Relay Games In Corinth
In ancient Corinth there used to be staged Games, spectator events
And these games became the Olympics we know today.
Just like today, there were many events, but the most popular one, was the relay race.
The competitors lined up side by side at the starting line, each holding a torch. In the distance waited still another line, of men, and still farther on other lines.
When the signal was given, the men started to run, holding on to their lit torches.
And as the runner reached his partner at the next line he would pass on his light, and so on from man to man until the finish line was reached.
With the famous relay race in mind, the Greeks coined a phrase:
“Let those who have the light pass it on.”
Last week we spoke about the Thessalonians
• This week I feel we have to address the messengers
• Today we are going to look at the men that took their torches and ran with them.
• What made these men so special that they could change the views of these people?
Read 1 Thessalonians 2:4-8
Messengers
• Paul tells us, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel.
• We see these are men – men who have been entrusted with the Gospel
• Paul goes on to say that
• We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.
• The point that he is trying to get across is that
• He is speaking with the best motives in mind
• He isn’t out for personal Gain, / Fame / Celebrity status (Their not doing it for themselves)
• Paul is speaking out of the best motives, (He’s looking to help people)
• He realized that God had put his heart to the test. (Where do you stand with me)
• He and his companions spoke not . . . to please men, but God.
• Now this is something that we find hard to do at times
• To forget about what other people think about us and only care about what God thinks of us.
• Sometimes this involves stepping on people’s toes.
• But have you ever noticed that the people’s toes that get stepped on normally need to have them stepped on.
Now I don’t claim to be anyone’s judge
• A six-year-old boy came home with a note from his teacher in which it was suggested that he be taken out of school, as he was “too stupid to learn.” That boy was Thomas A. Edison.
• Alfred Tennyson’s grandfather gave him 10 shillings for writing a eulogy for his grandmother. Handing it to the lad, the old man said: “There, that is the first money you ever earned by your poetry, and take my word for it, it will be the last.”
• Benjamin Franklin’s mother-in-law hesitated at letting her daughter marry a printer. There were already two printing offices in the United States, and she feared that the country might not be able to support a third.
In Life People Judge
• But we have to understand that judging is God’s job
• And I personally am glad that I don’t have to do it
• But the facts of the matter is that certain people need to be reprimanded once and a while.
• Notice I said reprimanded not judged
• Reprimanding is correcting – with a loving heart – judging is passing judgment
Reprimanding can be
• Confronting People who have stopped serving as they once did
• Confronting People who have started skimping on their tithes
• People who use excuses like New Purchases, Evenings Out, Ect
• Most of these things fall under the category of Luxuries in life.
• Sometimes we have to confront people who have backslidden
• Those who once were good strong Christians,
• But now rarely show up for a Sunday service,
• And even fewer of these people would actually consider doing something that would help grow the church.
Here Paul says I don’t care what you think ( It’s not about you)
• We aren’t here to sugar coat the Gospel and lead you in the wrong direction
• We aren’t here to tell you what you want to hear
• I love the quote in the movie “The Blues Brothers”
• When Jake Elwood says “were on a mission from God”
• That’s exactly what Paul, Silas and Timothy were doing
• They were on a Mission from God.
• Paul and his fellow missionaries were veterans;
• This wasn’t their first rodeo, in fact they had been tried and tested for years.
• God wouldn’t have blessed their work if their motivation hadn’t been pure.
• Paul saw himself as a steward that had been entrusted by God to carry
• God’s message of salvation not his message to lost men and women (cf. 1 Cor. 9:17).
Vs. 5 We see we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness.
• There was no attempt to trick the people
• They weren’t out for their money
• And what I feel is one of the more important ideas about this statement is
Paul is saying
• It doesn’t matter what you think about what we are doing
• It doesn’t matter if you like the way we are handling this
• It doesn’t matter if this message makes you uncomfortable
• It doesn’t matter if it causes you to squirm in your seat.
• Because God is our witness.
• Paul’s preaching wasn’t aimed at making a favorable impression on the Thessalonians.
• His motives weren’t to go there and make friends.
• He asked them to remember how he spoke.
• When he spoke he never wore a false face,
• He didn’t lie
• He never pretended to be something he wasn’t
• He never preached to gain something for himself.
• And since they had no way of knowing this
• he appealed to God as the witness of his motives.
These missionaries were not seeking the praise of any man but the praise of God.
• How many of us can make this same claim.
• We like to be praised for what we do
• I know personally when I go out and clean the garage that when I’m done I want someone to notice
• Of all the people I am trying to impress
• Brandi is the most important to me because her opinion means the most to me
• Maybe it goes back to the caveman days.
• Man go out, Man concur, Man bring home food
• We like it when we do something in the church and we get called out
• We flat out like the personal recognition.
• Mt 6:3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
• This goes far beyond the needy that Jesus was talking about
• It applies to all aspects of our lives
• What ever we do should be done with this kind of attitude in our hearts
• Don’t do it for our motives –We Do it for God
• Give him the credit – We need to stop trying to take credit our selves /
Paul only cared about praising God
• Paul didn’t care about impressing the people- He didn’t care about the spot light – he didn’t care about being the hottest ticket in town.
• As long as he was doing God’s will he couldn’t care less what the people thought of him.
• He himself says “We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else. “
As I mentioned last week
• Traveling philosophers were common in the Roman Empire.
• They went from place to place, entertaining and seeking a personal following for fame and fortune.
• Simply put It was all about them
• These people were nothing more than actors
• Putting on a show for the people who would pay to watch.
• Paul and his companions had nothing in common with such men!
• Instead of trying to get something for themselves, they delighted in giving to others freely.
Paul and his companions cared for their converts
• They cared for them just like a nursing mother cares for her little children.
• Now this provides a great example for all who are responsible for the care of new believers.
• If a nursing mother does not feed herself, she cannot feed her baby.
• If she eats certain foods, her baby will get sick.
• In the same way, the spiritual diet of a parental Christian is vitally important to the health of a newer Christian.
The gentleness and unselfishness of Paul as a spiritual parent shines through in this illustration.
And because of this we see in verse 8
• We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God (Elab, Creation, Father, Son, HS)
• But we are going to share our lives with you as well,
• Because you had become so dear to us.
• We see there is a sense of Love
• Love is the key ingredient to the Gospel message
• And here Paul tells the Thessalonians that they loved them so much
• We are going to share ourselves as well
Think about the story of the change from Saul to Paul
• This would have been a very personal story for Paul to share with these people
• Saul wasn’t a very nice guy
• In fact I can think of a few more modern words that would describe him better.
• Paul was giving his testimony to people that had become dear to him
• Can you imagine just for one minute the looks on the faces of the people Paul was telling about his past life?
• “Yeah my job used to be to hunt down, persecute, and kill people
• The same kind of people I am trying to lead you to be.
• Now I can definitely give my own testimony, and it’s not very pretty in spots.
• But I never Killed someone for their views and opinions.
• But Testimonies are a funny thing
• They show the world that we are human
• Humans that are capable of making mistakes just like they do
• And the importance that we see is that if God is willing to forgive us through His Son
• That God is willing to forgive them as well.
• That is why your testimony is just as important as Paul’s
• Our stories show the Gospel is still and always will be alive.
• Paul shared because the Thessalonians had become dear to him
He gave his testimony and wasn’t worried about them judging him
• Because first of all there was love
• Second, if we examine our own lives each one of us has a less than exemplary past.
• There isn’t one of us here today that could stand up and witness to how God had worked in their lives and not be ashamed of something we’ve done.
• Maybe it was something we did along time ago
• Maybe it was something we did recently
• Maybe it was something we did or said this morning.
• The point is Because of Christ we have been forgiven, all we have to do is ask and it is given, Freely.
Closing: What we see in this section of the letter is
• Rather than being greedy
• Paul and his group were delighted to share with the Thessalonians.
• They gave instead of took
• They didn’t only share the message of eternal life, the gospel of God,
• But They also shared their innermost selves (lit., They bared their own souls”) as well.
• They gave whatever they had in order to help the Thessalonians.
• They did as we are called to do, To go the extra step
• The love of Paul and his companions is evident,
• Because genuine love finds expression in giving to people
• Not only giving and filling their spiritual needs, which is primary,
• But also to their physical needs.
And these are the facts that we need to take out of this letter
• Last week we looked at the people of Thessalonica
• elect –exemplary-enthusiastic - expectant
• This week we see the hearts of those bringing this message
• Always doing it with a pure heart
• And always putting God’s plan before their own.
