1 Thessalonians 2:1-6

1 Thessalonians 2:1-6  You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure.  We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in spite of strong opposition.  For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you.  On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel.  We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.  You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed — God is our witness.  We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else.

As we see in the above verses, Paul was a man to be emulated, a man of integrity.  He willingly and sacrificially supported his missionary journeys by working as a tentmaker rather than living off the gifts of his converts.  He demonstrated the power of God in his life by living an upright and pure life in the midst of the decadent, sinful culture of the Gentiles.   Paul humbly spread the Good News and served the church for the glory of God rather than for worldly success.   He, who once threatened the very existence of the church, became a zealous warrior for that kingdom of God, carrying the message of faith in Christ throughout the Gentile world.  Everywhere he went he faced strong opposition to the gospel of Christ, yet he reminds the Thessalonians that with the help of God, he did not faint but proclaimed the gospel boldly in spite of strong opposition.  Even though he faced persecution and the threat of death because of the message he expounded, he did not drawback, and he did not seek praise from men.  He boldly and joyfully proclaimed the message of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ and his saving works.  When he tells the church at Ephesus to stand firm in their faith and to put on the full armor of God, Paul then instructs them to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.  With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.  Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains.  Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.  (Ephesians 6:18-20)  Three times in our brief scripture passage today, Paul uses the phrase "you know."  They know Paul is a trustworthy leader.  Now he says unite with me once again in this journey as we go forward by faith. 

What kind of men do we see preaching the gospel today in our mega ministries?  Too often our Christian leaders with the biggest followings enjoy a lavish lifestyle--expensive clothes, cars, houses, vacations.  They are often very cool, clothed in the latest designer wear.  An organization studying large ministries says leaders think nothing of staying at hotels where they spend $2000 a night on a room.  They have travel food budgets over $100,000 a year.  All of this and more fits into the prosperity doctrines they preach: we are the King's kids.  Christians fawn over them, following them from place to place or gathering at their large temples of worship.  They are considered the select few with the power of God to heal the sick or to deliver an inspiring message from the Holy Spirit.  People gather at their feet to hear from God or to get favors from God as the Paul's and Peter's of today.  What would these American Christians think of Paul had they seen him on a dusty road or in a village simply and directly praying for people or writing to the church from a prison cell?  No preparatory contemporary music to arouse their faith, no background music supporting Paul's prayers.  Would 3000 have listened to Peter and accepted Christ?   Would believers throng to hear Paul, believing this nondescript man with a thorn in his flesh was a powerful servant of God?  The apostles did not wear the latest fashions.  Paul wrote, When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.  For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.  I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.  My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power,  so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.  (1 Corinthians 1:1-5)  He came in the power of God, believing lives were changed by committing whole heartedly to Christ.  Would young people attend his meetings today without flashing lights or loud music?  At one time the Bible says everyone left Paul, but he was not dissuaded from his call.  He probably did not go build a "fun city" to bring in the kids or buy an espresso cart for the adults.  This man of integrity, a tentmaker, would not draw a very large gathering of American Christians.  His brand of ministry would probably not sell today.  But because of his faithfulness, we have a gospel message that stirs faith and perseverance in the hearts of believers worldwide. 

Dad just finished reading the book, HOLY GHOST GIRL, describing an important tent evangelist in the latter part of the twentieth century.  Every night he drew thousands with great expectations to his revivals.  They were there for healing, a touch by the Holy Spirit, to see something miraculous or unusual, or just for the excitement of an old-fashioned tent meeting.  Wonderful things happened under that tent.  Many found the Lord, were filled with the Spirit, and were healed.  But the leader of these meetings was not a Paul.  He was a man of the flesh with three wives, two of them secret.  He fathered a number of children with different women; and sadly, he lived an extravagant lifestyle, consisting of expensive cars, airplanes, homes, and property.  Yet God used this faulty evangelist, probably because of the faith of the people attending those meetings, but he definitely was not a faithful servant of God as described in scripture.  If recent reports are true, Trinity Broadcasting Company seems to have fallen into some of these same excesses.  And if we analyzed some of the more prominent ministries existing today, we would find many shortcomings in Christian integrity.  We would find lifestyles too extravagant, too worldly, too caught up with self.  In the world, people worship the creature rather than the Creator.  People fawn over the movie star, the sports hero, the pop singer.  They raise their hands to them and shout for their glory.  Often the Christian church does this for their mega stars, their super religious heroes.  People do not handle such worship well.  We also try to help God along.  A person who dropped out from a popular Christian ministry spoke to an investigator about the church sprinkling gold dust from the rafters into the spotlight to simulate a "glory cloud" passing over the people and in dropping bird feathers that were supposedly angel wing feathers.  Are we looking for men of integrity or are we looking for a show, excitement, charisma?  The question is, what about Paul?  Paul said, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel.  We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.  You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed — God is our witness.  We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else.  This should be our goal, our pattern for ministry that others might trust us and know we are trustworthy.