Be Still And Know

Acts 20.28 NLT 'So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.' I suspect that most people would choose not to be compared with sheep! It would hardly be seen as a flattering description! Sheep are rarely viewed as the brightest of animals and are generally understood to be easily led. However, God’s people are frequently described as being like sheep in both the Old and New Testaments. It isn’t surprising therefore that, as Paul addresses the Ephesian elders in his final talk with them, he speaks of their responsibilities for caring for the flock. Paul knows that the church, like any flock of sheep, needs to be guarded, fed and cared for. The responsibility for caring for the church was so great that the appointment had to be made by the Holy Spirit. That is still the case today. If an individual feels an inner conviction that this is something that they should do that should always be g

Acts 20.24 NLT 'But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.' What’s the purpose of your life? We all have to agree that this is an excellent question, but most of the time we are far too busy to be able to ask it. We may be busy with our work, family, church, hobbies, sport and a thousand other things and asking the biggest question of all gets put off. We promise ourselves that we will ask it one day when we’ve got a bit more time! For the apostle Paul the moment was now because he recognised that his life was under threat and he might not have much time left. Paul was clear that his life’s work was to communicate the Good News about the wonderful grace of God revealed in Jesus. What an amazing ministry he had! His leadership, teaching and example were of incalculable importance and we are still deeply conscious of our debt to him. In all honesty our roles are unlikely to hav

Acts 20.18-20 NLT “You know that from the day I set foot in the province of Asia until now I have done the Lord’s work humbly and with many tears. I have endured the trials that came to me from the plots of the Jews. I never shrank back from telling you what you needed to hear, either publicly or in your homes.” I want to tell you about something which regularly happens in our home. My son works for a well-known food retailer. When he leaves for work I will naturally wish him well and he always has exactly the same response. “I’ll do my best, Dad.” And what is even better than that is that I know he will. And that’s exactly what we are reading in this passage today. We are meeting Paul as he addresses the leaders of the church in Ephesus and he wants them to know that he did his best. He didn’t hold anything back from them. He suffered with them and told them everything they needed to know, even if they weren’t keen to hear it. He had done his best. Paul had spent three years with the church in Ephesus wh

Acts 19.11-12 NLT 'God gave Paul the power to perform unusual miracles. When handkerchiefs or aprons that had merely touched his skin were placed on sick people, they were healed of their diseases, and evil spirits were expelled.' Isn’t this wonderful? I have no personal experience of my own handkerchiefs or aprons being a blessing to anyone else, but that’s not the point. God can work in the way that he chooses and in this wonderful period of Paul’s ministry that was exactly what he chose to do. The reference to the handkerchiefs here is probably to the sweat bands that Paul used in his daily tent making work. This story reminds me of an earlier account in Acts when people were healed by Peter’s shadow falling across them as he walked by. God was blessing his ministry in such an amazing way that sick people were brought out in the street on their beds and mats to be healed. (Acts 5.15) When we hear about God working in wonderful and miraculous ways we are, naturally, very keen to see him do exactly the s

Acts 18.9-10 NLT One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision and told him, “Don’t be afraid! Speak out! Don’t be silent! For I am with you, and no one will attack and harm you, for many people in this city belong to me.” Throughout the Bible we hear God telling people not to be afraid. When God made a covenant with Abram, the father of the nation of Israel, he spoke to him in a vision and said, “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.” (Genesis 15.1) Later, we meet Joshua after the death of Moses and God said to him “This is my command – be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1.9) Much later, we hear the angel telling a young girl called Mary that she should not be afraid when she is told that she will bear the Son of God. The command not to be afraid indicates how damaging fear can be. God knows that we cannot be effective in serving him unless we overcome the problem of fear. Our vers

1 Thessalonians 5.19-21 NLT 'Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good.' It has been estimated that as many as 20 per cent of the paintings held by Britain’s major museums may be forgeries. It is apparently extremely difficult to be certain of the precise origin of paintings and it takes a great deal of forensic work to gain any degree of certainty. The apostle Paul is greatly concerned about an even more serious kind of fake, and that is when someone claims to be speaking a word of prophecy but is not. This was clearly a matter of great concern for the early church. There were undoubtedly many people who enjoyed the influence that they acquired by stating “thus saith the Lord” and were delighted by the ease with which they could deceive people. Paul was eager to encourage the church to know how to approach prophecy. He certainly didn’t want them to dismiss all prophecy just because there were some irresponsible people who deli

'Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.' On the face it we are looking at three impossible commands here. Being continually joyful, prayerful and thankful sounds wonderful, but can Paul seriously mean that that’s how we should live our lives every single day? What about those times when we are sick, or feeling depressed or let down, or when we have just had an accident, or seen the death of a friend? I believe that Paul would confirm that we should indeed be joyful, prayerful and thankful and that that this apparent impossibility is actually possible for all those who belong to Christ Jesus. The point is that our relationship with him changes everything. If it was just down to us, then we would never keep it up. Moans and groans would quickly grab our attention and rob us of any sense of prayerfulness. But as we deliberately open our lives to Christ and allow his Spirit to lead us these three seemingly impossible comma

1 Thessalonians 5.14 NLT 'Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone.' Although the leaders of the church in Thessalonica had a particular responsibility for caring for the people, Paul was clear that everyone had a part to play. As members of God’s family, everyone needed to get involved in what we would often call pastoral care. This is far more than merely listening to one another’s woes and being kind to one another. Paul told his readers to warn the lazy. The verb ‘warn’ is sometimes translated ‘admonish’. Paul saw laziness as being so dangerous that direct action needed to be taken. It had to stop if the church was to thrive. Some people in the church had stopped working because of their belief that Jesus might return at any moment, and in so doing they had become a burden on others. Whilst Paul was absolutely convinced that the Lord might indeed return at any moment, he strongly object

'Dear brothers and sisters, honour those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you and give you spiritual guidance. Show them great respect and wholehearted love because of their work.' Leaders were appointed from the earliest days of the church. Paul knew that the church could only thrive if it had committed, loving, and wise leaders and so in every place he sought to appoint such people. When he referred to the Thessalonian leaders who “work hard among you” you can be sure that he was drawing on his own personal experiences. Paul not only devoted himself to the work of ministry but, in order not to place a burden on the churches, he also made a living as a tent-maker. Paul knew all about really hard work, and he knew that this particular church was going to be a challenge. It seems that in Thessalonica there was a particular problem with those who had given up their work because of the possibility of the Lord’s imminent return. Paul was concerned that the leaders took action to a

1 Thessalonians 5.5-6 NLT 'You are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded.' When I was in my teens, I did a fascinating six-week course at a local fire-station. Because it was held over a number of weeks I got to know the fire-fighters and became familiar with the atmosphere of the station. In many ways it felt quite relaxed but it was also clear that they were ready at any moment to respond to a call. When the deafening bells sounded, they responded instantly. As they ran, they were putting on their jackets and within moments they were all on the fire- engine and heading out of the station. It was an impressive performance and gave me a wonderful picture of what it means to be alert. That is precisely Paul’s message to the Thessalonian church. Jesus might return at any time and so they needed to ensure that they were always ready for it. Paul tells his readers that they need to have cl

1 Thessalonians 4.15 and 18 NLT 'We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died... So encourage each other with these words.' The Thessalonian church lived with the expectation that Jesus might return at any moment. This inevitably triggered lots of questions. It did so then, and has done so ever since. The particular issue that Paul addresses in this chapter is what would happen to those who had already died. He makes it clear that they will rise from their graves, whilst those who are still alive when Jesus returns will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then, he claimed, “we will be with the Lord for ever”. He doesn’t go into any more detail than that. The important point to recognise is that Paul saw his words as a word of encouragement. In truth, they didn’t need to know exactly what the programme of events for that day would look like, and neither do we. What we do need to know is that God

1 Thessalonians 4.11-12 NLT 'Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before. Then people who are not believers will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others.' These are fascinating verses. Paul urges his hearers to strive eagerly to live quiet lives. The Greek literally means ‘seek restlessly to be still’! What on earth was he getting at? I believe he was saying that he wanted the Thessalonian Christians to have a quiet confidence as they threw themselves enthusiastically into their daily work. He wanted them to find peace in getting on with doing whatever the Lord had called them to do. It is clear that some people in the church had given up their jobs because they believed that the Lord might return at any moment. Paul was not happy with this. He urged them to get on with their work. He refers to them working with their hands and this probably suggests that the church was made up of slaves and man

1 Thessalonians 4.3-5 NLT 'God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin. Then each of you will control his own body and live in holiness and honour— not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways.' Life in Thessalonica in the 1st century would have been massively different from our life today. And yet I have no doubt that if the apostle Paul were to write a letter to our churches he would address precisely this same issue – sexual purity. The Greeks were famous for their free attitude to sexual matters. Paul was concerned that this church should not be damaged by the widespread sexual promiscuity which surrounded them. They needed to live holy lives. The word holy means set apart. God wants us to live life to the full without being damaged and cheapened by sin. Holy life is life as God intended. Life at its best. This teaching is often mocked by our critics who would suggest that Christian sexual teaching is given to us by a kill-joy God who seeks to confine

1 Thessalonians 3.7-8 NLT 'We have been greatly encouraged in the midst of our troubles and suffering, dear brothers and sisters, because you have remained strong in your faith. It gives us new life to know that you are standing firm in the Lord.' Paul knew that it was going to be really tough for the Thessalonian church. He had warned them that there would be great difficulties to come and had clearly been deeply concerned for them. He even stated that he wondered whether his time in Thessalonica might prove to have been a complete waste of time. So he was absolutely delighted to hear the news from Timothy that the church was going well. They had not only stood firm in the face of persecution and were thriving. Living for Christ in the 21st century presents us with very different challenges from 1st century Greece. However, what we have in common is that we are living in societies which are fundamentally opposed to our Christian values and objectives. This means that we need to find ways of creativel

1 Thessalonians 2.4-5 NLT 'For we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts. Never once did we try to win you with flattery, as you well know.' Paul often faced accusations. He was accused of acting out of self-interest, of being deceitful and all manner of other things. He knew that the whole of his ministry and the progress of the Christian mission depended on his integrity and so he was always eager to rebut these accusations. But in facing up to his critics, Paul makes it very clear in this passage that he had never aimed to please people. His absolute priority was to do what God wanted. It is very tempting for anyone in leadership to make pleasing people their goal. We all want to be liked and so we are naturally inclined to do those things which win people’s approval. This was a classic mark of the Pharisees who so often focused their energies on impressing the people around them. In t

1 Thessalonians 2.1 NLT 'You yourselves know, dear brothers and sisters, that our visit to you was not a failure.' The church in Thessalonica certainly knew that Paul’s visit to their city had not been a failure. But on the face of it, it hadn’t gone very well. It ended up with Paul and Silas being bundled out of the city in a hurry because of the threat from the mob. It must have left them feeling very anxious about the future of that infant church. But, as this letter reveals, in point of fact the church there had thrived and developed considerable strength very quickly and had become an example to many other churches. This teaches us a valuable lesson. Things aren’t always the way they seem. We would all love to live our life walking from one success to another. But life isn’t like that. Sometimes the moments of failure turn out to be a glittering success, and the times of apparent victory turn out to be an abject failure. Through the ups and downs of life, what matters before anything else is that

1 Thessalonians 1.9-10 NLT 'And they speak of how you are looking forward to the coming of God’s Son from heaven—Jesus, whom God raised from the dead. He is the one who has rescued us from the terrors of the coming judgment.' When I was preparing for the 11-plus English exam I came up with a really impressive expression that I made use of, whatever the essay title. It was “with eager anticipation”. Whether we were asked to write an essay about Christmas, going to the zoo, or summer holidays I was always able to find a place for it and on the day of the exam it soon found a place in my story! The expression is a wonderful description of the church in Thessalonica. They were excited to know that, one day, Jesus was going to return to the earth and they looked forward to it with eager anticipation. Our understanding of the future shapes the way in which we live today and so it is crucial that we understand it properly. There is no doubt that the future of our world is full of threat. Whether we are looking

1 Thessalonians 1.8 NLT 'And now the word of the Lord is ringing out from you to people everywhere, even beyond Macedonia and Achaia, for wherever we go we find people telling us about your faith in God.' Paul’s first visit to Thessalonica began well and a number of people decided to follow Jesus. (Acts 17.1-8) But, as was so often the case, his success caused jealousy amongst the local Jews who were losing some of their adherents. They recruited a group of troublemakers from the market- place and formed a mob in order to attack Paul and Silas. The mob didn’t find them and so picked on some of the other believers and hauled them before the city council. The situation was clearly getting dangerous and so the believers encouraged Paul and Silas to leave the city that night. Given that difficult background, it must have been a massive encouragement to Paul that the church in Thessalonica was doing so well. How wonderful that they had not merely survived but grown so strongly that the word of the Lord was spr

'We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ.' Paul has great affection for these Christians in what we would now call northern Greece. He had spent time with them and knew them well. He knew that they weren’t perfect and, in this letter, he is going to spell out some very specific concerns that he has about the way in which they were living. However, what I love about these opening verses is that he comes up with a beautiful list of the ways in which his life was blessed by them. It’s so easy to focus on the problems of life isn’t it? We can probably all identify people who wind us up, and who are a pain. We can think of their annoying habits and the way in which they make our life so much harder than it needs to be. I suspect that Paul could have come up with such a list about the people in Thessalonica. But he chose to identify th

Psalm 77.5-7 NLT 'I think of the good old days, long since ended, when my nights were filled with joyful songs. I search my soul and ponder the difference now. Has the Lord rejected me forever? Will he never again be kind to me?' These are painful verses. Asaph, the psalmist, is in the pit of despair. He feels that God has rejected him completely. He looks back at how things used to be, but those memories are painful in themselves, because his present predicament is so hopeless. What is so precious about these words is that he is completely honest. There is no pretence. He tells God exactly the way he feels. There is something incredibly healthy about this because, as we all know, strong relationships can only grow where there is honesty. Asaph feels completely let down by God and he let him know it. I fear that Christian worship can very easily be less than honest. When we sing of our complete confidence in God, does that always reflect the way we feel? It was the great Christian writer A W Tozer who wro