“For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 2:5-6 ESV.
Reflection: why do people flock to some churches while others have empty rows?
Sunday mornings can be a traffic nightmare where we live. Because right next to our house is a large church, actually a rather new church in town, which has just exploded in popularity. Growing up, I remember it was very difficult to get new people to come to church; most churches struggled with maintaining and growing their flocks. It certainly wasn’t very “popular” to go to church. So it makes me wonder what changed. What is so attractive with the church next to us. We have looked at the whole “megachurch” phenomenon before, which is in a way mind boggling. Tens of thousands of people flock to these churches on a weekly basis.
We know from reading about the early church that it was a very different situation. They were persecuted, put in prison and some even died for their faith in Christ. In fact, all through the “dark ages”, even through our current age, Christians all over the world have been and are still persecuted. Jesus talked quite a bit about how the world hated Him. ““If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.” John 15:18-21 ESV. There is something here that doesn’t seem to add up, when we think of the massive increase and attendance at some of the churches. Are people desperate for the truth, or is it something else?
Paul takes the Christians in Thessaloniki back to the beginning, when they first brought the gospel message to them. He says “For you yourselves know, brothers, that our coming to you was not in vain. But though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict. For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts.” 1 Thessalonians 2:1-4 ESV.
The fact that he brings up the thought here, of not having impure motives, not trying to deceive them in any way, leads us to think that some people were doing exactly that. And, from history, we know there were many false teachers even at that time, trying to lead people astray. How? In our focus verse today, we see some examples of what was going on. “For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 2:5-6 ESV. Wow. Paul specifically called out that they were not doing the following,
- Offering words of flattery
- Having a pretext for greed
- Seeking glory from people
- Using position of authority
Which means these were some of the methods and tools others, those who were trying to deceive, were using. Which of course is very scary to think about since we see these, and others being commonly used by many popular churches today. Flattering the people, being money focused, basking in the praise of men, and using their positions of “authority”. The message of the cross of Christ is difficult, it is transformational, and the world hates it and hates those who follow it. And, no one likes to be hated, clearly.
At the same time, we can also see that many are truly seeking truth today, especially in the younger generation. They are tired of the lies, the deceptions in the world, and perhaps also tired of the deceptions in many churches. And some are willing to follow, as with these early Christian Thessalonians, choosing the narrow road of the gospel, despite the cost. Jesus continued, “But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. Whoever hates me hates my Father also. If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin, but now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. But the word that is written in their Law must be fulfilled: ‘They hated me without a cause.’” John 15:22-25 ESV
The word of Christ must challenge us and humble us. Must drive us to our knees, causing us repentance and giving up of self, in order to embrace Christ and His ways. It must change us. To walk as His disciple.
