How Do You Spot a Christian?

Well, folks, maybe you want to grab your Bibles at this point and turn to Acts chapter 17.

Acts 17 · chapter mention

And as we mentioned this morning, we're starting a new series looking at the book of 1 Thessalonians.

Maybe, Johnny, you could chuck the PowerPoint on the screen. Acts 17.

We went on holiday a few years ago with a company called Jet2.

Has anyone ever flown with Jet2? Yeah?

Getting to that stage of life where it's all about the package holiday.

Love about Jet2.

So we went on holiday with Jet2.

And at that time, I made the mistake of ticking the box that said,

I would love to receive future notifications and emails.

Someone never fallen for that one before.

Thank goodness for GPDR. I'll tell you that.

So there we are.

So I'm hearing from Jet2 all throughout the last couple of years.

And I find out last summer that Jet2 have now got a flight route from Edinburgh to this city in Greece called Thessalonica.

Now, why should I go there on my holidays, you're asking?

Well, let me, this is what they say on their website.

If you haven't got summer plans, Thessalonica, okay, this is what they write.

Greece's second biggest city is a cultural treasure trove of ancient delights and modern entertainment.

You can see shimmering Macedonian gold and Byzantine works in world-famous museums.

Immerse yourself in the atmosphere at historic districts dotted with inventive restaurants and arty cafes.

Fancy that one?

No?

Thessalonica?

Well, tonight we're going to meet some people who travelled to Thessalonica.

Paul, Silas and Timothy travelled to this city roughly 50 AD.

Thessalonica back then was a very different place to what it is today.

Very different place.

In the context of Acts, with your Bibles open there, chapter 17, we're on Paul's second missionary journey.

God's spirit, remember the driving force behind the proclamation of the risen Jesus to the world.

The spirit has taken Paul and his companions into Europe.

And praise God that that was true at that point, because we wouldn't be here if it wasn't.

Firstly, they go to Philippi.

And having spent some time there and having seen God do some incredible things through the gospel message

as it was proclaimed from the lips of Paul and his companions,

they've left Philippi and they've made the 100 mile trip south.

And you'll see it there along the Ignatian Way, which is the superhighway connecting the east to the west.

And they've arrived at this city called Thessalonica.

Now, three things to know about this city in 50 AD.

In fact, four things to know about this city in 50 AD.

Here's the first thing.

It's a large city.

Paul's day, you're looking at well over 100,000 people.

In fact, if you read some commentators, they'll tell you, some historians,

they'll tell you that it was maybe even closer to 200,000 in this city in 50 AD.

Now, that's a lot of people.

A lot of people.

Put that into context.

Dundee has a population of 130,000 people.

So this is no backwater village that Paul and his companions have hit.

It's a major city, a large city.

And the reason that it's going to be a large city is because it's an affluent city.

We see it there on the map.

It's a city that sits on the coastline of the Agen Sea on an important trading route.

So people all around the region are coming to Thessalonica to do business

because there's money and there's fame to be made in Thessalonica.

Because of that influx of people.

Thirdly, it's a diverse city.

Many different people from many different places,

each bringing with them many different cultures,

many different ideas,

many different philosophies.

It's a diverse city.

And lastly,

it's a religious city.

A mixture of Greco-Roman religions.

A mixture of people who are loyal to Rome,

everything of Rome and to Caesar.

And in this city,

you've got a sizable Jewish population.

Big enough that it justifies having a synagogue in this city.

And of course,

that's when,

sorry,

that's where Paul and his traveling companions head straight forward

when they get to this city.

That's Thessalonica in a nutshell.

50 AD.

Large,

affluent,

diverse,

religious.

And God births a church

in this city.

Through Paul's preaching of the gospel of the risen Jesus,

God births a church

as this message takes root

in the hearts of men and women

as people are saved.

Now that gives me at this point,

I don't know about you,

but it gives us great confidence

as we think about our city.

That even when we think we're up against it,

even when it's so hard

that we think God couldn't do that,

yes he could.

God births a church

in this city.

So if you've got your Bibles there,

let's turn to Acts 17

and let's see what happened

when the gospel hit Thessalonica.

And as we read it through,

and Brenna's going to come in just a minute

and read it to us,

I want you to look for the two different reactions

that we see to Paul's message.

Two different reactions

that we see all the way through.

And I'll invite Brenna up at this point

to read it to us.

Acts 17.

Well folks, if you have your Bibles there,

then let's continue the story.

Let's read 1 Thessalonians chapter 1

1 Thessalonians 1 · chapter mention

and the first 10 verses.

Maybe you want to turn there just now.

Glorious message of Acts 17.

The gospel has hit Thessalonica.

And through his word,

despite great opposition,

did you notice it,

God has birthed this church.

And Paul,

having been forced to leave this city

after only such a short time,

wonder you've got that in Acts 17 as well,

something between two to four weeks.

He's desperate to hear,

desperate to hear that these Christians

are still standing.

So desperate, in fact,

that he sent Timothy,

his traveling companion,

back to them

to find out how they're getting on.

And Timothy's returned to Paul,

who's most likely at this point

in the story in Corinth.

And he's brought with him

encouraging news

about these Thessalonian Christians

that although there are a few issues,

that although it is hard,

that these guys are still going strong.

And that news has thrilled Paul's heart.

And he pens this affectionate letter

back to his beloved Thessalonians.

And we pick it up

from verse one of chapter one.

Here's the heart of Pastor Paul,

as I've got to know him this week.

Here's where he writes.

Paul, Silas and Timothy,

to the church of the Thessalonians

in God the Father

and the Lord Jesus Christ,

grace and peace to you.

We always thank God for all of you

and continually mention you

in our prayers.

We remember before our God and Father

your work produced by faith,

your labor prompted by love,

and your endurance inspired

by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

For we know,

brothers and sisters loved by God,

that he has chosen you

because our gospel came to you

not simply with words,

but also with power,

with the Holy Spirit

and with deep conviction.

You know how we lived among you

for your sake.

You became imitators of us

and of the Lord,

for you welcomed the message

in the midst of severe suffering

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 turn 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.

Amen.

And we trust that God would bless

the reading of his word to us

this evening.

Well, I wonder if you were like me

when you were young.

Did you read these books?

Remember these books?

Where's Wally?

I used to love these books

when I was young.

Here's a question for you

really simply.

How did you spot Wally?

How did you spot him?

The first hat.

Okay.

Anything else?

Come on.

His glasses, okay.

I'm looking for an answer here.

What else was he wearing?

The stripy top

to put out your misery.

Here he is.

Okay.

He was the one wearing

the red and white stripy top.

That's how you spotted Wally.

Now here's my question

for you this evening

and this is going to be

the question we're going to

try and answer this evening

in the next 20, 25 minutes or so.

How do you spot a Christian?

How do you spot one?

Park the question

and we're going to move through

and see if we can answer it

by the end of tonight.

How do you spot a Christian?

Because here's how this works out

in my everyday life.

This is my walk to the office

every morning.

I walk George Street,

Princess Street,

Royal Mile,

Meadows, Brunsfield.

That's my walk every morning

and I see hundreds of people

on that walk

and I can spot the workers

and I can spot the students

and I can spot the football fans

and I can spot the mums,

I can spot the dads,

I can spot the Jehovah's Witnesses

and I can spot the Mormons.

I was really up for a chat this week

and I went towards two groups

of Mormons walking

through the Meadows

and they both beelined me.

I couldn't believe it.

Really up for a talk.

I can spot all those kinds

of groups of people

on my walk to work each morning.

Here's the question.

How do you spot the Christians?

How do you spot a Christian?

These verses are going to help us

answer this question.

You'll spot a question

not by what they're wearing.

You'll spot a Christian

by how they're living.

I love Luke's account in Acts

of what happened

when the gospel hit Thessalonica.

What happened there?

I wonder if you've noticed

that the two reactions

as the gospel hit.

It's kind of the same reaction

as you see all the way

through the book of Acts,

is it not?

And it's kind of the same reaction

that you see today

when you tell people about Jesus.

Revival or riot?

Yeah?

Revival or riot?

Or as Rico Tice puts it

in his book Honest Evangelism,

hunger or hostility?

It's the same thing.

Hunger or hostility.

That's the pattern.

Here is a church

that's been birthed

in a pressure cooker.

I think it's fair to say that.

They didn't get eased

into Christian life, did they?

It wasn't like

they got a honeymoon period.

They are straight in

and they are straight up against it.

Now, try and get into their shoes

at this point in the story.

Paul's only been there for what?

Between two to four weeks?

Three Sabbath days?

That's a short amount of time.

You think how quickly

three weeks goes in your life.

Would it not be

such an easy thing to do

for these jealous Jews

to come along

to these new Thessalonian Christians

and begin to attack

Paul and his message?

Can you really trust

what Paul said?

Is Jesus really the Messiah?

Have you got it wrong?

Would it not be

the easiest thing

for these Thessalonian Christians

to think in their mind?

Have we been duped?

Have we got it all?

Do we understand it?

No one likes being conned, do they?

Nobody likes being conned.

I think about it all the time

when I find out

that somebody's paying

less a month

on their mobile phone contract

than me.

Nobody likes finding out

that they've been conned.

It'd be the easiest thing

in the world

for these new believers

to ask themselves,

are we really Christians?

To doubt it in their minds.

Have we really got it?

Well, this letter,

Paul writes from his heart

to let them know

that from what he knows

about them,

from what he's heard

about them,

he writes this letter

with great words

of assurance

as if to say,

I look at you guys

and I spot Christians.

As we'll journey

through these verses,

we'll come on to see

that Paul looks at them

and there's three things

that he sees,

three marks

of a real deal Christian.

And verse four,

I think,

is the key for us

to understand

what's going on here.

What does Paul say

as he thinks about these people?

I think you might be Christians.

I'm pretty confident of it.

No, he says,

we know.

Get a certainty

in his language there.

We know.

Know what?

That God chose you.

That you were,

spiritually speaking,

in the dark.

You were separated

from the God

who made you.

You had no interest in him.

You preferred the darkness.

And God,

moved by nothing

other than his sheer grace

and love.

Moved into your life

by his spirit.

He reached into your hearts

and if you like,

he flicked on the light.

He turned on the light.

And in that moment,

he took you

in the palm of his hand

and he declared over you,

you are mine.

Isn't it how often

we think that being a Christian

is a small thing?

Here is Paul saying

to these Christians,

it is a big thing

that the Lord has done

in your life.

He chose you.

He chose you.

How do you know that, Paul?

How do you know that?

Well, two reasons,

verse six.

Here's the first one.

You welcomed.

You welcomed the message.

So in that moment

when you heard the message

about what God

had done for you

in sending his son

to die for your sin

and the son

whom he raised to life

to demonstrate

to the world

that he is my king,

this Jesus

who will return

as we heard this morning

to judge the world.

When you heard this message,

it didn't just make sense to you.

It became

wonderful to you.

It hit you.

Get the language

of what he's writing here.

It hit you with what?

Deep conviction.

Deep conviction.

As if to say

through the power

of the Holy Spirit

working in you,

you knew

deep down in your gut

all of you

you knew it was true.

What the scriptures say

about God,

what the scriptures say

about the world,

what the scriptures say

about you.

You knew it was true.

Isn't that?

I was reflecting on it

this week.

Remember the

gospel made sense

to me for the first time.

It's true.

It's just true.

Deep conviction.

And these guys did it.

And I find this

so encouraging.

They did it

even when it didn't

make sense to do it.

Because when they

put their hands up

and declared to the world

that Jesus is my king,

it cost them big time.

Not just a few

raised eyebrows.

What does he say?

Severe suffering.

Severe suffering.

I mean,

think back to the character

Jason that we met

in Acts 17.

Did you get him?

Jason.

People banging

on his door.

People dragging him

out to face trial.

Why would you keep

on going?

There is no other

explanation for that

other than the work

of God in your life

helping you to understand

that in Jesus Christ

you have something

that's worth standing for

and something that's

far greater

than any fleeting

pleasure of the world

that you used to chase after.

That's what we were singing

at the start, wasn't it?

Lord, there's none like you.

There is none like you.

There's a Christian man

called Augustine.

Prominent in the church

in the third century

and in his previous life

by his own admission

he was anti-God.

Anti-God.

Didn't want to hear about it.

In fact,

reveled in his sin.

Shoved it in God's face.

Loathed the very mention

of God's name.

He was,

as he writes

about himself,

he was a pleasure seeker.

And here is what he writes

in his little book

called The Confessions

which if you haven't read it

can I encourage you to do it?

Really just his spiritual autobiography

of what happened

when he became a Christian.

Here's what he writes

and here is this language.

This is what the gospel

felt to him like

when he first heard it.

How sweet

all at once it was for me

to be rid of those fruitless joys

which I once feared to lose.

And here's his prayer.

You drove them from me, Lord.

You who are the true

and the sovereign joy.

You drove them from me

and get this

and you took their place.

Oh Lord my God,

my light,

my wealth

and my salvation.

So what Augustine is saying there

that in God

he found a greater joy.

A far superior joy

than anything

that he was previously

basing his life upon

and chasing.

That's what's been true

about these Thessalonian believers.

This message of the risen Jesus

it became to them life

and they welcomed the message.

You welcomed,

secondly you became.

Became what?

Imitators.

You see that word in the passage here?

Imitators.

Greek word,

mimitai.

Now you see

that's where we get

our English word mimic from.

So you saw something

and you copied something.

Now my colleagues here at the church

and I'm not going to look at them

at this point.

They'll tell you

that one of my most annoying traits

is that when I get excited

about something

I do the clap and rub.

Does anyone else do the clap and rub

when they get excited?

Do you know where I learnt that from?

I learnt it from my dad.

Okay?

And my brother

does exactly the same thing.

In fact it's a sight

when we get together

at Christmas time

and we go to watch a football game

and see when our team

is looking like it's doing well

the three of us sitting next to each other.

It's a sight to behold.

But I learnt it from my dad.

I mimicked my dad.

That's what Paul is saying here

about these Christians.

They began to mimic

their family.

They began to copy

the family traits.

They started copying Paul.

And Paul is saying here

that's incredible

because do you know

where we learnt it from?

Do you know who we're trying to copy?

The Lord Jesus Christ.

This is who we are living for.

This is who we are copying.

Together

we are heading for him.

Friends,

is it not a beautiful

little example right here?

And we'll think more

about this next week

so I'm conscious

of not stepping on toes

for next week.

Is it not a lovely

biblical example

of what discipleship looks like?

Seeing

and copying.

Seeing

and copying.

Just as a little side,

we'll come into the lay-by here.

A little side

from my heart

at the minute.

I wonder if you're so encouraged

when you look around

this church at the minute,

this church family

and we see so many young people.

So many young people.

What a privilege it is

to be able to have

so many kids

as part of this church family.

But with that privilege,

does it not come

an incredible responsibility

to take seriously

modelling the Christian life

to these young minds?

Saying,

do you know what?

Do you want to see

what the Christian life

looks like?

Do you want to see

what pursuing righteousness

looks like?

Do you want to see

what it looks like

to seek first

the kingdom of God

and his righteousness?

Do you want to see

what a life

lived in love

and in service

of the Lord Jesus

looks like?

Then look to us.

Look to me.

Copy me.

I think about,

I just think about

my little girls

growing up in the world,

the world that they're

growing up in.

And the truth is,

if we're not discipling

these children,

the world will be

discipling these children.

What an incredible

responsibility we have

to these young minds

to say,

do you want to see

what real authentic

Christian faith looks like?

Watch us as we model it.

Watch us as we model it.

Sharing word and heart,

sharing gospel and life,

being disciples

that seek to make disciples,

passing this on,

mimicking the Lord Jesus Christ,

seeking to imitate those

who are also running

this race of faith.

Because Paul looks

at these Thessalonians,

he looks at the way

they welcome,

he looks at the way

they imitate,

and look what he writes

at verse 7.

This is incredible.

Other people

in the surrounding regions,

people that they've

never met,

people that they

never will meet,

they've heard about them.

Is that not encouraging?

How encouraging

must that have been

for these Thessalonians

to hear?

So presumably Paul,

as he continues

to travel around

speaking to others

about Jesus,

he hears that people

have heard about

what God has done

in the lives

of these Thessalonian Christians.

He's heard about it.

The Lord's message

has rang out.

See the language

he's using?

Through you,

the bell was sounded.

God shouted his message

loud and creel

and people heard.

God has used you

and through you

he's used it

to spread the gospel message

and encourage people

around the world

to live for him.

Now I find

that an incredible thought.

I find it incredible

hearing how God

is at work in Barcelona

through people

that I will never meet.

To have an example

of this in my life

this week,

I came to our

Wednesday night prayer meetings.

I love our Wednesday

night prayer meetings.

Love them.

Becky was telling us

a bit about Sudan,

the country of Sudan

and particularly

how we can pray

for that country

and pray for the Christians there.

And Becky told us

that in Sudan

the government there

are seeking to create

a country

with one culture,

one language,

one religion

and it's not Christianity.

So for anybody

who wants to convert

from Islam to Christianity,

the death penalty

is a serious possibility

for you.

And I heard that

and I thought,

wow,

wonder if anybody's

becoming a Christian.

But despite that threat,

people are still

becoming Christians

in Sudan.

Isn't it encouraging

to hear

that they have weighed up

the cost of following Jesus

and it's worth it.

God has been at work

in the lives

of those people there.

People that I will never

meet in this life.

But people

who I think

it will be a joy

to say to

when I meet them in glory,

all of God's people

worshipping are three

in one God together.

I'll be able to say to them,

see the way that you

welcomed that message.

See the way that you

imitated Jesus Christ

in such severe suffering.

I heard about it

around the other side

of the globe

and let me tell you

what encouragement it was

to hear about your faith.

Friends,

how do you spot a Christian?

Look at what the people

in Macedonia

and Achaia are saying

about these

Thessalonian Christians

at the second half

of verse 9

and verse 10

and here's where we come

to our three marks

of the real deal Christian.

What is it people

are saying about them?

Here's the first thing

that they've turned.

They've turned.

They were heading one way

and now because God

has so graciously

acted to transform them,

now they're heading

another way.

From what?

Idols.

Maybe physical idols.

The false gods

of the culture

that people up

and down that land,

up and down their city

are bowing to.

Maybe just the values

and dreams of the world

that they chase

along with everyone else.

Money, comfort,

sex, power, fame.

Tim Keller in his book

Counterfeit Gods,

another one of you

looking for a summer read

to kind of recommend that one.

He defines an idol

like this.

What is an idol?

It is anything more important

to you than God.

Anything that absorbs

your heart and imagination

more than God

and anything you seek

to give,

anything you seek

to give you

what only God alone

can give.

Well, these Thessalonians,

they used to live

for these things,

but they've turned

and now they're living

for what?

The living and true God.

Living and true God.

Paul said,

you've turned to worship

and serve what?

The substance,

the reality,

the giver of life,

the God who speaks

and lives

and acts in this world

and the God

who acts

to save,

to forgive,

to restore,

to give life

by His Spirit

to His people

through the message

about His Son.

That's the God

who you serve now.

The living God.

It's a wonder

if you're here tonight

and you're still

living for idols,

longing for the things

of the world

that you think

will give you purpose

in life.

The things that will be

here one day

and they will be gone

tomorrow.

Well, God beckons you

in His Word tonight

to come to Him.

To come to Him,

the living

and the true God.

The one who is

eternally the same

yesterday,

today and forever.

To come to Him

and to have life

in His name.

To become a worshiper

of this living

and true God.

The reason that you were made

in the first place.

These Thessalonians

are known for their turning.

Secondly,

they are known

for their serving.

Not themselves.

but the living

and true God.

Because they've got hearts

that have been grasped

by God's grace,

they now serve Him.

It is not a duty,

it's a delight.

His purposes

are their purposes.

Their money

is His money.

His mission

is their mission.

Their possessions

are His possessions.

And together,

they have become

the people

of the living God.

and these Christians

have become known

for their loving service.

And not just how they serve,

but who they serve.

Let me ask you this evening,

think about the people

that you work with.

Think about the people

that you rub shoulders

with every day.

Family, friends,

people that live

in your stairwell.

If we were to ask them tonight

as they look into

our lives,

we had to ask them,

who do you think

that they serve?

I wonder what they would say.

Friends,

to quote Bob Dylan,

you're going to have

to serve somebody.

I was almost singing it there,

I'm not going to sing it.

Indeed,

you're going to have

to serve somebody.

It may be the devil

or it may be the Lord,

but you're going to have

to serve somebody.

What do people,

as they look into our lives,

who is it that they see

that we serve?

See,

the watching world

was in no doubt

as to who these

Thessalonian Christians serve.

No doubt whatsoever.

The question is,

who do people think

that we serve?

Remember when I used

to work in law,

I had a good friend,

Christian friend

who I worked with,

we were at the same firm

for a couple of years.

And I moved on

from that company,

went to work down

in Bristol for a while.

We moved back

a couple of years later

and I met him

in the street

when I was out and about

in Edinburgh

when I first moved back.

I said,

mate,

great to see you.

And you can imagine

the first question

I asked him,

you still at that firm?

You still at that firm?

And he said,

no,

I've moved on

from that firm,

I've got another job.

I said,

why did you leave your job?

And he said to me,

I had to move on

because it got to the point

that the hours

they were asking me to work,

they were just getting

in the way.

I said,

what do you mean?

And he said,

well,

in the midst of other things,

the hours they were asking me

to work,

do you know what?

It was stopping me

ever going to the prayer meeting.

That's what he said.

It was stopping me

ever going to the prayer meeting.

And the application of that

is not give up your job.

The application of that

is to look at somebody

and know who they serve.

I was in no doubt

as to who that

brother of mine

served

when I heard him say that.

Friends,

do people know

who we serve?

These Thessalonians

are known

for their serving

of the living

and true God.

Second mark,

they serve.

Third mark,

they wait.

For who?

Jesus.

The son of the living God

to return.

The same Jesus,

do you see in the verses there?

That God raised from the dead?

Says Paul is at the underscore

the certainty

of his return.

That is now the event

that should shape your life.

That is now the moment

that should be fixed

on your horizons.

And they longingly wait

for Jesus to return.

In fact,

as we're going to journey

through this letter together

over the summer,

that we'll see that

waiting for Jesus to come back

is such a prominent theme

in this letter.

And Paul wants them

to be in no doubt

that it's going to happen.

Because he realizes,

and it's true

in the Christian life,

isn't it?

To be focused

and to be certain

on that day

finds it affects

our every day.

And waiting while

is not a matter

of resting

nor is it a matter

of hesitating.

It's a matter

of anticipating.

Waiting is not a matter

of twiddling your thumbs,

wondering whether

it's going to happen.

Waiting is not a matter

of crossing your fingers,

hoping that it might

one day happen.

Waiting is a matter

of lifting our hands

in worship

and using our hands

in service,

knowing the truth

and living in the truth

that one day

is going to happen.

Jesus will return.

And what will he do?

When he comes,

he will deliver us

from the wrath to come.

He will save us

from God's righteous judgment

of all things.

It's amazing there

in the English.

We don't quite get

the sense of the

full justice

of the Greek word there.

Jesus, literally the one

delivering us

from the wrath to come.

As if to say,

not only will he deliver us

that day,

but even now,

in some small measures

we were saying earlier,

as God transforms us

by his spirit

more into the image

of Christ,

even now, friends,

we're being delivered

for the things

that used to dominate

our lives.

And one day God will judge.

Even now,

God is,

through Jesus,

delivering us.

And until he does,

friends,

we would devote ourselves

to his service

to be met one day

with those words,

well done,

good and faithful servant.

You waited well.

Somebody once asked

John Wesley

what you would be doing today

if he knew that Jesus

would be returning tomorrow.

And he looked at his diary,

he looked at what he had on today

and he said,

I would be doing just that.

Just that.

Friends,

do we model

that same kind of readiness?

These Thessalonians

are known

for their waiting.

What does Paul see

in them?

Verse 3,

his famous triad

that you see

all the way through

his letters,

faith,

love,

and hope.

What do people

know about them?

That they've turned,

that they serve,

that they wait.

Of course,

the two sets of three

are intrinsically linked,

aren't they?

Faith,

how is that faith

manifesting itself?

How has it manifested itself?

In their turning.

Love,

how is that love

manifesting itself

for the Lord,

for their fellow brothers

and sisters,

for the people of the world

in their serving?

And hope,

remember,

not clutching at straws,

hope based on the facts

about God.

How is that hope

manifesting itself?

In their waiting.

Turn,

serve,

wait.

Turn,

serve,

wait.

Turn,

serve,

wait.

Friends,

as we close,

how do you spot a Christian?

Not by what they're wearing,

but by how they're living.

Three marks of a real dull Christian.

Someone who's turned.

Someone who serves.

Someone who weighs.

Acts 17.

These men who have caused trouble

all over the world

have now come here

and Jason has welcomed them

into his house.

They're all defying Caesar's decrees

saying

that there is another king,

one called Jesus.

And I was thinking in my head

just as we close,

I was thinking in my head

when this first,

when this group of Christians,

when they first met together,

can you imagine that meeting?

Can you imagine that meeting

the first time they got together?

Looking at each other,

thinking,

why are we here?

Why are we here?

Oh, I know why we were here.

What's the first song

we're going to sing?

What's the first hymn

that we're going to sing

in this very first meeting

of this church in Thessalonica?

Jesus is Lord.

Yet from his throne eternal,

in flesh he came

to die in pain

on Calvary's tree.

Jesus is Lord.

From him all life proceeding,

yet gave his life a ransom,

thus setting us free.

Jesus is Lord.

Jesus is Lord.

Praise him with hallelujahs

for Jesus is Lord.

Mears.

The First