COMMENTARY ON FIRST THESSALONIANS

Lesson #10

"^2:13 For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe." ^KJV (1 Thess 2:13)

INTRODUCTION

One of the great benefits of the Epistles is the spiritual perspective they provide. They reveal a set of values that has been obscured by institutional Christianity. Equally true, they confirm that life in Christ releases us from a purely earthly view of the saints. Believers in Christ are more than mere friends, or comrades in social interests. They are not just members of the same church, as ordinarily conceived. Their identity with the church is, of itself, a great and marvelous work. They have become part of something supernatural, something that produces unceasing thanksgiving in the hearts of all who see things as they really are. There is something wonderfully common among these people. It is not where they live, or the group of believers with whom they are identified. It is not their occupation, or earthly interests. It is not their political or national identity. Nor, indeed, is it their level of education, or institutional commitment. However noteworthy these things may appear, they are not adequate as a basis for fellowship among believers. This short, yet pungent, verse will develop the common trait that binds those who are believing together. It is something they all have in common-something which testifies to the working of the Lord among and within them. You will find it to be an exceedingly rare trait in the professed church-one that is seldom lauded or extolled. Too often, you will not be able to conclude from their activities and conversation that it even exists among them.

THE WORD WORKS IN THOSE WHO BELIEVE

" ^13c . . . which effectually worketh also in you that believe." The evidence that the Word of God comes from Him is not only found in the message itself. It is also revealed in the effects of that message upon those who receive it. Other versions read, "which also performs its work in you who believe," ^NASB "which is also at work in you believers," ^NRSV "which has living power in you who have faith," ^BBE. From these we see there is a work the Word performs within. That work is a continual one, and it is also a living, or vibrant, work.

EFFECTUALLY WORKETH. This expression is particularly significant in view of the ineffective work that much of the church experiences. This is a life-changing work, where transformation and re-creation are realized. Much of the modern emphasis on discipline and empty routine is nothing more than an admission that the message being declared has no real power, or effectiveness. Powerless messages reply on flesh, not God.

The word "effectual" means efficient, fervent, or actively at work. This work does not end with conversion, or coming into Christ. That is why the text says "worketh," or works (IS working, as compared with "worked"). This "working" is why Jesus said to His disciples, "Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you" (John 15:3). It is why the Colossians were told the Word was "bringing forth fruit" in them (Col 1:6). Not only does the Word of God probe the thoughts and intents of the heart, distinguishing between the soul and the spirit (Heb 4:12), it works EFFECTIVELY within the believer. That effectiveness relates to the will of God being worked out in the person who receives the Word.

Everyone who is in Christ has realized this effective working. The new birth itself is traced back to the proficient working of God's word. "Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures" (James 1:18). "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever" (1 Pet 1:23). Regeneration is our initial personal proof that the Gospel is "the power of God unto salvation" (Rom 1:16). By delving into the thoughts and intentions of the heart, the Word brought us to see our need of salvation, call out for it, and heartily obey the Gospel.

That marvelous working, however, does not end there. Elsewhere, this continual working is described as the Word of Christ dwelling in us richly. The word "richly"means copiously, or abundantly. This does not speak of a meager Christian existence, where one is just bearly keeping alive spiritually. Although that condition is common, it is altogether unacceptable. Such a state confirms that the Spirit has been quenched.

When the Word dwells abundantly within us, it produces spiritual expressions. "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him" (Col 3:16-17). Ponder the magnitude of those results. Wisdom, or the ability to handle the Word of God and the challenges of life to God's glory. The truth is articulated to the benefit of our brethren in teaching and admonition-moving people to make advancement in their life toward the Lord. Songs erupt by the individual, flowing out from grace that is saturating the heart. All things, whether words or deeds, are done to honor the Lord who bought us, and are wrapped in thanksgiving to God through Christ.

Why can such glorious expressions be found within us? Can they be produced by the hammer of the Law, or motivational speeches? Indeed not! This is the kind of thing that happens when the Word of God is received as HIS Word, and not the word of men. It is not received as a word from one of OUR preachers, or a word that fits in well with what we already believe. When you receive the Word as the Word of God, it is received as though you heard it right out of heaven. You sense you are responsible to the One who originated it, and are eager to allow it the place of prominence in your heart and thoughts.

ONLY IN THOSE WHO BELIEVE. As with all other Divine benefits, the Word has no power for the individual until it is believed. The "effectual working" is realized ONLY "in you that believe," or "ARE believing." From another view, if we believe and embrace the Word of God, it will effectively work in us. It is not possible for the Word to have no effect upon us if we believe it. This is not mere intellectual assent. It involves the heart more than the mind. Believing the Word means we do not question it, but take hold of it with both hands. We eagerly run to do what it commands, and rejoice at the good news that it brings. Such a response will find the believer experiencing the effective work of God Himself.

NOT AS THE WORD OF MEN, BUT THE WORD OF GOD

" ^13b . . . ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God." Receiving the Word of God differs from the reception of all other messages. Some people are simply gullible. They receive whatever is told them because of their fundamental disinterest in what is being affirmed. Thus it was said of the Galatians, "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ" (Gal 1:6-7). The message they had received "betwitched" them" (Gal 3:1) and caused them to fall from grace (Gal 5:4). The Galatians had listened as men hearing men. They made no association of the message to which they were subjected with the Living God. The Thessalonians did not hear the Gospel in that manner. They made a connection of the message with the One who inspired it, and provided a minister through whom it was declared (1 Cor 3:5).

THE WORD OF MEN. Precisely what is "the word of men?" It is not simply a word that men speak, as compared to a word angels verbalize (Gal 1:8; Heb 2:2). The "word of men" is a message that men have created. It is a communication that was conceived in the mind of men. It reflects a purely human perspective. It does not come from God, yet is presented as though it had something to do with God and spiritual life. Those who bring such a word are described as those whom God "sent not" (Jer 14:14). They speak as though they were God's representatives, yet God says of them, "I sent them not" (Jer 14:15). Such speakers cannot benefit the people of God, as confirmed by God's word to Jeremiah. "I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD" (Jer 23:32). Their words were of human origin, and therefore had no Divine power.

But our text means even more than this. The Thessalonians did not hear the message of Paul as they heard other men. They did not listen to him as they would to some Grecian philosopher or orator. They listened to Paul like the household of Cornelius listened to Peter: "Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God" (Acts 10:33). They did not pay attention to the preaching of the Gospel like Athenians and foreigners who "spent their time in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing" (Acts 17:21). They did not hear Paul as an educated or learned man. They did not listen to him because of his background, or because he was famous.

Because of the message Paul declared, and his obvious commitment to the Lord, the Thessalonians knew this was no ordinary word. He did not come with psychological observations, historical analyses, or etymological expertise-things that people imagine distinguish some speakers from others. The real distinction is the MESSAGE.

THE WORD OF GOD. The Word of God, and particularly the Gospel of Christ, bears the mark of Divinity. It cannot be heard without becoming acutely aware of God Himself. It is His message, and declares His accomplishments. The Word of God is harmonious with His nature, or character. He declares matters He alone would say and do. When a person hears the truth of the Gospel preached, he comes away thinking primarily of the message, not the messenger. Such are moved to obedience because of the message. They are willing to endure affliction to embrace what they have heard, because they sense it has come from God Himself. Mind you, the Word is from God, whether the people know it or not. Yet, when it is perceived as coming from God, it becomes powerful in the hearer.

I should add that the word Paul preached was primarily a MESSAGE, not a discipline of life, or a religious procedure. He was not hawking, or peddling, a lifeless religious system. The "Word of God" is not a mere interpretation of life. In the case of the Gospel, it is not an analysis of how men ought to live, or how they can manage their circumstances and be successful. Rather, this is a Word that announces Divine provision, or "the wonderful works of God" (Acts 2:11). It declares a blessing that is not only sorely required, but cannot be realized through human energy alone.

Countless congregations are filled with people who have never made an association between the Word and the God who gave it. Whether it is read or preached, it lacks power for them because it is not received "as the Word of God." This condition accounts for the general lack of interest in the declaration of the Scriptures. It is why people are satisfied with secondary sources, like Quarterlies, etc. It is not that such resources are, of themselves, wrong. Rather, they are not sufficient. When people hear the Word as it is, in truth, the Word of God, they will be more demanding to hear it, and will more faithfully respond to it.

THE WORD WORKS IN THOSE WHO BELIEVE