NOVEMBER 2 - WORDS AND ACTION
READ 1 Thessalonians 2
Paul’s method of ministry is described. He communicates the Gospel with love and integrity.
INSIGHT
Whenever the message of your words and the message of your actions conflict, the message of your actions will always win out. You may speak gruffly but act kindly, and you will be known as having a hard shell but being a “softie” on the inside. Or you may speak well but act selfishly, and you will be known as a hypocrite. There is no accusation leveled at Christians more consistently than that of hypocrisy. Our lives must support the reality of the Gospel, or the Gospel will not be taken seriously and we will be resented. Paul writes: “We were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives” (v. 8). Unless we are willing to impart our lives in ministry, our words will mean little.
PRAYER
Thank the Lord and praise Him that He was willing to give us His very life:
Lord, who is like you among the gods?
Who is like you, glorious in holiness,
Revered with praises, performing wonders?
(Exodus 15:11).
This is why you are great, Lord God .
There is no one like you,
And there is no God besides you,
As all we have heard confirms
(2 Samuel 7:22).
Pause for praise and thanksgiving. As you pray this confession to the Lord, seek to keep your life free from sin and in fellowship with Him:
You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it;
You are not pleased with a burnt offering.
The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit.
You will not despise a broken and humbled heart, God
(Psalm 51:16-17).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind, and pray this affirmation to the Lord:
For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, a testimony at the proper time
(1 Timothy 2:5-6).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, include:
Close with this prayer to the Lord:
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity (2 Peter 3:18).
Paul’s method of ministry is described. He communicates the Gospel with love and integrity.
INSIGHT
Whenever the message of your words and the message of your actions conflict, the message of your actions will always win out. You may speak gruffly but act kindly, and you will be known as having a hard shell but being a “softie” on the inside. Or you may speak well but act selfishly, and you will be known as a hypocrite. There is no accusation leveled at Christians more consistently than that of hypocrisy. Our lives must support the reality of the Gospel, or the Gospel will not be taken seriously and we will be resented. Paul writes: “We were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives” (v. 8). Unless we are willing to impart our lives in ministry, our words will mean little.
PRAYER
Thank the Lord and praise Him that He was willing to give us His very life:
Lord, who is like you among the gods?
Who is like you, glorious in holiness,
Revered with praises, performing wonders?
(Exodus 15:11).
This is why you are great, Lord God .
There is no one like you,
And there is no God besides you,
As all we have heard confirms
(2 Samuel 7:22).
Pause for praise and thanksgiving. As you pray this confession to the Lord, seek to keep your life free from sin and in fellowship with Him:
You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it;
You are not pleased with a burnt offering.
The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit.
You will not despise a broken and humbled heart, God
(Psalm 51:16-17).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind, and pray this affirmation to the Lord:
For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, a testimony at the proper time
(1 Timothy 2:5-6).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, include:
- Greater sensitivity to sin
- The ministry of your church
- Your activities for the day
Close with this prayer to the Lord:
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity (2 Peter 3:18).
A Dogwood Church Discipleship Ministry Resource. © Walk Thru the Bible 2025.