SACRIFICE IN THE SENDING

 

We are beginning to get some produce from the garden that one of my sons-in-law works with me—already squash, peppers, cucumbers, and tomatoes, with beans, corn, and okra about ready. Yet, this reward has demanded an investment of time, money, and energy. You do not have a crop without a cost.

That is true in the spiritual realm, also. A spiritual harvest demands a sacrificial service. We see it in 1 Thessalonians 3:1-3, as Paul sacrificed to send his young protege, Timothy, to buttress the faith of the Thessalonians. Paul would miss the young preacher’s assistance, but Paul was not about caring for himself, but the church.

THE DESCRIPTION OF THE MINISTER is given in verses 1-2a. Three terms are used to describe Timothy, and are helpful for us in understanding Gospel work. 

Timothy was described first as a “brother.”  The preacher has an elite responsibility, but is not in a superior category. Whether an apostle, like Paul, a preacher like Timothy, or a member of the church at Thessalonica, there is an equal standing before God. He is our Father, and we are brothers. Everything begins with our relationship to God through Christ by the regenerating work of the Spirit that births us into the family of God. There is no special category of priest or saint whom we must go through to get to the Father. Scripture teaches the priesthood of all believers. A class system dividing clergy and laity is doctrinal error. So, if you have been called to preach the Gospel, it is a gift of grace, and there is no room for arrogance. 

Timothy is further described as a “minister.”  He is a minister of God. He answers—ultimately not to a church board or even the church body, but to the Lord who called him. We serve Christ as we serve His body, the church. Yet, we are accountable to God—to do the will of the Master and not the whims of men. 

Timothy was also described as a “laborer.”  The preacher does not sit on a throne to be waited on and fawned over. He takes up a basin and towel as his dear Lord, and follows Christ’s example in washing dirty feet. Gospel ministry is not for the lazy. Church work is simply that—work!  Timothy is called “a fellow laborer,” and this is a reminder that ours is not a solo service. We work most effectively when we multiply ministry by equipping and engaging others in the church to labor alongside us. 

All of this flows from, “the gospel of Christ.”  We are in a relationship with Christ and His church because we have responded to the Gospel. We are ministers with the duty of sharing the message of the Gospel. We are laborers who have embraced the commission to take the Gospel to all people in all places.

THE DUTY OF THE MINISTER is disclosed in verses 2b-3. The Thessalonians were facing intensifying persecution—“afflictions,” as Paul called it. He knew the danger that they might be “shaken,” by this. From the first century until now, Satan is busy in opposing the church. Those whom Christ so loves, the Devil rabidly hates. As a minister of the Gospel, you are to ground the saints in the Gospel. 

Our duty is to establish the people of God. We lay a solid foundation of faith. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God,” (Rom. 10:17). As we preach the Gospel publicly in the church house and share it personally from house to house, we establish the saved on the Rock—Jesus Christ. This was Paul’s pattern, “how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house,” (Acts‬ ‭20‬:‭20‬‬). 

Yet this extends beyond evangelism to edification. Our duty is further to encourage the people of God. We construct a Scriptural framework of faith. These pillars of truth form a solid doctrinal house to encourage the saints to withstand the assaults on them from the world and the Devil. If the Wicked One cannot deter souls from grounding in the faith, he will try to discourage saints from growing in faith. Gospel ministry not only brings people to Christ, but buttresses them in Christ.

There are many struggling churches that are in need of support. If you are a pastor of a stronger church, do not try to maintain what you have, but multiply your ministry. Call out the young men in the church who are candidates for Gospel ministry. Yes, it is God who calls them, but He often uses our voice. Pray for the Lord to raise up young men. Then mentor them as you model for them what Gospel work is all about. When you call them, commission them—send them out, if possible with a support team—to some declining church to establish and encourage that congregation. Yes, it is a sacrifice in sending out those who have been so valuable in serving alongside you, but Kingdom work is not about us—it is about propagating the Gospel beyond our walls.