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in v. 6 of our passage Paul and his team were accused of turning the world upside down
an amazing compliment!
contrast with those who live their lives trying to fly under the radar and without getting noticed
there are Christians who are making no impact on the world they live in
the people of Thessalonica accused Paul and Silas of turning their world upside down!
don’t forget that they had just entered Europe and this accusation was levelled at them!
what is it that made Paul and Silas so effective and powerful in their ministry?
There are people who make things happen, there are people who watch things happen, and there are people who wonder what happened.
To be successful, you need to be a person who makes things happen.
Jim Lovell
Paul and Silas were people who made things happen
they disturbed the comfort of sinners
examples of OT prophets
God has always had people like this and always will
God wants his people to confront their society, who will call sin sin and warn sinners of judgment.
Paul was that kind of person, he boldly spoke the truth
wherever he went he made Christianity the issue
he was a man who shook the world!
what were the things that made Paul and Silas and others so effective in their ministry?
how were they able turned the world upside down or right side up depending on your perspective?
today we will consider the spiritual principles which enabled Paul and Silas to change their world
we will answer the question: ‘what does it take for us to be world changers?’
Paul and his team travelled SW across S Greece from Philippi
followed the coastline to the port city of Thessalonica
the Roman capital of Macedonia
in modern day Greece it is now known as Thessaloniki
it would appear that it was the presence of a synagogue which attracted Paul to this city
as the capital of Macedonia Thessalonica was the most important city with a population of about 200k
it was a major port city and was on an important highway
Berea on the other hand was an insignificant town
we might refer to it as “off the beaten path”
like London vs. St Thomas
Courage
Courage marked the Christians of the early church.
they were bold in their witness and the result was the rapid growth of the church and the spread of the gospel
Paul had this in spades
his testimony when going to Jerusalem: “nothing moves me”
No one will have a significant impact on their world who doesn’t have the courage to confront it with the Gospel.
if you are convicted about something but you don’t say anything, it does no good
courageous people make a difference
“they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews and Paul went in as was his custom”
Paul made it his practice to go to cities where there was a synagogue
Paul did this for two reasons:
as a rabbi and a former student of the most famous rabbi of the day he would have been invited to speak
synagogues were made up of Jews and Gentiles who were searching for answers
this was a ready-made audience, receptive to the gospel
he was driven by his desire to see his own people saved
but what happened almost every time Paul went and preached to them?
Persecution!
His own people were constantly stirring up opposition against him.
so what does Paul do when he comes to Thessalonica? he went to the synagogue where he knew his people would be worshipping!
that is courage!
remember what he had just experienced as a result of their opposition in Philippi: terrible pain and suffering!
remember what he did in Lystra when he was stoned - he went back into the city!
(14:20)
he had experienced this over and over again wherever he went and when he came to Thessalonica he went right back again!
why? he was committed to doing what God had called him to do
he knew that in spite of the suffering there was joy in doing what God had called him to do
that is courage!
he knew his message would stir up trouble against him and cause him pain but he kept on going
Paul did the same thing in Berea
“sent away by night”
you only do this when you are in serious trouble !
and where did they send Paul? to Berea
surely he would be safe there! that out of the way, backwoods place!
and what did he do when he got there?
hide?
take a break?
lick his wounds?
he went right into the synagogue!
Paul knew who had called him, to whom he was called and that he was to preach Christ.
I hope some of you are thinking right now, “I wish I had that kind of courage”
Where does courage come from?
First: Trust God.
(Ps 27:1; Eph 6:10)
if you try to serve God in your own strength of course you will fail!
when you are convinced God is on your side who is there to fear?
when you are walking in obedience and speaking the truth in love, focus on God
as long and you put your trust in the Lord you have nothing to fear, do you believe that?
I know it’s easier to believe than practice, that’s why it takes work
in our own strength we will faint, we will give up we will close our mouths
when this happens what are we to do?
If we are going to be courageous we must know our God!
the only way to know him is to spend time with him
Second: Confess sin.
If we are going to be a witness for Christ the devil is going to attack us and if we have sin in our life we are in trouble.
remember one of the pieces of armour in Eph 6: the breastplate of righteousness
if you have holes in it where do you think your enemy is going to thrust his sword or spear?
and if you don’t do anything about those holes what do you think the Lord is going to do?
if you want to courageously obey Christ and confront the world you must trust God and you must deal with your sin
Third: Believe that the victory is yours in Christ.
(Pr 16:3; 1Jn 5:4-5)
God has promised victory to those who serve him
if you want to be courageous you must trust him
if you are going to trust him you must know him and to know him you must get into the Word
if you want to be courageous you must deal with your sin
examine yourself, compare yourself to the Word, ask the HS to show you your sin
if you want to be courageous you must believe the victory he has promised
Content
If we are going to be effective for the Lord we must not only be courageous, we must have the right content.
you need to know the truth, you must have the right message
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