act of picking out, to choose”.
It simply means that God chose to save us by His divine grace. God chose to provide a means for our salvation by allowing Jesus to die on the cross for our sins.
God has also made it clear how His choice comes to us. Jesus said in Mark 16:16 "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned."
The choice of God is completed in us through faith and baptism. So when you, in faith, yield to Jesus as Savior and Lord, you know that He has chosen you.
God’s love for us and His commitment to us is based on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That’s a done deal. It’s not based on how good we are. It’s given to us through the grace of God. That's the gospel. That's the good news!
2. Now in verse five, when Paul calls it “our gospel” that does not mean that it was something that he made up. He means that he and the others with him were believers, and they themselves were trusting and obeying the gospel which they shared with the Thessalonians.
We need to remember, as Paul did, that the gospel is “our” message only in the sense that we are committed to it. It is not ours to edit. It is not ours to squander. It is not ours in the sense that we can pick and choose what parts we want to follow. It is ours because we have been blessed by it.
And notice the greater emphasis is on the message, not the messengers. Instead of saying, “We came to you with the gospel,” Paul says, “Our gospel came to you.” Do you want to know what gospel those men were sharing? Just go to the Bible books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
And to make it clear, Mark's gospel starts, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” (Mark 1:1) Then the pages that follow tell us about the good news that comes from knowing Jesus Christ.
Verse five in our text says that the gospel came in word, power, the Holy Spirit and with much assurance. Together these things brought a change to those who accepted the gospel. That's because the gospel changes people.
3. So the gospel came to the Thessalonians with words.
It always does. Romans 10:14 asks, “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?”
Paul and the others with him used words, intelligent conversation, to share the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ with the Thessalonians. And they would choose their words carefully. Not because they feared rejection or opposition. And not because they felt the need to be politically correct. They chose their words carefully because they realized the extreme importance of what they had to say.
So you see, the gospel didn’t come by itself. It didn’t drop by parachute from heaven. No, Paul, Silas and Timothy brought it with words. Before they arrived in Thessalonica there was no church. Perhaps no one in that city of Greece had even heard about Jesus, let alone believed in Him.
The Gospel is a message, it has content, and it can only be made known by using words. Words can be used well or badly. We need to be careful in our choice of words if we are to get our message across successfully.
Because the world needs a Savior and we who have a personal knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ have been commissioned by Him to make the Gospel known to those around us.
That means we had better have God's Word in our hearts and minds so that our words properly represent the Lord and the gospel.
Children can be embarrassingly frank. I heard of a minister who was visiting one of his members. The lady of the house was trying to impress him about how devout she was by pointing out the large Bible on the bookshelf, and talking in a very reverential way of it as "the Word of God".
Her young son interrupted the conversation, "Well, if that’s God’s book we better send it back to him because we never read it!" Hopefully that would not apply in your house. We need God's Word as we use our words when sharing the gospel. The words we use are important.
However, notice in verse five that it says that the gospel did not come to them “in word only.” Paul makes sure that we clearly understand that no matter how technical or eloquent the words we use may be, they will fall terribly short if the power of the message rests on nothing more than human speech.
Again, verse five tells that there is another aspect of the presentation of the gospel message that must accompany the spoken words. He speaks of power. Since it was and is God’s message, the gospel is far more powerful than just our feeble words.
The apostle Paul makes that clear in what he wrote to the Corinthian church in I Corinthians 2:1-5. He tells them:
“And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God.
For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.”
3. That's the power spoken of here in verse five. The gospel is more than words to hear; it is the very means of salvation. It is only by the power of God that the Word can penetrate people’s mind, heart, conscience and will. That is when change begins.
In Acts chapter seventeen it tells that the Jews who were not persuaded by what Paul and the others were telling the Thessalonians, gathered a mob and went looking for Paul who had been staying in the house of Jason.
Acts 17:6 says, “But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, 'These who have turned the world upside down have come here too.'” What a reputation to have! “Oh NO, the world changers have come to town!”
We have a world that is decaying because of all that is evil. But there is a power that can change a world, especially the world of the individual, the immortal soul of those lost in soul-sickness, in sin. We need light to overcome the darkness of the world. There is such a power.
Jesus has the power to change the world. And He also has the power to change our world when we let him. When we become true followers of Jesus, we turn our eyes away from the darkness of our sin, and we allow Christ to shine on us.
Jesus calls us to follow Him to the cross where He took the penalty for our sins. And then beyond that, to follow Jesus ultimately brings us to an empty tomb. He calls us to follow Him to the cross, and death to sin and into the resurrection. Because Jesus is alive!
When we follow Jesus in this dark world, we follow Him who has conquered death, who has overcome the world! We have real power to offer the world because we have the resurrection power of Jesus Christ! That is the gospel that changes lives. Whenever the gospel is faithfully proclaimed, there is power.
The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.”
Even when we are in the midst of some dark and difficult days, we have a resource this world can not match or destroy. We have the truth of God’s Word, and in particular, the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Word has not lost its power.
4. And this “power” is associated with the “Holy Spirit.” I think you remember that the sword of the Spirit is God's Word (Ephesians 6:17). Someone has said that “The Spirit without the Word is weaponless; and the Word without the Spirit is powerless.”
It is the Holy Spirit who inspired the writers of the books that we have in the New Testament. There is no substitute for His continued anointing upon its ministry.
The Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin, and comes to live in us when we become Christians. Jesus said that in Him we have a friend, a counselor, a helper – someone to come alongside and help us every step of the way. Someone who also will comfort us in times of fear and trouble.
When the Word of God is working through the Holy Spirit, we sense we are being rebuilt on the inside. In a sense we enter into a new world. A changed world.
In that world, we find purpose in even the simple things of life; everything is reinterpreted. Problems become trials to help us grow. And disappointments, though rough, are seen as part of God’s plan for us to become what He wants us to be.
And it is the Holy Spirit who illuminates our minds so that we can bear witness effectively to the gospel. …. So, the gospel comes with words, with power and with the Holy Spirit.
And finally, Paul says that the message he brought to the Thessalonians came to them “with much assurance”. The NIV says, “with deep conviction”. Not only does the Holy Spirit provide the power of the message, but He also gives every assurance that it is the truth that can change us.
When the gospel penetrates the heart of a person, it brings change. The gospel changes people, which changes homes, which changes neighborhoods, and workplaces, and schoolrooms, and cities, even to the uttermost parts of the world!
When the gospel changes us, we can have a deep, abiding, belief and conviction about the truth of God's Word and salvation through Jesus Christ. Nothing should move us away from the promises we have in Jesus.
When we receive the awesome gift of eternal life and freedom from sin, the natural response is to say “Thank-you Jesus”.
Jesus says, “Show me your thanks by following me. Show me that the gospel has really changed your life.”
CLOSE:
Rowland Hill, was a preacher in England in the early 1800's. And he kept preaching until he was 88 years old. A man once said to him:
It has been 65 years since I first heard you preach, and the sermon was worth remembering. You remarked that some people are offended about the manner of a minister preaching.
But then you added, “Supposing one is hearing a will read, expecting to receive an inheritance. Would you use the time in criticizing the lawyer’s manner while reading it?
“No, you would give all your interest to determine if anything were left to you and how much. Let that, then, be the way in which you listen to the gospel.”
II Timothy 1:10 says that Jesus, “has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”
Colossians 1:22-23 says that Jesus will, “present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight— if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard.”
We receive the gospel in faith, repenting of our sins, confessing the name of Jesus, and being baptized into Him.
Continue in that faith and the change the gospel has brought to you.
