Joy
1 Thessalonians 1v5b-7
2nd July 2021
1 Thessalonians 1v5b-7
You know how we lived among you for your sake.
You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you
welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.
All the country we know as Greece was once called the Roman province of Macedonia but in 27 BC the Emperor Augustus divided it into two provinces. The northern part of the country continued to be called Macedonia but the southern part, including the cities of Athens and Corinth, was called Achaia.
When they first came to Europe, Paul and his friends planted churches in Philippi, Thessalonica and Berea in Macedonia, and then they travelled south to preach in Athens and Corinth in Achaia. While in Corinth they wrote back to the church at Thessalonica, remembering with great fondness their time in that city, planting the church there and beginning the work of establishing it. They say, "You know how we lived among you for your sake." We'll see how they lived there in Chapter 2, but for now, Paul and his friends want to say:
1 Thessalonians 1v6a
You became imitators of us and of the Lord
It's great that the Thessalonian Christians imitated Paul, Silas and Timothy. The fact that they did so is one evidence that they were truly saved, truly Christians, truly born again. They so welcomed the Good News of Jesus that they looked for inspiration in the men who brought them the message – the Gospel.
At least to some extent, all churches imitate their leaders. So they should. That's what leadership is – or should be – about: leadership by example. To lead by example is much better than to lead by talk: "do as I say and not as I do". But some leaders set a bad example.
There's a cliché that says "You talk the talk but do you walk the walk?" Here we Christians have a dilemma. We understand, better than any non-Christian, that all humans are sinners, except Jesus. We admit we're sinners. You can't be a Christian if you don't. None of us walk the walk perfectly. But for a church leader to be a leader, there must be something, quite a lot, that's admirable, pure, loving, gentle, peaceable, righteous, in his character and in his conduct. That's why Paul says in:
1 Timothy 3:2-3
Now the overseer [or elder] is to be above reproach, the husband of but one
wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover
of money.
If a church's leaders are judgemental, or gossipy, or harsh, or narrow-minded, or willing to water down Biblical teaching, or proud, or lazy, or given to drink or bad language, or hungry for money or popularity then, at least to some extent, the church will become like that. But if our leaders are kind, diligent, sacrificial, humble, thoughtful, and faithful to the Bible and to their brothers and sisters, what a lovely church we'll become. What a burden of responsibility church leaders carry!
Pray for your leaders. You really want them to be good leaders. And if you have good leaders, then become imitators of those leaders. But exercise discernment. No leader is perfect. Imitate their good qualities, not their bad qualities.
And imitate the Lord. Jesus is perfect in everything He says and everything He does. We can't be as wonderful as Jesus, but we can try.
The apostles then say,
1 Thessalonians 1v6b
in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the
Holy Spirit.
Here's another evidence that the Thessalonians were truly born again, truly God's children. They welcomed the message – the Good News of Jesus Christ, born in human flesh, suffering on the cross for us and rising from the dead. They welcomed the message with joy.
Joy is a mark of the true Christian. Jesus loved us enough to die for us. His death pays for his sins, wipes our slates clean, makes us right with God, and guarantees us eternal life. If we've been born again, and adopted as God's children, then we can always remember these things, and know the joy of the Lord, even when suffering.
Some of us bury our joy so deep that others can't see it, even so deep that they can't feel it themselves. That's a major mistake. We can do very little to help our neighbours find Jesus for themselves if the joy of the Lord isn't shining in us. We can do very little to encourage our brothers and sisters if they can't see our joy.
And the Thessalonians welcomed the message with joy, despite their severe suffering. Only by the Holy Spirit can anybody be filled with joy while suffering. But if allow ourselves to slip into self-pity, which is understandable, we can quench the Holy Spirit, and dim the light of our joy so low that it does nobody any good, not even us. This isn't just bad for all the people we know; it's bad for us. In the midst of suffering, our joy can be the one thing that keeps us going.
I've known periods of profound, even suicidal, depression but I can testify that I never lost the joy of the Lord. I lost my joy in everything and everybody else, but I never lost my joy in God. This was by grace alone, of course; God kept me in his joy even when I was in the Priory clinic being treated for deep depression. In fact, some of the other patients questioned whether I was depressed at all. I tried to explain, but they couldn't understand how a person can be deeply depressed and joyful at the same time. I give thanks to God. I may not have survived without the joy of the Lord in those dark times.
It's often said, and perhaps cheaply said, that our joy shouldn't depend on our outward circumstances but on our relationship with God. That's not quite right. It's not like we can choose how we feel. We can "rejoice in the Lord always" (Philippians 4:4) but it's the Holy Spirit, not our own strength of will, that makes that joy a reality. It's like a lot of other things in the Christian life; only God can fix us, but we are supposed to co-operate with Him.
If you're suffering right now, whether that be physically, emotionally, relationally, financially, through persecution, neglect or cruelty, the Holy Spirit of God is with you. He will get you through this period of suffering, and it will be easier if you can hold on to your joy. All things pass. And, amazingly, even if you've lost your joy, He can bring your joy back to life, if you'll co-operate with Him.
1 Thessalonians 1v7
And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.
What a wonderful encouragement this is! The believers in Thessalonica were imitators of their leaders and of the Lord, and now they were examples to other believers. Other churches were imitating them!
That's not a bad ambition, is it? To want to become the sort of Christians, and the sort of church, that other churches want to copy. Paul says that "all the believers" in what we think of as Greece, took the church at Thessalonica as their example.
They accepted their leaders' instruction and example, they held onto their joy, even in the midst of great suffering, and churches like Berea, Athens and Corinth were inspired by their example. It's not a bad thing to want to be so obedient, so faithful, so joyful, that other Christians and other churches want to be like us.
Christian joy, in particular, is really inspiring, especially when we see it in suffering Christians. Nobody is inspired to walk with Jesus by a miserable, complaining, morose Christian. Perhaps you'd like to inspire your Christian friends to walk closer with God, to serve God more, to trust God more. Nothing will inspire them more than your joy. When people see the radiance of Christ in a Christian smile, they feel better. They want more of Christ for themselves.
Perhaps you'd like to inspire your non-Christian friends to seek Jesus for themselves. Again, nothing will motivate a desire for Jesus in them more than your joy.
I've said this before. There are people who, if you say "It's a lovely day" will reply "Yes but it'll rain tomorrow". Don't be that person. Be the person who, when somebody says "It's raining", replies, "Yes, but it might be sunny tomorrow". When people are complaining about somebody, find something good to say about that person. When things are really difficult, be empathetic; mourn with those who mourn, but also find a way to remind them that God still loves them, and things can get better.
Some of us are naturally more sanguine than others, and find it easier to be positive. Some of us are more melancholic, and find these things more difficult. I'm not saying we all have to be Ken Dodd, but there is a quiet joy that we can all have, and should all exhibit. Our joy doesn't depend on our temperament; it comes from the Holy Spirit.
Maybe you feel like you've lost your joy. Lockdown has done that to a lot of people. Or maybe you're just naturally the sort of person who always sees the worst side of everything. Ask God to change your attitude, to help you find your joy again.
Maybe you spend too much time watching the news, or on the internet. Christian Concern is a great organisation. It does wonderful work and my church supports it financially, but a person can spend too much time reading its materials, and get angry or depressed, and lose his joy. The state of the world can get you down. So ration yourself. Just as you'll get fat if you eat too many doughnuts, you'll lose your joy if you focus too much on the sin and pain in the world. Maybe you've read too many depressing supposedly Christian books telling you things are awful things and are going to get worse. Maybe you've allowed yourself to worry about the future. Instead, trust God and focus on Him! Remember that He is omnipotent and loving. Nothing happens outside His plan, and His plan is good.
Worship God and meditate on His goodness! Thank Him for all wonderful Christians around you, for the mountains and the sea, for the animals and the flowers, for the food on your table and roof over your head. Rejoice in the Lord always. Smile. When we're allowed to again, hug each other, sing and shout His praises! For now, bump elbows, and speak His praises softly, but do it! Rejoice in your wonderful Saviour!
In John 16:22, Jesus told His disciples: "No-one can take away your joy". Those men would be persecuted for being Christians. All but one of them would be executed, some by crucifixion. But Jesus promised that no-one could take away their joy, and He meant what He said. And no-one can take away our joy, except ourselves.
In Galatians 5:22, Paul taught us that joy is the fruit of the Holy Spirit, and we all have the Holy Spirit. In Romans 14: 17, he taught us that "the kingdom of God is… a matter… of righteousness peace and joy in the Holy Spirit". In 2 Corinthians 7:4, he said, "in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds". That makes you think.
I'm still working on this stuff. I can still have periods of self-pity and grumpiness. But I'm convinced that we can choose joy all the time. I just need to make that choice more often.