09/01/13 Without Me You Can Do Nothing!
Don’t Be Confused Series: wk. 6
Text: 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 (NKJV)
11 Now may
our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you. 12 And
may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all,
just as we do to you, 13 so that He may establish your hearts blameless in
holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with
all His saints.
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and
I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5
Intro: This is a transitional
section of Thessalonians, Paul prays here for the church of Thessalonica as
well as for himself. Paul was fully committed to the understanding that he
could do nothing apart from Christ who dwelt in him. Paul Knew!
Application: Our ability to persevere
will require prayer for each other.
Paul knew without Christ he could do
nothing, so he prayed for:
1. His Direction: vs. 11 “Now may our God and Father
Himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you.”
The greatest virtue
in the world is love. This is the one possession that a person must have if they
want to have an abundant life. Without love that person is nothing. Paul knew
this; therefore, he went before God and prayed that the Thessalonian church and
its believers might grow in love more and more, Paul prayed for direction. The
model church will be a church that has a strong love.
God is a Father to us,
intimately involved in our lives. He is not just in outer space ruling and
reigning and being far removed from us. God our Father is right here with us;
He is actively participating in our lives just as an earthly father
participates in the lives of his children. Paul, as a child, approaches God our
Father and asks Him for certain things; and when he asks, he knows that his
Father will hear and answer. He knows because God is not only able to answer,
but God is his Father. Paul asked the Father and the Lord Jesus to direct and
guide his way to the Thessalonians.
Paul
knew without Christ he could do nothing, so he prayed for:
2. His Growth: vs. 12 "And
may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all,
just as we do to you."
The word increase means abound, to multiply over and
over. The word abound means to excel and overflow.
There is a great need to
grow in love, to excel. The love being spoken about is not what the world means
by love. The love that we must grow in is the love that makes us love everyone,
not just one another. "The Lord make you to increase and abound in love
one toward another, and toward all men."
How in the world can we love some
of these people? How can we abound in love for them? How is it possible to love
those who do evil to us and who treat us as enemies? Is it even practical to
ask us to love all people? Is it even humanly possible? No! It is not possible
for us to love those who hate us and who stand as enemies against us - not
humanly possible. But there is a way. However, there is only one way.
The
source of love is the Lord. There is no other source, not for the kind of love
that can love all people. This is the reason Paul went before the Lord and
requested such a love. Paul knew that it was impossible for him or the
Thessalonians to work up the kind of love that could reach out and abound
toward all. A love that could love those who ignore, neglect, abuse, and
shamefully treat us could only come from God.
“Don’t just pretend to love
others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.” Romans 12:9 (NLT)
We grow when we can learn
to love: “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still
sinners, Christ died for us.” He died so we could live, I mean really live!
Paul
knew without Christ he could do nothing, so he prayed for:
3. His Heart: vs. 13 “So that He may establish your hearts
blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ with all His saints.”
The word establish means: create, to form, it is
the Lord Jesus Christ Himself who establishes our hearts before God. No one
else has the right or power to set us before God; no one else can make us
acceptable to God.
If we have Jesus’ heart we are blameless, free from fault and
blame, to be free from all charges. This heart also makes us holy, set apart
and separated to God.
He alone can free us from the faults and charges of sin;
He alone can present us unblameable and holy before God. Just think about it:
Who else has such power? Do you know such a person? The thinking and honest
person has to answer no. And to be honest, if Christ does not have the
righteousness and power to present us unblameable before God, then we are
hopelessly doomed. Why? Because He is the only Person who has ever risen from
the dead to never die again and to live eternally with God. If He is not our
Savior, then we shall die and never arise, never live with God. Man's only hope
is Christ - that He truthfully has the righteousness and power to set us
unblameable and holy before God.
Love, and every other virtue, springs from the
heart. It is not a matter of following rules, but of the inner life that makes
Christianity alive. Paul’s prayer was that the believers’ hearts would be strengthened.
He realized that unless the heart is firmly established, there will be no
growth and development. Changing methods or habits sometimes lasts for a short
time, but lasting change begins with the heart. This change can come only from
the Lord. The reason our hearts need to be strengthened is so that we will be
blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father. How’s that working
for you?
Love is more than an emotional stirring of the heart, although it
often involves this. The kind of love that Christians are to express can be
given to other persons, in spite of their treatment or abuse. This is a love
that looks beyond self. It is a love which comes from the Spirit of God.
I
serve a risen Savior; He’s in the world today; I know that He is living,
whatever men may say; I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer, and
just the time I need Him He’s always near.
In all the world around me I see His
loving care, and tho my heart grows weary I never will despair; I know that He
is leading thru all the stormy blast; the day of His appearing will come at
last.
Rejoice, rejoice, O Christian, lift up your voice and sing eternal
hallelujahs to Jesus Christ the King! The hope of all who seek Him, the help of
all who find, none other is so loving, so good and kind.
Chorus: He lives, He
lives, Christ Jesus lives today! He walks with me and talks with me along
life’s narrow way. He lives, He lives, salvation to impart! You ask me how I
know He lives? He lives within my heart.
Alfred H. Ackley
Conclusion: “That I may know Him and the power of His
resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” Philippians 3:10
Faithful obedience to Christ
will always result in misunderstandings and persecutions from those outside the
faith. Thus, encouragement becomes a source of strength in our relationships
with one another and in our ability to persevere.
Paul identifies himself as a
prisoner of the Lord: Have you, are you identified with Christ, are you abiding
in Him? Do you love Him?
Paul was a master at expressing his strong love and
deep concern for the people of the churches. He was not hesitant to tell them
of his desire to be with them and to reveal how much he hoped they were doing
well. He seemed to know how important it is to God to see strong love in the
lives of his children. People in a church should be constantly encouraging and
building one another up. Pain and temptations are regular components in a
Christian’s life. Faith is a growing, daily commitment to believe God, no
matter what happens to us. Only God can help us grow in his kind of holiness
and love.
We should let others know that we care about their faith and growth. Prayer
for one another’s character should come before concerns for the physical
aspects of life. Our Christian relationships will be characterized by love and
care for the good of others.
Prayer is not an empty exercise; it is the power
of God brought to bear upon a dilemma. Paul recommended it in the same place he
advised: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and
petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” Paul also did all he
could to defuse the worrisome situation: he sent Timothy. It was a practical
and useful action that accomplished two goals. Timothy was able to provide the
encouragement and instruction which the new believers needed, thereby reducing
the risk of spiritual ruin. Timothy was also able to bring back news of how the
Thessalonians were doing, thereby giving an accurate picture of their spiritual
condition.
Some anxiety or worry is natural if the perils are real. But it
should never stop there. Prayer is always called for, and then we should take
the responsibility to act upon the situation in whatever way is necessary or
possible.
It is imperative that we go to God on one another’s behalf so we will
be blameless and holy before God. “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord,
beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called.” Ephesians
4:1
When you abide in Christ there is no confusion, you will have direction,
growth and it will be evident that you have the heart of Christ.
In : Sermon
Tags: "don't be confused series"
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