West Orange Christian Church Sermons

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 2:7-13. Speaker: Andy Barton. Series: What the Ministry Means to Me. Preached Sunday, October 25, 2026 at West Orange Christian Church, Orlando, Florida. Key scriptures: 1 Thessalonians 2:7-13; Acts 17; John 13:34-35; 2 Corinthians 5:14; John 21; 1 Thessalonians 3:8.

Introduction

Part 2 of the two-part series in 1 Thessalonians 2. The question behind it: What does the ministry mean to me, and what does it mean to you?

> "...we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us." (1 Thessalonians 2:8)

- In 1665 plague swept through London. Those who had the means fled to the countryside, but some ministers stayed, believing "their responsibility to the people did not disappear when the circumstances became more and more dangerous."

- One of them was Thomas Vincent, a Puritan minister who remained in London during the great plague. He visited the sick, comforted the dying and kept preaching, and later wrote about God's providence during the plague.

- "What causes a man to be willing to risk his life for the well-being of others?" Duty played a part, but there must also be love: "a genuine concern for people that makes their suffering difficult to ignore and their spiritual welfare too important to abandon."

- In verses 1-6 (last week) Paul spoke about the opposition he endured and the integrity of his preaching. Beginning in verse 7, he speaks about his affection for the Thessalonians themselves.

1. Ministry means allowing people to become dear to your heart (vv. 7-8)

> "But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children." (v. 7)

- We might describe Paul by his courage, his determination and his sacrifices on his missionary journeys. But Paul compares himself not to a soldier or a great public speaker, but to a mother caring for her infant.

- "A mother does not measure the value of caring for a child by how much recognition she receives." She gives herself because the child is dear to her.

- The Thessalonians weren't Paul's relatives or countrymen. In Acts 17 he reasoned in the synagogue that Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead; some believed, opposition arose, and Paul and Silas were forced to leave. His time there was brief, yet those people became precious to him.

- The gospel brings together people who otherwise would never have known one another, and "we belong to one another as members of the body of Christ."

- When someone in the congregation suffers, does it concern us? When a brother begins to drift away, do we reach out?

- A danger in ministry: becoming "so occupied with the work that we gradually lose sight of the people" the work is for. This applies to preachers, elders and members alike.

- John 13:34-35: "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." Not by beautiful buildings or the size of our gatherings.

2. Ministry means being willing to give yourself for the spiritual good of others (vv. 8-12)

- Paul imparted "not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives." The word for lives refers to their very selves.

- He was "well pleased" to do it. It was not a reluctant sacrifice, and caring for the Thessalonians was not an interruption of the work; it was part of the work.

- Giving ourselves means other people's needs will sometimes interrupt our plans, cost us time, and may bring disappointment, frustration and even heartbreak.

- 2 Corinthians 5:14: "For the love of Christ controls us."

- Paul worked night and day, supporting himself as a tentmaker, so he would not be a burden and nothing would hinder the gospel (v. 9).

- "How much of my own comfort am I willing to surrender for the spiritual good of somebody else?"

- Jesus and His disciples: for three years they walked with Him, yet they misunderstood Him, argued over who was greatest, and abandoned Him at the cross. In John 21 Jesus restored Peter, asking three times "Do you love Me?" and telling him to tend His sheep.

- Christians make mistakes. Is our commitment to one another strong enough to endure those difficulties?

- Paul was "exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his own children" (vv. 11-12). Loving people does not mean avoiding difficult conversations; his purpose was always their spiritual good, that they would walk in a manner worthy of God.

- Ministry sometimes means comforting someone who is suffering, and sometimes helping a brother or sister see they are moving in a direction that can damage their relationship with God.

- The church can't become the spiritual family Paul describes through the efforts of the preacher alone. "It requires a congregation whose members have learned to give themselves to love one another."

3. Ministry means finding your greatest joy in seeing others grow in Christ (v. 13)

> "...when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe." (v. 13)

- Paul doesn't dwell on his sacrifices. He gives thanks for what happened in the lives of the Thessalonians.

- He sent Timothy to learn about their faith, and when Timothy returned with good news Paul was overwhelmed with gratitude. 1 Thessalonians 3:8: "For now we really live, if you stand firm in the Lord."

- "There is a particular kind of joy that comes from seeing someone grow in faith," like a teacher who spends years teaching children who don't always seem to be listening, until one day a young person begins asking serious questions about the gospel.

- When people around us grow stronger in Christ, the whole congregation is strengthened.

- What brings you the greatest joy in this congregation? Do we genuinely rejoice when we see someone becoming more faithful to Jesus Christ?

Conclusion

What does the ministry mean to me? What does it mean to you?

- Loving people enough to become invested in their lives.

- Making sacrifices for their spiritual good.

- Finding genuine joy when the word of God begins to bear fruit in them.

If you have never obeyed the gospel, consider coming to the Lord who died for our sins and rose again: confess your faith in Him and be baptized into His death, so that you may walk in newness of life.

For those who have been Christians for many years: Have we allowed the people of this congregation to become dear to us? Are we willing to give something of ourselves for their spiritual good? Do we find genuine joy in seeing others grow?

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 2:1-6. Speaker: Andy Barton. Series: What the Ministry Means to Me. Preached Sunday, October 18, 2026 at West Orange Christian Church, Orlando, Florida. Key scriptures: 1 Thessalonians 2:1-6; Ephesians 4:11-12; 1 Corinthians 12; Matthew 6; Hebrews 6:10; 1 Corinthians 15:58.

Introduction

Part 1 of a two-part series in 1 Thessalonians 2, which goes along with the Wednesday night discipleship series. The question behind it: What does the ministry mean to me?

> "For you yourselves know, brethren, that our coming to you was not in vain." (1 Thessalonians 2:1)

- John Bunyan, an English preacher in the 1660s, was arrested for preaching without the crown's authorization. He spent nearly 12 years in prison in Bedford, separated from his wife and children (including his daughter Mary, blind from birth), because "he believed the gospel was worth being proclaimed."

- Before Paul came to Thessalonica he had been beaten, humiliated and imprisoned in Philippi. He could have quit. Instead he went to Thessalonica and preached again (v. 2).

- "Ministry is so easy to admire from a distance."

1. Ministry means the gospel is worth suffering for (vv. 1-2)

- Everywhere Paul went there was opposition: Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, Corinth, Jerusalem. Yet he says his coming "was not in vain."

- "We do not measure faithfulness by whether the road was easy. We measure faithfulness by whether the gospel was preached."

- Our "strange measurements for success": attendance, compliments on the meeting space or music, how comfortable the experience was. Paul's question is different: Was Christ proclaimed?

- "Opposition does not prove that the ministry has failed."

- Paul's courage came from God: "we had boldness in our God."

- Boldness is not rudeness, and conviction is not arrogance. Paul could have "a tender heart and yet a backbone at the same time" (next week, v. 7: Paul became "a gentle nursing mother").

- When truth and love meet together, "the ministry begins to resemble Jesus Christ."

2. Ministry means recognizing that God has entrusted each of us (vv. 3-4)

> "...just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts." (v. 4)

- The gospel was not Paul's own invention. He had been entrusted with it. Possessing something is different from being entrusted with it: "when something has been entrusted to you, there is an obligation attached to it."

- Ministry doesn't belong only to a few select people. Ephesians 4:11-12: Christ gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to equip the saints for the work of ministry, so ministry is the work of the whole body.

- In the early 19th century, Alexander Campbell and Barton W. Stone pleaded with Christians to return to the authority of Scripture and restore New Testament Christianity.

- What has God entrusted to you? Maybe someone at your workplace who has never heard a clear explanation of the gospel, or years of experience that could strengthen a younger Christian.

- 1 Corinthians 12: one body, many members. "No member can say to another member, I have no need of you."

- "This congregation... needs more than a preacher, it needs faithful Christians." We need to see the church "not merely as a place to attend, but as a people to whom they belong."

- Pray: "Lord, what have you placed in my hands that I have neglected to use for your glory?"

3. Ministry means seeking God's approval through a life of faithful service (vv. 4-6)

> "...nor do we seek glory from men, either from you or from others." (v. 6)

- "There is a tremendous difference between serving God and wanting to be seen serving God."

- Check your motives: why do we serve, teach, give, come together and claim the name of Christ?

- Matthew 6: Jesus warned against giving, praying and fasting just to be seen. God cares about why we do it, not only what we do.

- Edward Kimball, a Boston Sunday school teacher, visited a young shoe salesman named Dwight L. Moody at work in 1855 and talked with him about Christ. Moody became one of the most influential evangelists of the 19th century. It was one conversation with one young man.

- Don't underestimate small acts of faithfulness. Many people who taught, cared for the building, visited the sick and prayed for this church made today's work possible.

- Hebrews 6:10: God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love.

- "Ministry is not about being important in the eyes of men, it's about being faithful in the sight of God."

- William Borden (born 1887, from a wealthy Chicago family) gave his life to Christ, served in evangelism at Yale, and set out in 1912 to take the gospel to Muslim communities in China. He died of spinal meningitis in Cairo on April 9, 1913, at 25. The world might call it a waste, but faithfulness isn't measured by how much we accomplish in the eyes of men.

Application

- What are we doing with what God has placed in our hands? "The work of the Lord does not begin when life becomes convenient."

- Think about the people who will sit in these pews 20 years from now. Who will teach them, encourage them and reach them?

- "Ministry is not merely the responsibility of the preacher, it is the responsibility of the church."

- 1 Corinthians 15:58: "Always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."

- "What does the ministry mean to you right now?"

> "Paul said our coming to you was not in vain. May that be said of our lives."