Title: THE CHURCH THAT PROSPERS

Focus: The health of a congregation turns on pastoral leadership, centers on Christian fellowship, expresses itself in public worship, and depends on God’s work and blessings in her midst.

Function: To move the people to foster spiritual health and wholeness in the church.

Text: I Thessalonians 5:12-28

Growing up as a child in my family, it never occurred to me how blessed or fortunate I was. To be sure, we had our issues: sibling squabbles, teenage rebellion, and parental issues did pop up at times. Surely, at no time could we claim that our family life was perfect. And my hunch is that none of us can make such a claim.

Once I left home, however, and in later years through my work and interaction with many others, I realized how much I had taken for granted the relative stability and functionality of our home. For my parents did not yell at each other all the time; they did not physically or sexually abuse us kids. And even though my parents had their challenges in marriage, they did not threaten to leave each other and break up the family. Compared with so many others, our family was quite functional. And we prospered as a family.

Churches are like family units. And as there are functional and dysfunctional families, so there are also functional and dysfunctional churches. Dysfunctional churches come in many varieties: Some are led by controlling, abusively authoritative pastors and boards; others are plagued by squabbling members who think that the church should center on them and their particular wishes and whims.

Churches, then, like families, either suffer and cause pain, or they prosper and promote wellbeing and blessings. What do you think: are we a functionally healthy church or are we dysfunctional? To be sure, just as there are no perfect families, so there are no perfect churches here on earth. Nevertheless, we should raise the question from time to time: how are we doing at Calvary Church?

Today the Scriptures remind us that the spiritual health of a congregation turns on pastoral leadership, centers on Christian fellowship, expresses itself in public worship, and depends on God’s work and blessings in her midst.

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The Apostle Paul closes his first letter to the church in Thessalonica emphasizing the spiritual health of this newly-formed community of faith. In previous chapters, Paul addresses issues related to persecution and end-times concerns. And throughout his letter Paul commends these Christians in Thessalonica for their faith, hope and love.

Writing to them in summary form, Paul concludes his letter by teaching that the church’s prosperity or spiritual health turns on pastoral leadership (vs. 12-13), centers on Christian fellowship (vs. 14-15), expresses itself in public worship (vs. 16-22, 27), and depends on God’s work and blessings in her midst (vs. 23-28)

Pastoral Leadership

As we begin with the claim that the health of a congregation turns on pastoral leadership, we must first notice that Paul writes to all the members—male and female--of the church. He refers to them as “brothers”: “Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you….” Today, that term “brothers” is misunderstood by our culture. It’s seen as an exclusive term—it seems to suggest that the church is made up of males only. But that cannot be the case, for the N.T. portrays the church as the family of God, “whose members recognize and treat one another as sisters and brothers” (Stott).

All Christians—male and female—are part of the family of God. God is our Father through Christ, our Lord. And if that’s true, then all fellow believers are sisters and brothers. So let it be understood that Paul addresses all the members of the church. And Paul’s concern is the relationship between the members of the church and the pastoral leadership of the church.

Listen: “Now we ask you, brothers (and sisters), to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.” Now the pastoral leadership in a church includes elders, and deacons, and ministers who have been ordained or appointed for particular leadership tasks.

Note that their work is labor intensive; Paul uses a term that points to physical toil and manual occupations. Paul wants the congregation in Thessalonica to be aware that providing pastoral care and leadership is not a pick-nick or cushion job. I think that British pastor/theologian John Stott is correct when he writes: “Whether it is study and the preparation of sermons, or visiting the sick and counseling the disturbed, or instructing people for baptism or marriage, or being diligent in intercession—these things demand that we “toil, striving with all the energy which Christ mightily inspires within us.” Providing pastoral leadership is hard work for elders, deacons, pastors and anyone else appointed to lead a congregation. And we who are part of God’s family, the church, owe them our respect and support. The spiritual health turns on their leadership and our response to them.

Note also that Paul teaches the nature of pastoral leadership. Elders, deacons, and pastors are servant-leaders. We “are over you in the Lord.” No, we are not more important than the rest of the congregation; we are not first class and the rest second class members of the church. Leaders are “in the Lord” as they provide leadership among the congregation. The calling of pastoral leaders is to serve the people of God. Such service, however, finds its authority and legitimacy and direction “in the Lord.”

Thus pastoral leaders must take their cues from the Lord, who has taught us that true leadership reveals itself in service. Spiritual health abounds in a congregation when her members respect and honor the office or leadership role of elders, deacons and pastors. And pastors, elders and deacons who demonstrate humility and a spirit of service, taking their cues from the Lord will have no problems receiving such respect. They will “live in peace with each other.” And they will learn to love each other because of the work that must be done among the members.

A congregation can make or break her pastors by disrespect and disregard for their duties as leaders of the church; a pastor or council member, however, can also make or break a congregation by failing to provide servant leadership in the Lord. The spiritual health of a congregation, then, turns on pastoral leadership; it also centers on Christian fellowship.

Christian Fellowship

Speaking to the members of the congregation, using the same term “brothers,” Paul advocates a spiritually healthy way of living as members of the church. He says: “And we urge you, brothers (and sisters), warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.”

Patience and kindness are the default attitudes we are to have among each other. These virtues are the fruit of the Spirit at work in us. Contrary to a common notion among church members that pastoral care is to be done by elders and deacons and pastors only, Paul makes clear that Christian care-giving belongs to the entire membership of the church. A church that prospers spiritually has members who understand their responsibility as one of mutual caring. And the caring includes warning, encouragement, and providing support.

Warn those who are lazy or idle, says Paul; encourage those who are timid to be bold in their faith and stance for the Lord Jesus, and provide support for those who are weak or disadvantaged. Mutual care, holding each other accountable, and supporting each other with encouragement—are vital signs of a spiritually healthy church.

A healthy church turns on pastoral leadership and centers on Christian fellowship. The Scriptures also teach that the church expresses its spiritual vitality and health in public worship.

Public Worship

Listen: “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil…I charge you before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers (and sisters).”

All the verbs in this passage are in the plural. Paul is not talking about private worship; he addresses communal or public worship. He begins with a call or invitation: “Be joyful always.” In Philippians 4:4 Paul says “rejoice in the Lord always.” Let the framework of your worship be joy and gladness. That very framework allows for lament and confession and pleadings with the Lord as well.

That framework of joy and gladness has room for awe and humility, for reverence and fear and holy wonder, for quiet contemplation and exuberant praise. That’s why Paul also says, “pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Praise, prayer, and thanksgiving (which includes Eucharist or the Lord’s Supper and the presentation of our offerings)—these are vital components that lead to spiritual health and vitality in a congregation’s worship.

Public worship, however, must also include the Word of God. Paul says: “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.” The prophetic Word of God will shape us. And the Spirit of God will drill that Word of God in our hearts and minds; He will bring it to our minds and place that formative Word upon our tongues. Do not minimize the ministry of God’s Word in worship.

Note that Paul includes his own letter to the Thessalonian church as the inspired Word of God; Paul charges us (commands us) to read that letter and to pay attention to it because it is God’s Spirit speaking in it and through it and by it. Spiritual health turns on pastoral leadership, centers on Christian fellowship, expresses itself in public worship, and depends on God’s work and blessings.

God’s Work and Blessings

Paul concludes his letter and discussion on the vital signs of a healthy church with an awareness that we need the energizing presence of God’s Spirit at work in our midst. Listen: “May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through.” Here Paul prays for God’s Spirit to cleanse us and make us holy in all our actions. Christians are under construction, being shaped by Scripture in the image of Christ, and being renewed in our minds by the power of God’s Spirit.

As Paul makes us aware of our need to see God at work in our midst, Paul also affirms God’s faithfulness. “May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.” In other words, God’s faithfulness and abiding presence are the reason why we may be kept blameless at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. We can complete the journey of faith—not because we are faithful by nature or strong in our will or resolve—but because God is faithful and because God seeks to work in us and through us.

So I say it once more: the health of a congregation turns on pastoral leadership, centers on Christian fellowship, expresses itself in public worship, and depends on God’s work and blessings in our midst.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us all! Amen.