Genuine Christianity - Studies in 1 Thessalonians - 2
Encouragement and Example
Before we get into the text of 1 Thessalonians there is some more background information we need to have. We have already looked at how the church at Thessalonica was started. Now we need to see why Paul wrote this letter to them.
Whenever the Gospel is preached persecution soon follows. When heaven blesses hell blasts! So it was in Thessalonica. We read in Acts 17 verse 5, "But the Jews became jealous, so they rounded up some bad characters from the market-place, formed a mob and started a riot in the city". Things became dangerous for Paul and Silas. We read in verse 10, "As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea." Paul would have stayed to provide support for this new church. He was forced to get away as quickly as possible. He describes this in 1 Thessalonians 2 verse 17. He says, "We were torn away from you for a short time (in person not in thought)." See Paul's great love for the believers! They were ever in his thoughts. Are your brothers and sisters in Christ always in your hearts and thoughts when you are separated from them? That is a sign of real genuine Christian affection.
Paul arrived in Berea. His preaching met with success but the Jews stirred up more trouble and he went on to Athens. He left Silas and Timothy in Berea. They joined him later. Paul was desperately longing to know how the Church was going on in Thessalonica. Had the believers been crushed? Was the fellowship still there? Paul sent Timothy to find out. We read in 1 Thessalonians 3 verses to 6, "When we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left in Athens. We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker ... to strengthen and encourage you in your faith. I sent to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the Tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless. "Even the greatest workers for Christ need the help and support of others. We must support our Pastors, Elders, Evangelists, and Missionaries in every practical way we can.
We read in Acts 18 verse 1 that, "After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth". Later Timothy returned from Thessalonica. He came to Corinth with news of the Church. Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 3 verse 6, "But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love." The Thessalonians were standing for Christ. They were developing and growing in their new faith in Christ. This thrilled Paul was like a tonic to him. That is not surprising. Paul had been beaten in Philippi, thrown out of Thessalonica, treated badly in Berea, surrounded by paganism in Athens. He had some encouragements too. But the news from Thessalonica was want he wanted to hear.
This revived his soul. Paul went on with a new vigour. We read in Acts 18 verse 5, "When Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ." You see, Paul was fired up again. The news from Timothy confirmed that his ministry was effective.
When Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth he opened up to them how he felt when he first arrived there. In the words of the J B Phillips translation of 1 Corinthians 2 verse 3 he said, "I was feeling far from strong. I was nervous and rather shaky!." Its amazing what a good dose of encouragement can do! Someone once said, "Encouragement is like fresh water to a thirsty soul". Be an encourager in your church. It will rekindle the flame of enthusiasm in many a battle worn believer!
Timothy essentially told Paul three things about the state of affairs at Thessalonica. First, he reported that the believers were growing in faith hope and love. Second, the Jews had misrepresented and maligned Paul. They undermined his motives. They had suggested he was a travelling money maker. He was only concerned about lining his own pockets. They accused Paul of not being concerned about the people at Thessalonica. He had left them suddenly and had not returned. Third, although things were generally good at the Church the Thessalonians needed guidance on aspects of living godly lives. They needed instruction to help them deal with fears and concerns they had about the second coming of Christ. So Paul writes to them from Corinth. We read in Acts 18 verse 12 that Paul was in Corinth, "While Gallio was proconsul of Achaia". Historians date this at 50 to 51 A.D. So Paul wrote to the Thessalonians about that time.
Thessalonians has 5 chapters. It can be divided into two main sections. The first three chapters deal with the subject of Paul's thankfulness for their steadfast faith and Christian commitment.
He stirs them up to be even more devoted to Jesus Christ. Chapters 4 and 5 contain practical exhortations in areas that needed attention. There is instruction about holiness, love, and what happens to loved ones who die before Christ returns. A wrong outlook on work had developed in connection with the second coming of the lord Jesus Christ. That needed to be addressed as well.
In 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 7, the Apostle Paul says of the believers, "So you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia." Despite their shortcomings they were a model church. They were the flagship church for all other churches to learn from and copy.
The title of our studies is "Genuine Christianity". We see the marks of genuineness in the Church at Thessalonica. This letter is the first one that Paul ever wrote. It provides us with insight into what the beliefs and priorities were for the early believers. We will discover in this letter the really important things to which we should be giving our time; the goals we should have and the things that will motivate us to serve Christ. We will also be genuine Christians as we apply these lessons to our lives.