Yesterday, as I started in on 1Thessalonians, I was reminded that Paul had three Sabbaths to share the gospel before he was run out of town. I was again impressed at the manner in which “the Way” had found such root among the believers there after such a short period of time. And, while three weeks is certainly not a very long time, as I read the first part of chapter two this morning, it was evident that Paul and his friends “preached” the gospel well beyond Sabbath morning sermons in the synagogue . . . they invested themselves in these people.

” . . . we were bold in our God to speak to you (2:2) . . . we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel (2:4) . . . we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children (2:7) . . . we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but our own lives (2:8) . . . we preached to you the gospel (2:9) . . . devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you . . . we exhorted, and comforted, and charged every one of you, as a father does his own children (2:11) . . .”

Paul preached the word . . . no doubt, he preached. But he did more than just “scatter the seed”, he worked it into the ground, tended it carefully, cultivated it purposefully, worked it diligently, and it took . . . by the grace and Spirit of God, the seed set down strong roots and bore magnificent fruit . . . because Paul invested in people.

Sure, God is able to take scattered seed and turn it into fruit bearing trees . . . he has set in place men like Billy Graham who can fish with big nets (though even in a crusade it’s the follow up and getting linked with other believers that’s credited with establishing strong believers) . . . but for must of us, God gives us a pole to fish with . . . places us in a particular “patch of ground” where he want us to plant and cultivate and invest in the seed we have to sow.

Paul, the orator, preached on the Sabbath, but during the week he was Paul “the nursing mother”. Gently he cared for those with a new found faith . . . nurtured baby believers with the care a mother would give to her own. He knew it was about more than just “giving them the word”, he gave them himself . . . I’m thinking he held nothing back for those three weeks he was with them . . . those born into the family needed to be nurtured to maturity. And while he’d care for them as a tender mother, he’d also put on the “dad hat” and tell them what was expected . . . exhorting and charging them to walk in a manner worthy of the God who had called them into His own kingdom and glory (2:12). Not harsh, but firm . . . and comforting . . . as they struggled to figure out this new way.

And, he and his companions invested through their example, as well. The “behaved” themselves in a way that modeled the character of those who follow Christ, not in word only, but in truth and works, as well. None of this “do as I say, not as I do” stuff . . . no it was “listen to what I say, and see what a difference it makes in how I live.” He preached from the Scriptures and he taught from his grace-enabled, Spirit-empowered, “work in progress”, living example, authentic life in Christ.

Now, considering this doesn’t lessen how amazing it is that God established such a strong work in such a pagan city in such a short time. But it does remind me that investing is most often a big, big part of the deal when it comes to sharing Christ. The willingness to get involved in people’s lives . . . to love on them as a mom . . . to sometimes give a sanctified kick-in-the pants as a dad . . . to always, as much as lies with me, seek to model the real deal — failures and all . . . it’s all part of planting the seed and nurturing the growth.

Investing . . . takes times . . . can be risky . . . able only by the grace of God . . . all for the glory of God . . . amen.