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Sermon Notes of Rev.Dr.I.J.W.Oakley (13-3-2001 Framsden Baptist Church)
Having introduced himself to his readers, Paul goes on to speak of his concern for his readers. In doing so, many important things are given to us on the subject of prayer. His prayer reveals something of Paul’s own prayer-life, and that of his companions. We can also learn much from what he actually said in his prayers. In these verses there are two things he gives God thanks for – the faith, love and hope of his readers, and the fact that they are God’s chosen people.
Sometimes we think we know all
there is to know about prayer, when in fact we are all very much novices. We
need the humility to say, “Lord, teach us to pray”. The Lord will do that
partly through His Word where we see the prayer-life of outstanding men of God,
and the things which formed their prayers. We always thank God for all of
you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember you before our God
and Father… Unitedly and individually, the three missionaries always
remembered and prayed for the Thessalonians. “Always”, “all”,
“continually” – how comprehensive, all-embracing and continuous. Of course
they were not at prayer every moment, but every opportunity and occasion as it
arose, they prayed. They did not just pray for a few of the members, but for
everyone, the whole church was their concern. Prayer was a dominant factor, a
top priority, in their relationship to this church.
Is there anything we can learn
here? So often we make plans, and set to work, and say, “We must remember to
ask the Lord to help” – which we do either in a perfunctory way, or forget
to do it at all. Hudson Taylor said there are three ways of working for God. (a)
To make the best plans we can and carry them out to the best of our ability, (b)
To lay our plans and then ask God to help us, or (c) To begin with God, ask for
His plans and offer ourselves to Him to carry out His purposes. Prayer is the
work.
We give away so much about
ourselves in these things. Far too often even in Christian work, we are in the
centre, we are in control. God is not in the centre. He is there to help us do
what we think should be done. When we are like that in our Christian work, it is
a reflection of what we are like in our private lives. We are in charge – God
is there to help us get what we want.
Notice too that in prayer these men used mind and memory. So we should remember those we pray for – their names, homes, circumstances, needs. Not just make requests for them, but thank God for them and for what He has done in their lives. This leads us to glorify Him as we think of His grace and power in people’s lives.
Paul is thankful for the progress they have made in the
Christian life. They have made rapid progress, for they were only converted
weeks or months ago. The virtues he mentions in v.3, their faith, love and hope,
are mentioned several times in Paul’s letters, (especially 1Corinthians 13,
and also Ephesians 4:2-5; Romans 5:1-5), and also in Peter and Hebrews (1 Peter
1:3-8; Hebrews 6:10-12 & 10:22-24).
Faith is where it all begins –
when we realise we cannot trust ourselves and turn to Christ, our heart empties
first and then is filled by Christ. And it produces work - Your work produced
by faith. We are not saved by good works, but saved for good works, kopos.
Faith that is real and genuine is now at God’s disposal, to walk in His will
and spend our lives in His service among God’s people and in the world. If
Christ is Saviour, He must also be Lord.
Then love to God and man, which
prompts labour – Your labour prompted by love. Paul is not repeating
Himself. This is a different Greek word used for labour in this phrase, kopiaw,
meaning toil, sweat, labour to the point of exhaustion. It involves
persistence, doggedness. When we serve the Lord out of duty, we stand on our
dignity, and know where to draw the line. But when love comes into the equation,
there is no place for the trade union mentality – we gladly spend and be spent
for Him.
Thirdly, hope, Your endurance
inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. These people were under pressure,
they had trials and persecutions. But they displayed upomonh
, they remained steadfast in the face of the storm, they held their own
course. This is not the passivity or resignation of a helpless sufferer, but the
courage and manly endurance of stout-hearted soldiers. Hope kept them going.
Their greatest hope was Christ’s second coming, His final triumph and
manifestation in glory. When we see this light at the end of the tunnel and know
that the best has yet to be, we can keep going and see it through. We can take
our present problems in our stride and not get overwhelmed by them. C.f. the
Lord Jesus, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its
shame (Hebrews 12:2)
“The eternal glories gleam afar
To nerve my faint
endeavour.
So now to work, to
watch, to war,
And then to rest
forever.”
Faith, hope and love – when we see them in people, thank God for that. Or if people are not strong, pray that these things might increase in them. These are sure evidence of new birth. It should pull us out of our fallen introversion and redirect us to Christ, God and fellow human beings. The Christian’s life should be re-orientated as he is drawn to God in faith, to others in love, and to the Lord’s return in hope.
Now Paul goes on to demonstrate the foundation of their
Christian belief and character. We know, brothers beloved by God, that He has
chosen you. He is sure of this partly because of the character they display,
and also because they welcomed the Gospel and were seeking to spread it wherever
they could (1:5).
The doctrine of election, that God chose His people even
before creation of the world, is one of the most mysterious, controversial,
misunderstood and misused doctrines, fiercely debated over 2000 years. It is
certainly mysterious and we are not going to be able to fully understand it. But
then that is the case for every great doctrine – the Person of Christ, the
Trinity, the atonement, the love of God. We will never fully grasp the depth of
any of these subjects. Yet this doctrine of election is the one which has
divided families, friends, Christian churches and Christian workers.
In the Old Testament, God chose His people, Israel. In
the New Testament He chose a new Israel, the Christian church. God chose His
people in eternity for salvation and service. He called them, and in His time He
brought them to His Son. He will keep them from falling away and will bring them
safely to glory. They may, and do, fail Him at times, but He will never let them
perish. They may fall on the deck, but never overboard.
This truth is meant to be full of comfort and assurance
and encouragement. It encourages us in our work of evangelism. Our labours will
not be in vain. Not one of the elect will be lost, and they will assuredly come.
C.f. Paul facing opposition in Corinth, receives a vision – Do not be
afraid. Keep on speaking. Do not be silent. For I am with you, and no-one is
going to attack or harm you, because I have many people in this city (Acts
18:9,10).
Election is one guarantee that prayer and evangelism will
not be in vain and God’s Word will not return to Him void but it will
accomplish what He pleases. We might well faint and give up and close our doors,
but for this truth. Some of the greatest missionaries and evangelists held onto
this very strongly. It did not discourage them in evangelism. George Whitfield,
the greatest open air evangelist, C.H.Spurgeon, the greatest preacher since
apostolic times, William Carey, founder of modern missionary movement. In
Revival this truth also comes to a fore.
This truth puts man in his place, and glorifies God.
Salvation from first to last is all of Him. We are in God’s hands. He is not
in ours. It is so humbling to man that no man would have dreamt it up. It leads
to fear and reverence of God and has produced the highest kind of Christian
character, e.g. the Puritans in England, the Covenanters in Scotland, the
Huguenots in France – of whom the world was not worthy. They were the most
industrious, honest, God-fearing and tenacious men. These men were strong, had
iron in the soul, they lost their fear of men and stood against tyrants. Like
strong firm oaks, they were bold and fearless, not afraid to suffer and die.
It is important that we should not pare down other Bible
texts to fit in with election. For example, John 3:16 God so loved the world
….. as J.C.Ryle explains, God has special love for His saints and
undoubtedly works in some men more than others. Yet He loves the whole of
mankind without exception. He gave His Son for the whole of mankind. This love
will bring men to blessedness if their wickedness does not hinder them. 1
Timothy 2:4 God.. who wants all men to be saved, C.H.Spurgeon emphasised
that “all men” means “all men” and not men of all kinds. He declared,
“My love of consistency with my own doctrinal views is not great enough to
allow me knowingly to alter a
single text of Scripture. I have a great respect for orthodoxy. But my reverence
for inspiration is far greater. I would sooner a hundred times over appear to be
inconsistent with the Word of God – who am I that I should everlastingly be
consistent. What God has joined together let no man put asunder.” 1 John 2:2, the
atoning sacrifice… for the sins of the whole world, Brownlow North is at
pains to point out that this sacrifice was sufficient for all, suitable for all,
offered to all. If men are not saved, it is not because they are not loved, or
that Christ’s death was insufficient, or that they were chosen to be lost. All
glory to God in salvation, all blame to man in damnation. John 5:40, you
refuse to come to me that you might have life. It is a man’s own fault if
he does not accept eternal life. These essential texts must never be watered
down to let any man off the hook.
The doctrine of election becomes clearer when we look at
and examine our personal experience. C.H.Spurgeon recalls being in church, not
believing the preacher’s word, his mind wandered, and he started to examine
his own experience. “How did I become a Christian? I sought the Lord. But how
did I seek the Lord? I would not have done so unless my mind had been influenced
to do so. I prayed. Why? I was induced to by the reading of the Scriptures. How
did I come to read the Scriptures? In a moment I saw God was at the bottom of it
all, and He was the author of my faith.” [the editor is uncertain if this is a
direct quote, or just a summary.] H.D.Brown recalled his experience, that the
more he became aware of his own sinfulness and depravity of heart, and hatred of
God, the more the doctrine of election made sense. “I would never have chosen
Him if He had not chosen me and worked in me.”
Those furthest from God at the time of their conversion
have few problems here. The complete turn around and life-altering change that
occurred leaves them in no doubt that God sought them out, God chose them, and
not the other way round. They can see that they were well on the road to
destruction, and left to themselves they would certainly have ended up there.
“Free
grace alone from first to last
Has
won my affection and held
My
soul fast”
To question “am I elect?” is to start at the wrong end of this truth. What we should be asking is “have I believed and repented? Is there evidence of new birth? Does God’s Spirit bear witness with my spirit?” Then we will know if we are elect. We need to go to the elementary school of repentance and faith before we can enter the university of election and predestination. God’s scheme of salvation is like a ladder from earth to heaven. The top, God’s end, is out of sight. We have to begin at the bottom with steps of repentance and faith, and climb upward. Growth in grace is how we ascend. Then distant things become clearer into view. None of us have all the answers this side of heaven. But we can have the assurance that we are God’s elect. It is a great comfort. Some Christians lack it, it is possible to be saved without it, but their lives are poorer and less satisfying without this assurance.
So Paul thanks God for the Thessalonians’ election of
God. Note the warm way he speaks of them. The word “brethren”, or
“brothers”, is used 21 times in the two epistles. He speaks often about how
they are loved by God.
Let us indeed be thankful for the whole subject of salvation with all its aspects – and here in particular the subject of election and all the evidence in our own lives that we are His people.
“Why O Lord
such love to me?”
Let us be God-centred in our thinking and living. We are certainly beloved and chosen by God, rooted in Him and drawing life from Him. Let these truths not cause us to be lazy and careless, but stir us up with confidence to love God’s Word, to pray and have fellowship, to serve and to witness with confidence. Be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure (2 Peter 1:10). So live and walk that all will recognise we are God’s elect.
