The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Thessalonians — Section 41

higheAt and the_ noblest. God was proving their hearts now. fie, lhe i'\earcl,cr of l1ea.rts, lwew their work through and thro11gh. He knew the i1111cr 1·,r,, of tho112:lit a11d motiv,·, ns well as the outer lifo of word and artion, They fully reco,:;nized this ;;real truth. They knew that their motives were r,ure and nnselfi~h. God knew it too. It was all they wanted. They sought not praise of men. They had no ple38ure in flattery; they dirl not flatter others. That the Thessalonia,,s knew. Gorl knew the J:lrity of their motives. "God is witness," they could say. How ble,s,·d that life must. be which could thus appeal to his all-8eeing eye! They were apost:es or Christ; ~t. Paul in the highest sense, Sil vanUB and Timotheus in the more extended mean in'..'. of the word. St. Paul may, indeed, be using the plural number of himself only; more probably in this place he includes his companions. They might have claimed bon .. 11r for themselves; they might h .. ve made men feel the weight of their apostolic dignity. But they sought not glory from men. They had overcome that temptation which is so strong in most men, the "last infirmity or noble minds," the desire or earthly glory. III. WJIAT THEIR PBBACHINO WAS. 1. TheiJ were gentle. There is very strong mann- script evidence for vfi1r10,, babes. If that is the true reading, St. Paul means that their character WllS one of childlike simplicity, free from selfish motives; they were babes in malice, but men in understanding (1 Uor. xiv. lO). But "gentle" suits the context better. "The servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men." St. Paul adduces the most touching type of human tenderness-the nursing mother cherish- ing her own children, warming them in her bosom. Such had been his gentleness among his children after the faith. He had sought to win them by gentle words. He had told them of the gentleness of Christ. He had set before them the attractive picture of the Saviour's tender love. Gentleness wins more hearts than sternneu: The apostle knew the terrors of the Lord. He could remind his converts of the awful things beyond the grave. "We must all appear before the judgrnent-seat of Christ." But he knew that love is a more powerful motive than fear. " Perfect love Cll-'lteth out fear." The cross of Jesus Christ drawet.h all men to the Saviour, because it is the manifesta- tion of that love that passetb knowledge-the love of Jesus Christ. 2. They were actuated by the strong love of souls. The Thessalonians had become very dear to them. They had n11t known them long, but they recognized them as sheep of that little flock which the Lord Jesus bids those who love him to feed for his love's sake. Thus loving them, they were affectionately desirous of their salvation. They were ready to give them not only the blessed go,pel, but their own selves, their own lives, in humble imitation of the good Shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep. They had exposed tbem- selv,·s to the greatest dangers for the work's sake; for that work they were ready, if need be, to die. The love of souls is the essential requisite for real success in the sacred work of the ministry. Other qualifications ma~• win the praise of men; but the true work of winning souls can be wrought only by those who have learned from the blessed Saviour something of that holy love which burned in the sacred heart of Jesus. 3. They were absolutely disintei-ested. They would not be burdensome to their new converts. The Philippian Church had twice sent help to the apostle during his residence at Thessa- lonica (Phil. iv. 16). That help he had accepred; it was unasked, freely given. He welcomed it for the sake of the givers, as an evidence of their love. But the gifts, though very precious as a proof of Christian charity, were probably small in themselves; the Philippian Church was very poor. lt seems also to have been a season of scarcity; times were bad. The missionaries had to labour for their livelihood. St. Paul's cral't, weaving tent-cloth of goats' hair, was hard, wearisome, ill-paid work. He bad to labour night an,l day. Yet he achieved those great results. He had but the sabbath to him- self. 'l'hree sabbath days he spent iu reasoning with the Jew~, and preaching Jesus in the synagogue at Thessalonica; other <lays he had to work, to work hard and long, for hie daily bread. The Greeks despised manual labour; they called it vulgar; they left such work to slaves. The apostle teaches by his own example the di~nity of honest labour, the dignity of true Christian independence. Probably the Thessalonians could have helped him. "Not a few of the chief women" had become Christians. They must, one thinks, have been willing. St. Paul must have had reasons for declining, their aid, as he afterwards declined the aid of the Corinthians(:! Cor. xi. 9, 10). How these thoughts increase our admiration of thtJ great apostle! Amid all these difficulties, a.II thetitJ caltls, aU this Pngrossing labour, he preached with power, with pt,rseveraDce,  38 'fHE FIRST EPISTLE TO 'l'HE THESSALONIANS. [oR. o. 1-20.