There is no such thing as a perfect church since churches are made up of human beings. Being human, we are still in a body of flesh. Instead of obeying God and living a holy life, our tendency is always to sin and do things our own way, However there can be churches that come close to the mark. The church in Thessalonica was one good example and their testimony brought joy to Paul’s heart.

What was the church like? The lives of people changed after they accepted Jesus. Today’s text tells us that they had work of _ _ _ _ _, labour of _ _ _ _ and patience of _ _ _ _ (Fill in the correct letters). These are virtues that any true Christian must have. Do you have them? Let’s find out what they are.

Faith – this is the faith that produces works. James tells us in his letter that if a person has faith but does not put his faith into action by producing good works, his is a dead faith ( James 2:17). One of the works that the new Thessalonian Christians did was to throw away their idols (1Thessalonians 1:9b). They stopped worshipping idols and worshipped only the living and true God.

Love – the greatest commandment of God. It is easy to love nice people but don’t you think it’s more difficult to love your enemies or those who seem different from you? Loving others is service to God. This is the ‘labour of love’. No longer serving idols, the Thessalonians changed to serving God by showing love to people (1 Thessalonians verse 1:3a).

Hope – What do you look forward to and hope for? A Christian looks forward to the return of Jesus. Unbelievers cannot understand this joyous hope. They hope for the wrong things such as power, position and wealth. The Thessalonians shifted their hope to patiently waiting for the day when they would see Jesus face to face – the day when their faith would become sight! (1 Thessalonians 1:10).

A changed life is the result of genuine salvation. Your name may be on the church roll, but not in the Lamb’s book of life. Dear child, have you accepted Jesus into your heart as your personal Lord and Saviour? Jesus is able to change your heart to have faith, love and hope.

Thought: A changed life comes from a changed heart.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, please save and change me from inside out. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.