Walk Worthily
Walk Worthily I Thessalonians 2:1-12
Why is the Church here? Why I am here? Why are you here? ( Let me comment that the lectionary sometimes gets it wrong....should have gone to vs 12 today, so we are looking at that vs.) "...Walk worthily of God, who calleth you into His own kingdom and glory." The Apostle identifies what that means by his own example in vs. 10 " Ye are witnesses, and God also, how holily and righteously and unblamably we behaved ourselves toward you that believe..."
1. What does it mean to " Walk worthily"? As one commentator puts it, " ...Such a picture of a Christian pastor , drawn with such conscious sincerity and honesty, warns all the followers of Christ against the temptation of avarice and ambition and inspires them to emulate the courage, the purity, the tenderness, the self-sacrifice, and the fidelity which the apostle claimed and which all who knew him could testify he had embodied in his life..." Thessalonians by Erdman.
Are we walking worthily? The Gk word is our English word axis. Here is the origin-" aksíōs (an adverb) – worthily (viewed as "becoming"); suitable because recognized as fitting (having worth that "matches" actual value). (aksios)."
In other words we are not counterfeit. We are actually what we say we profess to be. We profess to be Christians. We are not perfect, but growing into the image of Christ daily more and more.
The Apostle gives himself as the example here as one who follows Christ.
There is the temptation of avarice. What is that? Origin of the word is " Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin avaritia, from avarus avaricious, from avēre to crave "https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/avarice The Apostle not only knew hardship and persecution ( Phillipi), but he worked alongside the church at Corinth as a tentmaker. Acts 18:3. ( persecution-" I T 2:2- " we had suffered before, and were shamefully entreated, as ye know at Philippi")
There was the temptation of ambition. A Church exists to be the Body of Christ in a vain world, and is not to be like that. Humility is to be the badge of service, not one above another. Romans 12 is a good reference for that..." An ambitious Christian is a contradiction. Be mindful of others before yourself. Practice hospitality . Love one another.
Emulate ( Imitate) Courage and purity. Stand for something true and right. Be holy not as the world, but as the Scripture, the Ten Commandments and our Lord in the sermon on the mount and other places tell us. Be salt and light as He said.
The self-sacrifice, the tenderness and fidelity of the Apostle are to be admired and tried in our own lives. The world has its own way of doing things, but in the Christian life we are to live in such a way that God is glorified in what we say, do and think.
" Something happened to this man ( the Apostle Paul) on the way to Damascus, and what happened regenerated his whole being and transformed his entire life. ...He says, ' I was apprehended by Christ Jesus'. ..." in Christ and the World at War , ed. Mathews, sermon by J. D. Jones.
2. God calls you into His kingdom and glory. This is always the case. John 6 reminds us that "no man can come unto me , except it were given unto him of my Father" vs. 65
Therefore we do not glory in our own deeds or accomplishments, but in His drawing of ourselves to Himself. One of my favorite pastors always used this Collect before he preached,
" O GOD, forasmuch as without Thee we are not able to please Thee; Mercifully grant that thy Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our LORD. Amen." in the Book of Common Prayer, for the 19th Sunday after Trinity.
We speak , " as not pleasing men, but God who proveth our hearts." vs 4 of I Thess, ch 2.
"Walk worthily of God" Whose name do we bear? We bear in our body the marks of the Lord, Galatians 6:17. That was what led our forebearers of the English Reformers to call men and women to evangelical faith in opposition to the Church of the day who confused the gospel of good news with doing "good" in the eyes of men. Only God's righteousness can give us eternal life. Our own nature of original sin cannot .
" The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." I Cor. 2:14
Why is the Church here? Why I am here? Why are you here? ( Let me comment that the lectionary sometimes gets it wrong....should have gone to vs 12 today, so we are looking at that vs.) "...Walk worthily of God, who calleth you into His own kingdom and glory." The Apostle identifies what that means by his own example in vs. 10 " Ye are witnesses, and God also, how holily and righteously and unblamably we behaved ourselves toward you that believe..."
1. What does it mean to " Walk worthily"? As one commentator puts it, " ...Such a picture of a Christian pastor , drawn with such conscious sincerity and honesty, warns all the followers of Christ against the temptation of avarice and ambition and inspires them to emulate the courage, the purity, the tenderness, the self-sacrifice, and the fidelity which the apostle claimed and which all who knew him could testify he had embodied in his life..." Thessalonians by Erdman.
Are we walking worthily? The Gk word is our English word axis. Here is the origin-" aksíōs (an adverb) – worthily (viewed as "becoming"); suitable because recognized as fitting (having worth that "matches" actual value). (aksios)."
In other words we are not counterfeit. We are actually what we say we profess to be. We profess to be Christians. We are not perfect, but growing into the image of Christ daily more and more.
The Apostle gives himself as the example here as one who follows Christ.
There is the temptation of avarice. What is that? Origin of the word is " Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin avaritia, from avarus avaricious, from avēre to crave "https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/avarice The Apostle not only knew hardship and persecution ( Phillipi), but he worked alongside the church at Corinth as a tentmaker. Acts 18:3. ( persecution-" I T 2:2- " we had suffered before, and were shamefully entreated, as ye know at Philippi")
There was the temptation of ambition. A Church exists to be the Body of Christ in a vain world, and is not to be like that. Humility is to be the badge of service, not one above another. Romans 12 is a good reference for that..." An ambitious Christian is a contradiction. Be mindful of others before yourself. Practice hospitality . Love one another.
Emulate ( Imitate) Courage and purity. Stand for something true and right. Be holy not as the world, but as the Scripture, the Ten Commandments and our Lord in the sermon on the mount and other places tell us. Be salt and light as He said.
The self-sacrifice, the tenderness and fidelity of the Apostle are to be admired and tried in our own lives. The world has its own way of doing things, but in the Christian life we are to live in such a way that God is glorified in what we say, do and think.
" Something happened to this man ( the Apostle Paul) on the way to Damascus, and what happened regenerated his whole being and transformed his entire life. ...He says, ' I was apprehended by Christ Jesus'. ..." in Christ and the World at War , ed. Mathews, sermon by J. D. Jones.
2. God calls you into His kingdom and glory. This is always the case. John 6 reminds us that "no man can come unto me , except it were given unto him of my Father" vs. 65
Therefore we do not glory in our own deeds or accomplishments, but in His drawing of ourselves to Himself. One of my favorite pastors always used this Collect before he preached,
" O GOD, forasmuch as without Thee we are not able to please Thee; Mercifully grant that thy Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our LORD. Amen." in the Book of Common Prayer, for the 19th Sunday after Trinity.
We speak , " as not pleasing men, but God who proveth our hearts." vs 4 of I Thess, ch 2.
"Walk worthily of God" Whose name do we bear? We bear in our body the marks of the Lord, Galatians 6:17. That was what led our forebearers of the English Reformers to call men and women to evangelical faith in opposition to the Church of the day who confused the gospel of good news with doing "good" in the eyes of men. Only God's righteousness can give us eternal life. Our own nature of original sin cannot .
" The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." I Cor. 2:14
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