1 Thessalonians Faith

What motivates you to do things for other people?

A couple of months ago, Alyssa had gone away for the weekend.

She'd taken Micah and I was left with the two big kids, Isaac and Tamara.

And I spent hours cleaning the house.

And so when Alyssa got home, I was like, look at me.

Look at this house.

Look at all this cleaning I've done.

I know, and look, these kids are still alive.

They've been fed.

Even had a play with some other friends.

The house was cleaner than it had ever been.

Husbands, have you ever tried to pull this thing off?

Maybe not.

And the response I was looking for, what I was hoping Alyssa would say was,

Oh, James, you are just the best husband ever.

Thank you so much for doing this.

You know, you could have just been watching movies with the kids, eating donuts.

But you didn't.

And I am so indebted to you.

Actually, you know, you should take some time off.

You're doing a weekend of being a single dad.

That's been hard for you.

So, you know, here's a pat on the head like a puppy.

Does anyone think I got that response from Alyssa?

I'm not sure if she's in the room to defend herself.

No, she didn't say that.

It was probably much shorter.

But what motivates you to do things for other people?

Is it to be praised like me?

Is it so that people owe you?

Maybe you want people to butter you up so that, you know, you want people to think more of you than they really do.

Does being a Christian motivate you to love other people?

To serve them and to help them?

Or is your motive to try and win God's praise?

You know, does God, do you want God to say, oh, you know, you've worked so hard.

Let me bless you more.

Is your motive of loving other people to try and make God forget your sin?

Are you motivated to help people so that God thinks higher of you than he does currently?

Today, we're continuing in our series looking at the book of 1 Thessalonians as we think about standing firm.

And last week, we saw how Paul and Silas started this church in Thessalonica before they were driven out.

And so Paul sent Timothy and then this letter to care for this new little church.

And today, we're looking at the second chapter.

And we're going to see what motivated Paul to go to this area, to start this church.

What motivated him to love and to serve these people and to send this letter?

So I'm going to pray as we look at God's word for us.

Heavenly Father, as we come before your word today,

Lord, I ask that you would help us to have minds that are open,

hearts that are ready to be challenged,

that we would consider our motives,

that we would think well,

that we would think through your eyes about why we do things, Lord.

We ask that we would do this for your glory.

Amen.

And so at the beginning of chapter 2,

Paul reminds the church of how he came to them.

They had suffered,

Paul had suffered greatly in Philippi because they'd been sharing the good news.

And they had come to Thessalonica.

And Paul writes this big list of how they came,

but also how they did not come to them.

So please have a look at me,

with me at chapter 2, verse 3.

And if you don't have a Bible open,

we can get you one,

but it will also be on the screen.

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 those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel.

We are not trying to please people,

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 people,

not from you or anyone else.

Even though as apostles of Christ,

we could have asserted our authority.

Instead,

we were like young children among you.

Paul says,

we didn't come with error or impure motive.

It's not a trick.

We're not trying to please people.

We're trying to please God.

We didn't use flattery.

We didn't use greed.

We're not looking for praise and fame,

which we could have as apostles.

But we came like children.

Why is Paul saying this?

He's gone to great lengths here.

He's taken up a fair chunk of this short book

to defend himself.

And the way this church started.

Is there people outside the church

or even inside the church

trying to discredit Paul,

saying,

oh, that guy,

he came with tricks,

he came with sleight of hand

to try and steal your money

and fool you into believing Jesus?

Are people saying that he was a thief

going door to door,

selling the gospel,

setting up churches

to steal people's money?

Well, it's most likely

that Paul was trying

to distance himself

from other types of people

that went around

from town to town

speaking.

During this time

of the first century,

there were no movie stars

or TV stars,

obviously.

There were no reality TV stars.

There was no singing celebrities

like we have

in the same way.

The celebrities

that they had

were philosophers.

So think of

Aristotle

and Plato.

They're from a couple

of hundred years beforehand.

But philosophers

were these professional speakers

who would go

from town to town

and they would present

new ideas

and new thoughts.

They would speak

and use rhetorical tricks

and they would

try and keep people

interested and engaged

in order to make people

agree with what they said.

They would enter cities

with great pomp

and ceremony.

They would have

these giant audiences.

They would try

and get disciples

to follow their teaching.

And ancient sources

tell us

that the thing

that motivated

these philosophers

was money.

It was fame.

It was glory.

It's not really

that different

to what motivates

people to try

and become big.

It's fame.

It's money.

It's glory.

And it makes

most sense

that Paul is saying

he didn't come

like one of these philosophers.

He didn't come

to get fame

and glory.

He didn't come

with impure motive

but with

the help of God.

He did not come

with tricks

like a motivational speaker

or a TED talk

designed to

emotionally influence people

but he came

with the good news

of Jesus.

He didn't come

flattering people

so that they would

like him more.

He didn't come

with the purpose

of gaining money.

They didn't come

to be praised.

He didn't come

so that at the end

of him speaking

there would be

thunderous applause.

Make sure you don't

do that this morning.

I know you weren't

going to anyway

just to check.

They didn't come

to get fame

and glory

but as apostles

Paul had met

Jesus himself

and there is

no higher claim

than to say

that he had met

God.

Instead

they came

like children

and so instead

of coming

to get fame

and glory

the end of the chapter

verse 20 says

you are our glory

and our joy.

That word glory

it's not the usual

word glory

in reference

to God.

The word glory

here is more

like fame.

So Paul and Silas

didn't come to

Thessalonica

to get fame

and glory

for themselves.

They came

to get

the Thessalonians.

They are the fame

and the glory

they wanted.

Paul didn't come

with impure motives.

He didn't come

influenced by pride

or greed

or a desire

for praise.

I wonder

do these things

influence

our motives?

Even when it comes

to serving people

at church

or loving others

during the week.

What are our motives

influenced by?

We as a church

value radical generosity

and we want to also

have a local impact.

Imagine if

Toys and Tucker

is coming up

towards the end

of the year.

Is anybody aware

of Toys and Tucker?

Yes?

Good.

Some of you?

If not,

let me tell you

what Toys and Tucker

is.

It's where we

give to others

out of what God

has given us.

So in particular

toys and food,

tin food,

other food

to share

with other people.

And because we

want to have

the biggest impact,

imagine that we

as a church

devised a little

competition.

Imagine that we

said,

okay,

we wanted to

fill the stage

with food

and so what

we're going

to do is

we're going

to compete

with our

services.

We're going

to see which

congregation can

bring the most

food.

So we're going

to compare

9.30 and

4 o'clock.

Now,

who do you

think is going

to win?

I heard someone

say 9.30.

Shame on you

for saying that.

But imagine

that we say this

because we want

to have a big

impact.

We want to have

a big local

impact.

We want to care

for people.

We want to be

radically generous.

And so we

compete with

each other.

You know,

9.30's got to

beat 4 o'clock.

You know,

9.30 we're

going to say,

come on,

let's beat

them.

We don't want

to let those

young people

at 4 o'clock

beat us.

And they're

going to be

saying,

oh,

we don't want

to let those

families and

old people and

other people.

We don't want

to let those

people beat us.

And so we all

have to go and

spend lots of

money and bring

it in.

It's a little

bit extra

motivation to be

generous.

It's a bit

extra motivation

to show love.

But we're all

sinful.

And there's some

of us that are

highly competitive.

And so,

you know,

there's,

I'll pick on

Nick.

There's Nick,

and he's down

at Woolies,

filling up trolley

after trolley,

because,

do you know

what,

he really wants

9.30 to win,

because,

you know,

his kids are

encouraging him

to.

And so,

what has gone

from being

generous,

it's now pride

and arrogance.

And,

you know,

there's people

at 4 o'clock,

well,

they don't want

to let these

kids beat him,

and so,

they're filling

up trolley,

they're buying

toys after toys.

And all of a

sudden,

what was initially

about serving

and being

generous and

showing the

love that God

has shown us,

we're stuck

with a motivation

of pride

and a desire

for fame

and glory.

That's what

happens when we

don't stand

firm in faith,

hope,

and love.

Are we

guilty of

the same

thing?

It's a

question of

motivation.

Why are we

nice to

people?

Why do

people serve

morning tea?

Why do I

lead a community

group?

Why are you

wearing a

snazzy red

vest this

morning?

Why were

those people

wearing those

wonderful

high-vis

vests out

in the rain

this morning?

Maybe that

one's not

about the

glory,

maybe they

are just

serving in

the rain.

Why do

we do

what we

do?

One of

the core

values of

our church

is servant

leadership,

that the

heart of

the church

is the

service of

God and

others,

selfishly

nourishing

others,

pastoring and

equipping and

loving others.

It's character

over skills.

We need to

answer the

why of what

we're doing

before we

can answer

the what

question.

We're to

serve God

with all

of our

life,

and there

are many

ways to

serve one

another,

particularly

here at

church.

And some

of them

do need

to be

aware of

getting more

fame than

others.

I'll pick

on Nick

again,

musicians on

stage.

It's very

easy to

say,

oh,

Nick

Freestone,

your voice

is like

that of

an angel.

No?

Okay,

sorry,

mate.

To say,

who was

playing guitar

this morning?

Nick,

your guitar

skills bring

tears to

my eyes.

hearts.

How do

we do

this kind

of thing

all the

time?

How does

Nick

respond?

How does

other Nick

respond when

we say

these kinds

of things?

Do they

say,

yes,

I do

sound like

an angel,

don't I?

Or would

they be

saying something

like,

yes,

God has

gifted me

and I'm

so

pleased I

can serve

you and

the church?

We need

to continue

to check

our heart

and our

motives to

make sure

there isn't

praise creep,

to make sure

that fame

isn't creeping

into our

motivations.

What may

have started

out years

ago with

the best

of intentions

may have

become an

idol,

our God

that brings

us pleasure

and joy

and happiness.

How bad

would it be

to realize

in years

time that

instead of

serving at

church for

God's glory

to build

his kingdom,

we've been

building our

own kingdom,

getting praise

for us,

which is

fickle and

will all

come tumbling

down.

So Paul

has showed

us how

he came

and how

he did

not come.

He didn't

come with

impure

motives.

And he

shows us

now a bit

more about

how he

did come

to Thessalonica.

Have a

look at

verse 7,

the second

half of

verse 7

with me.

Just as

a nursing

mother cares

for her

children,

so we

cared for

you,

because we

loved you

so much.

We were

delighted to

share with

you not

only the

gospel of

God,

but our

lives as

well.

Surely you

remember,

brothers and

sisters,

our toil and

hardship.

We worked

night and

day in

order not

to be a

burden to

anyone while

we preached

the gospel

to you.

You are

witnesses,

and so is

God,

of how

holy,

righteous,

and blameless

we were

among you

who believed.

For you

know that

we dealt

with each

of you

as a

father deals

with his

own

children,

encouraging,

comforting,

and urging

you to live

lives worthy

of God,

who calls

you into

his kingdom

and glory.

One of the

things I've

really loved

about spending

time in

1 Thessalonians

is seeing

how much

Paul really

loves these

people.

He uses

the most

intimate

language.

He refers

to himself

as a

nursing

mother,

caring

for her

own

children.

This was

a time

where the

people that

had financial

resources,

they would

have a

nursing

mother.

They would

get a

wet nurse

so they

wouldn't

have to

feed their

own

child.

So they

would get

a wet

nurse to

look after

their baby.

But Paul

hasn't come

like a

wet nurse

to look

after someone

else's

baby.

He's like

a wet

nurse

looking after

his own

child.

It's not

a financial

transaction.

It's not

something that

Paul had

to do

just because

God had

sent him

there.

Paul and

Silas loved

these people

so much

and they

were delighted

to share

their lives

with them.

Paul didn't

just come

and get up

and preach

on the

Sabbath,

maybe visit

a couple

people during

the week

and have

tea.

He shared

with them

the gospel

but his

life.

Again,

Paul didn't

come like

the professional

speakers,

coming and

staying in

five-star

hotels,

maybe coming

down and seeing

the people to

sign a few

autographs.

He gave

the message

but his

life as

well to

the church.

Paul came

like a

father,

encouraging,

comforting and

urging the

people to

live lives

worthy of

God.

And as we

saw last

week and

again today,

Paul and

Silas came

and shared

the gospel

in the midst

of intense

persecution,

this persecution

that eventually

led them to

be run out

of town.

Paul continues

this intimate

family language,

verse 14.

For you,

brothers and

sisters,

became imitators

of God's

churches in

Judea,

which are in

Christ Jesus.

You suffered

from your own

people the same

things those

churches suffered

from the Jews.

Brothers and

sisters, you

suffered the same

thing as

everyone else.

They suffered

persecution just

like the Jews

who'd become

Christians.

He doesn't

explicitly state

it, but it's

likely that

some people

were persecuted

by their

families,

possibly even

kicked out

by their

families.

And when

people are

forced to

leave a

family,

Christianity

has the

unique gift

of being able

to welcome

them into

a new

family,

one that

has close

relationships,

brothers and

sisters from

every tribe,

every race,

every tongue.

It's one of

the things

we've been

celebrating

here today,

that we

are

transcultural,

that this

family comes

from all

places.

And it's

so important

that this

new family

starts.

And it's

not just

cousins,

but it's

intimate

relationships

that Paul

is celebrating

here with

the church.

There was a

Lifeline study

done a couple

of years ago

that said

that 80%

of people

thought that

loneliness

was increasing.

We are

increasingly

connected

through technology,

but we are

also increasingly

disconnected

from the people

around us.

Even sitting

in a crowd

of people

like here

at church

today or

at a party,

we can feel

profoundly

alone,

whether married

or single,

whether you

have many

friends or

not.

And Paul

gives us

an antidote

to loneliness.

He delighted

to share

his life

with people.

He delighted

to share

his life.

Is church

just the place

that you

visit on a

Sunday?

Is it

just where

you come

to,

to spend

some time

with God

and then

leave?

I love

doing church

with all of

you on a

Sunday,

but that's

only part

of what

church is.

It has

to go

beyond

Sunday.

It has

to even

go beyond

community

groups or

Bible studies

as we

meet in

the week.

Maybe

you're

thinking to

yourself,

well,

yeah,

I can only

come on

Sundays.

I can't

even make

community

groups.

I'm

really

busy.

There's

too many

things going

on in

my life

right now.

I don't

have the

energy

for it.

Paul was

trained as

a Pharisee,

and yet he

also had a

trade as a

tent maker.

And so he

took this

trade around

with him.

He had a

job that

he worked

around the

church, the

people, his

dearly loved

family that he

delighted in.

His job

worked around

what he was

doing in the

church.

How often do

we chase our

job, our

career, our

future, the

future of our

kids, based

on what we

want?

And then we

fit church

around that.

For

Alyssa and

I, we

were faced

with a

tough decision

in January

of this

year.

We had an

opportunity to

take up a

job with a

really great

church, with

a great

team, and

a great

boss and

mentor as

well.

It's you

guys, I'm

talking about

you guys, if

you didn't

know.

Sorry, I was

being a little

bit too subtle

there.

But there

was a cost.

There was a

cost to our

family to

come back

and rejoin

this church

family that

we loved from

the year we'd

spent here in

2014.

A cost would

be that we

would have to

leave our

church family

at St.

Aidan's, but

we would also

have to move

a lot further

away from

our families.

Our families

live in

Wollongong.

Most of them

live there.

And so moving

here is twice

the distance.

Depending on a

day with

traffic and

weather, we

are a long

way away from

our family.

We are not

the only ones

that have

made ministry

decisions to

be further

away from

family.

But moving

here would

mean that we

were further

away from our

family, that we

wouldn't get to

see them as

much as we

wanted to, that

our kids

wouldn't get to

see their

grandparents and

cousins as

much.

And it was

painful for us.

things.

But it's also

a joy that we

could rejoin our

family here at

St. Paul's.

It was a decision

to move away from

our personal

family, but to

rejoin this church

family that we

loved and missed

and longed to be

with again.

And so we don't

just want this to

be a Sunday

thing.

We could have

commuted from an

hour away if it

was just a Sunday

thing.

We don't want

to just see you

once or twice a

week.

We want to

delight in sharing

our lives with

you, our kids'

lives as we

share the gospel.

Was it painful

leaving our church

and moving away

from family?

Yes, it was.

But we have

family here too.

At least there

is a group of

people that could

be a family

together.

The Apostle

Paul has

bared his

soul as he

delighted to

share his

entire life

and gospel

with the church.

He defended

the way that he

came and

shared the gospel

and served

them.

Paul was

motivated by

Jesus'

model.

Jesus didn't

come for fame

or to gain

glory or

fortune, but

he valued us

over his own

life.

And so Paul

imitates Jesus

valuing

what God

values,

valuing other

people.

So let me

encourage you,

know that other

people are made

in the image of

God.

They are worth

loving and

serving.

You shouldn't

need a motivation

of pride and

glory to love

and serve other

people.

It is who we

are to be.

Be challenged

to share your

life with people

so that you can

say with Paul

that people are

your delight.

And when you

serve, watch

out for that

praise creep,

that fame creep,

that just ever

so gently

creeps into

the way we

serve and love

other people.

Serve people

and God out

of love, but

not for profit.

Let me pray.

Let me pray.

Dear Heavenly

Father, you

have loved us

so much.

Your Son,

Jesus, served

us so much

that he valued

us above

his own life.

Heavenly

Father, help

us to be

motivated by

the same

thing.

Lord, help

us to be

radically

generous.

Lord, help

us desire to

have an impact

here with

your gospel.

help us

desire to

share our

lives with

people as

Paul did,

not for our

glory, but

for yours,

Lord.

Father, we

long to be

motivated not

for ourselves,

but to see

your kingdom

grow.

Help us to

check our

hearts and

change our

hearts, Lord,

so that we

can grow more

like your

Son every

day.