1 Thessalonians chapter 2, just two verses this morning, verses 7 and 8, okay?
But we were gentle among you like a nursing mother taking care of her own children.
So being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God,
but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.
There's a man who attends our Wednesday morning Bible study group with the men.
We call it Men's Advance on 6.30 every Wednesdays when there's not an election on Tuesday nights.
Most people are there on Wednesday morning at 6.30.
His name is Larry. Larry, some of you know him. You went to church with him for many years.
Larry doesn't belong to our church. He belongs to another church in Huntersville,
but he attends our Bible study on Wednesday mornings, and he's a wonderful Christian.
He and Terry always bring an amazing amount of biblical knowledge and wisdom to our discussions,
and we all kind of lean on them during those times.
He's a faithful Christian. We love having him there.
His church is without a pastor right now,
and Larry is one of the men that's been tasked with the responsibility of trying to find the next pastor
and who the Lord would have and make those connections.
And some of you have been in positions like that before at other churches,
and you know how daunting of a task that is.
That's not an easy thing.
And when you don't have a leadership structure that has a plurality of elders that can kind of shoulder that load,
it falls to people in the congregation to do it, and that's a very difficult thing to do.
And Larry's in one of those positions, and a few weeks ago we were chatting about that in our Bible study,
and I don't think he was referring to this particular church, but maybe a church years ago in his life where he had been in a similar role,
and he mentioned a survey that had been issued to the congregation,
basically asking them,
what are things that you care about?
What do you want to see in your next pastor?
And I got to thinking about that,
and I thought, you know, that's an interesting question.
I wonder how most Christians, the average Christian, would respond to such a survey.
And so I want you to think about that.
Don't answer this out loud.
Just ponder it in your head.
I don't need my feelings getting hurt right here at the beginning of the sermon.
If I asked you to list the qualities you most want in a pastor,
what would be on your list?
What would headline the list?
Maybe three, four, five things.
Like, these are the things that matter most,
the things I care about most in a pastor.
Or maybe we're just thinking in discipling relationships within our church.
Like, if there's going to be somebody that comes and is personally discipling me as a spiritual mentor in my life,
these are the qualities that I want them to have.
This is how I want them to lead me and help me.
And there are so many ways we can answer that question, right?
There's an abundance of good answers that we might have.
Most of us would likely begin at the qualifications for a pastor in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1,
and that would be exactly the right instinct to go.
What is the Bible saying a pastor is supposed to be?
What is the bare minimum that the scriptures say an elder qualifies a man to be an elder in a church?
And that's the right instinct.
That's where we would go, and maybe we would start to fashion our list that way.
Other of us may think in more practical terms.
We may think about things like education.
You know, have they actually been trained theologically so that they're properly prepared to teach us the Bible?
We might think about experience.
Like, what kind of experience do they have in pastoral ministry?
Are they equipped to do this work?
Do they have a leadership ability?
Do they have an administrative prowess?
Yes.
And so long as those things are ordered properly as secondary to the biblical qualifications,
those are actually really good things to consider.
We want to have those things on our list, don't we?
Then, of course, we get to personality dynamics, which for sure are tertiary issues.
But they're still going to show up on some of our list.
Probably we want somebody who has a certain kind of charisma,
or that might would be on some of your list.
Most of what we would put on our list will rightly portray strength and aptitude.
We might even come to a letter like 1 Thessalonians and look at how Paul describes himself here and think,
I want whoever is discipling me to be bold, not afraid to speak the truth, even when it's unpopular to do it,
even when it's unpopular for me, to me for them to do it.
I want somebody who's going to be bold anyway, who's going to give me the truth.
And oh, what a almost rare blessing that is to have sometimes in spiritual leadership these days.
The point of this exercise, the reason I want you to think about this for this moment,
isn't really to think about what would be on your list,
but it's after kind of compiling that list, stepping back and observing it and thinking,
what might be missing from your list?
I wonder how many of us would have a description that actually matches Paul's here.
Look again at verse 7.
Now be real honest.
How many of you in your mind, your mental mind, just a moment ago when I was asking that question,
how many of you raised your hand if you had maternal affection as one of the qualities on your list?
Probably none of us, right?
No one probably thought a minute ago, you know, when I think of someone I want discipling me and pastoring my church,
my first thought is that they look like a mom nursing her baby.
And yet that's what Paul describes his ministry as, isn't it?
It's quite amazing.
What he describes here, it seems to us more like weakness than strength.
These qualities even almost seem contradictory to some of the other things that have been displayed in his demonstration of ministry in the letter.
Things like the boldness and the courage.
And as we continue on in chapter 2 in a couple of weeks, we're seeing exhortation and discipline and all of these things.
We think this almost seems backward.
Almost seems like it doesn't fit.
But I think not only are the qualities in verses 7 and 8 consistent with a right understanding of the other traits,
I want to suggest actually that what's listed for us in verses 7 and 8 are the virtues that get to the very heart of what faithful gospel ministry is.
Each of them is modeled perfectly and instructed explicitly by the Lord Jesus.
And I don't want them to be missing in my ministry.
I don't want them to be missing in our ministry to one another as a congregation that endeavors to disciple one another to be faithful to Jesus Christ.
There's three of them here that I want to bring to your attention.
First, I want you to see gospel ministry should be gentle.
Gospel ministry should be gentle.
Again, verse 7, we were gentle among you.
Like a nursing mother taking care of her own children.
Of course, gentleness in this verse, it's contrasting with the negative features of unfaithful ministry that are listed in verses 5 and 6.
Particularly the last one.
Let's just read them together.
Look at verse 5.
Paul says,
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, whether from you or from others.
Though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ.
That's the context with which he is now using this transitional word in verse 7.
But that's referring back to something else.
It's a negative and positive, right?
The negative is, this is how we did not come to you.
The positive is, but we were gentle among you, like a mother nursing her own children.
Now, when we get to that last phrase in verse 6, Paul says,
We could have made demands as apostles of Christ.
But he's not saying that he had the right to kind of throw around his apostolic weight and just simply chose not to do that.
That's not what he means.
He doesn't mean that it would have been permissible for him to minister in that way,
and he just felt like being a nicer guy at the time that he was in Thessalonica.
That's not what he means.
He meant that his unique authority as an apostle of Christ made it possible for him to justify spiritual abuse
and lord over people in a demanding way.
But that's not the way that he did it.
He's essentially saying, look, I could have come in and I could have said, look, Christ called me to this.
He personally commissioned me to do this.
Now, you listen to what I say and you do what I tell you to do.
He says, I didn't come in like that.
I didn't minister to you like that.
Instead, he was marked by the gentleness of a nursing mom.
Now, I've watched my wife live this out, this illustration, with our three girls.
Charlie's seven months.
She's about to be eight months old now.
And there's still nights when she gets up.
Last night, it wasn't too bad.
It was about five o'clock and it was about time to get up anyways.
And so it worked out.
But there's still nights where she just decides, you know, two o'clock in the morning,
I think I'm just going to start screaming my head off.
And she does that.
And, you know, to this point, after eight months,
I've never one time rolled over and looked at Julie and heard her say,
you know what, this time, Jared, I'm going to teach this little brat a lesson.
She hasn't done it yet.
Why?
Because she's gentle with her.
I've watched her countless times, actually, approach our girls,
even in moments of correction, when she needs to discipline them
and she needs to correct them and she needs to steer them in a different way
based on the decisions that they've made.
I've watched her countless occasions do that,
clothed in the kind of gentleness that seeks to nurture them,
not to beat them down.
And that's how Paul describes his demeanor toward the Thessalonian Christians.
And it should describe the demeanor that we have toward one another
and toward the lost world around us.
Jesus is the perfect example of it.
In fact, Jesus even describes himself this way in Matthew 11.
Remember, when he invited people to come to him, what he said,
he said,
take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am gentle and lowly in heart.
Meekness.
And he says,
if you will do that,
what you'll find from me is rest for your soul.
Rest for your soul.
Now, you can't come to Jesus
without acknowledging the correction
and the discipline of Jesus for your sin.
And yet, the thing that he says is that he's gentle
and that when you come,
even despite the correction and the discipline
and the acknowledgement of our sin
and the reality of judgment,
what you find is rest.
Why?
Because he's gentle and lowly.
It's who he is.
Gentleness is a virtue that God supplies
as we walk in the Spirit.
We get that from Galatians chapter 5
and that famous passage about the fruits of the Spirit.
We're told very explicitly,
the fruit of the Spirit,
the things that God does in us
through the sanctifying work in his Spirit.
These are the things that he supplies to us.
And one of them right in the middle is gentleness.
So then we would understand that text to mean
that as we are faithfully walking in step with the Spirit,
what will be the natural byproduct of that
because of his gracious work in us
is a demeanor of gentleness toward other people.
Gentleness is required of those who serve as elders in the church.
We can go to different places for this.
I want to look at 2 Timothy chapter 2 verses 24 through 26.
It's on the screen.
You can turn there if you'd like.
This is not the qualifications for a pastor.
That's 1 Timothy chapter 3.
In 2 Timothy chapter 2,
Paul is instructing Timothy on how to deal with false teachers
in the church, false doctrine in the church.
And listen to what he says.
He says,
The Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome,
but kind.
Kind to everyone.
Able to teach.
Patiently enduring evil.
That's perseverance.
And then notice this.
Correcting his opponents with gentleness.
And here's what Paul says will happen,
what might happen by God's grace,
when the elders of the church serve the church,
even in correction with gentleness.
He says,
God may perhaps grant them repentance,
leading to a knowledge of the truth,
and they may come to their senses
and escape the snare of the devil
after being captured by him to do his will.
Not only is it a qualification for elders,
but it's actually necessary for effective gospel ministry.
You've heard people say,
it's not always what you say,
it's how you say it.
Well, sometimes it's what you say
when it comes to the gospel.
Sometimes we don't even really get a chance
for people to hear us
because they can't get past the way that we're saying it.
And Paul says,
No, the Lord's servant shouldn't be that way.
Correct with gentleness.
Gentleness is an essential characteristic of a congregation.
That is unified in the gospel
and pursuing the work of Christ
through mutual discipling.
We studied this a few months ago
in Ephesians chapter four,
the first three verses.
Paul says,
I therefore urge you to walk in a manner
worthy of the calling to which you have been called.
And if you remember back to that study,
what is that calling?
It is the calling of Christ in the gospel
that's related to our adoption into God's family.
So basically the name to which we have been called
to serve and to take on
that has been given to us by God
is God's name,
that we belong to him.
And Paul says,
I want you to walk in a manner
that is worthy of that calling.
And how does he say we are to do that?
With all humility and gentleness.
This is the context of our relationship to one another.
That as we are serving together,
as we are doing life together
in the context of a covenant in this local church,
that the disposition with which we have toward one another
in those discipling relationships
is characterized by gentleness and humility,
bearing with one another in love,
patience, eager to maintain the unity
of the spirit in the bond of peace.
Gentleness is essential to that.
Now some clarifications are necessary, aren't they?
To be gentle doesn't mean
that you avoid telling people the truth
about sin and judgment.
That's not what gentleness means.
Gentleness doesn't forsake correction and discipline.
We just quoted several verses
where gentleness was paired with correction and discipline.
Gentleness doesn't neglect confrontation.
However, gentleness is the spirit-enabled,
Christ-mimicking, God-glorifying virtue
with which all of our discipling efforts
are to be carried out.
Whether that be in making disciples
through personal evangelism
or helping other Christians
who have already come to Christ
grow more faithful to Christ,
our efforts are to be clothed with gentleness.
Our demeanor, even in the most solemn moments of ministry,
should be like a nursing mother
tending to her child.
Galatians 6.
Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression,
this is church discipline here.
You who are spiritual
should restore him in a spirit of gentleness,
meekness.
Now, I want you to think about that.
What's the instruction?
Church discipline.
What is church discipline?
Well, when it's carried out to the fullest extent,
it includes a congregation
coming around someone
who is refusing to repent of sin
and is dishonoring the name of Christ
and showing that they may not even be a true Christian.
And the congregation is saying,
we must exercise discipline here
as far as your membership is concerned in our church.
And yet, Paul says here in Galatians 6
that even when it comes to that,
that a spirit of gentleness
should pervade that process.
That the goal there
is not to hopefully rid ourselves
of a pain in the neck,
but the goal is to restore them
to faithfulness to Christ,
and that is to be done
through gentleness.
Now,
why don't we prize gentleness
the way that God does?
Why is it that
harshness
can sometimes be the thing
that brings us
delight?
Why is it that
when we're thinking about that person
that really just grades on our nerves
and
we never fantasize about
having an opportunity
when they
sin against us
or do something really annoying against us.
We never fantasize about
how we can show them love
in that moment,
do we?
What do we do?
We drive down the road
and this person pops in our mind
and we think,
you know,
I would just love one day
for them to say this to me
because I'd love to say this back
in response.
Harshness.
Why do we do that?
Why do we value that
over the gentleness
that God prizes
in the scriptures?
And there's only one answer for that.
It's indwelling sin.
God calls us to gentleness.
Not only should we expect
that of those who are in leadership,
but we should seek
to pursue it personally
in the way that we interact
with one another
and the way that we interact
with the world around us.
Gospel ministry
should be gentle.
Number two,
gospel ministry
should be
affectionate.
Affectionate.
Look again at verse eight,
just the first phrase
and then the last phrase.
So being affectionately
desirous of you
and then look at the last phrase,
because you had become
very dear to us.
affection,
love,
care.
What is it that drives
a mother to care
for her child?
Love.
What drove Paul
to faithfully minister
to the Thessalonians?
Love.
Your gospel ministry
to the world
and your gospel ministry
to one another
in discipleship
will be carried out
in direct proportion
to your love
for others.
I've heard Alistair Begg
say so many times
to his church in Cleveland
and listening to his preaching,
he'll say something
to this effect,
however,
I do or do not meet
the many expectations
that you may have
for me as a pastor.
You'll know
that I've stopped
loving you
the way that I should
when I cease
to preach to you
the gospel of Jesus.
And I think there's
something significantly
true about that statement.
We minister the gospel
to those we love best.
Why?
Because we recognize
that the relationship
with Christ
is the supreme need
of their life.
That greater than anything
else that they need,
greater than any other longing
that they have.
What they need is Jesus.
What they need is
reconciliation with God
through the cross of Christ.
And those whom we love most
are those whom we're
most willing
to care for in that way.
Why did Paul preach
this gospel there?
Why did he do it
in the midst of so much conflict?
He says here,
because we love you.
But from where
does this kind of
affection arise?
You see,
this is the hard question,
isn't it?
Because it's not like
we can just flip a switch
in our hearts
and suddenly
we just like people.
It doesn't work that way.
We should work that way.
It doesn't work that way,
does it?
Some of you might actually
really be struggling
with this particular thing.
You find it difficult
to feel affection
for the people
that God has put
in your life.
Maybe in relationship
to your family.
Maybe you just have
family members
who just like you,
you just struggle
with them so much
and especially
when it comes to
talking about Jesus
and talking about the gospel
and things like that
and it's just,
it's becoming more
and more difficult
for you to feel
any kind of affection
for them.
Maybe it's for coworkers
or for other relationships
that you have.
Let's be honest,
there's probably
some people here
or people that are
connected to our church
at some point
that your struggle
in discipling
in this congregation
is a struggle
of affection
for people
that you feel like
are difficult
for you to even
get along with.
So how can we do this?
Like how can we just
love people
like Paul loves people?
Well if you were
at Laurel last night
I touched on this
to some extent.
Paul's love
for the Thessalonians
wasn't based
on who they were.
It wasn't based
on their ethnicity.
It wasn't based
on gender.
It wasn't based
on what they could
do for him.
It wasn't based
on personality.
It wasn't based
on anything about them.
It was based
on Christ's love.
And we get that
from 2 Corinthians
chapter 5
when Paul says
the love of Christ
controls us.
The older translations
say constrains us.
It grips me.
Paul says
as I think about Christ
as I think about the cross
as I think about his love
it compels me.
It grips my life
so that everything
that I now do
it seems to be
an overflow
of what I've seen
to be true
in the Lord Jesus.
It was the love
of Christ
on the cross
that compelled him
to love others.
Indeed the more
we gaze at Christ
and his cross
the more we
will be compelled
by his love
to display
his love
to other people.
And by the way
this is exactly
what he taught us.
John chapter 13
you know the passage well.
Speaking to his disciples
Jesus says
a new commandment
I give to you
that you love
one another
just as I have loved you.
He is the example.
In other words
he is saying
if you are trying
to figure out
Simon the zealot
who is one of the disciples
with Matthew the tax collector
who were mortal enemies
if you guys are trying
to figure out
how to love one another
just stop looking
at each other
for a minute
and just look at me.
He says
the way that I
have loved you
that is how you need
to love one another.
And then he makes
this really
really bold statement
Jesus says
this is the way
that the world
will know
that you are
my disciples.
This is the way
that they will know
that you belong to me
is when you love
one another.
That's amazing
isn't it?
Jesus says
your love
isn't to be based
on what you think
about each other
your love is to be based
on what you think
about me
and what I think
about you.
Loved ones.
I implore you
be so immersed
in Christ's love
and in the gospel
that you cannot help
but look at one another
and say
you are so very dear
to me
I love you.
Gospel ministry
should be affectionate.
Thirdly
gospel ministry
should be self-sacrificing.
self-sacrificing.
Self-sacrificing.
Look again
at the middle portion
of verse 8.
We were ready
to share with you
not only the gospel
of God
but also
our own
selves.
Our own selves.
John Piper
called this
mutual
soul sharing.
Mutual soul sharing.
And it is the
essence
of congregational
life
as it's described
in the New Testament.
All those
one another commands
that we
see in the Bible.
There is a
depth
of
relational
commitment
that is implicit
in the scriptures
and explicit
in the scriptures.
It has to do
with the teaching
about the church
that
few people
seem ready
to acknowledge
or pursue.
I read this
great statement
recently.
I think it was
Matt Smathers
that said it
that the church
is where
quote
it's none of
your business
goes to die.
There is this
relational
commitment
that is implicit
and explicit
in the scriptures
teaching about
the nature
of the church
that involves
this intentional
affectionate
gentle
self
sacrificing
relational
commitment
to the people
that you have
chosen to covenant
with
as a local
church.
But it is
this self
sacrificing
commitment
like that
of a nursing
mother
Paul underscores
as the
central
to his gospel
ministry here.
Now it's
important to
note that
Paul wasn't
adding something
to suggest
that gospel
proclamation
is in and of
itself
insufficient.
That's not
what he's
saying.
He's not
saying that
on one hand
we have this
piece of our
ministry that
involves gospel
proclamation
and then on
the other hand
we have this
kind of relational
thing where we
just like to
really love on
people and
we're hoping
that between
those two
things God
might use it.
No it's
the gospel
is the power
of God
unto salvation
for all
who believe.
We know
that.
Paul believed
that.
What he means
here is he's
saying that
the way
that we
shared the
gospel of
God with
you was
this way.
He's
emphasizing that
his ministry
to them
wasn't cold
or distant.
It was
actually up
close.
It was
warm.
It was
self-sacrificing
soul care.
In other
words self-sacrifice
is the
manner with
which he
shared the
gospel with
them.
That's the
way he
shared the
gospel.
By giving
of his
own self
to these
people in
Thessalonica.
And we
see it all
through what
we've studied
so far in
the letter.
He sacrificed
his time
and his
privacy
living and
ministering
quote among
them.
We see it in
chapter 1
and verse 5.
Our gospel
came to you
not only in
word but in
the power of
the spirit
with full
conviction.
You know
what kind
of men we
proved to
be among
you for
your sake.
In other
words we
lived and
ministered.
We were
with you.
We were
with you.
And we
were with
you in
such a
way that
you could
truly observe
our lives
and you
know us.
You know
about the
nature of
our ministry.
And then he
says that
again here
in verse
7.
We were
gentle among
you in the
midst of you.
sacrificing his
time.
Sacrificing his
privacy in
order that he
might share the
gospel with
them and
encourage them
in the truth
of the gospel
even after they
came to
faith.
He sacrificed
his energy.
If you follow
along in
verse 9
you'll see
that he
reminds them
that he
worked night
and day
as a tent
maker to
finance his
ministry so
as not to be
a burden to
the people
or cast
doubt on
the genuineness
of his
ministry.
Sacrificed
time.
Sacrificed
privacy.
He
sacrificed
energy.
He didn't
just give
them a
sermon.
He gave
them all
of himself
in order
that he
might build
them up
in Christ.
As we
study the
rest of
the New
Testament
we find
that the
Thessalonians
imitated
him.
we see
that because
of the way
that they
lived out
their own
Christian
faith.
In 2
Corinthians
chapter 8
Paul reflects
on the
Macedonian
churches
and their
generosity.
He says
for they
gave according
to their
means and
as I can
testify and
beyond their
means of
their own
accord.
They were
begging us
earnestly for
the favor of
taking part in
the relief of
the saints.
And this
not as we
expected but
they gave
themselves
first to
the Lord
and then
by the
will of
God they
gave of
themselves
to us.
Do you
see?
Paul comes
in mimicking
Jesus and
he gives all
of himself to
these people
in Thessalonica
and that
catches fire in
Thessalonica
through the
power of the
gospel so
that the
Thessalonicans
then turn
around these
Christians and
they begin to
give of
themselves to
people who are
in ministry
giving of
themselves to
those who are
struggling in
other places in
their generosity.
This isn't only
to be true of
elders in the
church.
This must be
true of all
of us.
This giving of
ourselves to
one another.
This is the
essence of
congregational
life in the
Bible.
We all expect
people to be
willing to
sacrifice.
to meet our
needs to some
extent.
How many of
us are willing
to sacrifice for
the spiritual
benefit of
others?
Now I know
you well enough
to know that
many of you
are very
willing.
You're prepared.
You want to
do this.
This is not a
correction this
morning.
It's just an
edification.
But it's worth
the analysis,
isn't it?
Are you willing
to sacrifice
some time to
help someone
else know and
follow Jesus?
Whether that's
in an evangelistic
way,
intentionally
developing a
relationship with
an unbeliever,
in order that you
might be able to
more faithfully
share the gospel
with them,
see them come to
Christ?
Are you willing
to sacrifice some
time just to
kind of put your
arm around that
other lady in our
church that may be
a struggler,
maybe seems to be
drifting and just
say, hey, can we
just spend some
time together?
Love on them,
encourage them,
maybe correct them
with gentleness if
that's what's
necessary.
What about this?
Are you willing to
sacrifice your pride
when you're the one
that that other
person in the church
is coming and
kind of putting
their arm around
and saying, hey,
why don't we go
to coffee this
week?
Are you willing to
sacrifice your time
for correction when
you're the one that
needs to receive it?
It's part of this.
It's this vulnerability.
It's this affection.
It's this self-sacrifice
for the good of others
and for the glory of
Christ in our lives.
Are you willing to
lay aside things that
you care about if it
means being faithful
to worship on Sunday?
I mean, of course you
are.
Look at you.
You're here.
Are you willing to
sacrifice things that
you care about in
order to share the
gospel?
Are you willing to
sacrifice things that
you really care about
to fund a mission
work or encourage a
struggling Christian?
This is the kind of
virtue that we should
pursue because it's
exactly the virtue that
Jesus modeled for us.
It's this humility that
Shane mentioned in the
Sunday school class this
morning.
Humility towards others.
Isn't that what we find
in Philippians 2?
Paul says, let each one
of you look not only on
his own interest.
Oh, it's so easy to do
that, isn't it?
That's kind of our default
setting, right?
We're just constantly,
we've got like tunnel
vision.
It's not always that we're
trying to ignore other
people.
It's just we've got tunnel
vision.
Like this is all the
things that I've got
going on in my life.
These are all the needs
that I have, that I need
to be met.
These are all the interests
that I have in order for
my life to work and for
my growth to work out just
the way that I want it
to.
And we start to, maybe
even inadvertently, stop
to think, start, stop
thinking about other
people around us.
And Paul says, let each
of you not only think
of his own interest, but
on the interest of
others.
Have this mind among
yourselves, and here it
is, which was in Christ
Jesus.
How did Jesus display
this?
In his humiliation, in his
condescension, who though
being in the form of God
did not count equality with
God a thing to be grasped.
That is the benefits of
being with the Father in
heaven, the benefits of
being the second person of
the divine Godhead.
They were not so much him
that he was unwilling to
put those things aside in
order to condescend to us
and become a man in order
to save our souls.
That's what Paul says.
He's in the form of God.
He didn't count equality
with God a thing to be
grasped to hold on to at
all costs, but he emptied
himself by taking the form
of a servant, being born in
the likeness of men, and
being found in human form.
He humbled himself and
became obedient to the
point of death, even death
on a cross.
This is the model that
Christ has given us.
Self-sacrifice for the
good of others.
Now these are not the only
ways to describe faithful
gospel ministry, but I do
think it's true that we
cannot call our ministry
faithful without these three
virtues.
It's not the only thing.
There's more.
But we can't take these
things away and then still
consider ourselves to be
faithful in the ministries
that God has given us.
As we've seen, the key to
embracing and possessing
them is to know and believe
and meditate on the gospel
of Jesus.
We talk about this all the
time that we preach the
gospel to ourselves every
day.
We live in light of the
gospel in every moment.
Because the more we gaze at
Jesus, the more the spirit
works in us to fashion us
into his likeness.
And if we are becoming like
Jesus as his people, our
lives will inevitably be
marked by gentleness,
affection, self-sacrifice.