1 Thessalonians 1:6-10

1 Thessalonians 1:6-10  You became imitators of us and of the Lord; 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.  Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us.  They tell 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 — Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath. 

Paul's message to the church at Thessalonica challenges all of us.  Are we examples of fervent, dedicated Christians walking in the grace and mercy of our Lord?  Is our faith known everywhere?  Is our walk consistent with our words?  Sometimes we wonder whether most modern Christians really believe we are Christ's ambassadors in our everyday lives and if we will someday come face-to-face with our Lord.  How many hours are we spending before our own earthly idols, substitutes that give us temporary peace of mind, take us away from the unpleasant realities of this world, and in all truth, take us away from meditating on the Lord or praying for others.  Are we as the Thessalonians, imitators of the Lord, looking for the return of Jesus?  Or is that idea old hat, something reserved for the unsophisticated believer; the zealot who doesn't know any better than to believe the simple word of God.  In giving instructions to Titus on teaching other young men, Paul admonished him to set a good example by doing what is good.  Paul did not draw back from his commitment to Christ.  Concerning grace and the coming of the Lord, he reminded Titus: For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.  It [grace] teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.  (Titus 2:7, 11-14)

Paul said the Thessalonians were imitators of him as well as the Lord.  They watched Paul as he experienced the trials and vicissitudes on his walk of faith.  After seeing Paul's joy in the Lord and the power of the Holy Spirit emanating from his words and his actions, they wanted to imitate this zealous, all-out-for-God apostle called by Jesus on the road to Emmaus.  Paul writes: you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.  Because they wanted to live as Paul lived out his faith, their faith became known everywhere.  This is mustard seed faith in action.  Paul planted seeds in this new church and they spread the "Good News" everywhere they went.  How many of us can say to our children, friends, co-workers, the world: be imitators of me; follow Christ as I follow Christ.  Fast and pray as I fast and pray; believe in God's grace and mercy as I believe.  We are not here to condemn anyone.  We are writing to ourselves as well as to each of you.  When the Holy Spirit shines his light of love on our lives, He does so to call us closer to his side.  He wants to remind us that complacency is our enemy.  Distractions subtly lead us astray.  If someone followed us around today, what would they see?  Would they see a love of the Word, a desire to spend time with Jesus, a concern to pray for the lost, a passion to minister to needy people, a longing in our hearts to give more of our time and substance to the work of the kingdom?  Would a close look at our lives reveal how careless and unfocused we go about our daily living with little thought for others, the body of Christ, and eternal realities?  Would a close look reveal how many hours we spend entertaining ourselves with electronic devices or filling out crossword puzzles or reading books or watching television or posting on the internet?  Are we  people to be imitated?  Yes, mixed in with all the rest, we do go to church, and we do good things with our time and our money.  We may even attend a Bible study.  We have been doing the thematic through the Bible daily reading and finding this a satisfying, encouraging, and peaceful part of each day.  Probably because we all do some of these things, we tend to put aside this kind of message, shuffle it back in the appendix of our lives.  We are doing okay, are we not?    

Often we glibly talk about the struggles of Christians in faraway lands without spending any real time in prayer for those suffering for the  gospel.  However, we cannot possibly appreciate the devastation and fear that such persecution brings to those Christians who are in the midst of maelstroms of evil for their faith in God.  If we did understand the price some have paid for the grace and mercy of the Lord, we would not complain so much about bringing more accountability to our walk for the Lord or a deeper spiritual emphasis in our lives.  We would not get tired or bored reading the Bible.  We would gladly find more time for such an exercise and suggest reading the Word and praying with friends, setting an example for others to follow.  We would not consider long devotions as hampering our lifestyle.  We would welcome the fervor of our pastor for preaching the Word when he goes a little long instead of complaining because dinner is delayed on Sunday.  We would not resent giving up our summer days going to church because we would want our friends and family to know we believe in Christian fellowship as John wrote: We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us.  And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.  (1 John 1:3)  As American Christians we are unbelievably blessed by God.  We will never face what Paul and these new converts endured, but they did not lose heart because they were full of the joy of the Holy Spirit.  They knew they had been saved from darkness and brought into glorious light.  They had turned from false idols to know the living and true God.  Jesus rescued us from the same wrath, paid the same price for us.  In spite of our recalcitrance, our lack of exemplary living, Jesus remains our living sacrifice.  He stands ready to make us more alive than we have ever been.  We want to live consecrated lives, but we will never do that through our own human efforts or lukewarm living.  Jesus said:  I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.  But if it dies, it produces many seeds.  The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.  Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be.  My Father will honor the one who serves me.  (John 12:24-26)  If we die to ourselves and come alive in Christ, we will know life as we have never known it before.