We’re back in 1 Thessalonians this morning. Again, we’re going to see how Paul loved people, how he gave his life away for people, how his heart was so attached to people. It shows us what life in the church is to be like.  And it shows us what kind of people we are to be.  

Without love church feels artificial, and shallow. Without sincere love for people, Paul said we are just a noisy gong or clanging cymbal.  Even where there IS an emphasis on solid Bible truth, love HAS to be present!  Even where gifts of the Spirit are flourishing, love has to be present. Otherwise we really have nothing.  

Paul dearly loved the men and women in the church at Thessalonica. This personal, loving affection was the hallmark of his ministry. It’s the mark of a disciple.  And it’s the mark of a true church. 

We’re a family. We are to have a fierce loyalty to one another, and to love each other, like brothers and sisters. Paul said his ministry was like being a mother and a father.  He came with gentleness, loving, and teaching, and caring for others like they were his own children. That is what church is to look like and feel like.  WE have the responsibility to make it that, you and me and all of us together.  

Of course church takes organization and planning and there IS authority in the church, but affectionate relationships in the Lord, are absolutely essential to the church, to our church.

This loving, nurturing kind of ministry doesn’t require worldly talents, but it does require that we adopt God’s heart for people.  It requires genuine love, and pure motives. These are the qualities Paul sets forth in chapter 2 as the proof that his work and ministry was genuine.  

He begins: 1 “Our visit was NOT in vain, or not a failure.” That could mean there were observable results, salvation, and changed lives. And that happened in Thessalonica.  But it seems Paul is mainly referring to the MANNER in which he and his companions preached the gospel.  The WAY we came to you, was not empty or useless, or hollow. The way we conducted ourselves among you was true, genuine, real.  

Some people can talk very spiritual, and say REALLY good things, but without genuine loyal love for people, their words are vain, or sound hollow. Many people in the ministry can attract a huge number of people or build large organizations, but often it’s through the power of personality, and cleverly manipulating the scripture, and telling people what they want to hear, all for the sake of “the man” or the organization. But Paul reminds the Thessalonians that his ministry to them was NOT like that.

He said, “As you know, we had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict. For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people...On the contrary we were gentle among you like a nursing mother. We treated each of you like a father treats his own children, encouraging you comforting you, urging you to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.” 

This is one of the clearest, and most powerful statements of what authentic Christian life and ministry looks like.  If you want to have spiritual influence on your family or on just one other person, earnestly pursue these qualities.  

Why does Paul feel the need to so emphasize his own love and his pure motives? Is it because he’s proud or want to talk about himself? No, it’s because there is a great need for Christians to be able to tell the difference between authentic, and artificial ministry!  We need to be able to tell the difference between those who preach themselves, and those who preach Christ, between those who care about the sheep and those who are in it for themselves.    

From the earliest days of the church, counterfeit apostles and teachers have inserted themselves into the church.  Jude called them “clouds without water”, “men without the Spirit.”  It’s a problem when Christians don’t recognize the emptiness of these ministers and ministries. So Paul puts his WAY of life as the standard of genuine Christian ministry. He did that so the Thessalonians could spot the insincere, the artificial and the false.   And so we could too!

This discernment is lacking in many churches.  It was lacking in the church at Corinth.  Paul poured out his life for them, but they tended to turn to men he called, “super apostles”, men who were more impressive, had greater gifts, were better speakers. So Paul told them “you gladly tolerate fools. In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or exalts himself or strikes you in the face.”  

Often these kind of men are powerful leaders and speakers but they love power, and exploit people for their money, and use people to build their own ego and agenda.  Paul chided the Christians at Corinth for being so easily impressed, for being taken advantage of, even abused by these men because of their impressive set of skills.  Paul was in a constant battle to overcome this kind of deception in the churches. 

So let’s see what Paul sets forth as evidences of authentic love and ministry.

*First he reminds them of his boldness to carry on despite trouble, danger and suffering. Verse 2 “As you are aware, we had already endured suffering and shameful treatment in Philippi. But in the face of strong opposition, we were bold in our God to speak to you the gospel of God.” Suffering, danger and threats didn’t keep Paul from coming to them.

One commentator said, “The point of verse 2 is clear: Men who could sings hymns to God in prison after such insolent and vile treatment for preaching the gospel, and who were still not discouraged from preaching the gospel under such conditions were not likely to be phonies!” 

Boldness is part of godliness!  Boldness affirms authentic faith and love.  Paul was bold, because God gave him a job to do and he was going to do it come hell or high water.  But it was also love for people that motivated it. 8 “We cared so deeply that we were delighted to share the gospel with you, as well as our own lives.”  Or “as to risk our own lives”.

Love makes you bold. Love overcomes your fears. Love is what makes a father or a mother to run back into a house that is on fire and rescue their child. After being beaten and jailed in Philippi, Paul could have called it quits.  But even though he knew there would be strong opposition in Thessalonica too, he came anyway.  

John 10:12 Jesus said, “He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.”  This verse is about Jesus. But the truth he taught is that danger will distinguish between the shepherd and the hired hand. 

The shepherd, because he really loves the sheep, will give his life for them. The hired hand cares only about getting paid, and will leave when things get tough. He cares more about his own safety than the well-being of the sheep.

Paul pointed to his willingness to endure danger, in order to come to them, as proof of his genuine and deep love for them.  You know you are loved by someone when they are willing to pay a price to be with you, or to stay with you.  If they run it shows lack of love. 

I believe boldness in the face of opposition will become the most needed quality in the church in the days ahead. The opposition is coming!  We must prepare now to be bold in God to speak the truth in the face of opposition!  We must be bold to meet together as a church, to carry on with the work God has given us to do as His church.  This godly quality was NOT lacking in Paul.  May it not be lacking in us.!

Franklin Graham: I believe there is a storm coming that we all need to be ready for.  Believers in the United States are living in a cancel culture that wants to destroy Christian organizations...They want to shut our mouths, they don’t want to hear from us.  We cannot back up, we can’t retreat, don’t apologize for the gospel, just declare it, preach it.

If you’re not going to preach the gospel you don’t have anything to worry about. If you’re not going to talk about sin, you’re not going to have anything to worry about; but if you’re going to proclaim the Gospel, they’re going to try to shut you up.’  I think it is quite naive to not believe that!  

Boldness to carry on God’s work is a mark of authentic faith in God and love for people. 

Next mark of authentic ministry: Paul’s freedom from personal ambition. 3 “For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive,..not from a desire to please people, we never came with words of flattery, or from a pretext for greed, nor did we seek glory from people.” So much ministry is motivated by self promotion. But Paul said his ministry was NOT for HIS advantage but was compelled by his love for them.  One of the best advice I ever heard for me as a pastor is, “The people are not there for you, You are there for the people.”   

-We didn’t come with error: It’s a great temptation to twist God’s word just enough to avoid persecution and to gain more followers. It’s a serious character weakness especially in teachers.  

Watch out for men and women, for churches, who are just NOT that careful with truth. They want to be clever or unique, to make people rely on their special insight. Or they’ll take something the Bible clearly says, and tell you WHY that is NOT what it says. The reason is often is for self promotion. Or to conform to current socially acceptable opinions.

-Our appeal didn’t spring from impurity: Paul came without impurity in his spirit or heart or motives. He came with a simple and pure devotion to Christ.  No hidden agenda to build his own ego, or promote himself. But genuine care for people’s souls.  Down in verse 10 he said “You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous, and blameless our conduct was among you.”  Nothing impure about it. 

-We had no attempt to deceive: Paul didn’t use any trickery, no clever methods to manipulate people for his own advantage.

-We didn’t speak to please men. Verse 4 “But we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak NOT to please men but God who tests our hearts.”   Paul had a message that directly from God and that’s what he preached -Whether people accepted it or rejected it!

Paul wasn’t teaching and preaching to be popular.  He did it for God who tests our hearts. Paul understood that he answered to God and that was all that really mattered.  If everything we say is filtered through what will satisfy others, or make them like us or say nice things about us, then we are in the ministry for ourselves and not for God.  “If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ”.  And that is true for you too.

-We never came with words of flattery.  We didn’t use flattery to win people.  He didn’t say nice things to them in order to get something from them.

-We didn’t come to you with a pretext for greed.  Paul had to have money to operate just like we all do. But Paul did not do what he did to take their money.  Instead he was self-denying and extremely sacrificial, “We worked day and night so as not to be a burden to you.  “We didn’t eat anyone’s bread without paying for it!”  

-He was not in it for the praises of people. 6 “We did not seek praise from you or from anyone else.”  Paul came for God’s glory.  He didn’t see the church as a place to get glory for himself. He didn’t try to get people to see him as a rock star.

Paul said we didn’t come with any of these things!  But here is WHAT WE DID COME WITH.. Verse 7 “we were gentle among you like a nursing mother.” Verse 11 We treated each of you as a father treats his own children.   Instead of self promotion...

Paul came with gentleness and genuine love for them like a nursing mother. What does authentic ministry look like? It looks like a mother nursing her child!   Paul said he and Timothy and Silas were kind, tender, affectionate.  NOT severe or abusive, not proud or haughty.  A man by the name of  Henry Perreyve, said, “Keep a mother’s heart for men”.    

Verse 8 “We cared so deeply for you that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our own lives as well”.  Ministry is not just giving words to people, it is giving our selves away.  We can’t be detached, and isolated. Paul was willing to exhaust himself for them, to give up his time and energy for them, even to give up his life for them. One of the phrases Christians use that I strongly dislike is “attending church”.  It is like I come but I have no skin in the game.  Being a part of a church is not merely “attending” something, it is sharing your life with people. 

Verse 9 “You recall our labor and toil. We worked night and day so that we would not be a burden to anyone while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.”  Paul’s affection was shown to them by his hard work and extreme sacrifice.    

Paul also treated them like a father! Verse 11 We treated you as a father treats his own children, encouraging you, comforting you, and urging you to walk in a manner worthy of God.” A father wants his children to do well, to survive and thrive.  So he encourages and teaches and exhorts, BUT not in a harsh, dictatorial way. But with the love and affection of a father for his own children. 

Authentic ministry looks like being a mother and father.  And ministry without the heart of a father and mother toward others is vain, empty, hollow!  This was the kind of affectionate heart relationships Paul had with the churches. And it is the kind of loving heart relationships he taught and fostered in the churches. 

Two applications: 

*Be able to tell the difference between artificial and authentic ministries, churches and teachers!  Be discerning!  Listen to those who exhibits genuine and self sacrificial love.  Beware of those who seem to always make it about themselves and their organization, or church. 

*Hear God calling you this morning to give yourself away to people.  Go invest your life in people for the sake of the gospel.  

*If you want to serve Christ, don’t worry about starting a big organization, go be a mother or father to someone.  Start caring about the spiritual well-being of another person and love them, and seek to advance God’s work in them like a mother and a father.