Preaching While Walking

1 Thessalonians 2:9–13 (November 1, 2026. All Saints Day)

Good morning, everyone. 

When we think of preaching, we usually picture someone standing behind a wooden pulpit, speaking to a group of people sitting down. But in the early church, the most powerful messages about Jesus were lived out each day. They were preached as people walked through life, not just spoken from a stage.

For example, St. Francis of Assisi showed this truth one day. He put his hand on a young monk's shoulder and said, "Brother, let us go down into the town and preach." 

The young monk was excited. He thought they would go to the busy marketplace and preach with powerful words. So they walked side by side through the main streets and dusty back alleys. Along the way, they smiled, nodded, and spoke quiet words of peace to the poor. After walking for hours and simply being with people, they returned to the monastery. 

The monk asked, "Father, when will we begin to preach?" 

Francis replied, "My child, we have been preaching while we were walking." 

This is the same truth Paul shares in 1 Thessalonians 2:9-13. He reminds the young church in Thessalonica of how he, Silas, and Timothy lived among them. They did not rely on fancy speeches to spread the good news about Jesus. Instead, their daily lives showed the message. Their hard work, long hours, and personal sacrifices made God's love real and visible to the people around them.

Paul says, "For you recall, brethren, our labor and hardship, how working night and day so as not to be a burden to any of you, we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, of how holy, righteous, and blameless our conduct was among you; as you know how we were exhorting, encouraging, and imploring each of you as a father would his own children, so that you would walk worthy of God who calls you." (1 Thessalonians 2:9-12) 

In verse thirteen, Paul adds that the Thessalonians received his message not as a human word, but as the Word of God. And this Word of God actively works in those who believe it.

To understand this better, we need to know what life was like in ancient Thessalonica. The Greco-Roman world was full of wandering teachers called sophists (paid speakers who taught for money). These teachers treated wisdom like a product. They charged high fees, flattered their crowds, and ran away at the first sign of danger. But Paul, Silas, and Timothy lived by a very different way. 

They came to Thessalonica after being beaten in Philippi. They did not bring a marketing plan or ask for money. Instead, they took up manual labor to support themselves. Paul was a tentmaker by trade. This was hard work - cutting and stitching coarse cloth made from Cilician goats' hair. He worked late into the night and early in the morning so that during the day, he could preach and help new believers grow in their faith. With their rough, worn hands, the apostles proved they would not charge for God's grace. They cared about saving souls, not making money.

As I mentioned last Sunday, Paul and his companions cared for the new believers like a nursing mother cares for her baby. A mother gives her child comfort, closeness, and tender care. The apostles shared their lives with the Thessalonians. They did not just teach them a few facts about Jesus. They loved them, cared for them, and nurtured them as they were learning to follow him. This is the opposite of a cold approach where new believers are handed a Bible and left to figure everything out on their own. Just like a new baby needs hands-on care from parents, new believers need people to walk with them as they grow in their faith.

Paul then uses another picture. He says he and his companions treated each believer like a father treats his own children. A mother gives comfort. A father gives guidance to help his children grow up and learn to take responsibility. Paul knew each person personally. He urged them forward when they were afraid. He comforted them when they were discouraged. He pleaded with them to stand firm in their faith. A good father wants to see his children grow into mature, faithful people.

This kind of care has been passed down for generations. All Saints Day reminds us that we stand on the shoulders of people who faithfully followed Jesus. We know and experience God's love in part through the people he places in our lives.

One example of this is Martha Thompson. She was a tailor's apprentice who moved to London at age nineteen. One day while running an errand, she passed Moorfields and saw a huge crowd listening to a thin preacher in a clergyman's gown standing on a table. That preacher was John Wesley, and he was proclaiming, "You must be born again". 

Martha was captivated. She went back to hear Wesley again. While singing Isaac Watts' hymn, "The Lord Jehovah Reigns," she found the peace and joy Wesley spoke of - the inner assurance that the Holy Spirit gives to those who trust in Jesus. The words of the hymn spoke to her heart: "My Father and My Friend" (verse 4). She praised God so much that her mistress thought she was crazy and had her put in Bedlam (a mental hospital at the time). 

When Wesley could not visit her there, he sent doctors who helped get her released. Back in Preston where Methodists were looked down on, Martha found a small group of believers six miles away. She walked twelve miles round-trip every Sunday to be with them. By 1759, she started a group of five Methodists in Preston and invited Wesley to visit. He stayed in her home four times over the next ten years. 

Martha visited the sick, cared for the poor, and brought light to those around her. She lived to be eighty-nine years old. In her old age, when she was frail, a child would walk with her by lantern light to early morning worship services. When she was dying, her family gathered around her to sing her favorite hymn of salvation, "My Father and My Friend," as they gently sent her home to be with Jesus. Martha knew deep in her heart that through Jesus, she was forgiven and that God was both her Father and her Friend.

The goal of all this care and guidance is to help believers walk in a way that is worthy of God. The word "walk" here means much more than moving your feet. It means living your whole life day by day. Following Jesus is not one big moment, but a series of small choices made over time. We can never earn God's love, but we can live in a way that matches his love, goodness, and truth.

Paul says this walk should be "holy, righteous, and blameless" (verse 10). To be holy means to have our hearts set on God. To be righteous means to treat others fairly, honestly, and with love. To be blameless means to have a clear conscience in our private, everyday habits. When our lives are consistent like this, our faith becomes strong even when life is hard. 

The world is hungry for people who are genuine - people whose words and actions match. When a believer stays faithful in hard times, their faith can shine. Think of chalcedony quartz placed on a grinding wheel. The friction and pressure don't crush it. Instead, they make the stone glow with light from within. In the same way, when Christians trust God through suffering, the pressure of hard times can make their love for Jesus shine brightly for others to see.

This brings us to the heart of verse 13. Paul thanks God constantly because the Thessalonians welcomed his message. There are two different words for "receive" in the original Greek language. The first word simply means to hear something with your ears - to take in information. The second word means to welcome something, to embrace it, and to take it into your heart like a welcome guest. The Thessalonians did both. They heard the message, but more importantly, they welcomed it and believed it.

When we welcome God's Word by faith, it becomes active in us. Paul uses a word that gives us our English word "energy". The Bible is not just a book of ideas. It is alive. When we read it and obey it, the Holy Spirit uses it to change our desires, heal our doubts, and give us strength to follow Jesus.

There is a well-known story about Charles Spurgeon. He was checking the sound in a huge, empty exhibition hall where he would soon preach. He stepped into the pulpit and loudly said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" He was happy with the acoustics and left. But high up in the rafters, two painters were working quietly. One of them did not believe in Jesus. He heard those words echo through the empty hall. By the power of the Holy Spirit, that verse cut straight to his heart. Right there on his scaffolding, he fell to his knees and gave his life to Jesus that day. God's Word has power all on its own. It does not need clever arguments. It just needs to be spoken and welcomed.

So what does this mean for us this week? Here is one simple challenge: pick just one ordinary interaction - maybe at work, at church or food pantry, at home, or with a neighbor - and treat it as a chance to live out the gospel. Before you go into it, pray this short prayer: "Lord, let my patience, honesty, and kindness quietly show your love to this person today."

Finally, let us think about our own lives. Remember the words of the aging preacher Father Taylor. Sometimes, in the middle of his sermon, he would lose his place. He would smile and say, "Well, I can't find the end of that sentence, but I am bound for the kingdom! Brothers and sisters, I am bound for the kingdom!" 

I remember Mark Sharron, who recently left us to enter the arms of God. Although Parkinson’s disease robbed him of control over his own body, his heart remained steadfast in its love for God and for people—especially the vulnerable. True to that love, he served at the Food Pantry until Wednesday one week before he returned to God’s embrace, and he even joined us for worship on his very last Sunday. He did not merely proclaim the Gospel with words; instead, he embodied it with his entire being. As long as I live, I will never forget his bright, radiant smile and his spirit of service. 

Brothers and sisters, we too will grow tired. We will stumble. We will have days when following Jesus feels hard. But if we belong to him, we are bound for the kingdom. So let us keep walking together in love. Let us care for each other with gentleness like a mother. Let us guide each other with wisdom like a father. And let us let our everyday steps become a simple, honest message about Jesus.

Brothers and sisters, who are the saints in your life? Who are the people God used to bring you to Jesus and his love? Who helped you learn to trust him, to turn from sin, and to know you are forgiven? Take a moment to thank God for those people. And ask him to help you do the same for someone else - preaching the good news of Jesus as you walk through life together. And then, ask yourself, “To whom am I a saint now?”

Concluding Prayer

Gracious Heavenly Father, thank You for calling us to walk worthily of Your kingdom. Grant us grace to embody Your love in daily acts, nurture one another with parental care, and let Your living Word transform our hearts today. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.