1 Thessalonians 2:17-3:13
Club or Church?
The church is very different from a club. In these verses Paul teaches us four distinctive ways in which the church ought to be different.
Congregation in the Lord,
If someone was to ask you, “What is the difference between a church and a club?”, what would you say? It is a good question to think about because there are some aspects of a church that look very similar to a club. Both have regular meetings of its members – and at those meetings it is possible to invite and bring along non-members. Clubs revolve around social interaction and getting together on a regular basis, the church is the same. When you are involved in a club you have financial obligations and responsibilities, the same could be said about the church. In fact if we were to sit down and think about the similarities between a church and a club I’m sure we could come up with quite a long list.
That is a little disheartening when you think about it – especially if we look at our society through the eyes of an unchurched person who is seeking to find fellowship and companionship in a larger group setting. They are looking around and there are all these settings for fellowship available. Why choose the church? What is it about the fellowship of the church that makes it stand out above all the other offerings?
So it is important to ask, “How is a church different from a club?”. And this passage before us is dealing with that very issue. Indeed Paul, through his relationship to this church, gives us four distinct ways by which a church is different from a club.
The first way a church is different from a club is that when you are part of a church you cannot stay detached from one another. You see this coming out in 1 Thessalonians 2:17-20 and there is a very specific history behind what is happening here. That history is found in Acts 17. In the context Paul has arrived at the city of Thessalonica and preached on three Sabbath days. As a result of that preaching this is what happens:-
“Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women. But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd … As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. (Acts 17:4-5, 10).
The actions of the Jews in Thessalonica meant that Paul had to move on even though he was only in the city for less than three weeks. Paul was nowhere near being ready to move on from the church and he is incredibly worried about what is going to happen to the church. To get a sense of the feelings Paul had there is a very telling phrase used by Paul in verse 17 of our text were he says, “we were torn away”. This phrase is often used in the context of parents being deprived of children. It might come through a bereavement. It might come because the children have been taken as slaves in order to pay a debt. It might come because the parents cannot have children in the first place. Whatever the case may be it is a powerful and emotive word and Paul uses it to describe the sense of loss which he is felling at the moment because his spiritual children are beyond his reach. Paul is so in tune with these people that he just has an intense longing to be attached to them in some way again.
Those of us who are teenagers, or who have been teenagers, know the strength of this attachment. When we are teenagers we like to go out. Sometimes we are out quite late. But no matter how late you come home and how quiet you are when you get home your parents always hear you. In reality they didn’t sleep. They can’t truly relax until the children are under their caring eye.
That is how Paul is feeling about these people. He can’t bear the detachment. It is an attitude which Paul shows to those who are in the church. It is an attitude that we should show as well. A church is different to a club because you can be a member of a club and remain very detached, you cannot be in a church and be detached. You can see the effect of being detached by entering a club which has poker machines. Each person will find there favourite machine and stay there all day if necessary. I have even heard stories of people relieving themselves at the machine because they do not want to move. They are among many people but they remain detached no matter what.
We don’t have that luxury in the church. To be individual and uncaring. Jesus gave His life not just to save us as individuals but also to make us a part of His body. The implications of that are spelt out in 1 Corinthians 12:24-26.
“God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honour to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it”.
In other words Paul is saying, “You are in a church, not a club, so don’t detach yourself from the needs of others”.
That truth leads us to the second way a church is different from a club. When you are part of a church you turn desire into action. Paul expands on that focus in 1 Thessalonians 3:1-5. You see it is one thing to say that you are willing to be involved in the lives of others. It is quite another thing to actually do it. Paul is deeply concerned about this church. He was only able to be there a short time before he was taken away by circumstances. Now this very new church had to face some significant persecution – and it wasn’t going to be easy. And there are those who were against the church. These same people would be offering some pretty strong reasons for denying the Gospel. You can imagine how a conversation might go.
“Why should you stick with the teaching of Paul. He faces a little trouble and then he runs away. He’s not coming back you know. He’s a fake. He’s a conman who just wanted to use your homes as free accommodation until something better came along. He doesn’t care about you, he only cares about himself”.
That is how a conversation would go but it was a lie; a lie Satan was using to get the people of God to question the Gospel. Paul is working furiously to have a chance to get back. And when that fails he sends a trusted member of his own team. Timothy who is a junior partner, so there is a good chance he won’t be recognised. Timothy who is also half Greek, so he can blend in. Paul has real concern for the church and he is trying to act in the best interests of the church. Through his actions Paul was showing the congregation that he did indeed care. The old saying still rings true, “Actions speak louder than words”. You can be a member of a club and never help those around you, you cannot be in a church and remain inactive.
It happens sometimes in our community that clubs get together to help out a family or an individual who has suffered. When that happens these actions often get a lot of attention in the local media. Part of the reason it gets the attention is because the caring hand of the club is a unique event. When it comes to church-life action to help others is not the exception, it is the norm. Churches often set aside, and should set aside, financial support to help those in need. This is how it should be because Jesus has put us together and He wants us to look out for the needs of others and actively care about them. Paul makes the point really well in Galatians 6:9-10.
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers”.
In other words Paul is telling us that when you are in a church you can never say about the situation of another, “I don’t care”.
We are still considering the issue of how a church is different from a club. The third way the church is different from a club is revealed when we realise that when you are part of a church you are invigorated by the success of others. We see this truth coming out in 1 Thessalonians 3:6-9. As a minister of the Gospel Paul found the ministry quite difficult. By his own admission he was in distress and struggling against persecution. When Timothy did return from Thessalonica Paul was working in Corinth which was a seriously depressing place where Paul was abused because of his ministry. While it is true that people are coming to faith and the ministry is making a real impact, the difficulties of the ministry are making it difficult to see the blessings.
It happens. Sometimes we only see the flaw and not the blessing. For example when you get a brand you car it feels special. But if you end up with a small dent in the car how easy it is to focus on the dent. One flaw makes the car lose its prestige. Paul is feeling like that, until Timothy arrives back from Thessalonica. The message which Timothy brings is described as good news. When Paul uses this term elsewhere it always describes the good news of salvation. Basically Paul is saying, “The message I received about you was my salvation”.
The reason Paul is so excited is because the believers in Thessalonica are still so faithful. Listen to the way he describes them in earlier in the book.
“We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labour prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3).
“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” (1 Thessalonians 1:7-8).
Even though Paul had been whisked away they had continued to move on in strength. And that invigorated Paul. It is that sort of invigoration which should still be found in the church. You can be a member of a club and not be affected by the success of others, but in the church we rejoice over God’s grace which keeps working. It is an attitude we need, and it is not always an easy attitude to sustain, especially because of the world in which we live. Take for example the way that lotto is promoted. Often the advertisers will get people who have won to tell their story. The main message is that it is great that people have won the money. But the underlying message is, “Wouldn’t you rather it happen to you”.
We like success. But as a church we don’t become jealous of the spiritual success of others, instead we use that success to spur us on. God in Christ is doing amazing wonders for those who are His children. When we hear of stories about people coming back to the faith after having been away from the church for a while that inspires us in our own lives when we are going through difficult times. When we hear of those who have been given healing in a terminal situation we use that news to help us to see the care of God. Rather than being jealous by the way God is working in the lives of others we use the news as a fresh breeze that revives us.
The church is different from a club. So far Paul has given us three reasons why that is the case. He adds a fourth reason in 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13. When you are part of a church your agenda is set by a Saviour who has your best interests as a priority. It is at this point that the main difference between a church and a club comes to forefront. All clubs, no matter which ones they are, are held together by rules and regulations and bylaws. The church is held together by grace.
We have a Saviour who has come to us and called us to be a part of His family even though we are a very undeserving lot. We don’t always fit the criteria for being a member of God’s family. There are times when we bend and break the rules. There are even times when we live in complete rebellion. If the church was a club we would have lost our membership a long time ago. But the church is not a club. The church is a place where the grace of Jesus and His love for sinners prevails. It is the place where the lost can be found and the ones who are feeling on the edge can be brought into the middle. The church is a place where sinners are turned into saints; and where saints are given a continual helping hand. It is the place where we are governed by the actions of Jesus on the cross.
Which means the church is a place where love may increase and grow. Until the Thessalonians had heard from Paul via Timothy it is possible that they were wondering about the care of Paul. Did he really love them? And there may have been a few misunderstandings to fix up. But all that was necessary to fix up was fixed up because Jesus Christ has already set the agenda and given the pattern for reconciliation.
When a church which is functioning in a biblical manner it will be the place where our hearts are strengthened. The reality is that people will fail us – even the most Godly of people. And Jesus even made it clear that we would fail; despite the transformation which has come through Jesus we are still those who struggle with sin. But Jesus has gone to the cross and won in the battle against sin and its consequences. And with His strength we can as well. We can be strengthened even when we might feel let down by the people of God. You can be a member of a club and still follow your own agenda, but in the church it is always the agenda of Jesus which prevails.
There may be some similarities between a church and club, but it is at this point where a radical departure occurs. And it is at this point that the real nature of our fellowship is highlighted. Fellowship in the church is something we create. Fellowship is something which already exists by the very fact that we are together in the Lord.
And that is where the real difference comes
When you are part of a church you cannot stay detached from one another.
When you are part of a church you turn desire into action.
When you are part of a church you are invigorated by the success of others.
When you are part of a church your agenda is set by a Saviour who has your best interests as a priority.
That is the sort of fellowship which should be in our church no matter what the circumstances. It’s a fellowship that will be seen both by us and by those looking for a Christian community to call home.
Amen.
