Approved and Entrusted. 1st Thessalonians 2:4 The core message of the Gospel remains unchanged, even though the way it is conveyed may evolve. Faithful servants of the Lord must never water down or alter the truth of the Gospel. When preaching the Gospel, the intellect, emotions, and will of the messenger are all engaged. True motives for sharing the Gospel originate from the love of Christ that compels us and our love for lost souls on the path to eternity. These motives drive us to urge those who hear the message to be reconciled to God now, while grace is still freely offered.
The Bible describes the heart as the center of our human spirit. It produces emotions, thoughts, motivation, courage, and actions that stem from what fills our hearts. In Proverbs, it says that everything flows from our hearts. “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” The overflow from storing good thoughts, words, and actions that are beneficial will mean the most to us. We will want to share them with those in need of the Savior.
What a privilege it is to be approved by God and given the opportunity to speak His word publicly. At the same time, it is disgusting when someone is a hypocrite and uses flattering words to please others and lure them into responding to what he says. It is degrading to the message when one dishonestly conceals sin and its serious consequences to make guilty people feel comfortable. Covering up a dishonest person's true intentions does not benefit either the listener or the speaker. Those involved in Gospel work as servants of the Lord have a special duty to be honest and direct with people. The true servant's aim is to bless others with God's truth. It is wrong to tell people what they want to hear just so they will like us and give us what we want.
The three messengers who brought the Gospel to Thessalonica did so without deceit. They had no hidden agendas, and their messages contained no greed, uncleanness, or impurity, such as appeals for money. They did not deceive anyone, nor did they misrepresent the Lord in any way.
Openness before God and Man. 1stThessalonians 2:5 The true servant is not after the money of those who hear him preach. Such a person is openly seen, not crafty. They are not seeking human praise; they are longing for God to save souls from hell and lead them to heaven. No one who heard Paul, Silas, and Timothy could detect flattery or insincerity meant to deceive or influence their thinking. No one could accuse them of being hucksters wanting money or anything from those they preached to. God knows what no one else does. He was the witness to their work and the message they proclaimed. No one could accuse them of being lazy or wanting an honorary title from the people in Thessalonica or elsewhere. They had a right as apostles to "live of the Gospel," but they chose not to ask for support.
However, those men had the right attitude toward people, and the same principles apply to us. The message we share is Christ's message; it is God's Gospel, and lives are transformed by its truth. We believe our message of the Gospel is correct. God causes growth in the seeds that men plant and water. The attitude of gentleness, consideration, and meeting needs goes hand in hand with assertiveness and power when the servant shares the Gospel in fellowship with the Lord. We must allow time for understanding for those who listen. We need to show people we care for them. An affectionate concern for people's eternal well-being shows that our words and actions, expressed through the Gospel, are for their blessing. We want them to know what we know, have what we have, and be confident that our interest in them comes from being the Lord's servants.
When we live holily before the Lord, a positive impression can be seen by those who live righteously before others. In this way, we can live blamelessly before all as we seek to demonstrate the Gospel message in daily life. People often make decisions based on what they see as well as what they hear. Therefore, the exhortation we give to others to act on what they hear, along with the encouragement to act now, and our personal testimony, is the goal of the Lord's servant who seeks to lead people to our Lord Jesus Christ.