The Difference That Jesus Really Makes

Hope and Holiness Part 3: 1 Thessalonians 1:8-10

A famous definition of brand is “what other people say about you when you’re not in the room.” What do you aspire for others to say about you when you’re not in the room? Do you, like me, desire for others to say that you’re smart, funny, and well-read, among other nice things? 

In 1 Thessalonians 1:8-10, Paul tells the church in Thessalonica about their reputation in the world. He encourages them, not because the inhabitants of the surrounding towns think that the Thessalonians are especially smart, strong, or successful. He encourages them because the Thessalonians are known for their faith in God and for the way that their faith has changed the way they live. With their words and with their lives, the Thessalonians showed the difference that Jesus really makes. The Thessalonians were so committed to serving the Lord that even the surrounding towns knew when they turned from their pagan beliefs to serving the true God, and in that way they serve as an example for you and me.

1. Be Known For Your Faith

“For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God.” (1 Thessalonians 1:8)

The Apostle Paul loved to be a church planter on the frontier, boldly going and preaching the gospel to where no one else had gone before. His desire was not to build on the foundation of others, but instead to lay the foundation for others to build on. Imagine his surprise when he goes to Macedonia and Achaia to preach the gospel, only to find out that by way of their reputation, the Thessalonians had already preached there! 

If you are a follower of Jesus, that means that you were once dead in your trespasses and sins, following the course of the world and the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2), but God made you alive together with Christ. Yet, our actions can either confirm that we really do believe what we say we do, or we can send mixed messages to the world, proclaiming a gospel with our lips that does not change anything about how we live. The Thessalonians lived with integrity, showing the difference that the real Jesus really makes in the lives of those who turn from idols to serve the living and true God.

In a sense, the Thessalonian faith was so public that “good gossip” was spread around about them - other people are sharing the news of their turning from idols to serve the true and living God. Not only did they change what they believed about the world, they changed the way that they lived in the world. They turned from serving idols to serving the living and true God. 

What is an idol anyway? The New City Catechism says it this way: “Idolatry is trusting in created things rather than the Creator for our hope and happiness, significance and security.” 21st century people may think that we are superior to our ancestors because like the Thessalonians, we no longer serve dead gods that are made of wood and metal. However, if we’re honest, each one of us is inclined to depend on created things for our hope and happiness, significance and security. 

Comfort, financial prosperity and relationships are all potential alternatives to putting our trust and service entirely behind our living and true God. Each of those things will disappoint us if we put our hope in them. We need something greater, an unshakeable hope. Paul goes on to describe how they were able to wait in hope.

2. Be Known For Your Hope

“and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” (1 Thessalonians 1:10)

What made the witness of the Thessalonians especially powerful was that they were a people who maintained great joy in the midst of serious suffering. Despite this suffering, they aligned themselves clearly with Jesus. When it would have been easy for them to be quiet about the source of their hope, they were vocal about their deliverance from the wrath of God that is found in Jesus alone.

It is often when we are in seasons of suffering that we are able to put on display the difference that Jesus really makes, not just in this life but in the life to come. What the Thessalonians believed about Jesus empowered them to wait with hope in the midst of suffering.

Paul lays out some key truths about Jesus that served as an anchor for the Thessalonians as they suffered:

Jesus was really raised from the dead. The resurrection proves that the power of death has been defeated, and so there is no suffering that we will suffer on earth that won’t ultimately be repaired as we, like Jesus, conquer the grave. 

Jesus really delivers us from God’s wrath. The wrath of God is as unpopular today as it was in the time of the Thessalonians, but for those of us who are in Christ, we can celebrate that the wrath of God is no longer against us. Jesus died on the cross, in our place and for our sin so that we would no longer face the wrath of God. With their eternal future secure, the Thessalonians were able to face their troubling circumstances with hope.

With your words and your life, show the world the difference that Jesus really makes.