FHBC Sermon Notes

Many of us have tried to grow plants at one point in our life. Have you ever had a plant that despite great efforts never bears fruit? What do you do with that?Scripture many times uses the picture of trees and fruit to describe a people's and person's spiritual state. This analogy go very far. Consider our scripture reading, John 15, where Christ is in the vine and we are the branches.  It is in this state alone can we bear fruit.

Last week we considered the question of the theme of the whole of the letter Thessalonians. The question was, "How can we please God?"  Today we consider the question, "What kind of faith must we have that pleases God?"

Let us read the passage.

The faith the pleases God is one that bear fruit. As such the follow-up question is "What kind of faith bears fruit?" What do we see as this fruit, what is it that changes in us?

1. Faith changes us internally.
We are changed in our heart, in our identity, our association. We are a new creation.
Verse 1- Paul here uses the standard Greek letter writing style, but uses it to demonstrate the identity. Often he would make a point to highlight the place to switch he is writing. Yet, here he communicates the significant point that this church exist because God brought them into existence. They are not identified a church in Thessalonica, but instead

"the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ"

God has brought them together. Verse four says "that he has chosen you..." God had called them to be his people, just has he has called us to be his people.  Their identity was no longer Thessalonians, but the church in Jesus Christ (their locale is one of sojourners), that are sojourning in Thessalonica.

Verse 9 demonstrates further that they were

"turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God..."

They were subject to the wrath of God.  The lived under this and received the truth with "full conviction" (verse 5). They were granted in Christ with a new heart, with new convictions, new motivation, a new hope, a new direction.

The fruit ultimately shows the type of tree that it is. Jim's dad once bought several trees. Two were orange trees, and one was a grapefruit, except the grapefruit bore oranges! It wasn't a grapefruit tree. Its identity was shown by what it bore, not what it said it was. 

2. Faith changes us externally.
This inward change does not simply occur inside with not outward change. We are change in totality. We talk differently, we act differently. But this is more than a moralistic change. It is oriented in a Godward direction.  Christ is in us now. What comes out of us now reflects that love and nature of Jesus.  We become imitators of Christ.  Like little children who copy their parents, so also the goal of our faith is to be conformed into the image of Jesus Christ. Are we looking more and more like Him?

The Thessalonians are doing this.  They had become

"an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia."

Their faith was seen in "works of faith, labors of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ."

See that last phrase. Only in Christ are these things accomplished. They do non of this in their own strength.

Also, as Christ was afflicted. They also "received the word in much affliction". Yet they endured as well. "With the joy of the Holy Spirit," they received this affliction.

This small and persecuted church were so overwhelmed by the truth of the gospel that they did not remain in their little town, in their homes and church gatherings. No! The "word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia... your faith in God has gone forth everywhere!" They were proclaiming the truth to all the world!

3. Faith brings assurance.
When we experience this internal/external change then we received the assurance of our faith. This is in many ways the point of this chapter from Paul.  He was extolling them, reminding them, that he had witnessed God's faith in their midst. He was reminding them of their assurance of faith in Jesus.

This is one of the reasons we gather in church. To receive the word, with affliction, but with the joy of the Holy Spirit, to be examples to others. We are delivered in Jesus! We have assurance in Him!  Let us remind each other of these truths each and every time we gather for the glory of God! Amen.