“Faith Speaks for Itself”

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

August 8, 2004

If our ancient predecessors in the Christian faith had arranged the New Testament writings by their dates of composition, 1 Thessalonians would stand at the beginning of the New Testament canon in the place of the Gospel of Matthew. 1 Thessalonians was written by the Apostle Paul around 51 AD, less than 20 years after Jesus’ resurrection, which makes this letter not only the earliest Christian writing we have, but also the earliest evidence for the existence Christianity.

As a person who enjoys history, I am always intrigued by the story behind the historical event. History is more than just dots on a time line, history is the story behind the story, the people and events and circumstances that give rise to the larger events of history. History is the window in which we view the world of the past. It gives us a glimpse of what was going on then, which in turn helps us understand where we are now.

The same can be said for 1 Thessalonians. It gives us a window in which to view the early Christian church, their beliefs and practices, and their hopes and struggles. In doing so, we not only discover more about ourselves, but we also discover that God’s word is still relevant to us twenty centuries later.

When Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy first visited Thessalonica, it was one of the most significant cities of the east Mediterranean. Under Roman rule for over 200 years, Thessalonica had become the capitol of the province of Macedonia, which was the northern province of present day Greece. Located less than 200 miles from Athens on a major Roman highway and because it was a major port city, Thessalonica had significant political and military power in the Empire.

Thessalonica remained largely a Greek city, but because of its size, geographical location, and Roman influences, the residents were exposed to a wide variety of social, cultural and religious options. They not only worshipped the numerous Greek gods and goddesses, but they also participated in the imperial fertility cults. It might be said that they didn’t just believe in something, they believed in everything.

At some point in time during their stay in Thessalonica, Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy were forced to leave the city, and they headed to Athens to wait for a time to return to the Thessalonian church to continue their work. It is during their stay in Athens that Paul sends Timothy back to Thessalonica to see how the new Christians are doing in their faith and ministry.

Upon Timothy’s return back to Paul, Paul hears the good news of Timothy’s report, and sits down to write this letter to the Thessalonian Christians. Our text for this morning is the beginning of Paul’s letter. On the surface, Paul’s letter begins as any letter we would write today. It has its customary greetings and salutations, along with who it is from and who it is going to, and an opening paragraph. But below the surface, Paul not only clues us in on just how significant this church was, but he also gives the church today some much needed encouragement.

The church in Thessalonica was a church that found itself was against the odds. It had to compete against a society of options, against a society of wealth and prosperity, against a government that not only permitted anything and everything, but also encouraged anything and everything as long as it didn’t interfere with its authority. The message of the gospel that came to the people of Thessalonica was not something that would have turned a lot of heads. It was just one more religious option in a long list of possible spiritual choices.

But against all the odds, the gospel stuck and a church was born. Paul knows that the only way this is possible is because of God, because the message of the gospel came to the Thessalonian Christians first and foremost through the power and conviction of the Holy Spirit.

The Thessalonian church was not a church because a group of people got together, but because God called them together for a specific and special purpose – to witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Today, too many churches close their doors because they have forgotten who chose them and called them in the first place, and they have lost their spiritual grounding in the God we know in Jesus Christ. Too many churches fall prey to the notion that they have to water down and sacrifice the message of the good news of the gospel in order to compete with a society that permits and encourages all kinds of religious and secular options.

A church does not have to be a big church that compromises the message of Jesus Christ in order to be an effective church, it just has to be faithfully and spiritually grounded in the work of faith, the labor of love, and the steadfast hope in Jesus Christ, and purpose driven in its mission and ministry. The Thessalonian church may or may not have been a big church, but in less than 20 years, if even that, they had become an effective church – a powerfully effective church. For Paul, its not about quantity, but about quality; the quality of the individual believers who make up the congregation, the quality of their faith, the quality of their work, the quality of their discipleship.

A church that fails to grow inwardly in faith and spirituality, who fails to keep God in the center of their lives, who fails to remember that it is God in Jesus Christ who calls the church into being, and who fails to produce fruit for the kingdom, is a church that will not only fail to bring new people into a relationship with Jesus, but will also implode from the pressures on the outside.

But when a church fuels itself from the power of the Holy Spirit, when it sets out to nurture and grow in faith and discipleship, then it’s energy and direction has only one place to go – out; out to all those who long for relationship, who long for fellowship, who long for hope.

People want to be a part of something that is growing and expanding in meaningful and powerful ways. People want to be a part of something that will not only make a difference in their lives, but in the community and the world in which they live. Faith is contagious. It spreads like wildfires. It speaks for itself in and to a world that searches for meaning and purpose.

The Thessalonian church was not known as the sleepy little church on the corner, but as a powerful presence in not one but two provinces. The people of Macadonia and Achaia knew of the church in Thessalonica. The word of the Lord had gone forth from them, and in every place their faith in God had become known. Here was a church that did not have the modern day technology to transmit the message of the gospel. The church didn’t have television cameras in its sanctuary. They didn’t have a website on the Internet. They didn’t do mass mailings.

Their faith spoke for itself, a faith that made them turn to God and away from idol worship, and renounce the “everything and anything goes” policy of the society. A faith that made them serve the living and true God because they knew that God was at work in them, calling them to active service in ministry and mission in Jesus’ name. A faith that made them wait with the eager anticipation and hope for the Son of God to return from heaven to rescue them from the day of judgment.

As this congregation begins work on our long-range vision and plan, my hope for you is that you will follow the example set by this 1^st century congregation. As they became an example to others in the faith, so should we through our own devotion and discipleship, work and service. As they became a great and effective church for God, so should we through our own faithfulness and self-sacrifice to the God who calls us together. May this congregation remain grounded in Jesus Christ, may we experience the growth that will come as we remain true to his gospel, and may our faith become an example to all. Amen.