Transcript

Along the northern California coast, you will find the world’s tallest and most majestic tree: The Redwood. These trees are known for their enormous height and beauty as they tower up to 350 feet high.

The secret to the strength of this giant tree can be traced to its extensive root system. Now one would think that trees so large must have roots that reach down hundreds of feet into the earth, but the Redwood’s root system is surprisingly shallow.

Buried no deeper than 6 to 10 feet below these skyscrapers, you will find a convoluted network that travels for miles beyond each individual tree to intertwine with other trees around it into a sophisticated root system.

With a lifespan of nearly 2000 years and each tree weighing nearly 500 tons, the longevity of this kingly tree is a direct result of the tapestry of interwoven roots that connect with other Redwoods. So when the storms come and the winds blow, the redwoods still stand.

They stand because they are not alone. The trees are locked to each other. All the trees support and protect each other and hold each other up. They survive, not independently, but collectively.

The interdependence of these trees is a beautiful picture of the local church and how Christ has created it to be and to function. The Apostle Paul stated we are members of one body and members one of another.

Our ability to stand and grow in the Christian life is often because of the support and strength of others in the church who help us and hold us up. Each of us needs the support of fellow believers in the church. And we draw strength from the faith of others.

Like the redwoods are able to stand together, Paul’s epistles speak of the need of the church to be “striving TOGETHER for the faith of the gospel” (Phil. 1:27), to be “knit TOGETHER in love” (Col. 2:2), and to be “laborers TOGETHER with God” (1 Cor. 3:9).

And here in 2 Thessalonians, we find a group of people that labored and grew together and loved and supported one another, as a local church is called to do.

2 Thessalonians 1:1-2: “Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

In verse 1, it’s interesting to note that unlike other letters of Paul, he added nothing to his name. He doesn’t say, “Paul, called to be an apostle”; “Paul, an apostle…by the will of God”; “Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ.”

Those familiar things by which he often designated himself are omitted here.

By this, Paul is showing that his apostleship, his call, role, title, leadership and office were not in question among the Thessalonians, so he didn’t need to make any reference to it.

But Paul’s apostleship is constantly in question today, despite his words in Romans 11:13: “For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office.”

Paul is the apostle of the nations, the Gentiles. Paul, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, magnified his office. We are to do the same. We don’t magnify Paul, we magnify his office. Paul was called by the will of God as an apostle for this dispensation of grace.

He was called to be an apostle for Christ to reveal to him the revelation of the mystery, the body of truth for this age, and for God to reveal His Son in him according to Christ’s heavenly ministry today.

Paul was not called to be an apostle by Christ because His program with Israel needed another apostle or a thirteenth apostle. And Paul was not supposed to be the twelfth apostle, replacing Judas. He wasn’t even saved at the time when Matthias was chosen.

Paul was later called by Christ on the Damascus Road, after God had temporarily set Israel aside in her unbelief. And Paul was raised up to be the one apostle of this dispensation of grace. And that being so, Paul is our apostle.

And Christ has revealed His will through Paul’s thirteen letters for us to know what is Christ’s mind, will, and heart for His Church, the Body of Christ, under grace.

Is there confusion about Paul’s role in your church? Perhaps your church knows Paul is our apostle, but makes no mention of it? If Paul wrote a letter to your church, how would he address it? Would he need to lay out his credentials and include his call, role, title and authority, because his place is misunderstood or in question? Or would he not have to mention it because it is understood?

That’s one reason why the Thessalonian church was a God-honoring church, because they didn’t question Paul’s place and authority, they fully understood and believed in God’s calling on his life as the one apostle of this age, as the apostle of the nations.

Paul wrote to this local body of Christ, “the church of the Thessalonians.” But what is the Church? What does the term church mean?

We find a definition of the church here in verse 1. The church is those who are “in God our Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ.”

The Church is made up of the people who have placed their faith in Christ that He died for their sins and rose again. Having trusted that gospel message we are in Christ.

We are in Christ, and Christ is in us. That is our uniqueness. That is our identity.

Having trusted Christ, we are called to a personal, perfect union with Him. We are made one with our Savior, and we are joined to Him forever.

Religions of the world don’t talk like this. You cannot find it taught that you are in Confucius, or you are in Buddha. That is not the way false religions talk. No follower of Islam is said to be in Allah. This terminology is unique to Christianity.

The gospel of grace teaches that when one places their faith in Christ, immediately there is a union of life, shared life in which we are indivisibly united with the living God and our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Each of us in the Church has this common life. The same spiritual life of Christ that is in you is in me and is in every member of the Body of Christ. Each of us is in Christ, sharing a common union of life forever.

Paul wrote in Acts 20:28 that the “church of God” has been “purchased with [Christ’s] own blood.” We are bought with the blood of Christ. The Church is the redeemed of God. We are ones who belong to Christ, completely and eternally.

The church isn’t a group you join by signing your name or by paying for it. It isn’t being a part of some kind of a club committed to a system of teaching.

We are just an assembly of people who have trusted the gospel of grace, who have been bought and paid for by Christ’s shed blood. And this has made us a called-out group to God because we are in a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Romans 8:28 reads, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”

We often focus on the first part of this well-known verse, but at the end of it, we find a wonderful definition of the Church: the called according to His purpose.

The word “church” in your Bibles in the original Greek is the word “ekklesia.” It comes from verb root, “kaleo,” which means “to call.” Ekklesia together means “a called-out assembly.” The Church is “the called according to His purpose.”

We are a group called out together by God, for His purposes, not ours. As believers in Christ, we are called out from this world; we are a called-out people who belong to God.

God has called us out of sin, out of the world, and called us unto Himself. And being called out according to His purpose, this means we are called out to know God and His Son, to worship Him, to be like Him, and to share Him with this world.

We are not a human organization. We are not the result of man’s ingenuity or man’s influence or control. The church is the work and creation of God. The called-out assembly of believers under grace is called the Church, the Body of Christ.

And this church belongs to Christ. He is its Head, Lord, and Savior. He builds it and fits it together. He gives gifts to it. He leads it. He is its wisdom, life and power. And He works through it.

Any results or spiritual accomplishments are the result of His working through His church. When we succeed, it is Him, not us. When we fail, it is us, not Him.

The purpose of the church is to let the Lord work, to let the Lord be active through us, to let Christ give life and spiritual growth to His church, and to clear a path for Him to work through our humble obedient submission to His Word and the Holy Spirit.

There was an old pastor, so old that he had been forced to retire. His voice cracked from years of preaching. He was a humble old gentleman. He was invited to a high society kind of luncheon by a friend. He really was out of his league, but he went.

There was a famous actor there, and the one who was heading up the luncheon said to that actor in the midst of all of the activities, “Would you please stand up and recite something for us?” And he said, “Of course, I have an endless repertoire. What would you like?” The old pastor unexpectedly spoke up, “How about the 23rd Psalm?”

And the actor said, “Well, that’s an unusual request, but I happen to know it, and I’ll do it on one condition: that you’ll do it after I do it.” Well, the old pastor hadn’t bargained for that, but for the sake of the Lord he said, “All right.”

The actor got up, and he recited the 23rd Psalm with great intonation and emphasis, with a beautiful, lyrical voice, and tremendous interpretation.

He finished, and everyone applauded. The old pastor stood up with a cracking voice and simply went through the 23rd Psalm in his humble way. And when he was done, there was not a dry eye in the room. Sensing the emotion of the moment, the actor stood and said, “I think I understand the difference in your response to me and to him.

“You clapped for me; you wept for him. The difference is: I know the Psalm, but he knows the Shepherd.”

As we are the called according to God’s purpose, it is God’s purpose that the church be a group of people who know the Shepherd, who know their Lord, Savior, and living Head.

Romans 8:29 shows that God’s purpose for us is that we “be conformed to the image of His Son.” We’re called to Christ-likeness. But to be like Him, we must know Him. And as Paul wrote in Philippians 3:10, “That I may know Him,” is the goal of the Church.

We are called to know and be like God’s Son. We press toward that mark in our Christian lives. Through spiritual growth, it is God’s purpose to “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus,” and to live by His humble, obedient, selfless mind.

God’s purpose for the church is also that we willingly submit and place ourselves under the authority of God’s Word, rightly divided.

We are a people under authority. We don’t chart our own course. We don’t dream up our own destiny. The Word is the focus, the foundation, the first and final authority of everything we do within the Church and as the Church. We are to allow the Word to lead, guide, and direct us. We are called to live by faith in the Word.

And as the Church is the called according to His purpose and His will as revealed in His Word, we find in God’s Word that it is God’s will and desire that “all men…be saved, and…come unto the knowledge of the truth.” And that purpose is to be at the center and core of all we do as the Church.

2 Thessalonians 1:3-4: “We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth.”

“So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure.”

Paul wrote, “We are bound to thank God always for you.” Being “bound” meant that Paul, Silas, and Timothy were under a deep obligation. It wasn’t something they chose to do or not to do. This was something that HAD to be done.

Then Paul added, “as it is meet,” or as it is fitting. In other words, it was also the right and proper thing to do to give unceasing thanks to God for them.

He gave thanks to God for this local church because of their godly character and how they had grown spiritually through God’s life, power, and working in their lives by His grace.

Therefore, Paul, Silas, and Timothy had no choice and were obligated to give thanks to God for them.

Paul stated that this church was a church to be thankful for in verse 3. In verse 4 he stated that this was a church to glory in and be proud of.

This was written by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, so this tells us that this was a church in God’s eyes that was worthy to be thanked and gloried in. What made them this? Because that means that this is a church we should learn from and emulate.

Churches today can be touted as ones to be honored, respected, or modeled by different things. And local churches can be proud of different things.

Some are proud of their modern building, cushioned pews, or stained-glass windows. Others boast in their varied programs for all ages and needs. Some churches tout their music ministry: their pipe organ, praise team, or large choir.

There are churches who glory in their wealth, impressive numbers, or their many pastors and leaders. Other churches take pride in their ceremonies and traditions.

In the first verses of 2 Thessalonians 1, by God the Holy Spirit, Paul shows us a church that is worthy to thank God for and in which to glory. What was it that made the Thessalonian church a God-honoring assembly?

Was it their building? No, we don’t know that they had one. Was it their programs? No, they didn’t know what programs were. Was it their wealth? No, they were poor.

Was it their size? No, they were a small assembly. Was it their leaders? No, we don’t even know who they were. Was it their success in changing society? No, they were persecuted for their faith.

Without all these things by which the modern church measures success, how could this be a significant church? What was it that made Paul and his co-laborers so thankful to God for them that they boasted about this one church to other churches? 2 Thessalonians 1:3-4 reveals God’s criteria, His standards for a church that is to be gloried in and honored.

First, and most importantly, Paul says, “because that your faith groweth exceedingly.” A growing faith was a standard of God for a church that is honoring to Him.

He doesn’t say, “Because your congregation groweth exceedingly” or “Because your buildings groweth exceedingly.” He says, “We are bound, under deep obligation to be thankful to God all the time for you and it is appropriate to do so because your FAITH is greatly enlarged and is growing exceedingly.”

A church’s measure for success in ministry must be set by God’s standard. In God’s eyes, a church that honors and glorifies Him is a church where faith in Him is growing exceedingly. That’s a church to glory in and be thankful for.

Our faith increases exceedingly by growing in His Word exceedingly. Romans 10:17 reminds us, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Our faith is based on the Word of God. For faith to grow, the Word must be heard.

When God’s Word is the primary focus of a local assembly, where it is faithfully preached, taught, and applied, faith can and will grow exceedingly among its members.

Moving always closer to the Lord by growing in His Word exceedingly and by praying exceedingly, results in faith growing exceedingly.

The Thessalonians’ faith was growing beyond what Paul hoped for or ever expected. The term “groweth exceedingly” means to increase beyond measure.

After the Thessalonians trusted Christ as their Savior, their faith increased and as it did it then exploded with spiritual growth.

The Christian life begins with faith, trusting that Christ died for our sins and rose again. From that point forward, we live the same way we were saved: by grace through faith in Christ (Col. 2:6).

God wants our faith in Christ to grow exceedingly by knowing, trusting, and living out His Word. And a local church in which faith grows exceedingly is a God-honoring church.

Next, Paul also was bound to give thanks for this local church “because the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth.” Paul was thankful for their love.

In God’s eyes, a church to be thankful for that honors Him is a church where His LOVE flows unhindered through every member toward every member. Faith in Christ and love toward others should drive everything a church does.

When faith in Christ grows and love toward one another abounds, that’s a church to glory in, no matter the size of the assembly.

God never evaluates a church ever by its external features. He does not assess a church by its numbers, innovation, cleverness, artistry, political influence, programs, or anything else on the outside.

Rather it is as 1 Samuel 16:7 teaches, “for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.”

Even with the local church, man evaluates things and success by the outward appearance, but God looks at what’s going on inside the hearts of the people of each congregation.

Is there a growing faith? Are they abounding in love toward each other? Is there spiritual growth? That’s what is important to God.

It is sad that, in many churches, the people can’t wait to get away from each other, and they don’t know each other. The exit doors at a church can be a dangerous place after a service is done because you could get trampled!

By the Spirit’s fruit of love, however, verse 3 shows how our movement is to be “toward each other,” not away from each other.

The Thessalonian church deeply, sincerely cared for and looked out for one another. “Every one” of them in the church knew one another and abounded in love for each other. They were there for each other to support and build each other up.

The word “charity” in verse 3 is God’s agape love. It’s that humble, selfless love of action which sacrificially puts the needs of others before our own.

The word translated as “aboundeth” means to superabound, to increase abundantly. Many have boundaries of how far they might go to show love to someone. But our love is to be like Christ’s love: limitless, unconditional, and without partiality.

Growing in our faith and showing love is something we must do consistently and constantly until we go home. Neither faith nor love is something we fully attain or ever do enough. We must never stop growing in our faith or increasing in our love.

There is always room to grow in our faith, and there are always people who need Christ’s love. And when love abounds in a local church, it is a God-honoring church.

Awlwyn Balnave tells the following: A few years ago, an old acquaintance of mine served as a police officer in a northern native settlement in Canada. One day a rabid wolf wandered into the aboriginal settlement.

My friend eventually shot it, but not before it attacked a young man and his grandmother in their home, making kindling out of a chair the young man used to protect them from their attacker. There were about 150 sled dogs in the village—more than a match for one sick wolf—yet the intruder was left alone to do her work. Why?

My friend explained that in order to prevent the dogs from fighting and wounding each other, they had each been tied to wooden stakes spaced far enough apart to prevent them from reaching any neighboring animal.

Because of this, the wolf walked freely among the dogs, killing some and badly wounding others. In isolation they were no match for their foe, and they suffered terribly for it. It’s a picture of the need for every Christian to belong to a body of believers.

Alone and isolated, Christians present themselves as much easier prey for the schemes of the Enemy of our souls. We present a strong front against the wiles of the devil and are stronger as we stand and serve together, and support one another in the church.

Paul gloried in this church “for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure.” The church is hated by the world. Persecutions and tribulations go hand-in-hand with the church living in enemy territory and as a result of Satan warring and fighting against the church in the spiritual battle.

As a result of the Thessalonians reacting to their adversity with “patience and faith,” Paul wrote, “we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God.”

Paul here wasn’t glorying in the outward accomplishments and successes of this church, but instead what the Lord was doing in them. He gloried in the church’s exceeding faith, abounding love, and patience in trials.

As God sees, Paul saw beyond the external to the godly character and spiritual maturity that was being developed in them by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Paul gloried in their “patience,” or steadfastness and cheerful endurance. They patiently and bravely endured persecution for their faith. Their hope hadn’t died.

They were still looking ahead and looking up. They refused to bend or back down from their faith in Christ and were faithfully and boldly standing for the truth.

The Thessalonian church was a church to glory in and be thankful for. It was not the kind of church that is popular with the world or that wins the favor of the world by its glitz and size.

It was a humble church that was committed to God and to each other, who were growing in their faith in Christ, abounding in the love of Christ, and enduring the world’s persecution with courage and faithfulness to Christ.

That was a God-honoring church then, and that is a God-honoring church now.