PLT Message

April 5, 2008

Spiritual Parents Raising Spiritual Children in Love

INTRODUCTION

How many of you are doing your quiet time with the Lord faithfully?

It is very important for you to keep your time with the Lord. Your time with the Lord everyday is
what will sustain you and empower you. What happens to a body when you got to a feast once
a month, but you don’t keep on feeding it everyday? You die!

Keeping a quiet time with the Lord is as important as breathing. During the quiet time, God will
sustain you, empower you, and pour revelations upon you.

Story of Eric Little – He was a runner who decided not to run on Sunday during the Olympics
because God told him to rest on the Sabbath. Although his whole country was rooting for him,
so that they could finally have a star gold medalist from their country, all these people were
mocking and prodding him. Eric Little stood strong to honor God first, and not honor men. How
was he able to do that? It was through QT with the Lord. The story ended well…on Monday he
was able to run in place of another man from his country. He ran in races that were longer than
he had been trained for. His motto was this, “God, I will run my best for the first half of the race.
But for the second half, God, it is yours.” He ended up winning two gold medals. Later in his
life, in the height of his career, he decided to go to China because they needed the gospel. How
was he able to have this kind of conviction and strength in the Lord? Through the word of God
he was able to stand! He received strength and passion for the word of God through reading
His word.

Psalm 119 – How can a young man keep himself pure and righteous?  I have hidden your
word in my heart  discern and be sure that you are walking in the Word of God!

What is life? Jesus Christ. If you fail to fill yourself with Jesus Christ…you must fall before the
feet of God. Especially as leaders, you must be filled with the Word of God!

What is QT? It is going deep into the word of God…asking God to speak to you deeply. While
you are going through life, God will speak to you during your QTs. Quiet time is a time when
you are asking questions from God and receiving His answers. It is reading the scriptures in
details.

What is reading the scriptures? It is seeing the bigger view and overview of the Bible, like a
panoramic picture.

KEY TEXT
1 Thessalonians 2:1-12

BODY

Why are you here in this leadership training? Yes, you will have to share the gospel message
and fish them out! You bring forth those people into a place of salvation. But that’s it?

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 PLT Message
April 5, 2008

What is a good mother? Just a lady who gives birth? Anybody can give birth! However, a true
mother is one who raises, nurtures, and stands by her child.

In the same way, you are here not only to be fishers of men, but to make disciples of all nations
just as you, now, are being discipled in Christ. It is to nurture and raise people of Jesus Christ.

Back to the key text…

1 Thessalonians 2:1-12

I. Need to have a heart to share the gospel, even in the midst of hardship (v. 2).
• God gave Paul the courage to share the gospel.
o You are not a leader until you are submissive to what God calls
you to do.
• Paul spoke the Word.
o You cannot say that you have heard from the Lord if you do not
read the Word of God!
II. Need to have pure motives in sharing the word of God (v. 3).
• Paul’s motive is to please God, not people (v. 4).
o Heart of spiritual leader is to please God, not people!
o Fear God, not fear man. How do you learn to fear God without
knowing God? You cannot fear God if you do not know God.
o You learn to fear God by studying about Him, filling your heart
and mind with the Word of God and then the fear of the Lord will
rest upon you.
• Paul was not there to flatter them although others had done that in the past
(v. 5).
o Flattery is from your selfish motives.
o Encouragement is from God who knows the truth of that person.
o In order to encourage your spiritual children with the truth of
God, you must know the truth of God!
• Paul was not there to get money from them (v.5).
o In sacrificially serving spiritual children, you must not look for or
expect something in return.
o Our attitude should be that in obeying God’s prompting, our reward is
in Jesus Christ.
• Paul did not want human praise (v. 6).
o The only one who did not want human praise was Jesus.
o People’s opinion changes all the time! You do not want to be a
puppet of people’s opinion! May your praise rest upon God.
*** You are being called to parent spiritual children. Therefore, they will
imitate you as you imitate Jesus.
III. You must become transparent and share your lives with your children (v. 8).
• Love of spiritual children…showing their lives and sharing their lives with
them.
• Become more transparent in Christ.
IV. You must work hard (v. 9).
• 1 Corinthians 9:14 – “…those who preach the Good News should be
supported by those who benefit from it.”

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 PLT Message
April 5, 2008

• When needed, Paul worked hard amongst the Thessalonians (also supported
by the Philippian church).
V. In the witness of all the believers, be devout, honest, and faultless (v. 10).
• Paul was devout, honest, and faultless.
• They not only shared the Good News, but they shared their lives, showing
them all things in their lives.
VI. Treat your spiritual children as a father treats his child (v. 11).
• Paul treated the Thessalonians as if they were his own children.
• Apart from knowing the Father’s heart, you cannot be a spiritual parent.
• Draw near to God, that in doing so, you will have God’s heart for your spiritual
children.
VII. Urge your children to live lives like yourself (v.12).
• Plead them, urge them, and encourage them to live lives worthy of God.
• In as far as you have gone in living your life for Christ; you can only bring
them that far.
• When you are excited by the things of God, they will be excited as well!
VIII. Urge them to live lives after God so that they can share in the glory of God (v. 12).
• Being with God’s people and doing the work of God  KOG
• Sharing in the glory of God is what spiritual families long for!

CONCLUSION

Leadership means being a spiritual parent. You must first be parented by your own spiritual
parents, learn to live like them in living lives worthy of God.

You must set your heart to hear from the Word of God and study from the Bible, not as a
routine, but to hear God’s voice.

In doing so, then you will be able to go and birth your own spiritual children.

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