1 Thes. 1:1-10, The church with the life of Jesus

1 Thes. 1:1-10, The church with the life of Jesus (faith, hope and love) 

1-10,
1.Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you. 2.We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. 3.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. 4.For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5.because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. 6.You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. 7.And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. 8.The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia -- your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, 9.for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 10.and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead -- Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.

  Jesus is the life. There is life where Jesus goes. Jesus gave this life to Paul. The life established a church in Thessalonica with Jesus' life. For three weeks, the church members spread the word of life and made it into a living church.
Verse 3, Let us listen to the christian three graces for our church.

1. Church with the works of faith in Jesus (3, 6, Hebrews 11:6)

   V. 6, "We have received the word of the gospel in the joy of the Holy Spirit." V. 8, "For rumors of faith spread in every place." Heb. 11:6,'Faith pleases God.' 10, "Do you believe in Jesus, who will die and rise again for me and come again?" "Do you believe in Jesus as your Lord, Savior and God in your life?" Let us do evangelism for soul salvation. Oral evangelism and good rumor evangelism, "If you go for evangelism, there are people, if not, there is none."
* Work of the faith of a Middle School Teacher at Westbrook,Iowa.
  He taught the Bible diligently, worshiping with your students for over 30 years. They learned the Word hard, and their faith grew. It was 1932, about 30 years after that. He was over 60 years old and retired from teaching. That day was finally his birthday. So the retirement and birthday celebrations were held. At that time he received four congratulatory letters. From a missionary in China, from the president of the United States Federal Bank, one from the Secretary of State, and the other from President H, Hoover. These were the four children that the teacher taught the Bible for over 10 years 30 years ago. How glad and happy was the heart of the teacher who received the letter?
* Are you saving your neighbors' souls in the work of faith?

2. The church with the labor of love in Jesus(3,4:9;1Jn 3:18, Rom. 13:10).

   John 3:16,"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." We all received  God's great love. There was a tremendous labor in His love. Paul also worked with love to build and teach the church. The Thessalonian church was rumored as a labor of love in return for His love. 4:9,"you love each other", 1 Thess. 1:3,"your love prompted by love" and 1 Corinthians 16:14. "Do all your work in love." 2:9,"you had become so dear to us." 
* The love's labors of Livingston, and Saints Damien
* Are you living in labor of love?

3. A church with hopeful patience in Jesus(3,10, Rom.12:12, James 1:2-4)

  They hoped for the Second Coming of Jesus, V.10, "they wait for His Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead -- Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath." Verse 6, Let us live with the joy of the Holy Spirit, the hope of the coming of Jesus, and the hope of heaven in many troubles.

* Elder Kim's glorious death. He died of cancer, but he praised the Lord, prayed for his family and church. His last words were 'For only God's glory, for only God's glory, hallelujah!' And he went to the heaven. how amazing is this?
* Look at Jesus Christ on the cross. Heb. 12.2,3.
* The patience of the pearl shell makes a shiny and beautiful pearl

A Poem <The Church is the shadow of the heaven>

 The church is the spring that our soul breathes. the shelter for those who wander.
A forest of praise with one's heart. It is a place to live with fellowship. forgiveness, understanding, and love. with sharing joy, rewarding to serve.
The hand of the hid becomes the light on the instep, the joy
A possessor or a slumber, a high or low, a brother in Jesus.
The shadow of the heaven, praising the Lord with all the joy and fostering the hope.

Decision / Let's live as the church and saints who have the life of Jesus, the work of faith, the labor of love, and the patience of hope in Jesus. Amen.