The Gospel Calls You

Let's take our Bibles and let's turn to 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. You follow as I read the first 12 verses of this chapter. finally then brothers we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus that as you receive from us how you ought to walk and to please God just as you are doing that you do so more and more for you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus for this is the will of God your sanctification that you abstain from sexual immorality that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God, that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you.

For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. therefore whoever disregards this disregards not man but God who gives his Holy Spirit to you now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another for that indeed is what you are doing all to all the brothers throughout Macedonia but we urge you brothers to do this more and more and to aspire to live quietly and to mind your own affairs and to work with your hands as we instructed you so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one let's pray father now we come to you we ask you to work in our hearts we ask you to bring home what the text of scripture says to us in a very living way lord even though you have written this for your people through all ages, yet we know that it is powerful and active and can penetrate our own individual hearts, that you will use this, even this ancient text, which is the very Word of God, to teach us and to instruct us and to move us to obedience. And so we pray that now. Help us Lord now in this time as we look into your word we ask this in Jesus name Amen Many of you have probably never heard the term radical personal autonomy.

You may never have heard of it, yet you swim in that ocean every day. It's the philosophy by which most people live today. It says, I feel like a girl. And even though I was born a boy, you cannot tell me, you cannot tell me that I must live as a boy because I feel what I feel. It's me, and you don't have any right to tell me how I ought to live. I noticed the other day about some pop star who had just had gender confirmation surgery.

Do you understand what that's saying? It's no longer gender reassignment. reassignment, it's gender confirmation saying, who are we to tell you who you're going to be? There's no outside code that ought to tell you what you ought to do. You are what you are. You feel what you feel. And that's all that's important.

Don't tell me that I can't get a divorce. My heart tells me that I love another and I have to be true to my heart. Right? On a television program the other day, I saw a teenage boy tell his dad that he could not be an authentic person unless he could live life the way he wanted to and not in the way that his parents expected. You know what, as I thought about that, it's all summed up in a Sammy Davis Jr. song.

Any of you remember Sammy Davis Jr.? Yeah, it's a song. And it was a song that says, I gotta be me. Right? Some of you remember that. Let me remind you of the lyrics.

I'd sing it, but I'm not sure I could do it. Whether I'm right or whether I'm wrong, whether I find a place in this world or never belong, I've got to be me. I've got to be me. What else can I be but what I am? I've got to be me. I want to live, not merely survive, and I won't give up this dream of life that keeps me alive.

I've got to be me. I've got to be me, right? The dream that I see makes me what I am. I've got to be me. I'll go it along, that's how it must be. I can't be right for somebody else if I'm not right for me.

I've got to be free, I've got to be free, daring to try to do it or die. I've got to be me. There it is all summed up I must be and I must do what I believe to be right and no one has the right to impose their values on me There can be no outside moral code to tell me what I can do, because I've got to be me. I've got to be me. But the gospel comes along and tears that philosophy to shreds, because the gospel both comforts and calls.

It comforts us with good news that saves us. There's the comfort of the gospel. And Paul has already given us the comfort of the gospel in this book as we've worked our way through this book. Notice what he says. Chapter 1, verse 3. Remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

What is he saying there? Here's what Jesus has produced. Faith, hope, and love. He's changed you. Right? There's the comfort of the gospel.

Verses 9 and 10 of chapter 1. For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come. There's the comfort of the gospel. Jesus has delivered us now from the wrath that is yet to come. chapter 2 verse 12 we exhorted each one of you and encourage you and charge you to walk in a manner worthy of God who calls you into his own kingdom and glory God through Jesus has called you into his kingdom and his glory verse 13 and we also thank God constantly for this that when you received the word of God which you heard from us you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God.

That is to say, you receive the gospel from us and you were saved. Verse 15, he talks about it, of chapter 2. Nope, I got that wrong. Verse 20. For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before the Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you?

For you are our glory and joy. all these things shows the comfort of the gospel the gospel has come, it's invaded our life it's changed our hearts we embraced Jesus and we been saved we been given hope and faith and love and God has changed us and there the comfort of the gospel But the gospel also comes with a call. It also comes with a call and that's where we land in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. For now, the Apostle Paul changes his direction from the comfort of the gospel to the call of the gospel.

And I want to concentrate on these first two verses. finally then brothers we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus that as you receive from us how you ought to walk and to please God just as you are doing that you do so more and more for you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus the gospel comes with a call now he's hinted at it already in the first three chapters before he gets here he's hinted at it in chapter 2 verses 11 and 12 we just looked at it where he said that for you know how like a father with his children we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of god who calls you into his own kingdom and glory he says each one of you we talked to you each one of you we talked about the fact that you have been called into this kingdom now you need to walk worthy of it now that you're part of it walk like you're part of it and then chapter 3 verses 9 and 10 you remember what he says there as he's concluding this part of the book he says for what thanksgiving can we return to God for you for all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith they need to grow they need to do more they need to to walk in obedience. So having saved us and having rescued us from sin and from the wrath of God, the gospel calls you then to live differently. We no longer live a life that says, I gotta be me.

That's no longer part of our thinking. That's no longer part of our life. We live a life that says, rather, I gotta be me. Rather, it says, I must live in harmony with what God says. I must live in a manner worthy of the kingdom of God to which he has called me. The gospel comes with a call and says now that you've been rescued, you've got to live differently.

The gospel calls you to obedience. So after his Reflection, as we looked at verses 1-3, Paul gives us direction. He says, finally done, brothers. After reflecting, he says, after reflecting on our ministry of the gospel and your reception of that gospel, we must move on to your obedience to the call of the gospel. And so now as we come over, it says as we come over the mountain and now we're going down the other side.

This is reflection, now it's direction. He's told us everything about the preaching of the gospel, the reception of the gospel. Now he's going to tell us about the call of the gospel, the direction that we must take as people who have been rescued by that gospel. You've got to believe today that the gospel comes with a call to obedience. So the first thing I want to point out is this.

You must believe the call of the gospel is vital. The call of the gospel is vital. You've got to believe that. That is to say, obedience to the commands of the gospel is not optional. It's not optional. When the gospel commands you, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

It's not saying if you want to. It's a command that requires your obedience of faith, that you entrust yourself entirely to the Savior, Jesus Christ. you know Abby just testified to that today she testified first to the fact that she's embraced Jesus by faith that Jesus has cleansed her from her sins that she is forgiven that she is justified she responded in obedience to the call to believe but then the gospel commands says this You must walk and please God. And that doesn't give you an option either.

It's not, now you must please God if you feel like it. If it fits in with who you are. No. You must now walk a particular way. Now, how do we know that? How do we know it's so vital?

Again, I can get really microscopic sometimes. I'm going to do that today. All right? But I want you to see how important it is that the gospel comes with a call. It's vital to our understanding of the Christian faith. The gospel isn just about saving you from hell The gospel is about living a different life How do I know that Well notice what he says First Paul writes we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus OK, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus.

Now, this is not a request. Now, it uses the term ask and urge. But those are terms that were usually joined together to make a powerful statement. We were commanding you to do this. You know, this is not a request any more than the draft notice my father received in 1942 was a request. It said this, the President of the United States to Gerald Pazma, greetings.

Isn't that nice? The President is greeting me. Having submitted yourself to a local board composed of your neighbors for the purpose of determining your availability for training and service in the land or naval forces of the United States, you are hereby notified that you have been selected for training and service therein. Isn't that nice? And my dad couldn't say, I really appreciate the fact that you're notifying me that I've been selected, but I'm not interested.

Right? That isn't what that was saying, was it? That was saying, by the way, the next phrase is, you're ordered to report for duty at this time at this place. Okay? So all that talk about greetings and you've been notified that you've been selected for this wonderful training program was not an optional thing. I mean, it's couched nicely, but it says show up.

So the Apostle Paul, along with Silas and Timothy, is not merely requesting their cooperation. Right? With God's desire that they please him. He is saying this is necessary. It's used to get across the point that it's necessary. Next thing he says, as if that weren't strong enough, he goes on to say, you receive from us how you ought to walk and please God.

That word ought. Now you may look at that, how you ought to, and you may think of it like this. Like it's not the same thing as saying, I really ought to see my mother more. Right? that's not what it means the word can be translated must in fact I don't know why it isn't did the verb there is a very strong verb so in essence what he is saying saying is how you must walk and to please God So now he says I told you Now he says I told you how you must walk and to please God And if that's not enough, he says in verse 2, for you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

Instructions. You know, you can ignore the instructions you received in your high school biology class. Right? I know the biology teacher is saying, no, you can't. He's right there saying it. But, yeah, you can ignore those instructions and get a lower than average grade on your exam.

That was a whole lot different than when I showed up at Brock Manufacturing for my job when I worked there. I worked at Brock Manufacturing for a number of years. And when Larry instructed me how to get some parts kits together for the construction of grain bins, It wasn't like, what would have happened if I had said, that's nice, but I really don't want to do it that way.

I'm fired, right? Because I didn't follow those instructions. That's the kind of word that he uses here. These instructions from the Apostle Paul carry with them the obligation to do what they teach. To do what they teach. This is a term used even of the authoritative commands that come from a military commander. and so when you accept the proclamation of the gospel of god's good news that jesus is the savior who's come to save you you come under the obligation to obey his commandments you come under the obligation to obey the commands that accompany that good news so the first thing is you must believe that the gospel call the gospel call to obedience is vital to your christian life.

Here's the second thing. You must believe that God is central to the call of the gospel, that God is central. Why must you respond to the call of the gospel? Why must you live a life worthy of the kingdom to which you've been called? You must do it in order to please God. God's at the center.

Why should I obey? Right? Why should I obey? Should I obey because it's going to make my life easier? You know, when I sit in counseling with folks, one of the things I really want to get across to them is what we going to talk about here is not some nice nifty techniques to give you a happy marriage It not what this is about What this is about is how you live together in a way that pleases God.

It's not about giving you a nice happy marriage. It's about living together in a way that pleases God so that if your spouse doesn't respond in the right way you're still going to please God you see it's all about pleasing God the call of the gospel is about pleasing God what we've done too often with the with the commands of obedience in the gospel are to say obey these and you know life will be great for you and that's true but why do I obey those not just for me the problem is I'm too me-centered as it is I do it to please God because some of the things that please God are not easy for us are they they're not easy so you do this in order to please God and that means first of all that you no longer live for yourself just It's the opposite of what our culture says to us all the time. You've got to be you.

I've got to be me. Right? If I'm going to live an authentic life, no one can tell me how to live. And God says, oh no, that's not true. The only authentic life is life lived in harmony with my commands. It's no longer about you.

It's no longer about you. I am blown away. And I often go to this verse. It's found in Philippians chapter 1 verse 20 where the Apostle Paul is waiting for his hearing that's going to determine whether he lives or dies. And he says to the Philippians, pray for me so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body whether by life or by death. You hear what he's saying there?

He says, I may live, I may die. What happens to me is not important. That kind of blows me away. What happens to me is not important. He says, the only thing that matters is if I live that they see Christ exalted. if I die, that they see Christ in me. That's the only thing that matters.

Here is a man who is saying, me, I'm no longer the main player in this drama. I'm not the center of the story. Jesus is. And that's exactly what he's saying here to these folks some years before he wrote that. Our culture has its great... end goal, enjoying and pleasing yourself, right? We husband our time.

We try to make sure we have enough time so we can play, right? Our money. Oh, I got it. I got to really look after retirement. I got to set that time because when I retire, I'm just going to have fun. I'm just going to play.

I've worked long enough. I'm just going to play, right? How much time and effort and resources do we spend on pleasing ourselves. The chief end of humanity has always been to take pleasure in this life. But the gospel calls you to take pleasure in pleasing God. The gospel calls you to a life where everything you do, listen to me, everything you do from brushing your teeth in the morning to going to work to even when you go on vacation.

Everything is aimed in one direction and that is to please God. By the way, you might say, okay, I guess I'll give up vacation and we won't go to Disney World. That's not what God is saying. Sometimes that can become way too important. But do it to please God. Do it to please God.

Now, I'm always reminded here of 2 Corinthians 5, verse 15, where the Apostle Paul says, And he died for all that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for him who died for them and was raised again. That is powerful. Of course I'm going to live every moment of my life to please Christ. Why? Because he died for me. He died for me.

I live for him. Now here's another important point that we have to see from the fact that Paul is saying you've got to please God. The gospel also says that you can please God. You know, in our circles, right? in our sovereign grace circles, we big on total depravity aren we And we walk around even as Christians saying well you know I did my best I sure God God can be pleased He can be pleased.

Because of Jesus, God accepts your efforts, and He is pleased with them. Listen to Hebrews chapter 13, verses 15 and 16. Through Him, referring to Jesus, through Christ, through Christ then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God that is the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name do not neglect to do good and to share what you have for such sacrifices are pleasing to God our efforts are acceptable to God through Christ you might say you might say, oh, well, okay, let's bring it home right here, okay?

I go home and I say, boy, I wonder how that sermon was. And then you go, oh, what are you doing, Tim? Oh, God, forgive me. It's not about me. It's about you. I hope, I guess I blew it.

My motives were mixed. God's not pleased. Wrong. God accepts it because of Jesus. and your motives may be mixed, but you can still please God. I'm telling you, there's hope in that, isn't there? There's hope in that.

Do you see God as a harsh father who's hard to please? Is that your view of God? The other day I woke up. I was laying in bed and it seemed to be, as I was looking over the day, it seemed to be one of those days of overwhelming weakness and tremendous responsibilities. Like, I don't know, and again, this may just be me, I don't know if I'm going to make it to the end of the day.

Right? It's like, God, I know what I have to do today. There are things I have to do. I don't know if I can do them. God, please give me the grace today. I'm laying in bed saying, God, please give me the grace today to do the things you've called me to do.

And then a second later I go, Oh, God, please give me the grace to do what you've called me to do. About three seconds later, I said, as I'm rolling out of bed, Oh, God, would you please give me the grace to do what you've called me to do today? And then the thought occurred to me What do you think God is some sort of stingy God who doesn Or is he a God who delights to give you grace to do the things you got to do Right It like man I really got to get through to God because no he delights in doing that He not a stingy harsh father you can please him and because of the lord jesus he is near and he is loving and he is for you in christ he was always for you and he can be pleased and by the way is it hard to please someone who loves you when you're convinced that you know i am convinced that my wife loves me Okay?

I know that's hard to believe. But she really does love me. And you know what? It's not hard most of the time. It is not hard to serve her. Why?

Because she loves me. And that's the way God is. He loves you. You can please Him. Besides that, you must never forget that the gospel always empowers you to obey its commands. What's interesting about the gospel is when the commands come at you, they come with you.

They come at you with the power to obey them. Turn back to Ezekiel 36. Ezekiel 36. I'm sure there's someone sitting out there right now who's saying, yeah, I was figuring he was going to go to that. Yeah, that's the place to go. Yeah, it is the place to go.

Listen to Ezekiel 36. 25 through 27 and I will sprinkle you water on you and you'll be clean from all your uncleanness and from all your idols I will cleanse you and I will give you a new heart and a new spirit and a new spirit I will put within you and I'll remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh and I will put my spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules You see what God says in the covenant that we under He gives us the ability to obey It a gift from him He gives us the spirit I love the little poem that is attributed to John Bunyan Run John run the law commands but gives us neither feet nor hands Far better news the gospel brings it bids us fly and gives us wings When the gospel comes with a command, it comes also with the power to obey. You can please God.

You can please God. Now, you know what else he says? he tells you to excel at pleasing God, that you do so more and more. Do not, listen, don't be satisfied with your level of obedience. Don't be satisfied with your level of obedience. Notice how the text makes that clear. He says, first of all, as you receive from us how you ought to walk and to please God, they'd already received some ethical instructions as to how they ought to live and to walk to please God.

They'd already received some of that. That's hinted at, as we noted, back in chapter 2, right? Verses 11 and 12, For you know this, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. They'd already given them some instruction, but now they're going to give them more.

And so he says to them that they'd already received some. just as you receive from us how you ought to walk and to please God. Right? Just as you are doing. Okay, so, you're coming along nicely in some ways. You're doing well. Good.

But then he says that you do so more and more. This is why I call this a champion congregation, that we cheer to the finish. That's what we need to be. They're doing well. but you can do more. Do so more and more. Keep doing what you're doing, only do it more.

And by the way, that's the same word that's used in chapter 3, verse 12, where he says, May the Lord make you increase and abound in love, that you do so more and more, that you abound, that you overflow in your efforts to please God. Don't be satisfied with the level of your obedience. Strive for more. You know what? I should love my wife Becca. Should I say I've been taught well about loving my wife and I've tried to love her as I've been taught and quite frankly I'm pretty satisfied with how I'm loving her, right?

You'd say, well, good for you. But I believe that I would excel at loving her if I would say, and quite frankly, I need to love her more and more. I need to overflow in my love for her see I can't I don't want to be satisfied with where I am I want to do it more and so it is with you as you seek to please God as you are pleasing God don't be satisfied with that seek to excel at it that's what he's saying here he's saying do so more and more now by what right does Paul have to command such things by what right has he to do that he's just the guy that founded the church he's the guy who with two other fellas came into the city and the team started a church what right does he have to tell them such things he says in verse 1 we ask and urge you he says in verse 2 for you know what instructions we gave you what right does he have to say that Because of what he adds to those statements right We ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus.

For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. You must believe that Jesus' authority stands behind the call of the gospel, the authority of Jesus himself. Why must I live no longer for myself? Because the king has told me to live in the way that he wants me to live. It's the king who's telling me that I must please God. It's the king who's giving those commands.

Paul has certainly, he has derived authority. He can demand such things from them because he's a spokesman for King Jesus. And so that what he says carries with it the authority of the king. By the way, the same thing is true of me. When I stand up here and proclaim the word of God, I can tell you, do it. Why?

Because it's the message of the king. It's not my authority. It's not my authority that stands behind us. It's the authority of King Jesus. He's the one saying that. He the one you got to listen to I just the messenger but the message carries his authority So the third thing is you must believe that Jesus authority stands behind the call of the gospel It's the King who is saying that.

Well, I gotta be me. This is no longer the song that we sing, right? Instead, the song we ought to sing is, it's not about me, is it? It's about our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. It's about our Father, God. It's now all about living for my Father who rescued me by crushing His own Son for my salvation.

Do I want to live for him? Do I want to please him? Yes. Yes. It's now about living under the authority of a king, but a king who loves me and a king who willingly went to the depths of humiliation and looking like a criminal instead of a king in order to save me. I want to live for that king.

I I don't want to live for me. I ought not to live for me. I ought to live for the Father who I ought to please the Son who gave Himself by the power of the Spirit who resides in me so that I can obey the call of the Gospel It's no longer about being true to my heart, but living faithfully under the commands of the Gospel. Father, we're thankful for Your Word, which is so clear to us.

God of Heaven, we still have remnants of that living for self that continue to plague us as those who have embraced Jesus by faith. Would you help us to think clearly, to examine our hearts, and to look at how we are living for ourselves, and to repent of those things, and to cry out to you for grace that we might live for you and not for self. Father, help us to be a people, a congregation that lives to please God and to please God alone.

To live under the authority of your word. To hear the call of the gospel and to obey. Grant that we pray for your glory and our good. In Jesus name. Amen.