Evidence Of True Faith Series

“EVIDENCE OF TRUE FAITH” 1 Thess. 1:1-10

FBCF – 2/8/26

Jon Daniels

INTRO – Bereans – Acts 17:11 – “…they received the word w/ all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” NLT – “…They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth.”

We all should be like the Bereans, examining the things we hear from preachers & teachers to see if they’re accurately teaching the truth of God’s Word. Each week, I listen to my sermon from the previous Sunday to critique myself & be a Berean to my own sermons. And this past week as I listened, I realized I said something in the Refuge service that does not line up w/ Scripture. Made statement that sometimes when we are thinking about lost people, we may say or think, “They’re going to get what they deserve.” And then in passing I said, “And you are, too.” And that little statement is not true if you’re a Christ-follower. Let me be clear here: It IS true if you reject Jesus & die in your sins. You WILL get what you deserve – death & an eternity in hell apart from the presence of God. But if you are saved, the glorious truth of the Gospel is that you DON’T get what you deserve! That’s what GRACE is all about! Eph. 2:8-9 – “For it is by GRACE that you are saved through faith. And this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works so that no one can boast.” Our salvation & the gift of eternal life is a gift of GRACE to us b/c we DON’T get what we deserve. We still deserve death & hell, but when we trust Christ alone for our salvation, He graciously, mercifully, & lovingly gives us the underserved gift of eternal life.

So please forgive me & hold me accountable to the truth of God’s Word.

Today – begin series in 1 Thess entitled, “Handbook for Christ-followers.” Spend the next 8 wks studying this NT book. One of Paul’s letters that was written to encourage new believers, give the assurance of eternal life, remind the church of the soon-coming Rapture of the Church, & challenge & encourage them to live a godly life.

When you consider what the definition of a handbook is:

- A book of instruction or guidance, as for an occupation

- A guidebook for travelers

- A reference book in a particular field

- A scholarly book on a particular subject

…you’ll begin to see how 1 Thess is a wonderful handbook for every Christ-follower. It will instruct us & guide us as we strive to life for Christ. It will give us clear directions as we travel the road of life in a God-glorifying way. It will provide us w/ life-changing information & truth of the hope we have of the 2nd coming of Jesus.

So, be encouraged, Church! Be excited about your life in Christ! Be enthusiastic as you live for life that brings honor & glory to God! Be incredibly stoked that one day soon, Jesus is coming back! So, let’s jump in!

EXPLANATION – 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

3 bullet points about 1 Thessalonians:

- One of P’s earliest letters – written about AD 51, probably in his late 40’s. P was saved around AD 33-34 when he was about 30, & wrote his last letter, 2 Timothy, around AD 67 & died when he was about my age – 60-61 yrs old.

- Church was started in Thessalonica after P went there on his 2nd missionary journey & preached the Gospel. Acts 17:2-4 – “And Paul went in, as was his custom, & on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining & proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer & to rise from the dead, & saying, ‘This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.’ And some of them were persuaded & joined Paul & Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks & not a few of the leading women.” There’s the birth of the church in Thessalonica. There are your charter members of the church.

- P send Timothy back to them to get them established – 1 Thess. 3:2 – “…we sent Timothy, our brother & God’s coworker in the Gospel of Christ, to establish & exhort you in your faith…”

These were young believers in a young church & needed to be encouraged. We aren’t a young church, but we have some young believers who need a Paul in their life! They need someone w/ genuine faith in Jesus to pour into their lives, & there are a bunch of you who could do that & should do that.