1 Thessalonians 3:6

Order of Service

• Call to Worship — Psalm 100
• Hymn — Shout to the Lord All the Earth (100a)
• Prayer of Invocation
• Catechism Reading — Westminster Larger Catechism Q&A 83
• Hymn — Sing Aloud to God Our Strength (881a)
• Pastoral Prayer
• Scripture Reading — 1 Thessalonians 3:6–13
• Sermon
• Hymn — I Love the Lord (116a)
• Benediction — 1 Thessalonians 5:28

---

Sermon Title: The Look of Gospel Ministry

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 3:6–13

I. The Encouraging News of Gospel Ministry (vv. 6–8)

A. Timothy returns to Paul with a good report from the Thessalonians

1. The Greek word for "good news" (euangelizō) is used here — the only place in the New Testament it refers to something other than the gospel of Christ's death and resurrection
2. The encouraging news is the Thessalonians' enduring faith and love in the face of affliction

B. The nature of the Thessalonians' faith and love

1. Faith: mental assent flowing into genuine trust — dead sinners now resting upon Christ as offered in the gospel
2. Love: active, lived out vertically (obedience to Christ) and horizontally (knowing, serving, forgiving one another)
3. Mutual longing for fellowship between Paul and the Thessalonians — Christ breaks down walls and reconciles his people

C. The effect on Paul: comfort and relief

1. "Now we live if you are standing fast in the Lord" — 1 Thessalonians 3:8
2. Paul is no disinterested party; the bond between shepherd and flock is close
3. Elders and ministers are similarly comforted when Christ's people stand firm

II. The Earnest Labor of Gospel Ministry (vv. 9–10)

A. The earnest labor of the Word

1. Paul longs to return to supply "what is lacking" in their faith — 1 Thessalonians 3:10
2. The word "supply" (katartizō) carries the sense of a fisherman mending nets, a surgeon setting bones, a politician reconciling factions — putting things in proper order
3. Ministers today are not apostles but stewards of the revealed Word, applying it with care to the needs of Christ's people
4. The preached Word reproves, rebukes, exhorts, and trains — 2 Timothy 4:2; 2 Timothy 3:16–17
5. Ministers serve as "sheep dogs" who know the voice and commands of the Shepherd and guide the sheep accordingly

B. The earnest labor of Prayer

1. Prayer is the engine of the ministry of the Word — Paul prays "night and day" for the Thessalonians — 1 Thessalonians 3:10
2. Prayer is often the hardest labor of gospel ministry, crowded out by deadlines and distractions
3. Paul models prayer repeatedly throughout his letters — even from prison, shipwreck, and affliction his mind remains fixed on the churches
4. The closing doxology and benediction (vv. 11–13) is itself a written-out prayer, modeling this prayer-soaked labor

III. The End Goal of Gospel Ministry (vv. 11–13)

A. Paul's prayer is addressed to "our God and Father" and "our Lord Jesus Christ" — two persons of the Trinity addressed with a singular verb in the Greek, affirming the one will and work of the one God — 1 Thessalonians 3:11

B. The end goal stated plainly: 1 Thessalonians 3:13

1. "That he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints"
2. The end goal is not happier people, self-fulfillment, or self-awareness — it is hearts established blameless in holiness

C. What this establishment means

1. Believers are already justified — declared righteous in God's courtroom through Christ
2. The Spirit is now sanctifying believers, conforming them to the image of Christ
3. At Christ's coming, believers will be liberated from the stain of indwelling sin — perfected body and soul, freed from the very possibility of sin (Thomas Boston and Augustine)
4. God alone can accomplish this; it is entirely his work

D. The coming of Christ as the horizon of gospel Ministry

1. Christ will return with all his saints — those who have died in Christ and are with him
2. Believers will be gathered to him and made fit to dwell in the eternal presence of the holy God
3. The end goal of gospel Ministry far surpasses any earthly achievement — Hearts established blameless in holiness before God forever