genuine – Moment to Moment (Bible blog)

Genuine ministers

I was reading Philippians 1 with my wife the other day, where Paul talked about how he praised God that the gospel was spreading even though it was through people who preached with impure motives. (Philippians 1:15-18)

The implication being of course, that God can use people to spread his gospel and have it be effective even though these “ministers” will receive no reward at all.

But Paul not only preached the gospel, he was a genuine minister in every way. And we see that in this passage.

We see that in his boldness in preaching, even in the midst of persecution (1 Thessalonians 2:2, but also see Acts 16-17).

And when he taught, he taught accurately, not trying in any way to deceive or manipulate the Thessalonians, but with pure motives. (1 Thessalonians 2:3, 5)

In short, he acted as someone who had been given a trust from God, and more than anything, he sought God’s approval above anyone else’s. (4, 6)

Sometimes Christians soft-pedal the word of God because they are afraid they might offend people.

But Jesus offended people all the time by speaking the truth, particularly the Pharisees and other religious leaders.

And he not only spoke of the love of God, but of the judgment to come for all who rejected him. (Matthew 7:21-23 and 25:31-46 among many other passages)

Paul picked up on the example of Jesus. He told the Ephesians,

Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. (Acts 20:26-27)

Here he references Ezekiel 33 where God warned Ezekiel not to hold back on warning the people of God’s coming judgment, because if he did, God would hold Ezekiel responsible.

So Paul’s purpose whenever he preached the gospel was not to please people, but his Lord.

And yet, his heart for people was also very evident. He never demanded things of them as an apostle of Christ, abusing his authority with them. Rather he was gentle with them, willing to give up his very life for them. (1 Thessalonians 2:7-8)

As a mother, he nursed them in their faith, and as a father, he worked hard for them so that they would not have to support him, but rather that he could support them.

More, as a father, he encouraged, comforted, and urged them to live lives worthy of God. (6-12).

And as a spiritual parent, he was an example to them, living a life that was holy, righteous, blameless, and totally above approach.

That’s what a genuine minister should look like.

But before you start looking at these things and start judging you own pastor, look at yourself.

You see, you are called to be a minister too. A minister to your family, to your friends, and to those around you. You are, as Paul put it, Christ’s ambassador to those God has put in your life. (2 Corinthians 5:20)

So the question is: are you a genuine minister of the gospel that God has entrusted to you?

A genuine faith

This is one of Paul’s earliest letters, perhaps his earliest, written during his second missionary journey.

It was written to the church in Thessalonica, and many things that Paul alludes to in this letter can be found in Acts 16-17, from his troubles in Phillipi to all that happened when he started the church in Thessalonica.

When you read Acts 17, you find out that he was forced to leave Thessalonica much earlier than he had probably wanted to because of some troublemaking Jews who despised the gospel, and who as a result, got him in trouble with the local authorities.

Because of this, and perhaps because of persecution these new Christians were going through from their own countrymen, Paul had been worried that perhaps they were starting to falter in their faith.

So he sent Timothy to check on them, and to his relief, he found that despite their afflictions, they were doing just fine. And so at the start of this letter, he tells them how much he thanks God for all of them.

But in doing so, I think we see the marks of a genuine faith. What are they?

Paul says,

We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 1:3)

1. A genuine faith doesn’t simply sit. It produces fruit, namely good works.

Jesus said, “You can tell a tree by its fruit. A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit.” (Matthew 7:16-20)

2. A genuine faith is prompted by its love for God and for others.

It doesn’t do things because it feels obligated or forced. It delights to do these things.

3. A genuine faith has hope for the future, that Jesus will come back and that all that is wrong in the world will be made right. And because of that, it can endure all things, including any trials or persecutions that may come.

That’s what Paul and others saw in the Thessalonians.

But there is more.

4. Genuine faith comes when people hear the gospel, and the Holy Spirit convicts their hearts of sin.

In short, people cannot claim to have genuine faith and willfully continue in sin. Rather, they understand how bad it is, and the price Jesus paid that we might be forgiven. (5)

5. Genuine faith comes with the power to change through the Holy Spirit, who not only convicts us of sin, but renews our hearts so that we can live a new life. (5)

He in fact, comes to dwell within us and renews us day by day.

6. Genuine faith is also filled with joy through the Holy Spirit, even when facing trials. (6)

7. Genuine faith makes itself known to the those around them. People around us can tell there’s a difference in us. (8)

What kind of difference? That we no longer serve the gods of this world, whether idols, money, possessions, sex, or other such things. That we now in every way serve the true and living God.

As a result, our focus is no longer on things of earth, but on things of heaven. And with that comes love, hope, and inexpressible joy, which brings us right back to our first three points.

What kind of faith do you have?