A Leader Defends his Reputation - Part 1

1 Thessalonians 2v1-6a

16^th July 2021

Paul, Silas and Timothy (but mostly Paul) devoted the whole first chapter of their first letter to the church at Thessalonica to encouraging that young church. In doing so, they demonstrated real Christian brotherly love. Now, however, they have to move on to their second reason for writing:

1 Thessalonians 2v1-6a
You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure. We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in the face of strong opposition. For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed - God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else.

When we read these words, we can sense that Paul's defending himself and his friends against unfair allegations made by members of the church in Thessalonica. We don't know if these complainers were a large group of members, or just a few troublemakers, but we do know that Paul felt the need to respond to their criticisms.

Firstly, he points out that there wouldn't even be a church in Thessalonica if it were not for him and his friends. He says:

1 Thessalonians 2v1
You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure.

Paul, Timothy and Silas had visited Thessalonica and preached the Good News about Jesus. Acts 17v4 tells us that some of the Jews, a large number of God-fearing Greeks, and not a few prominent women believed the message. Thus the church was born. This was only about two years ago. The Christians there all knew about it. So why did Paul feel the need to remind them? Because some people must have been saying that he was of no spiritual significance, that his ministry was ineffective.

You can imagine it, can't you? "Paul's not a very good speaker". "He doesn't have three points all beginning with the same letter" (for the older ones among us). "He doesn't tell enough jokes". "He doesn't have very good illustrations". "He just tells us the truth about God". "It's not very inspiring". "He doesn't have the latest ideas". "He just sticks the Bible". "It's a bit old fashioned". "It's not very woke". "He doesn't say the things I want to hear".

They'd forgotten that without Paul and his friends, they'd still be lost in their sins.

1 Thessalonians 2v2
We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in the face of strong opposition.

Paul writes about the time he and his friends had visited Philippi and planted a church there - the first church in Europe (Acts 16:12-40). Paul drove an evil spirit out of a slave girl. As a result, she could no longer predict the future. Her owners would lose a lot of money, so they dragged Paul and Silas before the magistrates and accused them of causing trouble by advocating new ways of thinking and living.

Of course they were! Guilty as charged! That's what Christians are supposed to do. We're called by God to tell our neighbours there's more to life than they realise, more truth than they know, and better ways to live than they've been told about.

The magistrates had Paul and Silas stripped and severely flogged and threw them into prison. We can read in Acts 16 about their miraculous escape from prison, and how their jailer found saving faith in Jesus.

Why did Paul remind the Thessalonians about this story? Presumably because some people were calling him a criminal, a jailbird, a troublemaker.

When the apostles left Philippi, they went to Thessalonica, and Paul says they only dared to preach there because they received God's help. Being beaten and imprisoned in one city doesn't encourage you to preach in the next city, but Paul, Silas and Timothy believed the Gospel enough, loved God enough, and cared about other people enough, to keep going, whatever the cost. Yet they were being criticised for this.

They encountered strong opposition in Thessalonica, too; the Jews in that city started a riot and accused them of being revolutionaries. They are, of course, and so are we. We're called by God to turn the world upside down. Or, rather, to turn the world the right way up. But nothing would stop them speaking the truth: not beatings, not imprisonment, not riots. And nothing should stop us from speaking the truth.

1 Thessalonians 2v3
For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you.

Here we can sense some more slanders directed against Paul, Timothy and Silas. Their preaching was full of errors. They spoke with impure motives (which usually means sex and money). They were trying to deceive the people of Thessalonica.

It's remarkable, isn't it? Just two years ago, or thereabouts, these people had believed Paul's message, thrown away their idols, put their faith in Jesus, and been born again as children of God. News of their faith had travelled all over the Roman world. Now, they were making these accusations against Paul, Silas and Timothy, and they had to defend their reputations to these people.

When you're told some negative things about your brother or sister in Christ, you don't have to believe it. And you don't have to spread the rumours.

1 Thessalonians 2v4
On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.

Here's a good question to ask about your spiritual leaders, or those whose books or radio or TV shows you enjoy: Are they men approved by God? Has God trusted them and called them to preach Biblical truth? Or are they just trying to please people - to say what people want to hear. Too much preaching is what they call "preaching to the choir", telling us what we already know. And too much preaching is about other peoples' sins, other peoples' lives. Preaching should be about the people in the room. It should challenge us. Preaching exists to change the lives of the people who hear it, not to judge the people outside.

On another occasion, Paul warned Timothy:

2 Timothy 4:3-4
the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather round them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

That time came a very long time ago, and it's still with us.

What makes a good servant of God? What makes a good leadership team? How can you measure a good church? It's not how many people come. A church that grows by saying what's popular, rather than what's true, is not a good church. An eloquent speaker, who says things you can relate to, who makes you feel better, who wears an expensive suit, who has letters after his name, is not a good servant of God unless what he says is Biblical truth.

Everybody likes to be popular. Everybody wants their church building to be full. Everybody wants to hear encouraging feedback from their church members. But church leaders aren't called to be people-pleasers; they're called to be honest to God, and obedient to the Bible and the Holy Spirit. And God tests our hearts.

2 Timothy 4:5
You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed - God is our witness.

Paul needs to defend himself and his friends against the charge of being flatterers - saying things to make their congregation feel good about themselves, ministering to their pride, buttering them up. Paul says they never did that.

It's so tempting, though: "Thank you sister for your stirring prayer. We were delighted and inspired to sit there for 20 minutes while you told God what to do." "Thank you brother, that tuba rendition of Beethoven's 9th Symphony was amazing. We've never heard anything like it before". "Thank you sister, you sang that song beautifully. You may have been a tone and a half flat, but it was a real blessing." "Thank you brother, we really needed to hear the entire life history of your great-aunt Bertha during this prayer meeting". "No, no, brother, your lifestyle isn't sinful at all. God loves everybody and would never judge you just because you're a bank robber."

And these apostles were also accused of putting on a mask - that is, of hypocrisy - saying one thing while doing another. And it was claimed they did this to make money. I'm sure there were easier ways to make money than to walk around Asia and Europe being flogged and imprisoned. A true man of God would never preach the Gospel as a way to earn a living, although we do need support so we can preach the Gospel.

Beware preachers, especially on radio or television, who keep asking you for money.

2 Timothy 4:6a
We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else.

Again, this is so tempting for a preacher or church leader. Praise from other people is very nice. A church leader needs to get his heart sorted out. We cannot, must not, ever, preach or pastor or make decisions based on whether people will praise us or complain about us. We must say and do what we genuinely believe is right. If people don't like it, we'll pay a penalty, but that's better than being a fake. And it's better than betraying godly values and godly conduct for the sake of a quiet life.

Paul hasn't finished. We'll look at the second half of his defence next time.