When Paul emphasizes the credibility of the human witnesses of the gospel, he is not just talking to preachers. He is also talking to you. He is talking about Christians in general, and the reason is that evidence of the gospel actually taking place in our lives provides an important commendation to our witness of the Bible. John MacArthur says this: most people do not come to Christ as an immediate response to a sermon they hear in a crowded setting. They tend to come to Christ because of the influence of an individual. In the overwhelming majority of new believers’ testimonies, they tell us they came to Christ primarily because of the testimony of a coworker, a neighbour, a relative, or a friend. There is no question, therefore, that the most effective means of bringing people to Christ is one at a time, on an individual basis.
Well, that means that our individual sincerity, godliness, and love as individual Christians is important to the spread of the gospel and therefore to the salvation of the lost. Never let Satan persuade you that because God is sovereign in salvation, how you are living and what kind of church we are does not matter. We see here from Paul that it matters very much. One commentator puts it very bluntly:
There’s just no point preaching the truth if we’re going to live a lie.However, if we live the truth in sincerity—with all our failings and errors and sins—but sincerely living out the truth, well, that gives a compelling testimony to go with our witness of God’s Word.And so, it is a word that is received through men. It is also a word that is received from God. Paul makes that very clear. Yes, it is a message that came through him and Silas and Timothy, but it was not their word. It was God’s Word that the Thessalonians had received.1
Richard D. Phillips
5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.