1 Thessalonians 2:1-16

Have you ever been criticized? How did it make you feel? Some people can say very unfair, negative things at times. Paul knew what it was like to be criticized. In the New Testament church there was a group of people known as the Judaizers who wanted to keep Christianity as a Jewish sect. Since Paul was determined to take the faith to the Gentiles, these Judaizers looked for every opportunity to find fault with him. They accused him of being in the ministry just for the money. The truth was Paul supported himself as a tent maker after he began his ministry so he wouldn’t be a financial burden on young, struggling Christian congregations. Those who knew Paul best knew he did nothing for his own gain.

These Judaizers also accused him of spreading lies and untruths. Paul, however, didn’t soft-pedal the Gospel or use flattery upon his hearers. He told it as it was. Still, they criticized.

And so, Paul was forced to defend himself. He writes, beginning with verse 5: “You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed–God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from people, not from you or anyone else . . .” Then what was Paul looking for?

The answer lies in the second half of verse 4: “We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts.” Paul had no interest in pleasing people. Paul lived to please God.

To please God, we can strive to live with integrity. That’s what Paul did. He says to the church at Thessalonica, “For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel . . . You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed God is our witness.”

Paul lived a life of integrity. Living a life of integrity is more than simply keeping the commandments. There are many people who’ve never killed anyone, never stolen, never committed adultery. That doesn’t mean they live a life of integrity. Keeping the commandments is an outward act. Living a life of integrity comes from within.

How can we live a life pleasing to God? We can strive to live a life of integrity. That’s hard to do in a world like ours. We live in a fallen world where prominent and influential people from every walk of life hedge the truth. They don’t steal, not in the classic understanding of the word, they don’t kill, they don’t overtly disobey God’s law. They simply shade the truth. They use flattery and deceit. Often, they’re motivated by greed. A life of integrity won’t make us popular. However, it will make us respected. Even more importantly, there’s an audience of One who will be applauding. Want to live a life pleasing to God? Live a life of integrity.

Tony Campolo, a professor of Sociology at Eastern College in Pennsylvania, and a dynamic preacher of the Gospel once said, “What you commit yourself to be will change what you are and make you into a completely different person.” Not the past but the future conditions us, because what we commit ourselves to become determines what we are more than anything that ever happened to us yesterday or the day before. “Therefore, I ask you a very simple question: What are your commitments? Where are you going? What are you going to be? You show me somebody who hasn’t decided, and I’ll show you somebody who has no identity, no personality, no direction.”

Paul had a direction for his life. And neither his critics nor those who tried to veer him off course with flattery or lies could make a dent in his contribution. He knew what it took to live a life pleasing to God, living a life of integrity and love.

Tony Evans said it beautifully: “When your passion upon getting up each morning is to say, ‘How can I make God look good today?’; when the passion of your life is to someday open your eyes in eternity and hear Jesus say, ‘Well done, My good and faithful servant’; when that becomes the consuming passion of your existence, it absolutely transforms your everyday experience.”

Does that describe how we are living our lives? Isn’t it about time it did? How can we make God look good today? How can we live to please God? The answer is simple: By the grace of God may we live a life of integrity.

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Rev. Charles Eldredge is a member of Maitland Church of the Brethren. He has a Facebook page and can be contacted by email: ce1133 @verizon.net.