4 SERMONS
1 THESSALONIANS 4:1-18
#1Thessalonians4
INTRODUCTION
I am usually a very decisive person. Give me a choice and I will make it. I don’t usually live in gray areas. Kelly will ask me all the time for a decision and if I don’t know, I make the decision and she’ll ask why… I will either have a reason… or I just picked one so that she can choose the opposite… because that’s how it works in marriage. Again, I am not often indecisive.
For some of us, indecisiveness is a way of life. You're in a restaurant and can't make up your mind what to order. You are in the car lot and can’t decide what car to get. You are thrown back in time and are at Blockbuster Video and you can’t decide which movie to rent. The red shirt or the blue shirt. The pink nails or the purple nails. The cherry pop tarts or a bowl of cereal. Coke or Pepsi. Star Wars or Star Trek. We are all faced with decisions and sometimes we are just indecisive. Again, I am not often indecisive.
Yet, when it came to 1 Thessalonians 4, I read and read and prayed and prayed and I could not decide what to preach on. The chapter is towards the end of the letter and Paul is talking about several different things as he is beginning to conclude his remarks. Chapter 5 is the end of this first letter. I could not decide, so I decided to preach on all of them.
Welcome to the sermon of 4 sermons.
SERMON ON PERSONAL PURITY
INTRODUCTION... http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/p/purity.htm [adapted]
I was reading some articles and statistics and stories about purity this week, and I can across several statistics that did not surprise me about our culture, but decided not to dive too statistics because statistics can be deceiving. Numbers can be deceiving. They can also be disheartening.
One article that I came across presented some interesting questions as we think about our mental, emotional, and physical purity. Again, purity was the topic I was looking into because the Apostle Paul talks about this topic in 1 Thessalonians 4. I found the questions interesting and they caught my attention because they made me think about my own life and my thoughts and my beliefs and perspectives and my habits. Here are some of the questions presented:
Am I being desensitized to sexual topics and perspectives by the world I live in?
Do things that once shock me now pass me by with little notice?
Have sexual ethics slackened in my life or in lives around me or in my culture?
Where does my mind wander when I have nothing to do?
What types of books have I been reading lately?
Are there books or magazines or videos in my home that I want no one else to see?
What am I streaming or watching on TV and how many hours do I do it?
What types of movies am I watching?
What types of podcasts am I listening to?
How many adulteries did I watch or listen to last week in our entertainment?
How many murders did I watch or listen to last week in our entertainment?
How many of those things did I watch or listen to with my children?
How many chapters of the Bible did I read or listen to last week?
I found those questions to be interesting because they led me to think about my purity and my standing before God and the types of things I am dumping into my brain and my heart. Paul says in verse 1, which we will read in a moment, that we ought to walk in our lives in a manner to “please God.” Those questions made me take a step back and ask: How much did I please God this past week? That’s a very good question. Let’s read from 1 Thessalonians 4.
READ 1 THESSALONIANS 4:1-8
“Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, 5 not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; 6 that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. 7 For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. 8 Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.”
The Apostle Paul begins 1 Thessalonians 4 by talking about walking in our lives in a manner that pleases God and that we should do that more and more. Throughout these verses he expands on this idea and shares that such commands and instructions come from the Lord Jesus. It is the will of God for us by Jesus and in the Holy Spirit that we be sanctified and made to be holier and better and good-er and more righteous each day. Jesus wants us to follow a pattern of wronging people around us less and to step forward in holiness and purity and to not disregard the kind of life God has for us. Our faith and our practice of abiding in Christ changes us to be more like Him.
Notice, throughout this passage, that we can disregard what God has for us. We can disregard Jesus’ instructions. Specifically, Paul notes that sexual immorality and giving into passion and lusts outside of God’s boundaries attacks our holiness and purity and His best for us.
The word that Paul uses in this passage, in verse 3, is a word that means any sexual encounters outside of God’s boundaries. God has designed sex between a man and a woman inside the bonds of marriage. That’s it. Anything outside of God’s design is this word. The Bible mentions this word often: Matthew 5, 15, 12; Acts 15, 1 Corinthians 5, 6, 7; Galatians 5; Ephesians 5 and so many more.
APPLICATION
The application of this passage is clear to me. Even as I think back to those initial questions that caught my eye, we must take our purity… our sexual purity as Paul focuses… as important. God created sex to be physical, emotional, mental, spiritual… so this is an important topic that we at times are embarrassed to talk about because it touches many areas of life even down to our very identity.
God designed sex between a man and a woman inside the bonds of marriage to be physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. This we believe. Commit to that. Live in that. Resist temptation to live outside of this. Reject the world’s supposed truths in this area which only lead to emotional baggage, heart hurt, sickness, depression, and broken relationships.
May you and I not disregard the Word of God and His desires, but rather trust in Him that His design and will and purposes are best. End of Sermon 1.
SERMON ON LOVE
INTRODUCTION… https://www.timeout.com/newyork/music/50-best-love-songs AND
w.billboard.com/articles/list/6792625/top-50-love-songs-
What do you think is the #1 Love Song of all time? I suppose it depends on who you ask and if they are indecisive or not! According to one list I found it was “Endless Love” (1981) by Lionel Richie and Diana Ross or “This Magic Moment” (1960) by the Drifters. Both of those seem like good candidates in my opinion.
The Apostle Paul is writing to the Thessalonians and he wants to begin concluding his letter with thoughts that will encourage them. He mentions several times in his letter that he wants them to “walk worthy of God.” He wants them to not only have faith in Jesus, but for that faith to work itself out from the heart and into action.
Notice what Paul writes to the Thessalonian Church:
READ 1 THESSALONIANS 4:9-10
“Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia.”
As a believer in Jesus Christ, we are to commit ourselves to loving one another. That means our default programming should be love. That means all our forgiveness is fueled by love. Our treatment of people different than us should be seasoned with love. We should be famous for loving one another. They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love, yes they will know we are Christians by our love. We don’t love other people because they are worth it, we love people because God is worth it and He is the motivator of our love.
Listen to Jesus… READ John 13:34-35 (ESV)
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
READ John 15:12 (ESV)
“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”
Listen to Paul… READ Romans 12:10 (ESV)
“Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.”
READ Galatians 5:13 (ESV)
“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”
Listen to Peter… READ 1 Peter 1:22 (ESV)
“Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart”
READ 1 Peter 4:8 (ESV)
“Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.”
APPLICATION
What does this have to do with me? What does this have to do with you?
We need to seek God and let Him motivate our love for others.
We prove our faith in Jesus Christ by our love for one another.
We are free to honor our father and mother even if they don’t deserve it.
We can outdo showing honor to our family members consistently.
We need to attempt to love God and love others with unconditional love every day.
We need to make our love as immeasurable, incomparable, divinely driven, and as sacrificial as possible especially when it comes to people we don’t like and those who don’t believe the way we do.
None of this is an option. Hate, being judgmental towards people not like us, sharp biting words, un-forgiveness, and bitterness towards each other has no place in the heart of a believer in Jesus. Jesus’ command is that we love one another. That call is for us each and every day in so many different ways. End of sermon 2.
SERMON ON HARD WORK
INTRODUCTION… Hard Work (p)
I was thinking back on some of my jobs I’ve had this past week because Braeden was trying out a new popcorn maker for the outside movie night we had on Friday. The popcorn maker made me think of my first job at the Wagon Wheel Theater on the Baumholder Army Base in Germany. I was a senior in high school. High school was my job and so was the theater. In college, I was a student and also worked on campus doing trash and landscaping and off-campus at a catering company. I then thought of the time I was working full-time at the church, part-time for i9 Sports on Saturdays, and going to school finishing my master’s degree all the while having three small kids. That sounds like a lot of hard work… it was. I don’t mind hard work. I think I get that from my dad.
I mention hard work because the Apostle Paul writes to the Thessalonians in chapter 4 about hard work and life and relating to other people.
READ 1 THESSALONIANS 4:10-12
“But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, 11 and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.”
I can’t help but center on verses 11-12 which says to live quietly, mind our business, and work so that we are not dependent on others. “Work” means to work, to labor or to engage in an activity that involves effort. Work is the opposite of inactivity or idleness. This call to work is a call for it to be our continual duty.
ILLUSTRATION… https://www.preceptaustin.org/1thessalonians_411-12
John MacArthur says: “When believers display diligent work attitudes and habits and live in a loving and tranquil manner that respects others’ privacy and does not intrude or gossip, it constitutes a powerful testimony to unbelievers and makes the gospel credible… Believers who sacrificially love other people, exhibit tranquil lives, conscientiously focus on keeping their own lives in order, and faithfully carry out their daily responsibilities in the workplace all the while proclaiming the gospel in light of the return of Christ—are the most effective witnesses to their unsaved neighbors and loved ones.”
APPLICATION…fivethirtyeight.com/features/many-americans-are-getting-more-money-from-unemployment-than-they-were-from-their-jobs/
I honestly don’t think can’t get out of this sermon without talking about unemployment, the CARES act, working wages, incomes and all that has happened during COVID. If I ignored that, I would be ignoring an obvious application of this verse that is happening right now and I might be a chicken. I’m definitely not a chicken. I also am not going to ignore Paul’s thought in verse 11 which says… “mind your own business.”
As of May 2021, food service workers, janitorial staff, medical assistants, sales and retail, transportation workers, some construction workers, and some teachers can generally make up to 50% more by being on unemployment than working a job. That is not a political statement, that is an economic-wallet-fact that some people are facing.
We know there is value in hard work according to Proverbs 10, 12, 13, 14, 16; Colossians 3; Ephesians 4. How we work reflects our character. Hard work leading to paying our own bills and managing our own affairs is a good thing and right and proper. On the other hand, there is also value in being paid a wage on which you can live when you work. Therein lies the tension: Do I work hard and not pay my bills or do I not work and have all my bills paid? The tension is real. Perhaps, if you find yourself in a time where unemployment pays more than a working wage, maybe it is time to pray about school or pray and seek another trade or apply for another job that would fit better or better yet… pay down debt with the blessing of extra money. Take the blessing of extra money and plan wisely for the future.
ILLUSTRATION… Sayings of the Desert Fathers and Mothers [adapted]
“In whatever work we do, we should say to ourselves at every moment: ‘If God looks at me, what does He see?’ Then see how you answer yourself. If you condemn yourself, change. Adapt. Stop the work you were doing and take up something else in order to be sure God is pleased. See how your conscience answers and hurry to do what it tells you.”
End of sermon 3.
SERMON ON GRIEF
INTRODUCTION… I’ll Fly Away, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27ll_Fly_Away
I'll Fly Away" is a hymn written in 1929 by Albert E. Brumley and published in 1932 by the Hartford Music company. "I'll Fly Away" has been called the most recorded gospel song and it is frequently used in worship services and is a standard song at bluegrass jam sessions and is often performed at funerals.
It is used at funerals because the song frames life being over and flying away to God where He is… His celestial shore. The song frames Heaven as that place where we will not be weary and joys will not end. It’s not a hard song to sing. They are not complicated words. They are words that should comfort us and encourage us when we think about death.
The Apostle Paul also gives words that are meant to comfort us and encourage us when we deal with death. You see, the Thessalonians were looking forward to the return of Jesus, but some people in their congregation died and they were worried. They did not know what happens to someone who dies in the Lord before the Second Coming of Jesus. Paul hears of this concern from Timothy and addresses it.
READ 1 THESSALONIANS 4:13-18
“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.”
Dealing with death and grief is something that all of us deal with. People who are Christians and people who are not Christians. We all deal with death. The Apostle Paul says that those who die outside of Christ are those who “have no hope.” He says that because Jesus is our hope in this life and in the next. Jesus has prepared a place for us when we die. He has no place prepared if we have not accepted Him. There is no hope outside of Christ.
Paul also lays out six truths for the Thessalonians and for us:
#1 We are to grieve differently than those who have no hope, but we are to grieve.
#2 Jesus’ resurrection shows us that we who are in Him will also rise again.
#3 Death for the Christian is not any kind of end.
#4 The world will end when Jesus returns at the voice of an angel and trumpet call of God.
#5 Believers who are alive and believers who have died will be reunited in Christ with Him.
#6 We who are in Christ will always be with the Lord.
Those six truths are injected into our hearts and prepare us not only for our death, but the death of those around us. Death is nothing to fear. Nothing that can kill you is anything to be feared because Jesus has taken care of what comes after. Sometimes we hold onto this life way too much. We cling to this body and material things way too much. I am not saying to throw your life away in any manner, but in Christ understand that Jesus has prepared life after this one for us and He is waiting for us. That brings comfort. That brings hope. That brings encouragement.
End of sermon 4.
CONCLUSION
There is quite a lot in 1 Thessalonians 4. There are probably 4-6 sermons in this chapter that are worth our time and mental energy and prayer effort. I want to encourage you this week to re-read 1 Thessalonians 4 and allow all that we have talked about today to fuel your prayers and mediations over these verses.
I guess as I think about these 4 sermons overall, I think about not being indecisive. For some things it may not matter… Burger King or McDonalds… Pluto is a planet is not a planet… Monopoly or Sorry… and for other things is does matter. When it comes to our faith and the commands and way of life in Scripture, indecisiveness is not where we want to be. Choose Jesus. Choose Jesus. Choose Jesus. That is what Paul is telling the Thessalonians and us in these verses. Choose Jesus.
Choose paths inside God’s bounds that lead to purity.
Choose to love one another and so reflect Christ.
Choose hard work leading to character that honors Christ.
Choose to grieve in hope because God has made death sure in Him.
GOSPEL
Believe it or not, the message for believers is ‘Choose Christ.’ The message for those of us who are here today who do not have not accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior is the same… Choose Christ. This is not something you can be indecisive about. Romans 10:9 says, “Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (ESV). Indecision doesn’t work for God.
Choose Jesus because He is the Son of God Who lived a perfect sinless life.
Choose Jesus because He offered His sinless life on the cross to pay for our sin.
Choose Jesus because if you don’t choose Jesus, your sin is on your own head.
PRAYER
