Living in the Fast Lane - 2022-09-04

“Living in the Fast Lane”

1 Thessalonians 3:1-10

Message #7 in 1 Thess. Series

McEwen Bible Fellowship

4 September 2022

INTRODUCTION:

If I say to you that I have been “living in the fast lane,” what does that mean to you?

·        Perhaps that I am living a wild, sensual, profligate, ungoverned life?

·        Or that I am staying super busy, trying to get lots of work done?

·        Or maybe that I am doing fun, exciting things every day? 

Many people spend their lives looking for the illusive “fast lane.” They are convinced that if they can just find that fast lane then their lives will be much more exciting and meaningful. But sadly, they invariably look in all the wrong places. They look for life in places where only death can be found. They explore sex and one-night stands; they experiment with alcohol and drugs; they try bungee-jumping and other thrill rides; they delve into eastern religions, occultism, and philosophy; they immerse themselves in business and activities. They are looking for real life but never finding it. 

The problem is that real life is not found in worldly activities or excitement. It is found only in Christ, and in a close relationship with Him. It is found in knowing Him and loving Him and serving Him and doing His will and hanging out with His people.

In our text for today the Apostle Paul tells us what “real living” means to him. He shares with us what “living in the fast lane” means to him. Let’s read 1 Thessalonians 3:1-10. 

TRANSITION:

¹ So, when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens.  ² We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God’s fellow worker in spreading the Gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, ³ so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them.  ⁴ In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know.  ⁵ For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless.  ⁶ But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.  ⁷ Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith.  ⁸ For now we really live since you are standing firm in the Lord.  ⁹ How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?  ¹⁰ Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith. 

MAIN BODY:

Verse 1: So, when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens.

·        Here Paul uses the literary plural “we,” but he is talking about himself. To see these events, we must turn back to Acts 17. Look at verses 10-15 of that passage: “The brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. ¹¹ Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessaloniki, for they received the Word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. ¹² Therefore many of them believed, along with a number of prominent Greek women and men. ¹³ But when the Jews of Thessaloniki found out that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul in Berea also, they came there as well, agitating and stirring up the crowds. ¹⁴ Then immediately the brethren sent Paul out to go as far as the sea; and Silas and Timothy remained there. ¹⁵ Now those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left.”

·        So, we learn that after Paul and his team were chased out of Thessaloniki they pressed on to Berea where their reception was altogether different. They stayed on there for a while, teaching and encouraging the new converts. But verse 13 says that some of the Jewish leaders in Thessaloniki learned that they were in Berea and went there to stir up trouble for them just like they had done in Philippi and Thessaloniki. Paul had to be escorted out of Berea and was accompanied to Athens. But verse 14 says that Silas and Timothy stayed on in Berea with orders for one or both to make their way back to Thessaloniki as soon as possible. That is what Paul is referring to here in the next verses.

Verses 2-3: We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God’s fellow worker in spreading the Gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, ³ so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them.

·        “…so that no one would be unsettled by these trials.” This word, “unsettled” in the NIV is an interesting word. In Greek it literally means “to wag the tail.” It is the picture of a dog that wags his tail to get you to lower your defences and feed him or pet him. It is also the word for beguile or flatter. It is translated in the KJV, “moved.” In the NASV it is “disturbed.” Paul is referring to what sometimes happens when Christians go through tribulations or times of persecution. They are tempted [flattered, beguiled] to abandon the Lord and the faith, thinking that the trials are not worth the payoff. So, Paul reminds them here that suffering, and trials are part of the normal Christian life. They should not come as a shock to us.

·        “…we were destined for them” – Paul, who had already suffered more than his share, here groups himself with the suffering believers in Thessaloniki. 

Verse 4: In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know.

·        Paul reminds them that he and the other fellows had told the Thessalonian believers repeatedly (he uses the perfect aorist tense = “we used to tell you”) that they needed to be ready to face tribulations and trials. Hence, suffering should not have caught them by surprise. They were given fair warning after all.

Verse 5: For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter [Satan = “the adversary”] might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless.

·        Paul was concerned that they might have given in to Satan’s beguiling temptation to abandon the faith, and that they might have gone back on their baptismal vows to follow the Lord no matter the cost.

·        You remember that Satan tried to use Christ’s physical suffering in the wilderness to defeat Him spiritually (Matthew 4:3), and he did the same to the Thessalonians. Moreover, he will try it with you and me as well. We are often at our most vulnerable to his attacks when we are sick, or in pain, or discouraged.

Verse 6: But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.

·        We must tie this verse to Acts 18:5, which says, “But when Silas and Timothy came down [to Corinth] from Macedonia, Paul began devoting himself completely to the Word, solemnly testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.” After Paul ministered in Athens for a while he moved over to Corinth where he was living when Timothy and Silas found him. Timothy and Silas’s return and their positive report about events in Macedonia eased Paul’s troubled mind at last. A big burden was lifted off his shoulders.

·        Timothy reported that the Thessalonians, despite the persecution, were continuing to demonstrate faith toward God and love both toward one another as well as toward those who mistreated them. Even though they were new converts they were genuine Christians, filled with the fruit of the Spirit. There is no other explanation for the way they were holding up under such trials as they had known from the very beginning days of the Thessalonian church.

·        “…Timothy…has brought good news about your faith and love” – Paul uses the Greek word euangelidzo, meaning “to evangelize” and suggests that Timothy’s report was virtually a “gospel, an evangel” to his troubled and anxious mind.

o   Their FAITH was firm – this had been Paul’s main concern. He mentions this 3 times, in verses 5, 6, and 7.

o   Their LOVE was constant – even despite the trials and persecution, which could have easily frayed the edges of their sunny dispositions. Many of us get grouchy when we are worried, or hurting, or downhearted. We sometimes take things out on other people or even blame God.

o   Their REMEMBRANCE (recollection) of Paul and his colleagues was always good – despite the reproach and persecution that the evangelists’ visit had caused. They carried no grudge against Paul and his team. 

Verse 7: Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith.

·        What does Paul mean by, “…in all our distress and persecution”? He uses two strong words here. The first is anagké, indicating “a necessity imposed by external circumstances.” I think he is referring to the fact that he was broke and hungry much of the time. The second strong word he uses is thlípsis, meaning “a choking pressure.” By his use of this word, I think Paul is referring to the opposition he faced from the Jews and the Corinthians, and the apathetic indifference of the Athenians. Since Paul’s separation from the Thessalonians his own lot had not been a happy one, even while he awaited news from Macedonia. Persecution at Philippi, Thessaloniki, and Berea was followed by loneliness and indifferent response at Athens (cf. 3:1; Acts 17:32-34). Such determined opposition so plagued him at Corinth that he needed to be divinely reassured Luke tells us in Acts 18:9-10, “And the Lord said to Paul in the night by a vision, ‘Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent; ¹⁰ for I am with you, and no man will attack you in order to harm you, for I have many people in this city [i.e., in Corinth].’” No wonder Paul speaks of personally experiencing distress and persecution.

·        This is also a perfect example of what Paul is saying in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7.  “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, ⁴ who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. ⁵ For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. ⁶ If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. ⁷ And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.”

Verses 8: For now, we really live since you are standing firm in the Lord. 

·        “…for now, we really live” – For most of us, Paul’s life looks like an exciting story. Most people’s daily lives are humdrum, but not Paul’s. He was always into something exciting. But his point here is that “real living” to him is defined as knowing that his children in the faith are continuing to walk faithfully with God, “standing firm in the Lord,” despite all their problems and troubles. Paul would say, “Now that is really living!” For Paul, that was living in the fast lane. 

Verse 9: How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? 

·        This is a convoluted and confusing way to say that Paul was filled with joy and gratefulness to God because of the news he heard from Timothy about the steadfastness of the Thessalonian Christians.

·        Paul took no credit for the strength or growth of the church. It was God who gave the growth. He is not boastful here, just thankful.

Verse 10: Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith. 

·        “…and to supply what is lacking in your faith.” Here Paul is not slamming their faith. It is just his way of saying that he looks forward to being with them again soon so that he can continue instructing them in the things of God so that their faith will be strengthened even more.

·        There is another lesson here too. We often think that when we are separated from the people that we love there is nothing that we can do to help them. But there is…we can pray for them. Paul prayed faithfully, fervently, and often for the Thessalonian believers, even though he was physically far removed from them. Yet his prayers reached across the miles and helped support and sustain those beloved young believers. Like James says in James 5:16, “The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.”

CONCLUSION:

This is an intimate portion of Scripture. It clearly reveals that Paul was not the cerebral, unfeeling theologian that some people try to make him out to be. He was intelligent – yes. He was an incredible theologian – without a doubt. He was a hard-driving, dedicated, type-A personality sort of guy – for sure. But he was also a tender father-figure, a friend, a mentor, and a prayer-partner. He cared about people. He did not let programs get in the way of ministering to people’s needs. He was a man of prayer. He believed in the power of prayer. He was humble and took no credit for himself. He gave credit to others every chance he got. 

Another truth that stands out to me from these verses concerns the craftiness of our enemy, the devil. He knows how to attack us at our lowest hour in our weakest spot. We need to ever be on the alert and aware of his tactics. This passage also reminds me that we need to entrust people to the care and keeping of the Holy Spirit. He who began a good work in the Thessalonians was also the One who carried them on to spiritual maturity, even though Paul was absent from them. Through Paul’s prayers God was active across all those miles. Through our prayers we can effect change around the world.