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Do You Know how the Resurrection Affects the Church?

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How Does the Fact of the Resurrection Affect the Church?

© C. O. Bishop 2018 Revised 2026

In the Context of John 14:3 “That, where I am, there ye may be also”

Ephesians 1:13, 14; 2:6; 1st Corinthians 12:13; 15:3, 4; 15:22, 15:16-19;
Romans 6:3-5; Colossians 3:1-4

Introduction:

We often hear Easter messages that either immerse us in the horror of the Cross, (Therefore, the enormity of our guilt and sin that necessitated the Cross), or in the mystery of the burial and resurrection, and the fulfilled prophecies. In addition, the messages often refute the various false myths that have sprung up from those rejecting the truth of the scriptures. Also, sometimes the messages even immerse us in the joy of the resurrection itself: They emphasize the effect that it had upon Mary Magdalene and the other disciples—Peter in particular—and on the newborn Church, at Pentecost. Those are all good things.

All these approaches are valid; all have appropriate results in the hearers, and all have reasonably good grounding in the scriptures themselves, as a rule. (Some may wander a bit, but most are pretty solidly grounded in the Word of God.)

But: What about today? What effect should the Resurrection have upon believers, today?

The Promises of Jesus the Messiah:

Jesus made an important promise in John 5:24: He said that whoever hears his word (regarding himself, and God’s redemptive plan), and believes on Him who sent Him (Places their trust in His redemptive work at the Cross), has everlasting life (present tense) and shall not (future tense) come into condemnation, but has passed over (past perfect tense) from death into life.

He also stated (John 14:3) that he was leaving Earth, to prepare a place for his followers, that where He was they should also be. He also stated (John 14:16) that the Holy Spirit, whom He was sending in place of Himself, would be with His disciples forever.                                                                 

In the light of these explicit promises, let’s examine the historical facts about the Resurrection:

The Historical Facts:

1st Corinthians 15:3, 4;

Paul stated the bare facts of the Gospel here, but he prefaced the facts with a reference to their result. To begin with, He stated the results of faith, (we have received the Gospel, and believed it, and our standing with God is dependent upon its truth.) Then he simply stated the facts, as follows:

  1. Christ died for our sins, according to (in keeping with…in fulfillment of) the scriptures.
  2. He was buried (also fulfilling prophecies), and that
  3. He rose again the third day, also in keeping with Biblical prophecies.

None of these things were “just happenstance.” All were called out, far in advance, by prophecy; some of them by a multitude of prophecies. The fact of the “three days and three nights in the tomb,” for example, was in fulfillment of two very explicit prophecies, and perhaps others not so plain. The facts of the crucifixion and resurrection, however, were in fulfillment of scores of clear prophecies and more or less clear Old Testament figures…pictures of the coming Christ.

1st Corinthians 12:13;

This one—the fact of the “baptism of the Holy Spirit”; the Act of the Holy Spirit placing each believer (us) into our respective places in the Body of Christ— is only dependent upon us being believers: When any sinner sees his own need for the Savior, and trusts in Jesus’s finished work at the Cross—Jesus’s shed blood—being full payment for his sins, the Holy Spirit immediately places him permanently into the Body of Christ. We remain there forever. Jesus said that, of all the souls given to Him, He will lose not one, but shall raise them up at the last day (John 6:39).

Ephesians 1:13, 14;

This one, too, is only dependent upon a person’s one time choice, to believe in Jesus as their only Savior and only Hope. It says that those who heard the Word of truth, the Gospel of our salvation (and who trusted in it), after they trusted in Him, were immediately sealed in Christ by the Holy Spirit of Promise who is the Earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession. Several important points are made, here, for us to cling to.

  • Obviously, this promise reiterates the promise of Jesus: that those who heard the Gospel and believed, have eternal life now: (Not waiting to see if they were “among the chosen.”)
  • Another is that we are “…sealed in Christ”: It says “in Whom, after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of Promise”
  • Finally, it says that we are sealed in Him “until the redemption of the purchased possession to the Praise of His Glory.” We will not be lost. We have been sealed in Christ by the Holy Spirit…how long? Until the redemption of the purchased possession (the Church) unto the praise of His Glory. We are secure in Him.

This is a stated fact: not just a promise of things to come. All of it is stated as a “done deal”—past tense fact—not dependent upon events still to come. Nothing is hanging in the balance.

Ephesians 2:6

Here’s another “historical fact” which we can’t see, but which God says is already a done deal, as well: Paul says, here, that the believers have already been raised up (resurrected) together with Christ, and have already ascended with Him, and are already seated with Him in Heaven! (This is absolutely beyond my comprehension, but it is clearly stated as a “past-tense fact.”

The Personal, Current Facts: (On the basis of the Historical facts)

Romans 6:2-5; Three things:

  1. We are Dead with Him. (v. 2, 3)
  2. We are Risen with Him. (v. 4, 5)
  3. We are Ascended with Him. (implied, in v.4; stated in Ephesians 2:6)

We have been baptized (not by water baptism, but by the real baptism; the Holy Spirit having placed us into the body of Christ); we have been baptized into his death and his resurrection, and (Ephesians 2:6) we are currently seated with Him in the heavenlies. These are each stated as being current realities, not future possibilities.

God does not exhort me to “Die to sin;” He says I am already dead to sin.
God does not encourage me to “be risen with Christ:” He says that I am already risen with Him.
He does not command me to “seat myself in the heavenlies:” He says that I am already there.

What Incredible Statements!

How can God say that I am “already dead with Christ?” Well…the fact is, it is true! In the Scriptures, Death always has to do with “separation” of some sort: Adam was separated from fellowship with God the moment he ate the forbidden fruit. He was spiritually dead, instantly. 930 years later, he died physically, when his spirit and soul were separated from his body.

As a result of Adam’s sin, every human is born spiritually separated from God. Any person who is still spiritually separated from God, never having been reconciled to Him, and who dies physically, is then permanently separated from God. (God calls this the “second death,” in Revelation 20:14.)

So How am I “Dead to Sin?”

My old sin nature (the only nature I had before re-birth) was and is entirely committed to self, committed to sin. God says that it cannot be repaired, cleansed or redeemed. It cannot become subject to God’s righteousness. (Romans 8:7; Ephesians 4:22)

The only way God could save me was to give me a new nature: One that was in harmony with Him. Ephesians 4:24 says that my new nature is created, after God (in His likeness) in righteousness and true holiness. That, too, is a “done deal!”

I have been separated from my old sin nature to the extent that I am no longer enslaved to it, and I have a choice: I can obey God, with a clean heart, because I have a new nature. God never proposed to “fix” my old nature: as far as He is concerned it is dead…it is irretrievably corrupt. God sees the new “Me” separated from that old sin nature. He says I am dead to sin. I do not have to submit to its desires any more.

Romans 6:2-5 says that we are also risen with Christ: His death, burial and resurrection became ours. For Eternity, God now sees us only in the person of Christ. Ephesians 2:6 says that His ascension is also ours. We are already safely at home with Him, in God’s eyes: All we are doing, here, in our earthly lives, is living out that reality. Both by word and deed, we are supposed to be demonstrating to the lost world around us, the truth of the Good News of Christ. Our lives are a living Gospel Sermon!

How Should The Resurrection Affect the way we Think?

Since these things are true, and if we are willing to accept them as fact (the Gospel and all God says about it); how should it affect our thinking and our response toward the people and circumstances with which we live?

Can I genuinely exhibit the Love of Christ, because He lives in me, and not be offended by the petty offenses people or circumstances may bring? They truly are petty, compared to the absolutely criminal abuse that was heaped upon Jesus, by the Human Race.

(And, yes, we are ALL guilty: Our sins made it necessary for Him to go there.) Consider the abuse that he endured, both on the way to the Cross, and in the Crucifixion itself: Is there anything in our experience that is worth losing sight of the Promises and Peace of the Savior?

Can we see our tormentors as precious souls, for whom Jesus died? Can we grieve for their lostness, and pray for their salvation? Can’t we choose to be a blessing to them, in hopes of turning them away from eternal condemnation? Or must we secretly feel satisfaction, that “Well, they will surely pay for that!” What an incredibly selfish response! I am equally guilty before God, and His Grace was extended to me, a completely lost sinner: Can’t I extend my feeble grace and forgiveness to them, as an act of Worship to the God who first loved me?

How Should those facts affect the way we live?

Can I stop acting as if everything revolves around “how I feel about things?” Can I literally put others first, as Jesus did? Or will I continue to concern myself primarily with my own comfort, my own safety and my own future security?

God calls us to offer our bodies a living sacrifice to Him, so that our lives will be lived out in a manner that honors Him. He calls this our “reasonable service” of worship. (Romans 12:1) That offer has to be renewed often: The problem with being “living sacrifices” is that we keep crawling off the altar! We don’t just “die, and get it over with.”

We are called to “die to self:” to “take up your cross, daily, and follow” Him. Notice that we are not called to “die to sin”…that has already been accomplished. We are called to continually renew the conscious setting aside of sin, and to live in the newness of life:

  • To live out the resurrected Life of Christ, not just continue in our own self-centered way.
  • He calls us to become the living “Love of Christ” in the unloving world around us:
  • To become the living “Light of Christ,” in this dark world in which we live.
  • He calls us to become a clean source of the Living Water, to any soul who is thirsty.
  • To become a clean source of the Bread of Life, to any soul who is hungry.

Live as Those Risen From the Dead

Colossians 3:1-4  (Read it!) calls us, as those risen from the dead, to set our affections on things above: He says to change our priorities. He says, since we are seated with Him above, to see things from His perspective, and count His priorities to be our own. God reiterates that we are dead, and that our lives are “hid in Christ.” God only sees us there: In Christ. He concludes that, when Christ Himself appears, we shall appear with Him, in Glory. It will be worth it all, when we see Jesus!

We are Ambassadors of the Risen Christ. That is the confidence that we have in Him: it is the assignment that we have in Him, and it is the direct result of the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

Lord Jesus, we thank you for the clear news of your death, and burial and, especially, your resurrection. Please use these truths to shape us into your likeness, and to transform our lives into your own image. Make us profitable servants of God.

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How to Apply Agapé Love to Maintain Unity

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Forbearing One Another in Love
© C. O. Bishop THCF 1/12/14 (revised 2024)

Ephesians 4:1-3

Introduction:

The vast majority of the writings in the Church Epistles address the Local Church. They are about, the Local Church…not the Universal Church. Why? Because the Church Universal only includes believers. And, the majority of them are already with the Lord. They do not need correction, as they no longer even have their old sin-natures. They are truly perfect in their inherited, imputed righteousness.

The Problems in the Local Churches

The Local Church, in contrast,(hopefully) includes mostlybelievers; but, in the first place, it is entirely possible (and common) for an unbeliever to “infiltrate” the ranks of the local assembly, and, in the second place, the believers themselves (yes, every one of them) still have their sin natures, and they still regularly fall prey to the evil one.

And there lies the root of all the problems in all the churches throughout history: We are Sinners, saved by Grace. God sees us entirely in our new natures, so He does not condemn us for our sins. But we do sin, and we offend one another, as well as the unbelievers around us.

The Result of Those Problems

Romans 2:24 states that the unbelievers “blaspheme the Name of God” because of the actions of the People of God. In that particular instance, it specifically referred to Gentiles whom the Jews offended. But the same truth holds solid during the Church Age. the Local Church often offends both Jewish unbelievers and non-Jewish unbelievers As a result of our sin, they speak evil of the God of Eternity. I have seen bumper-stickers saying, “God Save Me From Your Children!” That is pretty tragic.

Jesus said, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples: if ye have love, one for another.”  (John 13:35) Everyone is supposed to be able to recognize the Agapé Love in us: not just our besetting sins.

How Should We Respond to Our New Position In Christ?

Paul spent three full chapters explaining the new position of the believers: We are in Christ. He also began stating the reasonable expectation of God for us, as new believers—that we are to step into the good works that God has planned for us, and “walk in them.” We are to grow in our understanding of the Holiness of God, and the Magnificence of His inheritance, etc. But now he also says to completely change the way we get along with one another.

Paul had already received severe beatings for the sake of the Gospel. He had been imprisoned at various times, and he (evidently) knew that his ultimate end was to die as a martyr. But he did not “pull rank” and tell the younger believers, “Hey, suck it up, and get with the program! If I can do it, you can do it!” Rather than that, he is pleading with the believers, asking them to grow up and get along with one another, as befits the people of God.

He is telling them, “You have an incredibly high standing with God! You ARE the children of God! Live as though that is what you are! Handle your interpersonal relationships in the same way that He would do it.”

(And how would He handle it? What would that look like?)

“Walk Worthy of the Vocation Wherewith Ye are Called”

Do any of you still say, “I don’t feel called”?  Well, God says He has called you. He says that your calling is “high and holy,” but that the result should NEVER be a “high-and-mighty” attitude!

Quite the opposite! The sure knowledge that our position is completely because of Jesus, His supreme sacrifice at the Cross, and His perfect resurrection three days later, should produce in us a sense of unworthiness and humility. Our position in Him has absolutely nothing to do with our own personal righteousness: It is entirely His righteousness. We now are in a position in which we never can “look down our nose” at another person. It should never produce any self-righteous arrogance: It should always result in humility and gentleness.

Godly Wisdom and Character

In James 3:13-18; we can see several important points that apply to this concept:

  1. Godly Wisdom should produce good behavior, and, specifically, gentleness; meekness, as the KJV puts it. It means “yieldedness to God”, to be precise.
  2. If it does not produce that behavior, then the wisdom is not from God!
  3. Wisdom that is from God is:
    • Peaceable—peace-loving—a peacemaker, by nature
    • Gentle
    • Easily approachable—easy to be entreated
    • Full of Mercy and good fruit
    • Impartial
    • Genuine—not hypocritical
  4. The seed whose fruit is Righteousness is sown in Peace by those who make Peace.

The apostolic records of Paul and James are in complete agreement. the Christian life ishould not include Pride and self-will. If the character of the person who claims to be wise does not fit the above description, then the “wisdom” they are offering is not from God. It is “human wisdom.” Satan himself has bent and twisted it.

Remember that Satan held himself up as being powerful and wise: He desired “preeminence.” (Isaiah 14:12-15) When a human takes that same proud stance, guess where it is from? (Here’s a hint…it isn’t coming from the Holy Spirit.)

“With Longsuffering, Forbearing One Another in Love”

“Longsuffering” has frequently been translated as “patience.” But the idea of “patience” in our modern language could mean something as inconsequential as “not being in a hurry.” The meaning here is literally “enduring”. The word translated as “suffer” means to endure. It means accepting the reality that life is not always easy. It means embracing that reality, not fighting against it. Compare 1st Corinthians 13:4; “Charity (the Agape Love) suffers long and is kind…” It not only endures, but it does not become bitter in the process. It does not keep a record of wrongs suffered—there is no grudge-holding, here.

So: Paul says that we are to endure one another’s idiosyncrasies. We are to endure life together. All of us truly are “in this together.”

Philippians 3:10 says we are to be learning the fellowship of His suffering, That is what “fellowship” means—it means we “have something in common.” We do this together. Ultimately, when we endure a hard circumstance that occurs specifically because of our relationship with Him (that is, not just the ordinary vicissitudes of life), then we are suffering with Jesus. We are joining in the “fellowship of His sufferings.” We are partners with Him! And thereby we also learn the Power of His Resurrection, and we are transformed into His likeness.

Agapé is the Governing Principle

Paul concludes that we are to forbear one another in Love. We sometimes use the word “forbear” to mean “hold off”—don’t do whatever it is you are planning. (An orchestra conductor might say, “We would like to ask the audience to forbear applauding until the recital is completely over.”) But Paul is using the word differently: it means to “put up with” one another. And not the kind of “putting up with” that involves exasperated sighs, eye-rolling, and a stormy countenance. Notice that he specifically says, “Forbearing one another in Love.” The Agapé love is to be the governing principle in all of the Christian life. We endure one another’s idiosyncrasies, and we Love one another in the process.

The Agape Love is selfless—when we read the description in 1st Corinthians 13, we quickly see that there is not one word in that passage about “how we feel” toward one another. It is all about actions. It means choosing to do what blesses the other person, without regard to how it affects us. Agapé Love is always an act of the will. You either choose to love by the power of the Holy Spirit, or you choose to try to do things in the flesh. (Do you want a hot tip? “The Agape Love is not possible in the Flesh!” You should understand that, as a primary truth of the Christian life.)

Every command of God is ultimately impossible by Human effort. Jesus said so! (John 15:5 “…apart from Me ye can do nothing.”) The Christian Life…all of it…is not difficult: it is impossible if you try to do it in the flesh.

The Bottom Line

Notice the last line, here: Paul says that we are to endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit, in the Bond of Peace. God knows that no single party can maintain Peace…both parties have to agree. But this gives us the means by which to approach one another, or by which to approach both parties involved in a church squabble.

Paul, by the Holy Spirit, has begged us to stop the bickering, and maintain (not create) the Unity of the Spirit. We are not told to produce that unity. We are only told to work at keeping that unity…maintaining it.

The next passage defines that Unity. We will deal with that next week. But what we can take away from this passage is that the Love of God is to be spread across ALL Christian relationships, as the “oil” that reduces friction, and as the “perfume” that adds the blessed fragrance of Christ to the local Church.

Becoming the Fragrance of Christ

In 2nd Corinthians 2:14-16, God calls us to be the “Fragrance of Christ” in this fallen World. To those who despise the Person of Christ, that fragrance will smell of death. To those willing to receive Him, it will smell like eternal life.

May The Lord use His Word to transform each of our lives into that reality. If our local assembly exudes the fragrance of Christ, one of two responses will occur. People will stay away, because they can’t stand Jesus, or they will be drawn to His Grace, as it flows from the church.

Lord Jesus, please change our thinking toward one another, and teach us to love unconditionally, reaching out to bless one another, to heal one another’s wounded hearts, and to pour the water of life into one another’s thirsty spirits. Pour Your Grace through us all, in Jesus’s Name.

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Three Points Are Needed In Our Testimony As Believers

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The Testimony of a Believer

© C. O. Bishop 2010 (revised 2024)

Ephesians 2:11-22

Introduction

Last week we took a rather quick trip through Ephesians chapter 2. Today we will go back and pick up some details.

We often hear people encouraging us to “share our testimony” with others. Sometimes that seems difficult to do. The fact that so many “celebrities” have given “dramatic” testimony on television, the radio, or in public forums doesn’t make it any easier.

We are left to think, “Well I guess I have nothing to say! I didn’t sell drugs on the street, or lead a motorcycle gang, or star in ungodly movies, or run a multimillion-dollar business, or anything like that, and I certainly don’t have a very interesting life.”

But drama is not what the believer’s testimony is about. We are told to very simply share our testimony, to present the good news of salvation, as if we were each just one beggar telling another beggar where to find free food.

What Makes a Salvation Testimony?

Every Christian, in the simplest analysis, has the same testimony:

  • I was lost
  • Jesus saved me
  • I am saved, and (hopefully) am enjoying my new relationship with God. (Details vary.)

Where is the “drama” in that? The only real drama happened at the Cross. If people want drama, they can read the gospel story, and see the crucifixion, and hear Jesus’s promise to the thief on the cross, “Today, thou shalt be with Me in Paradise!” That’s real Drama! And that part is true for every believer. We will be with Jesus forever.

Let’s look at Ephesians 2:11-22, and see what Paul wrote to the believers at Ephesus, during the first century.

Our Old Position

The people to whom he wrote were all believers, but they were predominately Gentile believers. There had been at least a few Jewish believers in that church originally, and I assume that there still were, but evidently, it was mostly Gentile, and he addressed them as Gentiles, reminding them of their OLD position.

Remember, we have talked about positional truths so far, in most of the book of Ephesians. The subject is about to change to “conditional” truths: things that should be true of all believers, but often are not.

Remember!

Paul said, “Remember…” It is good for us to reflect on the facts of our life,

  • before salvation,
  • at the time of our salvation, and
  • in our life since then.

Paul told them (the Ephesians believers) to remember that they HAD been Gentiles in the flesh—born as heathens—with no connection with God. They were still “genetically Gentiles,” of course, but it no longer affected their relationship with God. The following twelve verses explain what changed, and what resulted from that change.

He said “…remember that you were “called the uncircumcision” by those who are called “the circumcision in the flesh, made by hands.” Those who called them that were only outwardly changed. In reality, they were just as separated from God as the Gentiles whom they scorned.

He said, “…at that time you were without Christ” (no Messiah was promised to the Gentiles, specifically—though the Messiah promised to the Jews was also the Messiah for the Gentiles—but most Gentiles knew nothing about the promised Savior.)

He said, “…you were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel…” (Israel rejected them, and the Gentiles were unable to join their ranks without major changes forced upon them.) He said, “…you were strangers from the covenants of Promise….”  None of the promises to the Jews were specifically TO the Gentiles, though there were plenty that involved them.

We Were Without Hope

Paul pointed out that at that time, before their salvation, they were without hope, and without God—”lost as a ball in high weeds,” effectively. They were in the world, and lost; without hope and without God.

Now—did this only apply to the “bad” people— those who were criminals, or immoral, or something? No, it applied to ALL who were “without God.” That is always the deciding factor.

Think back to Genesis. When Noah went aboard the Ark, and his family went with him, and two of every kind of animal—what happened to those left outside? They all died. Just the wicked? I suppose that could depend on your point of view, since God says we all are possessed of a wicked nature—but good, bad or indifferent, everyone outside the ark was lost. And everyone who is without God (whether they know it or not) is also without hope.

A few verses back, in verses one through three of this same chapter, God described the lostness of the whole human race. And his solution, there (verse 4) and here (verse 13) is the same. In verse 4, it began, “…But God, who is rich in mercy…” here, in verse 12, it says, “But now in Christ Jesus…”

So, What Changed?

This is the transition, in everyone’s testimony. “Yes, I was on God’s ‘death row’, but Jesus died in my place!” or, “I was lost and didn’t even know it—I was just happily headed for Hell—but God sent someone to shine a light on my life, and let me see my lost condition, and Jesus became my Savior when I placed my trust in His shed Blood!” That is the transition, the change—the “What Happened” part of the story.

What does God say about that transition? He says that we have been brought near to God, by the blood of Christ, and that we are in Him. Though we were far away, we have been brought near, in Christ. See verse 13.

He goes on to say that Jesus is our peace, as he has made the two human groups (Jew and Gentile) who once existed side by side, but were always at odds, to be one group, healing the rift between them. In his own flesh, He abolished the enmity between Jew and Gentile.

And, How?

How did he do it? By completely fulfilling the Old Testament Law, that had stood as the divider, for all ages. He fulfilled it for himself, by living a perfect life.

But how did he fulfill it for me? I had already broken the Law, and the Law had only one thing to say to me…it said, “You must die!” Ezekiel 18:4 says “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” So Jesus fulfilled the Law for me…by dying in my place.

Turn to Galatians 2:19…There, Paul stated, “for I, through the Law, am dead to the Law, that I might live unto God.” Through Jesus keeping the Law for me, I am dead to the Law—when God’s Law looks at me, it sees a dead man, upon whom judgment has already been completed. There is no further condemnation because that judgment was poured out at the Cross. Now I can live for God. I am actually free to do what I was designed to do.

Back in Ephesians again…when Jesus had completed the fulfillment of the Law, he preached peace to us all—Jew and Gentile. Jesus himself had predicted this in John 10:16 by stating, “…other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also must I bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.” I’m not at all sure that the disciples understood that statement, but in light of the rest of scripture, it is pretty easy to see, and to know that this passage in Ephesians is making the same statement.

What is Our New Position?

The bottom line becomes the fact that we have all gained access to the throne of God by the Holy Spirit. The Jews assumed they had access because of being Jews, and because they professed to keep the law. But God says, in Romans 5:2 that we only have access to His Grace by faith—that is the access offered to the whole World.

Ephesians 2:18 states that, as believers, we have access to God, via the Holy Spirit. We cannot approach Him in the flesh. This is a key point to understand. We have been joined to Him permanently; we are saved eternally, but, in terms of relationship, we can only draw near to Him by the Holy Spirit. So, we have to learn to walk by faith, in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, if we want to consistently have access to the throne of God. We do so via 1st John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Then we go back and obey again.

Still In Christ

Are we always “happy” in Christ? Nope. We get frustrated, and cranky, like a bunch of little children whining from the back seat, saying “Are we there, yet??” We still have an old nature…we are still sinners…just saved sinners. Sinners saved by grace. We either learn to walk with God, confessing our sins and learning to obey Him, or we live lives that are up and down…sometimes happy, sometimes not. As a little child, learning to walk, the secret to success is in getting up more often than you fall down.

What else does Paul say about our new position in Christ? He says that we are no more strangers and foreigners. God no longer sees me as a heathen. In fact, he says I am a fellow citizen of heaven, right along with all the saints that have gone before—and, more importantly, I am part of the family of God. I have been born again, and God is my real Father.

What does the Future Hold?

Together with all the believers of this age, we are being built together as a habitation of God. The Holy Spirit lives in each of us individually. But God lives in us collectively. And, collectively, we are called the Temple of God. I don’t feel like a “brick,” or a “doorpost”…but God says I am part of that living temple that He is building for his own glory and pleasure. And that is a good reason to learn to live for Him today. We are now the living temple of God!

We are already placed in His body, as members of the Body of Christ. He says we are currently being built together as a habitation of God. We want God to be glorified in us…so the book of Ephesians is written to that end. God wants us to know how to go about it. We have learned about our new position in Christ, and in the coming weeks, we will examine the rest of what God says about our walk with Him.

But, For Now:

In the meantime, remember that your testimony has three parts, just like the testimony of the Ephesian believers. You can accurately say, I was lost—I was without God. Then you can tell how you were saved…what Jesus did at the Cross for you, and when it was that you received Him as your Savior. Finally, you can tell what it has been like to live as a believer. It is not always easy, is it? Then say so! But then you can tell how Jesus has met your needs in the hard times.

The more frequently you share this story with others, the more natural and easy it will become. Proverbs 11:30 says, “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he that winneth souls is wise.” Let’s begin to show that kind of wisdom, and look for opportunities to win souls, as He has commanded us.

Lord Jesus, open our eyes to the lostness of the world around us. Open our hearts to feel their pain. Help us to reach them with the Good News of the Gospel: the free food that was once offered to us, and which we now offer to others. Allow the light of Your presence to shine through us, to Your Glory.

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What Is the Meaning of the Bible Word: “to Offend?”

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What Does it Mean, “to Offend?”

© 2024 C. O. Bishop

1st Corinthians 8:6-13

6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.

7 Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge: for some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled.

8 But meat commendeth us not to God: for neither, if we eat, are we the better; neither, if we eat not, are we the worse.

9 But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak.

10 For if any man see thee which hast knowledge sit at meat in the idol’s temple, shall not the conscience of him which is weak be emboldened to eat those things which are offered to idols;

11 And through thy knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died?

12 But when ye sin so against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, ye sin against Christ.

13 Wherefore, if meat make my brother to offend, I will eat no flesh while the world standeth, lest I make my brother to offend.

Introduction:

Today, “I’m offended” is the ultimate weapon against whatever people “don’t like.” We need to ask, “What does ‘Offend’ mean, anyway?”

A young man approached me during my first year in Bible School. He told me that my shoes “offended him.” They were nearly brand-new, but rather large, awkward-looking shoes, called “after-ski-boots.” I bought them during my drive to get to the school,. I was just trying to keep my feet warm as I drove an ancient VW with no heater, from Oregon to Michigan, in January. I made a long, cold trip, through the frozen heartland of the United States.

But, when I arrived, they told me there was a school “dress code.” I only had one other pair of shoes that fit me, and they were not acceptable to wear to class. But those “after-ski-boots” (though they were sloppy-looking, and oversized) were acceptable. So, I wore them.

I was shocked and dismayed when he confronted me. But before I could open my mouth to explain, he said, “I know what you’re gonna say! ‘They’re all you’ve got!’”

And, I replied, “But…they are all I’ve got!”

I don’t recall how the rest of that conversation played out. He did not “volunteer to help me find more acceptable footwear.” He only condemned what I had, and said my shoes “offended him.”

What IS the Meaning of the Bible Word “Offend?”

In 1st Corinthians 8, Paul concluded in verse 13 that His behavior might cause someone else “to offend.” It did not mean that they “didn’t like” what Paul was doing: They might like it a lot! But the issue (in verses 7, 9, and 10) is that through his liberty to eat whatever he liked, other people might be emboldened to do something they believed to be sin.

God repeatedly says that when we violate our conscience, we are doing wrong, even if it turns out that the thing we were doing was completely all right. And the reverse is also true: James 4:17 says, “Therefore, to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”  That is one of the four New Testament definitions of Sin. Another such passage, specifically addressing the matter at hand, is Romans 14:23, “…for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.”

A Real Life Example:

When my Dad was in graduate school, majoring in Chemical Engineering, obviously his Chemistry textbook was vitally important to his education. At that time, the school in which he was enrolled had a separate building as a student cafeteria, and it had a large, covered porch. It was common practice for students to leave their books or other belongings outside, on that porch, when they went into the cafeteria to eat. So, Dad left his books there, too, and went in; but when he returned, someone had taken his Chemistry book. (This was a real disaster!)

Disaster for a Struggling Student

He had no money for another book, so he tried borrowing from various other students, but, as final exams drew closer, they were not free to lend their books, because they also needed them, to prepare for their exams. Dad was a believer, and he knew that stealing was wrong, but his fellow students kept telling him, “Just steal someone else’s book!”

He truly was not willing to do it, but finally, as the exams were upon him, he was becoming desperate: He went to lunch one day, and he saw a Chemistry book left on the cafeteria porch. He looked around and no one was in sight, so he grabbed the book, shoved it under his sweater, and hurried back to his apartment, feeling deeply condemned and guilty. (And he should have!)

But when he arrived home and opened the book, he discovered that he had stolen back his own book! His name was written inside it! He was furious, and he wanted to go find the person who stole his book (seeking revenge.) Fortunately, he never found the person.

However, the lesson is clear: They were guilty of having stolen his book. But He was guilty of having violated his conscience! But verse 9 says that we are not to be a “stumbling block to those who are weak.” Dad’s fellow students had been a stumbling block to him, but it was because they were not believers. Had he looked in the book first and seen his name there, he could have taken it with a clean conscience. But he did not. He felt guilty because he was guilty!

So, Who is the “Weaker Brother?”

In Romans 14:1, 2 Paul identifies the “weaker brother” as the one who thinks he should not eat certain foods. (In that particular case, all meat-eating was in question.) The weaker brother thought that he should only eat vegetables. But God defines that person as “the weaker brother.”

In the case of 1st Corinthians 8:1-6, the issue is specifically “food offered to idols.” And, yes, the food usually was the flesh of animals that had been offered to idols. (Bear in mind that the old English word “meat” only meant “food.” What we call “meat,” the King James Bible calls “flesh.”)

In verse 13, Paul concludes that if his eating flesh (at all) was causing someone else “to offend” (to sin against their conscience) then he was willing to never again eat flesh. If that is what it took to avoid damaging the weaker brothers, he was willing to become a vegetarian. But, Paul does not require that: he simply stated his priorities. (What is the value of a human soul? How important is it to you that you do not harm the flock of God?)

Who is the Weaker Brother in THIS Passage?

The person identified here as the weaker brother is the one who is fearful of foods that have been sacrificed to idols. (I can sympathize with that feeling! It just seems that, after it has been offered to an unclean spirit, the food must be “spiritually hazardous.”) But, in verse four, Paul says that the idol is nothing. And, in verse five, he says that all the different things the world calls “gods” are not gods. And the idols representing those “gods” have no power at all.

In Isaiah 46:6, 7, the LORD points out that though the people lavish gold upon their project of building an idol (that they will call a god,) they have to carry that “god” wherever they want him to go! And though they pray to that man-made god, and bow down to it, and worship it, it cannot answer and cannot even move, let alone save anyone from danger. The idols have no power for good or for evil, though the evil spirits they represent can cause trouble sometimes.

But, if the act of eating that food is seen to be an act of worship to that idol, (notice in verse ten, the food was eaten in the idol’s temple!) then it will be a stumbling block to weaker believers. It may also ruin your testimony with unbelievers, as they will see what they think is a contradiction to your professed faith.

When Might it be Appropriate to Eat Food that has been Offered to Idols?

In his book, “Lords of the Earth,” Don Richardson told of a situation among the Yali people, in the highlands of Irian Jaya. A known witch doctor brought a gift of a freshly killed pig to the missionary. The missionary was suspicious: he knew the man saw him as an enemy, so there must be a hidden agenda involved. He asked his language helper, “Why is he giving me this pig? What does he really want?”

The language helper explained that the pig had been killed by wild dogs. The religious people of that area worshipped and served the Kembu spirits…evil, dangerous spirits.  They believed that if one of their pigs was killed by wild dogs, it meant that the Kembu spirits had claimed that animal, and that if the people ate it, they would die! So, the witch doctor’s motive was attempted murder, in a sense!

But, the missionary immediately turned toward the house, where his wife had been watching this exchange: “Honey? We are having pork tonight!”

Why did he choose to eat meat that had effectively been “sacrificed to idols?” Because he saw that there was a spiritual war in progress, a war for the souls of the Yali people. He knew that the Holy Spirit indwelling him and his wife, was the all-powerful God of the universe, and the evil spirits had no authority over him. The way to demonstrate that truth was to go ahead and eat that pig, so the Yali people would see that the Kembu spirits were powerless over Christians.

When Might it Not be Appropriate?

This passage, 1st Corinthians 8:9-13 makes it clear that the real issue is not whether you have liberty ( and, you do, by the way) but whether you insist on using your liberty in a way that may hurt other people. Using your freedom carelessly can cause serious problems for immature believers.

A Personal Example

I used to love certain classical music compositions, and I felt free to whistle or hum their music…or even to sing the words in one case, because they were Latin and I didn’t know what they meant. (Was I in sin? No… I was just enjoying well-written symphony music, I thought.)

But, one day in my ignorance, I was singing the few words I knew of a very old piece of music, and a younger friend confronted me, saying, “WHY ARE YOU SINGING THAT??” I was astonished at the outburst, and I just said, “It’s nice music! I like it!”

He persisted, “Do you know what that song is?”  I said, “Sure! It’s Franz Schubert’s ‘Ave Maria’!”  And he pressed on, saying “But don’t you know what that IS?”  By now I was truly puzzled, so I said, “I guess I must not…!” He said, “Chet, that is the ‘Hail Mary,” put to music! It is a worship song to Mary!”

I replied, “I did not know that! I will not sing that song anymore!” (And I haven’t! It is sad, of course, because it is gorgeous music, but the fact remains that it truly was written as a worship song to Mary, as seen by the Roman Catholic Church.

So. why was it such a “big deal” to him? Because he was a brand-new Christian! He had just recently escaped the Roman religion, in which he had been born and raised, and he was horrified to hear me, his friend and teacher, apparently supporting the false religion he had just escaped.

Was that a good enough reason to permanently abandon that song? It absolutely was!

How Should We Apply The Teaching Today?

There may be things in our society that carry emotional baggage.  We eventually stopped using wine in our Communion services. Why? Because we had recovering alcoholics among us. They were afraid they would regain a taste for alcohol and revert to drinking. It was an easy decision!

Do some churches strongly disagree with us about that? Certainly, they do…but we simply exercised our freedom to abstain from alcohol. We did so for the sake of those who might have been caused to stumble.

There are other examples in our society, where real freedoms may need to be set aside, to avoid a bad testimony. We hear people loudly say, “Stand on your rights!” But, according to God’s Word, sometimes it is better to “sit on ‘em!”

Philippians 2:5-8

5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

Remember: Jesus had the right to all the riches of the universe, let alone the paltry offering of this world. But, as  Philippians chapter two tells us, He set aside those rights. He emptied Himself of His eternal prerogatives as God, the Creator, and the Author of all things.

The Greek word for this act is “Kenosis.” It means a “self-emptying.” He took on the form of a servant…specifically, a human baby! And we are called to follow Him in His humility. Set aside your own prerogatives as a proud, self-willed human, and embrace the humility of the Cross!

Lord Jesus, please free us from the tyranny of our self-will and pride. Allow us to join You in Your role as a servant. Allow us to be Your hands and feet and voice in this World. Let us offer all those around us the Gift of Eternal Life.

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Family Trouble: Handling Interpersonal Dispute in the Church

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Family Trouble: Judgment of Interpersonal Issues

© 2024 C. O. Bishop

1st Corinthians 6:1-8

1 Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints?

2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?

3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

4 If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church.

5 I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren?

6 But brother goeth to law with brother, and that before the unbelievers.

7 Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded?

8 Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.

Introduction:

We have spent six weeks talking about the topic of Judgment. We have not done so because it is enjoyable (it isn’t!) but because it is necessary. The Church at Corinth had some serious problems, requiring a great deal of corrective teaching. As we study through the letters to Corinth, we cannot escape the topic of Judgment.

Paul addressed them as genuine believers. But they were largely “carnal” believers, as he said in 1st Corinthians 3:1-4. They were not living by faith, or walking with Christ in obedience. They were making decisions in their fleshly minds and according to their fleshly desires. Their behavior reflected the results, in every area.

Safety Training

We don’t enjoy reading about all the messes they were making of their lives. Please see this as “training in what to avoid.”

I used to teach Industrial Safety at the company where I worked. I recounted numerous injury accidents, errors, and fatalities that had occurred. Some had happened right there in that plant, or nearby companies, or affiliated companies.

Someone in the Human Resources department scolded me, saying I was going to frighten away potential employees. But, the best way to teach safety is to explain the hazards and explain how to avoid those hazards.” There are hundreds of “potential ways to die,” in heavy industry. My goal was to make sure everyone went home alive, safe, and uninjured.

God teaches “Safety Training” by the same method. Jesus spent far more time and gave far more teaching about the reality of Hell and Eternal Judgment than He spent describing Heaven and the Eternal Joy awaiting believers. Yet some people scold us, and say that such “negative teaching” will turn people away! If that is the case then we need to take it up with the Savior, because He is also the Judge. And He went to great lengths to warn us away from the eternal “hazard” associated with sin, and the lurking enemy who will try to ensnare us there.

Please take the twin books of 1st and 2nd Corinthians as “Safety Training.” It may not be very pleasant, but it could keep us out of trouble, both as individuals and, as a church.

So, What Was the Problem, This Time?

When conflicts arose, the believers in Corinth were quite willing to take one another to court. Today we say such people are “lawsuit-happy” or, “litigious!” They were making no attempt to follow what Jesus said about personal conflicts. The people knew nothing of forgiveness, nor of simply accepting the wound or the loss inflicted by a fellow believer. They were taking one another to court before the unbelieving judges of their society. They were shaming the Church and shaming Jesus as well. (Notice, we are still talking about judgment!) Do you see what Paul points out regarding judgment, here?

1 Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints? 2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?

Through Paul, Jesus commanded us to judge. He commanded that this judgment not be left to the unbelievers. It is a shameful thing when the Body of Christ requires unbelievers to tell us how to live. Hopefully, when conflicts seem insurmountable, a pattern of coming before the church for spiritual judgment will prevent the more drastic judgment from unbelievers.

Limits of this Judgment

[By the way, this is about civil matters: If it were a matter of criminal offenses, then the situation is already completely out of hand, and the sin has crossed the line into matters where the world takes over and exercises judgment. And God says (Romans 13:1-7) that He put the civil authorities in place for that specific purpose. We just want to avoid that necessity, by obeying His Word all the time; not just when we are in trouble.]

When God says the believers at Corinth are “Saints,” it does not mean “super-spiritual Christians.” It means that they have been claimed by God as His Personal Property. This is true of every single believer. The moment you trusted Christ as your Savior, several things happened:

  1. You were born again as a legitimate Child of God.
  2. You were indwelt by the entire Godhead, in the person of the Holy Spirit.
  3. The Holy Spirit placed you (literally, “baptized” you) into the Body of Christ, by that Spirit.
  4. You were Redeemed: “bought back out of the marketplace of sin, to be set free.”
  5. Your sins (past, present, and future,) were forgiven.
  6. You were washed clean by His Blood.
  7. You were declared His personal property: Holy, for His use alone… A Saint.

Did you “feel” any of that? I seriously doubt it. But all of it is a fact, and there is much more. I only listed these few to show why He could call this mixed-up circus of spiritually immature clowns in Corinth “Saints!” Guess what? It includes us!

Yes, the Church is Qualified to Judge!

And, because we also fit into that category, He says that we should be able to deal with the ordinary conflicts of life without screaming to the unbelieving world for “justice!”

I knew a couple who faced such a dilemma: their house was damaged by fire, and another Christian couple (whom they considered friends) invited them to stay with them for a few months while the repairs were being made. They gladly accepted, and they offered to pay rent, but the other couple refused. But, when their repairs were done and they went to move home, their hosts demanded steep payment for having lived with them…and then threatened a lawsuit.

The couple I knew submitted to this scripture: they sadly paid what was demanded, though it seemed unreasonable. They suffered loss rather than open the church to criticism by the ungodly.

Judge The World? And Angels?

2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

So—When will the Believers “Judge the World?”

So far as we can see in the Bible, the only time in Human history when believers will be judging the world, on Earth, will occur during the Millennial Kingdom. Jesus told his followers that faithfulness would result in rewards. And, that one of their rewards during the kingdom age would be increased responsibility…rulership over cities, etc.

And I’m sorry, but I do not at all know when we will judge angels. However, consider that God says you are already “in Christ.” According to Ephesians 2:6, you are already seated in the throne with Him. So, possibly, in whatever way Jesus exercises judgment, because we are in Him, it could also be said that we are part of that judgment.

So, when Jesus exercises and pronounces judgment on the fallen Angels, we will be there for the occasion, and we will be part of it. Perhaps that is part of what this is about. If not, then I simply don’t know.

But, regardless of whether we fully understand his premise (that we will “judge angels,”) we can easily comprehend his conclusion: “We are worthy to judge the smallest things.”

One does not have to be “certified smart” by an ungodly institution before being competent to discern good and evil, or truth and fiction, or to give good counsel and exercise sound judgment.

Paul says that, as the children of God, we have been given His wisdom in the Scriptures, and that we should be ready to exercise that wisdom and judgment in the everyday affairs of normal life. And, if we cannot, then there is something seriously wrong.

Just How Serious Is This?

4 If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church.

According to Paul, (speaking by the Spirit of God,) we would be better off to set up as a judge the person least qualified in the church, rather than to go before unbelievers and shame the church and one another.

Even that believer whom we consider least qualified (for whatever reason) still is indwelt by the Spirit, of God, and thereby is better qualified to give counsel than any unregenerate person. And, honestly, that is pretty serious!

5 I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren?

“I speak this to your shame” is an old-fashioned way of saying “Shame on you!” They regarded the indwelling Holy Spirit and the Wisdom He offered too poorly. They did not even consider dealing with interpersonal personal matters privately. In that way, they would bring no dishonor to God .

He challenged them to look around them and pick an arbitrator: there has to be someone you can trust to make a fair decision, based on the facts! Is there no one at all, among God’s people, that you would trust to make a good decision?

Or, is it All About “Winning?”

Are you so hung up on “getting your own way,” or “getting some money” out of someone else, that questions of “right and wrong” no longer matter?

In Ephesians 4:31, 32, God says “Let ALL bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor be put away from you will ALL malice, and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you!”

Does that no longer matter? Have you assumed that there must be some sort of “exception clause,” so that the “ALL” in that passage somehow does not really mean “ALL?” (Here’s a tip: “all” means “ALL!” Forgiveness requires that we absorb the loss, not seeking either retribution or revenge. Jesus accepted the full weight of the wrath of God, to satisfy the Righteousness, Holiness, and Justice of God, to provide forgiveness for us. Can’t we absorb the comparatively insignificant hurts and injustices we experience from one another, and accept one another on the same basis by which we have been accepted by God?

Give that some thought!

Paul’s Conclusion:

6 But brother goeth to law with brother, and that before the unbelievers.

7 Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded?

8 Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.

Paul concludes by pointing out that in taking one another to court, they were not only completely wrong, but in a form of wrong far worse than whatever injustice they had suffered. He said that they would have been far better off to have just “backed off” and accepted the loss at another’s hand. They would be better to forgive the wrong, “losing the case,” (so to speak,) to “win” the approval of God, in an attempt to “keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Wronging the Church

He reminds them that they are “wronging the brethren” by taking their opponent to court. They are not only wronging the other party. (One might argue that “No! They are wronging us!”) The fact is, they are wronging all the believers by their behavior, and shaming all the believers. And, they were dragging the Name of Jesus in the dirt, in the eyes of the unbelievers.

In Romans 2:24, Paul pointed out that the unbelievers blaspheme the Name of God, because of the behavior of people who claim to be believers. We do not want to be part of that tragedy!

Lord Jesus, free us from our ego so that we can shine as your lamps in the darkness of this world. Keep us from covering our light with such dirt and shame that Your light can no longer be seen. Fill us with Your Love for the believers around us and Your compassion for the Lost, so that we reach out as Your hands and behave as Your ambassadors, loving as You love.

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An Introduction to the Thessalonian Letters

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Introduction to the Thessalonian Letters

© 2023 C. O. Bishop

1st Thessalonians 1:1-10; Acts 16:12-40; Acts 17:1-10

Introduction to the Thessalonian Letters:

In Acts 16 and 17, we see the background for the letters we are about to study. In Acts 16,  Paul and Silas had planted a small church in Philippi, in a very short time. They had encountered a young slave woman, there, who was demon-possessed. They freed her from that possession, but they suffered beatings and imprisonment for their trouble.

Why planting a Church at Philippi became a “Short-term Mission:”

There, at Philippi, they met Lydia, who took the missionaries into her home. She supported them in that way for the few weeks that they remained in Philippi. They also met the Philippian Jailer, who, through a miraculous sign, was convinced of his need for a Savior. He begged Paul and Silas to tell him how he could be saved. They told him in simple terms, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.” (Acts 16:31) They had already told him the Gospel: Now, he believed, along with his entire household, and was baptized.

But the city magistrates asked them to leave, because they were afraid they would be in trouble with Rome, for having beaten Roman citizens who were not convicted of any crime. So, Paul and Silas visited Lydia one last time, and comforted the new believers they were leaving behind, and then they left Philippi, probably still bleeding from those beatings.

Yet Another “Short-Term Mission:“

In Acts 17:1-10, Paul and Silas passed through two towns, Amphipolis and Apollonia, and arrived in Thessalonica, a city in northern Greece. (It is still there, today, but the name in Greek is “Thessaloniki”) It was the capital of one of the four Macedonian districts of Rome.

The Jewish community there was relatively new when Paul arrived, but they had a synagogue, and as was their regular practice, Paul and Silas presented the Gospel to the Jews first. (Why? Because Jesus was the fulfillment of their (Jewish) scriptures, and He was their (Jewish) Messiah. Paul always gave them the first opportunity to receive the Lord.)

The Source of the Trouble

Paul and Silas preached Jesus as the Messiah, right there, in the synagogue. For three sabbaths, running, he showed them from scripture the necessity of the Messiah having been executed and rising from the dead. This was a confusing idea to the Jews. They had read all the scriptures about the Messiah, but the picture they had formed in their own minds was that of a “champion” who would “drive out the Romans and all other enemies of Israel.”

The notion that the Messiah had to be executed, fulfilling Isaiah 53, and Psalm 22, and to physically become their true Passover, was just too strange. And rising from the dead, though plainly taught in Isaiah 53:10, and Psalm 16:10, was apparently simply beyond their imagination.

Some Believed!

But, as strange as the message was to them, some of those Jews believed, and a large number of the Greek Proselytes believed, too, as well as a number of important women of that community.

But the unbelieving Jews were moved by envy, and they deliberately gathered those who would be willing to start a riot. They attacked the home where Paul and Silas had been staying, but the two missionaries were not there. So, they seized Jason, the homeowner, and some of the new Thessalonian believers, and they dragged them before the magistrates.

False Accusations

The accusers claimed that Paul and Silas were causing trouble, and teaching people to disobey Roman Law. Of course, that was a total fabrication: they had done no such thing. However, the Magistrates demanded a bond of Jason and the others, anyway. and let them go. But the damage was done: It was too dangerous for both the new believers and for the missionaries, if Paul were to remain in Thessalonica, so Paul and Silas were forced to leave town, by night, and they headed off to Berea.

A Functioning Church in Less than a month!

It is important to notice that they were only in Thessalonica for a minimum of two weeks plus a few days, up to a possible maximum of a month…they preached three sabbath days. (If they had showed up on a Sunday or Monday, say, and preached that Sabbath, and the two following Sabbaths, but were run out of town before the fourth sabbath, then it would have still been less than four weeks.) Why is that important? Only because I find it amazing that they left a functioning church in Thessalonica, with qualified leadership, after such a short time!

How was that possible?

Remember; they offered the Gospel first to the Jews and to the Gentile proselytes. That group of men was already well taught in the written Word. All it required was that they learn how the Old Testament taught the Messiah, and that Jesus completely fulfilled all the prophecies. They believed, and were truly committed to Him from the first. Once they believed, they stepped from being responsible, faithful men of God in the Old Testament sense, to being very responsible and faithful men of God in the New Testament sense; and essentially overnight!

Qualified Leaders

Those qualified leaders were filled with the same Holy Spirit as were Paul and Silas. They had the Written Word to study, and there really was no option for Paul and Silas to stay…so they stepped into their new responsibilities and became the first elders in the Thessalonian Church.

Did they need further teaching? YES! That is why these two letters were written! But these letters are addressed to us as well. Paul wrote these two letters to encourage the believers in their new faith. But remember that he had left a small, healthy, functioning church there, after less than a month’s contact. There is no reason that believers today cannot grow into maturity much more rapidly than they seem to do in our country, today.

So, as we begin to read through the letters to the church at Thessalonica, let’s try to read carefully, to see what they already knew by the time Paul and Silas left.

1st Thessalonians 1

1 Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

What can we learn from the Salutation alone?

  • Paul and Silas and Timothy, (and the other apostles authorized by Jesus) never went around calling themselves by any honorific term, such as “Reverend, the Right Reverend, Vicar, Father, Bishop, Archbishop,” or any other such title. They just went by their first name! (Never “the Apostle Paul” or any such title.) They did not elevate themselves over the people.
  • This letter was to the church, not to the church leaders.
  • They recognized the position of the believers: The believers were in God, and in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is our position as believers, even when we are not “living up to what we know to be right.” The position is permanent.
  • As always, Paul offers Grace first, then Peace. If you have not received God’s Grace, in Salvation, you cannot be at peace with Him, let alone experience the peace of God. In John 14:27, Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you: My Peace I give unto you. Not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” That peace (both with God and of God) was bequeathed to His disciples. Only believers can receive it!

What were Paul and the other missionaries thankful for?

2 We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; 3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father; 4 Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God. 5 For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.

6 And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost. 7 So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. 8 For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.

9 For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; 10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

Let’s list the things Paul mentioned in verses 6-10. They were thankful for:

  1. The Believers themselves!
  2. Their Work of Faith
  3. Their Labor of Love
  4. Their Patience (endurance) of Hope
  5. Their Election of God
  6. They became followers, not just of “Paul & Co.,” but of the Lord Himself
  7. They received the Word in much affliction, but,
  8. They also received the Word with the Joy of the Holy Spirit.
  9. Their Testimony spread everywhere!
  10. They became examples throughout the entire Roman world where Paul traveled: everyone knew of their testimony and their transformed lives. Wherever Paul went, the people he met told him about the church at Thessalonica!

The Testimony of Thessalonica

What was told to Paul wherever he went? The testimony was powerful and effective, but what did it include? The people in faraway places had heard of the church at Thessalonica:

They knew about the riotous response of the unbelieving Jews. They knew that the Thessalonians had been idol worshippers. They knew how the Thessalonian believers had turned to God, which resulted in their turning from their idols. (It is never the other way around: we do not “clean ourselves up” so we can approach God. We come to Him as guilty, helpless sinners, and He cleans us, from the inside.)

They knew that the Thessalonian believers were waiting for Jesus’s appearance from Heaven. (So, they knew of the Second Coming!) They knew about the Resurrection. They knew that Jesus had saved the believers from the coming Judgment. That is quite a testimony!

What about the matter of “Judgment?”

We are often told that “You should focus on positive things: don’t belabor the topics of ‘Sin, and Guilt, and Judgment!’ People are far more attracted to a Loving God!”

That sounds good, but: Jesus spent far more time and energy warning the world of the coming Judgment than He did trying to explain the Glories of the Coming Kingdom, (much less describing Heaven itself.) And, in John 12:32, Jesus said that His Crucifixion was what would draw people to Him. Not all the subsequent blessings He offered! It was the Judgment!

The bad news of Sin and Judgment is necessary for the Good News of Christ to make any sense. If His death was not for the specific purpose of freeing us from the wrath of a Holy God and the eternal judgment to come, then it is not good news at all! It is a tragic miscarriage of Justice, wherein the Only truly Good, and Righteous One was murdered! That is not “Good News!”

But virtually all “Good News” is predicated on some preexisting “bad news.”

The bad news, in this case, was that I was lost and on God’s Death Row, for eighteen years, because God says “the wages of Sin is Death.” But the terrible news is that it was not only I, but also the whole human race, suffering under that same condemnation. And, since we have no way to “unbreak God’s Law,” we were doomed, unless He chose to extend His Grace to us. And He did exactly that, by substituting Himself for us at the Cross; taking our sins upon Him and suffering the Judgment of God, Himself.

Think about it: If there are no consequences for our sin, or for the overall wickedness of the whole human race, then what are we to be “saved” from? He was given the name Jesus, (meaning “Jehovah is Savior”) because He was to “save His people from their Sins!”

Those Thessalonian believers knew all this, and other people had heard about it through them. We need to grow to have that kind of testimony, ourselves! We need to grow!

Lord Jesus, train us up as Your disciples. Fill us with Your Spirit and let us shine as lights in this dark World. Give us the Wisdom to know how to act and what to say…and the courage to do Your Will.

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