1 Thessalonians 2:4

Plain English Version

No way. You see, it was God that sent us. He knew us, and he trusted us to tell people his message. So we only say what he wants us to say. We don’t try to make people happy. We only try to make God happy.

Cross References

Luke 16:11

So if you cheat when you handle money and other things of this world, God will not trust you to look after his very special things.

John 21:17

After that, Jesus asked him again, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Then Peter got a bit upset because Jesus asked him 3 times, “Do you love me?” So Peter said, “Sir, you know everything, and you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “All right, you have to look after my people properly, just like a shepherd takes his sheep to good grass for them to eat.

Romans 8:27

And our father understands the Holy Spirit. God already knows everything that everybody thinks and the way everybody feels, so the Holy Spirit always prays for God’s people and asks for the things that God already wants.

1 Corinthians 7:25

I’m going to talk now about young people that are not married, and I will try to answer your question. Our leader Jesus didn’t tell me what to say about this, but I will tell you what I think. God is good to me and he helps me think properly, so I reckon you can believe me. This is what I think.

1 Corinthians 9:17

But suppose I got this job just because I wanted it, then I will want some pay for it. But no, it wasn’t like that. I’m just doing what God told me to do.

Galatians 1:10

I’m not trying to make people happy with me, I’m trying to make God happy with me. I work for Jesus Christ now, so it doesn’t matter to me if some people aren’t happy when I talk straight like this.

Galatians 2:7

No, they understood that God gave me a special job, just like he gave Peter a special job. God told me to tell the good news about Jesus to the people that are not Jews. And he told Peter to tell that same good news to the Jewish people.

Ephesians 3:8

I’m not important. All of God’s people are more important than me. But God was good to me, and he gave me this special job. He sent me to tell the people that are not Jews about the really great things that Jesus Christ can give them. These things are so great that nobody can understand them properly.

Ephesians 6:6

Do what they say, and try to make them happy. Don’t only do it when they can see you, but also when they can’t see you. Work happily in your job, like you are working for Jesus Christ, and then you will be doing what God wants.

Colossians 3:22

And now I am talking to you people that have to work all the time for other people, like you are their prisoners. Make sure you always do whatever your bosses want. And don’t only work hard when they can see you, to make them think you are good. But also work hard when they can’t see you. Remember our leader, Jesus, can see you all the time, so respect him, and respect your bosses as you do your job.

1 Timothy 6:20

All right, Timothy, God gave you his good message, so you have to look after it properly. Make sure nobody changes it around. There are some people that talk a lot in a stupid way, and they say bad things about God. Don’t listen to them. They might reckon they know all about it, and they might say that you are wrong, but really, they are the ones that are wrong.

2 Timothy 2:2

You heard me tell those true things about Jesus to lots of people, so you have to teach those things to more people. Pick good people that everyone respects, then teach them those things, so that they can go to other people and teach them those same things.

Titus 1:3

At first, people didn’t know what God promised, but now he says that it is the right time for them to hear his message, and he helps them understand it. God gave me that message, and he told me to tell it to other people. God is the one that saves us.

1 Peter 4:11

If you can tell stories to people, then tell them God’s story, and tell it clearly. If you can help other people, then let God make you strong so you can help them properly. Do everything properly so that when people see it, they might say that God is really great. If they know that you follow Jesus, they might thank God for sending Jesus to us. Jesus has really great power now, and he will have that power for ever. That’s true.