Letters from Paul: Thessalonians

We have been going through the Pauline Epistles, the letters of Paul, Which make up over half of the New Testament.

I know its been a few weeks, but so far we have seen that Paul writes these letters to do various things

To correct teaching or behaviour in the church, as he did with Galatians, when some among them began trying to push gentiles to convert to Judaism before coming to Jesus.

To encourage the churches while he was in prison, as with ephesians, where her encouraged them to live according to the Calling God had given them.

Some were thank you letters, as to the philippians, who were always generous with giving to Paul when he needed it, and he showed them how to be content in any circumstance

a few weeks ago we looked at the letter to the collosians, where Paul was trying to get ahead of a heretical teaching before it arrived, and trying to say that life in Christ is good, and that forgiveness is nessicary for the church.

This week we are looking at the 2 letters to the thessalonians.

These are some of pauls earilest letters, and they were written within a short time of each other.

This is likely shortly after paul was forced to fleee thessolonica because of jewish persecution

Acts 17:1–7 ESV

Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women. But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.”

The jews in Thessolonica were first excited to hear that the Messiah had come, but when Paul and Silan and Timothy had started preaching to the greeks, the gentiles, as well the jews grew jealous, and started a riot.

Church never let jealosy get between you and the gospel.

So Paul silas and timothy were forced to flee, and so these letters to the thessalonians are there to help complete the teachings that they needed to hear.

1 Thessalonians 1:1–6 ESV

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, 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. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit,

Paul starts off by reminding the Thessoloinians of his time there, and how when they planted the church it was evident that they recieved the gospel, because the Holy Spirit showed up with power and conviction.

Church when we accept the Gospel, and we turn our hearts to Jesus, and we come to him, the Holy Spirit comes and lives in us, and it is obvious when someone comes to faith.

Now pauls spends much of the next couple chapters reminding them of his time there, how they came form imprisonment in Phillippi, how they worked with the thessalonians with no pay, operating on faith in God to provide, and of course the confrontation between the genitle chrisitians and the jealous jews,

1 Thessalonians 2:13–16 ESV

And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers. For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and oppose all mankind by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved—so as always to fill up the measure of their sins. But wrath has come upon them at last!

Paul says this persecution from the jewish population is nothing new,

Many of the Jews had rejected Jesus

Paul was one of the jews that persecuted the early church

And now they attack the young church in thessalonica

and Paul says that is good, because it means that the genitle Christians in Thessolonica have recieved the true gospel

and now God is filling up the sins of those who reject him.

and wrath has come.

Church when someone rejects the gospel for reason of jealousy, or because they don’t like what Jesus has to offer, God’s wrath will come to them in time.

Do not waste your time with them, move on to people who are willing to hear.

But Paul silas and timothy were forced to flee, so when they had time, we learn that Paul sent timothy back to them to see how they fared after the persecution

and timothy returned with good news.

1 Thessalonians 3:6–8 ESV

But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us, as we long to see you— for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through your faith. For now we live, if you are standing fast in the Lord.

So now that Paul timothy and Silas know that not only has the thessalonian church survived, but thrived since they were forced to flee, Paul turns towards teaching things they missed, and he focuses primarially on the second coming of Christ.

Which is all the nearer today,

1 Thessalonians 4:13–17 ESV

But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

This is where the word rapture comes from, it is the greek word for being “caught up” to meet the Lord.

the Thessalonians were worried about those who had ided before the second coming of JEsus, and Paul said that they will surely be raptured first, before the living.

and then Paul warns them to not worry about the day or the hour of the second coming of Jesus

1 Thessalonians 5:1–3 ESV

Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

It will happen suddenly, when we least expect it. So while we wait for it church, let’s not worry about when Jesus comes, but how much we have to do before he comes.

Now this topic becomes the main point of the second letter to the thessalonians

When the Tessalonians have replied to Paul with questions concerning the second coming of Christ.

Some of the thessalonians worried that Jesus had come and they had missed it.

Paul writes that there are signs that Jesus’s second coming is appraoching, including the appearence of the “man of alwlessness,” or the anti-Christ.

2 Thessalonians 2:1–4 ESV

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.

2 Thessalonians 2:9–12 ESV

The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Church there will be signs when the end is coming, the activity of Satan, of lawlessness will increase, and the worker of lawness will set himself up as God.

Church whether this is one figure, a true antichrist who comes with signs and wonders, or if this is a symbolic passage is not clear.

It could be that satan works within the hears of men, for men to see themselves as God,

and Church if that is the case then we need to be ready,

Look around. so many already believe this of themselves.

So it is evident church that Christ will return soon, so what are we to do?

You think Paul would write about how to prepare for Christ’s return, instead, because we do not know when His return will be Paul tells us, the church how to live until Christ does return.

1 Thessalonians 5:11–22 ESV

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.

THere is a lot here,

Encourage one another. build each other up

Encouragment is one of the best things we can do for each other.

respect those who work, admonish the idle,

Paul would even say in 2 Thessalonians that if someone refuses to work then he should not eat.

Help the weak

help those who need it. there’s plenty of people who need help.

So church we ought to help those who need help, and be generous with our help - but the goal should be to help people get to the point where they no longer need help.

do good to each other

Rejoice always

How hard is this? How hard is it to rejoice at all times,

Church life is hard, but in Christ we can rejoice

PRay without ceasing

How do we pray without ceasing?

I read an article once, i was in middle school at the time, where someone had looked at this verse, and said “What if we took every thought we had throughout the day and turned it into a prayer?’

Thats quite the challenge, but it is how we practice being in the presence of God

Because when every thought is a prayer, we become more open to the things God wants us to do, and opportunities to spread the gospel.

Give thanks in all circumstances,

Test everything.

Not everything that looks good or sounds good is good,

It has to line up with scripture.

abstain from every form of evil.

That is how Paul told the Thessalonians to live until the second coming of Christ.

Church Christ hasn’t come back yet, so this is how we ought to live. Helping each other, helping those around us, rejoicing always, praying without ceasing, giving thanks in all circumstances. testing everything we hear against scripture.