Word of Salvation – Vol.11 No.30 – July 1965

 

Effectual Preaching

 

Sermon by Rev. G. I. Williamson on 1Thesalonians 1:4-8

Scripture Reading: 1Thesalonians 1:1-10

Psalter Hymnal: 308; 252; 59; 286

 

Beloved Congregation,

It is God himself who tells us, in His word, that He has chosen the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.  And never was this truth better illustrated than in the events that transpired in the founding of the Church of the Thessalonians.

(1) For there indeed was the foolishness of it!  Here came the Apostle Paul to preach the gospel in the Synagogue of the Jews.  But it soon became known that he had just got out of jail in Philippi.  Even worse, he virtually condemned these Jews as un- believers, when they did not accept Jesus as the Christ.  And so, cast out of the Synagogue and under immediate danger of violence he preached the forgiveness of sins through the death of Jesus, declaring that he had also risen again from the dead!  There was the foolishness of it: a mere man – having no reputation in this world – having behind him no great organization, no political power, no influence in high places – yet daring to speak to all men, both high and low, to tell them of the only way of salvation!

(2) But there was also the power!  For if Christ crucified is “unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness” it is also, and was also in Thessalonica, “unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.  Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”  And so, foolish as it all seemed, the fact is that through the preaching of these men something happened in the city of Thessalonica.  And it was never to be the same again.  God has chosen the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.  The gospel is the power of God unto salvation.  And the weakness of God is stronger than men!

But again, we must remember, that what happened in Thessalonica did not happen everywhere!  It did not happen in Philippi, to the same extent at least.  And as far as the record of Scripture, it did not happen at all in the greatest of all the ancient cities of Greece.  For the Book of Acts tells us that the preaching of the gospel was particularly foolishness to the wise philosophers who heard him there.  But again – let us frankly admit – that this too demonstrates both the foolishness and the power of the preaching of the gospel of God!  Sometimes it can be – sometimes it is – such a dismal failure in the sight of men.  And sometimes too it can be and it is such as to utterly confound the wise and disbelieving in this world!  And if we ask why it is so, there is but one answer!  It is divine election which can alone explain what the gospel accomplishes in this world!  And it is divine election of which the scripture constantly speaks when it explains the varied reception that the gospel had in the days of the Apostles.  Why was it, for example, that “when the Gentiles heard (the gospel, at Lystra) they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord?”  Well, the Bible says: “as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.”  And what did the Angel say to the Apostle, when he was about to begin his great work in Corinth – after so great discouragement at Athens?  Well, the Angel of the Lord said this: “Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city.”  And it was the same at Thessalonica.  It was because these people were God’s elect that the gospel could not fail to accomplish God’s glorious purpose among them.  “Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God,” says the apostle, “for our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance.”  It was because they were God’s elect that the word came to them the way it did: and it was because the word came to them the way it did, that it was absolutely certain that they were part of the election of God.

And so, let us consider together the way in which the word of God comes to those who are indeed the elect of God!  For the Bible says that the preaching of the gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth.

I.  THE WAY IT WAS PREACHED.

The first great principle set forth in our text, then, is this: where God calls his elect, there will be a preaching of the gospel that has power.  For he says, “our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power.”

Certainly there must have been times in the experience of the Apostle Paul, when he must have felt like the disciples did when they fished all night and took nothing.

In other words, there were times when he knew that the gospel had been preached, and yet that it had somehow been without power.  These are the times in which the preacher is acutely conscious of the fact that what he is saying even though it is the very truth of God simply has no effect upon those who hear.  It was like that with the prophet Ezekiel, of whom we read the following description in the very words of the Lord.  “They come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness.  And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not.  I myself have had the experience of preaching like that.  When I was in the modernist United Presbyterian Church I faced a congregation, week after week, that seemed to be made of stone!  And it wasn’t merely that they were made of stone, but also that I myself seemed to sometimes feel that I was without power!  But then there were other times when I was strangely conscious of the fact that a certain power had been given!  And then, one of two things happened and often both at the same time!  Those who were hard against the gospel literally rose up in excitement and anger.  And those who were the objects of the mercy of God were brought to conviction, fear, concern, and desire.

And we know, from the Apostle’s own testimony, that he had a similar experience.  He always preached the same gospel, yes!  But he did not always preach that gospel with the same power!  For example, in writing to the Corinthians, Paul says: “I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.” But in this epistle he says that when he came with his companions to Thessalonica, “we were bold in our God to speak unto you the gospel of God with much contention.”  It is true, of course, that the gospel that he preached was always the same gospel.  It was also true that whether that gospel was preached in weakness or in power, it did not and could not return unto him void!  But when the Lord has a great work to do he does it by the foolishness of preaching, and he does it by giving power to those who preach his word to men.  That is why the Apostle so often emphasized the fact that he himself was not the explanation of that power which was sometimes seen, and at other times not!  “My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom,” he says, “but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.”

Now let me ask you, candidly, have you ever heard the gospel preached that way?  Can you truthfully say that it is being preached that way here in this Church?  Perhaps it is not!  But do not be too quick to blame the preacher!  For, after all, it is not something that he alone can change – by “enticing words” of human “wisdom”.  No, it is something that only God can grant, and so it is something for which we all together ought humbly and earnestly to pray!  For remember, it is where the Lord’s elect are, that such preaching is to be expected!  It is for the sake of calling such to himself, that the Lord sends – not the word only but also the power!  And as we run our eye across the next chapter of this Epistle, we see what a wonderful thing such preaching is!  Such preaching, says the apostle, (1) is “not in vain.” (2) It was a bold kind of preaching, that did not shirk the unpleasantness of contention which arose.  (3) It was pure preaching, too, having nothing in it was designed for the “pleasing (of) men” but only “God, which trieth our hearts.”  (4) And even the pure truth itself was set forth without any attempt to flatter sinners, or to gain any praise from them.  (5) Nor was there any self-seeking on the part of the Apostle in anything he preached to them.  (6) It was not harsh, mind you, but gentle and loving because the aim of it all was the salvation of men!  (7) And the loving side was more than demonstrated by the fact that the Apostle was ready, both night and day, to do his utmost to establish these people in the faith.  (8) And what he said was plainly demonstrated in the life that he lived.  (9) For it was perfectly evident that a father could not have done more for his children than the Apostle did for these Thessalonians.

II.  THE WAY IT WAS RECEIVED.

But our text indicates that the Spirit was at work, not only in the preaching of Paul, but also in the hearing of the Thessalonians.  For we read: “our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost.”

You see, it is not enough to prove that we have heard the gospel preached with power if we would know ourselves to be elect – no, we must also know that we have heard that gospel with an inward power similar to that power with which it has been preached.

For there are always those among the very elect, who hear the gospel preached with power, and yet do not believe.  As we read in the Book of Hebrews – “For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them, but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.”  In other words, while it is true that “faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God,” it is only true for those who receive the word of God with that faith which is wrought by the Holy Spirit’s power.  For it is the Spirit that quickeneth, whereas the flesh profiteth nothing.

Just as those who preach the word of God are conscious of the fact that they sometimes have a power that is not their own in the preaching of the gospel.  So among those who hear, there are some who also know that they have been able to hear the gospel in power and in the holy Ghost.  And you will notice that there were two seemingly contradictory aspects in this experience in the Thessalonians.  For we read that they “received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost.”

(1)  They “received the word in much affliction.”  That is, there was much affliction or anguish – or pain – experienced by them when they received this gospel which the Apostle preached.  It was not after they heard, or received, the word that they experienced this, but in the very experience itself of receiving the word.  And if we will remember what Jesus once said we will see why.  He said that there was a very narrow gate, and an equally narrow way, that leads to life.  And by narrow he meant that it is a gate – and a way – which literally brings pressure to us from every side.  It is this ‘being pressed in’ that makes the gate straight and the way narrow.  And how could it be otherwise when the gospel comes to men, first to convict them of sin, and to make them aware of the terrible wrath and curse of God under which they have been living.  How else can one feel who realizes his desperate condition, and comes to realize that he must make haste – like Lot of old – to flee from the wrath which is to come.  There are so many things to keep one back, and yet such awful and ominous pressure to make one’s escape.  When the Holy Spirit comes, according to Jesus Christ’s promise, he convicts men of sin and of righteousness and of judgment.  It is this which gives men much affliction when they receive the word of God with power and in the Holy Spirit.  For, in order to do men good, the gospel must first make men miserable.  It must first afflict them.  It must press them in, and shut them up unto Christ who is the straight gate and the narrow way.

(2)  And then it is that there is also, and at the very same time, that joy which is likewise from the Holy Ghost.  For as the Apostle says, they received the word “in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost.”  The joy was not apart from, or later than, but rather a part of the same experience.  For the true believer rejoices in affliction, as the words of our Lord himself also suggest.  Narrow is the way, indeed, but what kind of way is it?  Well it is the way which leads to life everlasting.  And so the very pain that one feels in being ‘squeezed’ into such a narrow way, is at the same time the joy of knowing that one has passed from death unto life.  “For,” as the Apostle says, “our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory: while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen.  If it is faith that enables a man to choose the narrow way, it is also faith which enables him to rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.  If it is love for the Saviour that enables a man to walk in that way when the way becomes hard, it is also love – shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Ghost – which brings that joy and peace which passes understanding.  And if it is hope that strengthens the heart that it may endure even to the end, it is also hope that rejoices against hope that shall never be put to shame.

And shall we not ask if the gospel is heard in such a way in this Church too?  “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing,” says the Apostle, “because when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.”  You see, when the Lord sends his gospel to his very own his elect whom he loves it is not only the preaching, but also the hearing, that is wonderful!  If we have need of men sent from God to preach with power, we likewise need people who listen to that gospel in the earnestness and demonstration of the Holy Spirit.  For if I, the preacher, can of myself do nothing.  Neither can you – no, not even with the preaching of the Apostle himself!  It is in both preacher and hearers the Spirit that quickeneth: and the flesh profiteth nothing.

III.  THE WAY IT WAS PRACTICED.

But our text also contains one further element that is essential to the power of the gospel and without which all the rest would truly be in vain – “for our gospel came not unto you in word only,” we read, “but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance.”  And the only serious question is concerning just what the Apostle means precisely by this term!

(1)  Some have taken the Apostle to mean inward assurance, within the Thessalonians themselves, And by this interpretation the thought would be that when the gospel came to these people, they not only heard it preached with power, and received it with faith, but also were granted a very strong degree of confidence that they were in possession of eternal life.  They were not only sure of the gospel, in other words, but also sure of their own standing with God.

(2)  But others have taken the Apostle’s words in a slightly different sense.  They believe that he refers not so much to a person’s individual and inward confidence of his own standing with God, as to the outward evidence by which people such as the Apostle Paul were confident of a real work of God’s grace among them.  And in support of this latter interpretation we can find support in the words which immediately follow this statement for after “much assurance” – we read that these Thessalonians “became followers of us and of the Lord… so that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia.”  According to this view, then, it was because they became imitators of the Apostle and his companions – because they became examples to others – and because they became mighty and effective witnesses for the Lord, that he thus speaks of their receiving the word with “much assurance.

But when we compare scripture with scripture we can certainly see that there is no necessity to choose between these two interpretations, as if one were right and the other wrong, or as if we could take the one and forget the other.  For the Bible tells us that inward assurance and outward evidence are inseparably joined together.  In fact, we cannot have the one without the other.  For the Bible says that we must “give diligence to make our calling and election sure” we must “give diligence to the full assurance of hope.”  And so it is plain that we really cannot have “much assurance” without the sort of evidence that the Thessalonians displayed for the fact that the gospel had come to them in power and the Holy Ghost.

There are many wonderful descriptions of the power of the gospel in scripture.  It is like the hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces.  But in that very description you see that the power which is the hammer is to be plainly seen by the effect which is the breaking of the rock in pieces.

Or again, in the scripture the gospel is likened to a sharp two-edged sword, which divides asunder that which had previously been joined together.  Jesus said that he came to bring – not peace – but a sword, and that the sword, which is his word, divides men – even those living in the same house.  So again, we see not only the figure of the power, but also of the effect of that power.  And is it not the same in all of the teaching of the Bible?  For what was it, in the parable of the sower, that showed the one hearer to be different from another?  Was it not that only some brought forth fruit – some thir ty, some sixty, and some an hundred fold?  “Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, said Jesus, “I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.”  And if ever there was a Church where the word of God moved men to action, it was in the Church of Thessalonica.  For so strong was the work of the Spirit of God among them, that they began to testify the wonderful works of God everywhere.  “For from you sounded out the word of the Lord,” says the Apostle, “not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place…!”  Would it be saying too much if we said that these people were on fire with the gospel of Christ?  They were sinners even as we are.  And they too felt the same reluctance as we feel, by nature, to go out into the world to speak to men for Christ.  Even the prophet Jeremiah had this very human experience.  For this is what we read in Jeremiah 20:8 – “I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name but his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.’  When the word of God comes to a man with power and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, it is like that a burning fire shut up in his bones.  It is the deepest power in life: the strongest force of conscience: the greatest motivation in life and so he cannot hold it in.  As the Psalmist once said, “I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; and my sorrow was stirred.  My heart was not within me, while I was musing the fire burned: then spake I with my tongue.”  And so it was in Thessalonica when the gospel came to them – not in word only – but also in power and in the Holy Spirit of God!

Would you like such a thing to happen in this place?  Now be honest with yourself.  For what I am really asking is whether or not you would like this to happen to you!  And do not say that it could not happen!  For it has happened, right in this world in our own generation.  One notable instance is the Church of Korea, where the gospel in our own day has manifested its Apostolic power!  And what a glorious thing it really is when such a thing does happen!  For God’s word is quick and powerful when it comes not in word only but also in the Holy Ghost and in much assurance.  And is this not what this nation – this community – and yes, this Church itself needs more than anything else?  There is not the least doubt in my mind that the Reformed Faith is the true gospel.  The more I search the scriptures the more I am certain of this.  And what a glorious power this gospel has been – again and again since the flood-gates of God’s grace were opened at the Reformation itself.  It was this gospel that was preached when the great awakening came in early American history.  It was this gospel which burned so greatly in the wonderful preaching of George Whitfield.  It was this gospel again, which wrought such wonders in London England by the preaching of Charles Spurgeon.  And what a glorious privilege it is that we are granted the incomparable blessing of knowing this same gospel also today!

But I wonder if we should not ask ourselves in all seriousness whether this gospel has come to us in word only and whether or not we should not have much more concern to also know its power!  You see, it is the plain teaching of scripture, that being an orthodox Church is just not enough.  Preaching true doctrine with all possible human strength is, in itself, of no avail.  And hearing the true gospel with all possible regularity, and even with understanding, is in and of itself – not enough either.  And if we think that it is, it is only because we do not really understand the power of the gospel.  For the power of the gospel is not in the gospel itself nor is it by any means in the man who preaches it nor even in those who hear it.  No, the power and the might belong to God alone, and it is from him alone that all blessings flow.  If we are to know anything of the power of the gospel in preaching or anything of the Spirit’s blessing in hearing or anything of the assurance of God’s grace in our own experience: it must be from an immediate visitation of the Holy Spirit in our midst.  Yet the wonderful thing is this: if you and I will humbly seek this thing – if we pray together with sincerity and faith we shall have the desire of our hearts.  For the Lord himself has promised that it shall be so.  .Let us therefore pray together in order that here too the word may come not in word only but also in power, and in the holy Ghost, and in much assurance.

Amen.

Footnote: In arxchiving this sermon I noted that the print edition gave as Text and Scripture reading 1Timothy 1 – which clearly does not fit the sermon.  I therefore took the liberty of changing both the reading and the text to 1Thessalonians. JWW