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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that He has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.
1 Thessalonians 1:4-5a
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
All Christian believers are called to share the Gospel and help make disciples of Jesus.
We know this because of this very command given by our Savior:
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20
Jesus had absolute authority over all creation when He gave this order to carry on the work that He began and note that He is always with us so we are accountable to Him for what we do and don’t do.
I don’t know about you but I wouldn’t want to let Christ down after all He did to save me.
And so, we are to go and make disciples, ensuring they are baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and The Holy Spirit while teaching them to obey everything that Jesus commanded but as we see in today’s passage from 1 Thessalonians 1, there are some important components that need to be present as we carry out Jesus’ demand for evangelism. Look again at these words here:
For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that He has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. Vv. 4-5a
First of all, note that those we bring the Gospel to are chosen by God for salvation. He so loved everyone that He surrendered and sacrificed His one and only Son Jesus so that whoever believes in Him would not perish but rather gain eternal life (John 3:16).
Paul reminds his Thessalonian brothers and sisters in Christ that they had been chosen by God the Father to receive the Gospel about Jesus, His Son, a Gospel delivered by Paul and his fellow missionaries. That Gospel wasn’t just a collection of mere words but rather there were three critical elements in play that ensured proper delivery of God’s message of salvation through Christ. These elements included:
1. Power.
When Jesus introduced the Gospel through Himself, you may recall how people marveled over the authority by which He spoke. That’s because there was a special, divine power within the words that He spoke, a power from God Himself. That same power that was in Jesus comes to dwell in us as well when we share the Gospel with others. Paul affirmed as much when he wrote this in the first chapter of his letter to the Romans:
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile (v.16).
2. The Holy Spirit
Jesus knew He would be crucified, resurrected, and then brought back to Heaven where He would sit in authority over all creation at His Father’s right hand. And so He wanted His disciples to know that they would not be abandoned after He departed for God would send someone who would walk alongside them in life to lead and guide them to His purposes. Here’s what Jesus said in the Gospel of John, the sixteenth chapter:
“...very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. When He comes, He will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in Me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see Me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.”
“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears, and He will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify Me because it is from Me that He will receive what He will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from Me what He will make known to you.” Vv.7-15
As we carry out the Great Commission, Jesus is with us through the end of the age via the Holy Spirit through which He leads and guides us in our Gospel-sharing work. It’s a wonderful comfort and assurance for us when sometimes we feel ill equipped to carry out the salvation work we are called to do.
The bottom line is that Jesus is always with us, no matter what we are called to do as Christians. The scriptures which are grounded in absolute truth assure us of this and so we can go forth to share the Gospel with this third and final important element.
3. Deep conviction.
At its core definition, a conviction is simply a firmly held belief. In other words, when we are going forth to share the Gospel, it is because we firmly believe that the salvation we are talking about through belief in Jesus is true.
It’s true, right?
No one is going to buy into God’s offer of salvation if we present it with unsurety, showing uncertainty and insecurity over what we’re saying. After all, if we don’t really believe it, why would someone else?
This is where the power of God within the Gospel message, the leading of Jesus through the Holy Spirit, and the complete inerrancy of the scriptures are so important for we are sharing the opportunity of salvation for others with full holy support, a support that provides us with the bold confidence to go forth and carry out our calling.
Thanks be to God for the way He equips us to help others get saved.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com
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