Idol Worship

♪ Little country church on the edge of town ♪ ♪ Doo, doo, doo, doo, doo ♪ ♪ People come on every day from miles around ♪ ♪ For meetings and for Sunday school ♪ ♪ And it's very plain to see ♪ ♪ It's not the way it used to be ♪ Welcome to the word for today, featuring the Bible teaching ministry of Pastor Chuck Smith, founder of the Calvary Chapel Movement. This radio program is a chapter by chapter verse by verse study through the entire Bible. And on today's edition of the word for today, Pastor Chuck continues his message, "I don't worship," as we pick up in 1st Thessalonians chapter 1, verse 9. And now with today's study, here's Pastor Chuck. We usually think of idolatry as something of a past history of man or something that is only found in primitive cultures. Not so. We can even find idols in churches, images, statuary, though it has been specifically forbidden in the scriptures, yet it does exist. When a person begins to worship an idol or a relic, it is a sign that that person has lost the consciousness of God and the presence of God. God oftentimes works through instruments. God worked through the cross to bring our salvation. But then to take splinters of the cross and begin to venerate splinters of the cross, show that the people had lost the truth behind the cross. God used the brass serpent in the wilderness to bring healing to Israel from the bites of these poisonous snakes. But there came a time in the history of Israel when Hezekiah was king that they were worshipping this brass snake. They had kept it, it had become a religious relic and people were coming and worshipping this brass snake. So that Hezekiah broke the thing and He said, "New Hushtan is just a thing of brass, it's not God." But the worship of it indicated the loss of the consciousness of God within their lives, but also a deep desire to experience God again. Now the idols that they had made to these various passions or to the various emotions or various concepts were more honest than people today. For we still have these as idols within our hearts many times, though we may not have made some little form that we set on a table and put little flowers around and kneel before each morning and light candles before each night. But we can be burning incense in our hearts. There are those today who are worshipping Narcissus. There are those today who are worshipping Aphrodite. Those today who are worshipping Bacchus, Zootz, they just don't have idols except within their hearts. Now they had turned from these idols to the true and the living God. And they were waiting for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. Now it is interesting to me that at the end of each of the first four chapters Paul makes reference to the coming again of Jesus Christ. An important part to a person's faith and belief system. For it is really the hope that sustains us. And so the patience of hope, and here he broadens out a bit, as they were waiting for God's Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. How much doctrine is involved in that little statement right there? The central message of the New Testament, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead by God the Father. And the coming again of Jesus Christ to deliver us from the wrath to come. Now we are waiting for Jesus to deliver us from the wrath to come. That wrath to come could be a reference to the eternal punishment that God is going to visit upon those who have rejected Him. But it also could very well refer to the wrath to come during the Great Tribulation period. And as we go further into Thessalonians we'll find that God has not appointed us under wrath. Jesus is going to deliver us from the wrath to come during the period of the Great Tribulation when the sixth seal is open. And these cataclysmic judgments are taking place in the universe. Awesome, fearful things happening. And the kings of the earth and the chief captains and all will be hiding, calling unto the rocks and to the mountains, fallen us and hide us from the face of the lamb for the day of His wrath has come and who shall be able to stand. The wrath to come. There is coming the wrath of God upon this earth in the Great Tribulation. And I do not believe that it would be proper scriptural exposition to not include that in the deliverance of the Lord for His saints. I believe that it is an all-inclusive deliverance from the wrath to come, the Great Tribulation as well as the future judgment of the unbeliever. More about that as we move into revelation on Thereseenites. And more about that as we move into Thessalonians next Sunday night. For yourselves, brethren, know our entrance in unto you that it was not in vain. Now Paul evidently had quite an entrance to the city of Thessalonica, for he makes reference to a three times here in the opening part of this letter. But it was not in vain. But even after that we had suffered before and were shamefully entreated as you know at Philippi. I mean they had really suffered. There was no doubt a real beating that was inflicted on these fellows. And having come directly from Philippi, the marks still quite obvious. So after we had suffered, we're shamefully entreated as you know at Philippi. We were bold in our God to speak unto you the gospel of God with much contention because there was a lot of contention raised by the unbelieving Jews there in Thessalonica against Paul. We are told in the book of Acts that they were contentious because they were envious at the Great Crowds. By the time the third Sabbath came, the whole town had gathered together to listen to the message that Paul was proclaiming. And the Jews became envious, jealous. And so they then stirred up a group of men who were of the base sort to beat them, to lie against them, to give false charges. These men are against Rome, they're rebelling against Rome and perpetrated of course the beatings of them and the imprisonment in the dungeon. So as they preached the gospel in Thessalonica, these Jews stirred up contention there. And they were so contentious that when they heard that they'd come down to Burya, they came down to Burya to stir up trouble down in Burya. Now our excertation was not of deceit nor of uncleanness nor of guile. Paul said, "We were straightforward with you. We exhorted you in a straightforward manner. There was no endeavor to deceive you. Hidden meanings, no guile, straightforward. But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men but God which tries our hearts." And so they had that sense of responsibility before God. And how important that we have that sense of responsibility to God. I think that that's one of the problems today with a lot of people. The fear of God is not in their heart. They are not really honest before God and before the people. A lot of exaggerations, a lot of deception, Keith Ritter, who labored with us here at Calvary for many years and now is laboring for us in his ministry over in China, Japan. Before coming to Calvary was attending another church in the area and a part of Keith's ministry and the other church was to help frame the bulletin. And he was given the typed out messages of the pastor six months in advance. And in a message that was to be preached six months down the road, the pastor would be using an illustration and in the illustration would say, "Last week my secretary came in and said this and this and this and this." And it was determined to be preached six months from now. Well that bothered Keith. In fact, it bothered him so much he left the church. Because there were a lot of illustrations that were not really true, relating of events that really didn't happen, but it made great sermon illustration. Paul said, "I didn't have any of that." We were straightforward because we know that God tries our hearts. God knows our hearts. That awareness and thus the honesty before God is so important. For neither at any time did we use flattering words as you know, nor a cloak of covetousness for God is witness and they were aware of that fact that God was witness, the fear of God was in their heart and surely that's what we need today. That we have a true fear of God within our hearts. Nor have men that we seek glory, neither of you nor yet of others. When we might have been burdensome as the apostles of Christ, we didn't seek your support. Though as apostles we could have sought your support, but we didn't. But we were gentle among you, even as a nurse who churises her children. And so being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you not the gospel of God lonely but our own souls because you were dear and to us. Now again we have a beautiful insight into the heart of the apostle here and no wonder he was so effective. He was clean, he was honest, he was straightforward. He wasn't there to make a buck for himself. He wasn't there to enrich himself or to get glory for himself. He was there because he loved them earnestly with a godly love and wanted to bring them the glorious truth of Jesus Christ which had transformed his own life. And so you remember, brethren, that our labor and travail that were labor again, toiling into the point of weariness and travail for laboring night and day because we would not be chargeable unto any of you, we preached unto you the gospel of God. So he worked night and day in order that he might provide for his own needs in order that he might preach to them the gospel of God so that no one would actually accuse him of being a mercenary. Well you're just in a pall for the money. You know you come in and you take a big offering and then you leave town no way. He labored with his own hands to provide for the needs of his group that he would not be chargeable to any of them. Your witnesses and God also how holy and justly and unblemably we behaved ourself among you that believed. I mean they lived straight circumspect lives. They lived holy lives. They lived unblemable kind of lives. God help us. No wonder the witness of the church is so weak and so anemic because of the lives of many of those who are out running the circuit doing such damage. God help us. As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you as a father does his children. Paul's ministry, I love it. Here is the insight really to the true minister. One who travails and labors among the people. One who is not seeking the glory of the people. One who just is gentle with them as a nurse cherishing her children and now as a father his children teaching, exhorting, comforting that you would walk worthy of God who is called you unto his kingdom and glory. In other words, you are a prince, a princess. Your children of the king walk worthy of God's kingdom and God's glory. And this beautiful exhortation to them. For this cause also, thank we God without ceasing because when you receive the word of God, which you heard of us, you didn't receive it as the word of men but as it is in truth the word of God which effectively works also in you that believe. So they received it as God's word. For ye brethren became followers of the churches of God which in Judea are in Christ Jesus. For ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen even as they have in the Jews. The church was experiencing persecution in Israel, in Judea. It already had several persecutions by which the church was scattered. And so here these in Thessalonica were having problems even as the church in Jerusalem had had problems. Suffering from their own countrymen, speaking of the church in Jerusalem and of the Jews who both killed the Lord Jesus and their own prophets and have persecuted us and please not God in our contrary to all men. Quite an indictment that Paul makes against the Jews here. They killed the Lord Jesus, they killed their own prophets, they've persecuted us in their contrary to all men. I have in my mind been writing a book, I don't know if it will ever get on paper, but I have been writing a book addressed to the Jewish people and I was thinking of a title, do you always crucify those who love you? Here is a group of people that somehow find it very difficult to receive love without being suspicious. without looking for some ulterior motive. And perhaps for good reason, because of the treatment that they have received from the world, and so much anti-Semitism and all, that whenever anyone shows a genuine concern or love for them, they seem to get suspicious, but then they begin to almost deliberately cut those persons off. Just recently, I've started getting a lot of bad press in Israel. Totally false accusations being made that are completely spurious. People writing things about me that I've never done, I've never been, they've never happened, and yet for some reason or other, I've started to get it of late in the press in Israel. And it's interesting because all I've ever had is a tremendous love for Israel. And yet they always look with suspicion, why do you love us? Why do you give to us? Why do you support us? And they begin then to interpret all kinds of false motives. Well, you're just trying to get close to us so you can missionize us, or convert us. Or you're only doing it because you're trying to fulfill prophecy and get the lords to come back. They can't just accept love because you are God's people, and we love you because you're God's people. I personally do not have any great burden to evangelize the Jews, any more than I do any other race or group of people. I feel that evangelism of the Jews is something that's totally in God's hands. If he's blinded, their eyes only can take away the blinding of the eyes of the Jews, so I leave their evangelism to God. I can't undo what God has done. Prayer is the most joyous privilege. For more than 25 years, this beloved message has touched hearts and transformed lives around the world. Now, effective prayer life returns with a beautifully redesigned cover. While the life-changing truth inside remains the same, and these pages, Pastor Chuck Smith invites you into a deeper, more intimate relationship with your Heavenly Father, exploring the purpose, practice, and promise of prayer. If you long for victory, peace, blessing, and a true spiritual fulfillment, this book will show you how a fervent, effective prayer life opens the door to walk in hand and hand with God. Discover the beauty, simplicity, and power of prayer, and be refreshed through a closer walk with Jesus. Don't wait. Order your copy today at TWFT.com or call 1-800-272-9673. Prayer is one of God's greatest gifts to you. May the Lord be with you. May the Lord bless you. May the Lord keep you through the power of His love through Jesus Christ. And may you this week be obedient unto the voice of God, as He calls to your heart for that work that He would have you to accomplish for His glory in Jesus' name. We'll return with more of our verse by verse Bible study in the book of 1 Thessalonians on our next broadcast. As Pastor Chuck continues to teach through the Bible, and we do hope you'll make plans to join us. This message has been provided to you by the generous supporters of the word for today. For additional information about how you can support this ministry, please visit us online at thewordfortoday.org. There you'll find free message downloads from Pastor Chuck, as well as links to our podcast and other resources to help you grow in your Christian walk. You can also call us at 1-800-272-9673, or you can order a physical copy of today's message by mentioning 1 Thessalonians 1-2. Again, that phone number is 1-800-272-9673. Our office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific time. If you prefer to write, our mailing address is PO Box 8000, at Costa Mesa, California 92628. Join us again next time, as Pastor Chuck continues his verse by verse study through the Bible. That's right here on the next edition of the word for today. ♪ Till the country church on the edge of town ♪ ♪ Do, do, do, do ♪ ♪ People come on every day from miles around ♪ ♪ From meetings and for Sunday school ♪ ♪ It's very plain to see ♪ ♪ It's not the way it used to be ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ This program is sponsored by Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa, California.