Preaching What You Should Already Know

Bob preached out of 1 Thessalonians Sunday night and I noticed something as we read chapter 1 that he brought out in the sermon also. Verses 6-8 And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost: 7 - So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. 8 - For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.

I find it awesome that Paul says that the Christians there were examples to others and that they spread the Word of God everywhere to the point that Paul and Silvanus didn't need to come back and speak anything! Wow!! In other words they did and lived what was preached to them! What a different world we would live in if we just lived what was preached and taught from the Bible! 

Instead, we must be reminded again and again to read our Bibles, to pray, to live a holy life to go to church, and to tell others about Jesus. That is why preachers continuously preach what we should already know! ---because we don't do it! Bob has many times told me that he feels he preaches the same few things over and over again (which isn't true) and I tell him that when they start living it then you can stop preaching it. 

In Paul's day, he commends the church at Thessolinica for doing and living what they were taught. He didn't have to come back there and re-preach it again. He could move onto preaching more meat or even leave them to it and begin teaching in a new area of the world, helping to establish new Christians and ground them in the Word. 

While I sometimes need to be reminded and therefore convicted, I want to do my best to live what has already been preached to me. ---spreading it to others!