1 Thessalonians chapter 3 verses 6 through 13 today.
But now that Timothy has come to us from you and has brought us the good news of your faith
and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us as we long to see you.
For this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction, we have been comforted about you through your faith.
For now we live if you are standing fast in the Lord.
For what thanksgiving can we return to God for you?
For all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God,
as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face
and supply what is lacking in your faith.
Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you
and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another
and for all as we do for you
so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father
at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
Amen.
Well, all of us have passions in our lives, don't we?
I don't mean just mere interest, but passions, priorities that shape the way that we live our lives.
They shape who we are.
They shape what we do.
They are identity shaping in some sense.
They are those things that give us purpose, that arrest our thoughts and capture our affections
and drive the initiatives of our lives.
For you, they may be your kids.
It may be your relationships.
It might be your career.
It might be certain hobbies.
It could be charitable endeavors or causes.
It could be a combination of those things.
It could be passions, things that help you get up in the morning, things that are on your mind,
things that you're driving out, things that you will shape your schedule in order to pursue
and in order to do and participate in.
This passage shows us Paul's greatest passion.
We've been studying about it now for several weeks, going all the way back to chapter 2 and verse 17.
It's really one big unit starting in 2.17, working all the way through the end of chapter 3.
What it is is essentially Paul's memoirs of his passion, the thing that helps him get up in the morning,
the thing that's on his mind, the thing that shapes his prayer,
the thing that shapes everything that he does, his affections and arrests his attention.
And what is that passion?
It is the salvation of others.
It's the salvation of others.
Let's take a moment and just rehearse that context so that we can fully appreciate this passage
and all that Paul indicates for us here.
Remember that since being forced to leave Thessalonica,
Paul and his team in verse, in chapter 2 said that they were endeavoring more eagerly
and with great desire to do what?
To get back to Thessalonica.
And he was keen on doing that
because he feared that Satan might have tempted them to abandon the faith.
And that in abandoning the faith, there would be no fruitfulness in this gospel labor there.
And he kept trying to get back, but he couldn't get back.
He says, Satan keeps hindering us and I can't get back to you,
but I keep trying to get back to you.
And I want to get back to you because I'm afraid that the afflictions that you are enduring right now,
that Satan's going to use them, he's going to tempt you,
and you're going to abandon Christ.
That's his passion.
With an eye fixed on Jesus' return.
Have you noticed, just as a side note here,
have you noticed how many times Paul has referenced the return of Christ in this letter?
Over and over and over.
It's probably the strongest theme in the letter.
His mind is fixed on the return of Christ.
When it comes to affliction, he's thinking about the comfort that will come at Christ's return.
Even as he thinks about his ministry to the people in Thessalonica,
what is it that is on his mind?
It's the return of Christ.
He knows Christ is coming.
And he knows that when he comes again, he's coming in judgment.
And that no one who is unbelieving at the judgment will be saved.
And that's what's driving his passion.
He wants to get back.
He's concerned that this affliction is going to tempt them to abandon Christ,
and that he will not have the joy of presenting them faithful to Christ at Christ's return,
that they would be lost.
And since he was unable to get there himself,
we learned last week that Paul sent Timothy in his stead.
And he sent him really for two reasons.
First thing Timothy was to do was to investigate.
Timothy, go.
Check on them.
See how they are.
And come back and let me know.
Tell me, are they persevering?
Are they being faithful?
Are they staying true to Christ?
And then Timothy was to strengthen their faith as he was there.
But he was to do it in a particular way.
Remember, last week, how were they to persevere?
It was through gospel exhortation.
It would come not through Timothy patting them on the shoulder and saying,
now, there, there, everything will be okay.
No, it wouldn't be that.
It would be Timothy coming and establishing and exhorting their faith
by preaching the gospel again and again and again and again.
Biblical exhortation, biblical exposition is the path to a persevering faith.
Paul knew that.
So he sends Timothy in his place and he says, I want you to investigate and report back.
And while you're there, strengthen them.
Preach the gospel to them.
Strengthen them with it.
And then when we get to verse six, which we read just a moment ago,
Paul recounts the moment that Timothy returns and offers his report.
And as it turns out, the Thessalonian Christians were persevering in faith and love
and hope in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Not only that, but they remembered Paul kindly,
longing to see him as much as he had longed to see them.
That would have been such an encouragement to him, wouldn't it?
It would seem that some of his comments in chapter two
were coming from a fear that maybe the enemies in Thessalonica
were accusing Paul of being an unfaithful minister.
That somehow they had turned the hearts of the Thessalonians away from Paul,
as had happened in other places.
Timothy comes back and he says, not only are they faithful to Christ,
but they love you, Paul.
They remember good things about you, Paul.
They want you to be there as much as you want to be there, Paul.
What an encouragement.
All of Paul's tension that is building in the previous verses
suddenly in this passage burst into joyful expressions of relief.
Relief due to the good news brought by Timothy.
And all of this revealing the nature of Paul's deep passion
for helping others follow Jesus.
The key statement comes to us in verse eight.
Would you just set your eyes on it again?
Notice what Paul says here.
For now we live if you are standing fast in the Lord.
Oh, Thessalonians, now I'm really living
if you are steadfast in Christ.
What does he mean?
Well, it's clear, isn't it?
Paul's life was bound up in magnifying Christ
by making disciples.
It's a passion that superseded all other passions for him.
And the idea of the Thessalonians falling away from Christ
was like death to him.
But Timothy's report was life-giving.
It was like he could breathe again.
In fact, the word, live, it could be translated breath or breathing.
It's as if all that tension, all that anxiety in the verses leading up,
all of this concern that he had for the Thessalonians,
finally Timothy comes and it's like he can finally,
like he can breathe again.
Oh, now I live.
Now that I know you are standing firm in Christ.
It's what he lived for.
Seeing other people follow Jesus.
Helping other people follow Jesus.
And of course, that begs the question,
what are we living for?
What are we living for?
There's four facets of Paul's reaction and response here
that I want to point out.
I want to show you his comfort.
I want to show you his worship.
His persistence.
And then of course, his prayer at the end.
And my hope is to move through the first three fairly quickly
so we can camp just a little while on the last one.
First, I want you to notice the report brought him comfort.
It brought him comfort.
Verses seven and eight again.
For this reason.
What reason?
For the report that Timothy's just brought back in verse six.
He says, for this reason, because of the report,
in all our distress and affliction,
we have been comforted.
Comforted.
Now that makes a lot of sense
because we've just been looking at anxiety on Paul's part,
haven't we?
Just set your eye back up on verse five.
When he's explaining what he was feeling
at the time that he sent Timothy to them,
he says, for this reason,
when I could bear it no longer,
I can hardly bear this.
I sent to learn about your faith for fear.
He's afraid.
He's anxious.
That somehow the tempter had tempted you
and our labor would be in vain.
That's the pinnacle of his anxiety.
And now that Timothy has come back,
the first thing he says,
oh, I just can't tell you enough
that just hearing from Timothy
in all of the distress that we have
and all of our anxiety,
in all of the affliction that we've experienced
in other cities like Berea,
oh, we have been comforted by God
about you through your faith.
For now we live.
If you're standing fast in the Lord.
Making disciples is hard work in many respects.
It's not an easy task, is it?
One of the more difficult parts,
as you know,
any of you who have labored in gospel ministry
in any way,
understand that one of the more difficult things
is the burden that you carry
for the spiritual lives of others.
It really is a burden.
It's a burden that you feel
for the lost in your life.
It should be at least.
It's a burden that you feel
for those who have professed faith
but are not living as a Christian
not to live.
It's a burden.
It's distressing.
It brings anxiety.
No one demonstrated this more clearly
than Jesus did.
Matthew chapter nine,
when he saw the crowds,
he had compassion for them.
The word compassion,
it literally means,
if you translate it literally,
it's a moving of the bowels.
There was a physical response to Jesus
when he considered the lostness of the people
in Israel.
Made his stomach hurt.
He had compassion on them.
Why?
Because they were harassed and helpless
like sheep without a shepherd.
And then he turns to his disciples
and he says,
the harvest is plenteous.
But the laborers are few.
Pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest
to send out laborers into the harvest.
What is that compassion
if it isn't an intense burden
for the souls of those who are lost?
What is that compassion that Jesus has
if it is not a burden
for the souls of those
who are wandering away from him
because of affliction
or the appeal of sin
or whatever it may be
that may be leading them away?
And here we find Paul
walking in Christ on footsteps.
Paul's distress and affliction,
it refers to that anxiety
being torn away,
hindered by Satan,
fearing that affliction
caused them to leave the faith
they first professed.
It's an emotional burden
felt by those who labor
in the field of souls, isn't it?
A burden surely that you have felt before.
A burden hopefully you haven't gone
callous towards.
The important thing to recognize here
is that the source of Paul's comfort
is the report of the Thessalonians' faith.
Notice that.
It's not the only thing in the report.
Timothy's report said,
yes, they're faithfully following Jesus.
Also, Paul, they love you
and they want to see you.
That would have been an encouragement,
wouldn't it?
It's not just their faith
that Timothy reports about,
but it's just their faith
that Paul responds to in comfort.
He says, oh, now we live
if you're standing in the Lord.
In all our distress and affliction,
we've been comforted about you
through your faith.
Now, have you noticed the language
that he's using here?
We've seen this before.
Look back at verse six.
Timothy has come to us from you.
He's brought us good news
of your faith and love.
Then we get down to verse seven.
We've been comforted about you
through your faith.
For now we live if you are standing fast.
Remember those three dynamics?
Faith, love, steadfastness of hope.
We've seen that before, haven't we?
Set your eyes on chapter one, verse two.
We give thanks to God always for all of you,
constantly mentioning you in our prayers,
remembering before our God and Father
your work of faith and labor of love
and steadfastness of hope
in our Lord Jesus Christ.
What is that about?
It's about their salvation.
What is it that Paul's comforted about?
That they belong to God,
that they're standing firm in the faith.
That's what he's most comforted about here.
It's amazing.
The level of our passion for magnifying Christ
through making disciples will be seen
in how we respond to the reports of fruitfulness
in the lives of others.
And what is his report?
Oh, he feels comfort, joy
at the report that they are indeed
continuing in the faith.
His focus was their salvation.
So the report gave him comfort, right?
Number two, I want you to see his worship.
The report produced authentic worship.
Verse nine, Paul says,
for what thanksgiving can we return to God for you?
For all the joy that we feel for your sake
before our God, worship, praise.
I think we need to grasp the theological underpinning
of Paul's worship here.
Though the ministerial effort belonged to him,
Timothy and Silas,
and the perseverance of faith
belonged to the Thessalonian Christians,
his thanksgiving is not directed to Timothy,
neither is it directed to the Thessalonians.
His thanksgiving is wholly given to God.
Why?
Because he understands God to be the one
ultimately responsible for the salvation of those
to whom he and Timothy and Silas
have proclaimed the gospel.
So that when he hears reports of their continued faith,
he does not elaborate in thanksgiving to them
or to Timothy.
He turns and he worships God.
What thanksgiving can I possibly offer to him for this?
How wonderful that he's done this.
My thanksgiving cannot even match the joy
that God has given me
through the faith that he's given you.
Worship.
This is now the third time Paul has thanked God
for the Thessalonians' faith in this letter.
The first one's in chapter one, two, and three.
We give thanks to God always for all of you,
remembering before our God and Father
your faith, love, and hope in Christ Jesus.
In chapter two and verse 13,
we also thank God constantly for this,
that when you receive the word of God,
which you heard from us,
you accepted it not as the word of men,
but as what it really is, the word of God,
which is at work in you believers.
Three times now,
he's acknowledged their faith
and the work of God's grace in their life,
and he's turned and he's said,
oh, thank you, Lord, for doing this.
Praise God
that you have saved them
and that you're holding them fast.
Not only that,
Paul wrote explicitly in chapter one
that the Thessalonian Christians' conversion
and perseverance
resulted from God's election
and the Holy Spirit's empowerment.
Again at chapter one, four through six.
We know, brothers, loved by God,
that he has chosen you
because our gospel came to you
not in word,
but in power and in the Holy Spirit.
And it filled you with the joy of the Holy Spirit.
What is he acknowledging?
There's a pattern here, isn't there?
There's a pattern that he recognizes
that ultimately,
at the end of the day,
this is a work of grace.
So what part does Paul and Timothy
and the others play in this work of grace?
Well, a significant part actually,
as it turns out.
We must also take account
of the various ways
Paul has written of himself and his team
functioning as God's instruments of grace
in this work.
Chapter two, verses three and four.
Paul said,
that our appeal does not spring from error
or impurity
or any attempt to deceive.
So then why is he preaching the gospel
in Thessalonica?
He says,
we have been approved by God
and entrusted by God
with the gospel.
So we're preaching to you,
not to please you,
but to please God
because he's the one
who has called us to this
and he's the one
who tests our hearts.
And then we saw last week
in chapter three in verse two,
we sent Timothy,
our brother
and God's co-worker
in the gospel of Christ
to establish and exhort you
in your faith.
What does he mean?
This is God's work
and he's using Paul
and Timothy
and Silas to do it.
But it's ultimately God's work.
So when he gets the report
of their faithfulness,
what does he do?
He worships God.
What else would he do?
This is God's saving work.
Now in all of these passages
taken together
with chapter three
in verse nine,
they reveal Paul's
understanding of grace.
That is the fruitfulness
of all gospel ministry
results from God's work
of grace in
and through his people.
Even as he sent Timothy
to establish and exhort them,
he knew Timothy
was only acting merely
as an instrument
in the hands of God.
And because he believed grace
to be the cause
of their conversion
and perseverance,
the report he received
produced praise.
So what am I saying?
That Paul's efforts
and the fruitfulness
he experienced
weren't about him.
They weren't about him.
His boast wasn't
in his ability
to turn a phrase
in just the right way
so that he could grab
the attention
of the people
that heard him preach
and change their affections
for God.
He knew that wasn't true.
His boast was only
in the grace of God.
He didn't desire
their salvation
for some personal gain.
He wanted Christ
to be magnified.
and understanding
the reality
of their situation,
he was immediately
moved to worship.
So we see his comfort.
We see his worship.
Third,
I want you to see
his persistence.
The report prompted
further ministry.
It's interesting,
isn't it?
Verse 10,
As we pray most earnestly
night and day
that we may see you
face to face
and supply what is lacking
in your faith.
This verse seems strange,
doesn't it?
Paul's worship
is offered to God
in the context
of earnest prayer
that God would allow him
to go back
to Thessalonica.
So he prays here
the same prayer
and with the same urgency
as he had in chapter 2
and verse 17.
Just set your eyes
on it again.
Since we were torn away
from you brothers
for a short time
in person,
not in heart,
we endeavored
the more eagerly
and with great desire
to see you face to face.
He's praying
the same thing again.
What's weird about that
is that he's gotten
the report back
that they're being faithful.
They're doing everything
that he hoped
that they would be doing.
The question is
why does he still feel
such an urgency for this?
Why that he now knows
of their persevering faith,
why does he still
want to go back?
Well, it's just another sign
that this is what he lived for.
His whole life
was bound up in this.
Seeing other people through,
not in the moment,
but to the end.
It's also a reminder
that the task
of discipling
is never really finished,
is it?
It's never really finished.
He wanted to keep
discipling them
in the gospel,
supplying, he says,
whatever may be lacking
in their faith
and understanding
of the truth.
Remember what his aim was.
His goal.
His aim was to present
them faithful to Christ
at Christ's return.
And since Christ
had not yet returned,
Paul's task
was not complete.
And there again,
we must note
this desire
to see them face to face.
While the letter
would have been
sufficient for the moment,
he knows
nothing was as effective
as personal,
embodied ministry
to others.
So,
what do we see here?
We see that
in Paul's
desire
and purpose
to make disciples
and magnify Christ,
that when Timothy
reports of fruitfulness,
he's comforted
because his anxiety
is for their souls.
He worships
because he recognizes
that this is a work
of God's grace
and he's just
privileged to be
a part of it
in God's grace.
And then,
it just makes him
want to do it
more and more.
Truly,
if you've ever
led somebody to Christ
or if you've ever
had one of those moments
where the Lord
just allows you
just a brief moment
to see some fruitfulness
in the life
of somebody else
because of
your efforts
in gospel ministry,
either in evangelism
or just discipling them,
it makes you
want to do it
more,
doesn't it?
You get a glimpse
of God's grace
in that way.
It's so joyful.
It makes you want more.
And of course,
we see that in Paul.
And then we get
to the final thing.
I want you to see
his prayer.
His prayer.
The report
shaped the way
that he prayed
thereafter.
Verse 11.
Now may our God
and Father himself
and our Lord Jesus
direct our way
to you.
And may the Lord
make you increase
and abound in love
for one another
and for all
as we do for you
so that he may
establish your hearts
blameless in holiness
before our God
and Father
at the coming
of our Lord Jesus
with all his saints.
Oh, there it is again.
The coming of the Lord.
Where is his mind fixed?
On the return of Christ.
And what is his desire
at the return of Christ?
To see these people
and more
faithful,
believing,
holy.
Now we've already read
that Paul was
earnestly praying.
But in these verses,
he actually writes
his prayer for us.
This is a prayer.
And there's so much
we can learn
about the prayers
of the Bible.
In the case of this one,
we learn that our work
in gospel ministry
shapes our prayer.
Shapes the way
we pray to God.
Again, relying on him
to do his work
of grace in others.
The very fact
that Paul committed
these things to prayer
reflects that understanding
of grace.
He knows that he's engaging
in God's work.
So he asks for God's blessings.
And he submits
to Christ's lordship
over his request.
And unsurprisingly,
he includes a request
for Christ to direct
his way back
to Thessalonica.
I don't know
if he ever made it back.
Perhaps somebody
has determined that.
I just don't know.
But he's still praying
for it.
Lord, let me go back.
But it's not his prayer
to go back
that really grabs
my attention here.
It's his prayer
for the church.
Do you notice
what he prayed for them?
From Paul's intensity
of desire
to get to Thessalonica,
we might conclude
that certain persons,
maybe vocational ministers
or those who are
especially mature believers,
we might conclude
that those kinds of people
are necessary
for our spiritual progress.
It would be tempting
to say that
the responsibility
and effectiveness
of gospel ministry
applies only to those
whom God
especially called
and gifted
for that task.
However,
in Paul's prayer,
we actually discover
that isn't true.
While we're thankful
for how God uses
and gifts us
with certain spiritual leaders,
the work of gospel ministry
belongs
to the entire church.
it belongs to you,
not just to me.
It belongs to us together.
I want to unpack that.
First,
notice the comparison
that Paul uses
in verse 12.
And may the Lord
make you increase
and abound in love
for one another
and for all
as we do for you.
As we do for you.
There's a comparison
he's making there.
He prays that God
will so work
in the Thessalonians' hearts
that they will increase
and abound,
that they will grow
and maintain
the same love
that he has
for them.
Think about the magnitude
of that.
How has Paul's love
for them been displayed
throughout this letter?
He risked his life
to preach the gospel
to them in the beginning.
He showed up
to Thessalonica
with fresh wounds
from being beaten
nearly to death
in Philippi.
And he persevered
in gospel preaching.
Why?
That was out of love
for their souls.
That's how he loved them.
How else did he love them?
He viewed them
as a spiritual family
constantly.
He's referring to them
as brothers.
He even uses the analogy
in chapter 2
of a spiritual father
and as a spiritual mother
in the way that he
ministered the gospel
to them.
Then he wrote
that being forced
to leave them
was like being orphaned,
torn away
from his family
and that his eager desire
was to minister
to them
face to face
to be with them.
That's the way
he loved them.
Most importantly,
his purpose
in ministering to them,
the thing that really
drove his relationship
with them
was to do everything
he could
to see them persevere
to the return of Christ
by establishing
and exhorting them
in the faith.
In other words,
Paul's prayer
for the Thessalonians
was that they would
have the same heart
for gospel ministry
to one another
as he had for them.
That's what he prays.
Lord, help them
love one another
in this way,
the way that you
have helped me
to love them.
Help them sacrifice
of themselves
in order to share
the gospel.
Help them view
themselves
as a spiritual family,
not as mere
acquaintances
that happen to show
up at the same place
on Sunday morning
for a worship service.
Oh, Lord,
help them love
each other enough
that the passion
of their heart
is that they could
see one another
persevere to the end,
that they wouldn't
just let one another
drift off
into no man's land
and spiritual things
or that they would
just drift off
into sinful behaviors.
No, but that they
would love you enough,
that they would love
one another enough,
that they would
constantly minister
the gospel
to one another.
That's his prayer.
Notice, secondly,
the scope
of the ministry
he wanted them
to pursue.
He prayed
that their love
would increase
and abound
toward two different
groups of people.
To one another,
that would be
professing believers
in the church.
And then he adds
in there,
and for all.
Oh, who is that?
Those who are not
professing believers
in the church.
Refers to the two
distinct facets
of making disciples.
Evangelism
and discipling.
Isn't that
what Jesus tells us
in the Great Commission?
Go and make disciples.
How?
Baptizing them
in the name of the Father
and Son
and the Holy Spirit.
That's evangelism.
Teaching them
to observe
everything I have
commanded you.
That's discipling.
And now Paul
prays for the Thessalonians
and he says,
Oh God,
I just want them,
I want them
to keep preaching
the gospel
to the people
in their city
that hate them
and want to kill them.
God,
give them a heart
to disciple
one another
so they don't feel
like they have to rely
on me and Timothy
to come there
because we don't know
if we'll get back.
Another way to say it
is that our efforts
to minister to one another
and to unbelievers
in our lives
are directly proportionate
to the love
that we have
and maintain
for them.
To love one another
in the church
necessarily
is to help one another
progress in the faith.
even on the hardest days
with the hardest people.
To love the world
the way that Christ loved it
is to break through
the offenses
and the discouragements
and minister the gospel
to the people
that are all around us
who need it.
Finally,
notice the purpose
of his prayer.
there's a purpose statement
here in the last verse.
Paul asked that God
would do this work
in the hearts
of the Thessalonians
so that,
that's the purpose statement,
so that
he may establish
their hearts
in holiness
at the coming
of our Lord Jesus.
He says,
all I can think about
is the fact
that Christ
is going to return
and he's going to return
in judgment
and I want to be used
of him in the meantime
to present people faithful
in that moment
so they'll escape
that judgment
and then he says,
Lord,
would you do this work
in their hearts
so that they'll have
that same passion?
This is the way,
Lord,
that people will be
presented to you
faithful
at the coming of Christ.
It's going to take them
loving and ministering
to one another
and for all.
Again,
Paul recognizes
that all gospel ministry
is God's work of grace
but God uses
human instruments
to accomplish
his saving work.
Listen,
if people are going
to be saved,
they're not going
to be saved
by epiphany.
They're not just
going to wake up
one day and say,
you know what,
I think I'll be a Christian.
That's not how
God saves people.
That would be irregular
if he did it that way
and of course
it's in his power
to do it.
What is the normative way
that people come to Christ?
Somebody loves them enough
to share the gospel
and to love them
through their questions
and through their rejections
and to pray for them
and to care for them
and to show Christ's love
for them
and to be patient
with them
and God uses
the work of the word
as an opportunity
to instill his grace
in their lives
and he saves them.
If people are going
to be saved,
it's going to be
because we are faithful
to love them
with the gospel
and if we're all
going to continue
to the end
in the grace of God,
the best chances
are that we understand
that we need one another
and that we're going
to help one another
along to the very end.
The bottom line is
the Thessalonian church,
they didn't really need Paul.
Of course,
they were thankful for him.
Of course,
somebody had to preach
the gospel to begin with
but it's not as if
the only way
that they were going
to make it to the end
faithful to Christ
is if Paul did indeed
make it back to the city
to minister to them.
No,
his prayer shows
that's not the case.
God's ongoing work
in their lives
would come primarily
through their ministry
to one another.
So we should pray
as Paul prayed
and we should endeavor
to live out
Paul's prayer
in God's grace.
We need one another
and we need to learn
how to love one another
in such a way
that God will use
our ministry
to persevere us
at Christ's return.
Now,
I think we should finish
with a question.
Why was Paul
so consumed with this?
That's how he opened, right?
This is his passion.
The key verse is verse 8.
Now we live
if you're standing fast
in the Lord.
This is what my life
is all about.
I live for this,
Paul says.
I'm so happy about it.
But why?
What reason
could he possibly give
for being so consumed
with this particular thing?
After all,
most people in our day
would say that faith
is a personal matter.
You just need to let people
work it out for themselves
and leave them alone.
Paul would have disagreed
wholeheartedly.
I think we should too.
Why should we care about that?
Just three quick things.
One,
because the gospel's true.
We should care
because the gospel's true.
And as Paul wrote
to the church in Rome,
the gospel is the power
of God unto salvation
for all who believe.
If they are to be saved,
it will be because
they believe the gospel.
Because God in his grace
saves them
through the preaching
of the gospel.
That should motivate us.
If nothing else does,
just the fact
that it's true.
And we know it.
Why wouldn't we want
to share that?
Jesus is coming back.
And he is coming back
in judgment.
Does that burden you
for the people
who are lost in your life?
That at his return,
if they are unbelieving,
they will perish.
They'll perish.
That should motivate us
to preach the gospel.
It's true.
And the Lord's coming back
and we want them
to be saved.
Secondly,
we should care about this
because Jesus calls us to it.
Jesus calls us to it.
It's not an option.
It's a mandate.
Paul understood that uniquely
as an apostle of Christ.
But it is not unique to him
only as an apostle,
but as a Christian.
And we know that
because of what Jesus said.
Go.
Make disciples of every nation.
Teach them to observe all things.
And by the way,
I'm going with you.
As you go in faithfulness,
I'm going in fruitfulness,
Jesus says.
What an encouragement that is.
We should go
because this is what God
has called us to do.
Jesus, our Lord,
has said,
this is what I want you to do.
Share the gospel
and help one another persevere.
Third,
because we're compelled by love.
We're compelled by love.
First by Christ's love.
You can't manufacture love, right?
You know that.
The thought of an arranged marriage
would cause us to be aghast,
even though I think
Ashlyn and Harper and Charlie
would do well
in an arranged marriage.
And I'm taking applications.
Ashlyn's first.
A couple more years.
If any of you are interested.
The thought of that
is terrible, isn't it?
Why?
Because you can't manufacture love
or at least the element
of affection in love.
You can't just pray a prayer today
and suddenly you're just
going to love people.
It doesn't work like that.
We're by nature,
we're just like,
we're kind of mean people,
aren't we?
Like we're sinners.
And we don't by nature
really love people that much.
Well, where does this start?
We're compelled by Christ's love,
aren't we?
That's what Paul says
to the Corinthians.
He says,
the love of Christ constrains me,
it compels me,
it grips me.
As I look at the cross,
I can't help
but see Christ's love
and want to share that love
with other people.
The love of Christ
compels us
to have that same love
for others.
It's a work of grace
in our own lives.
Why did Paul care about this?
Why should we?
We should be compelled
by Christ's love
to disciple one another
and to evangelize
the unbelievers around us.
Not because we want to win
an argument.
Not because we want to have
a bigger church
so we can have a bigger
facility or
pay our bills.
No.
Because we want to love them
the way that Christ loves them
and has shown his love to them
by dying on the cross for sin.
The more we look at the cross,
I think the more we'll be motivated
to share the love of the cross
with others,
even when it's hard.