Nathan E. Lewis

Study of I Thessalonians
Prepared by Nathan E. Lewis for Surveyor
Winter 2010

(My notes below are complete except for any graphics I dragged off the www. and so from time to time the flow may be interrupted. Please request a hard copy from Nathan Lewis and he will see that you receive it.)

Chapter 1: 1
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.

This letter is a ______________________ effort.

Paul is an apostle, a most high office, listed as foundational to the church along with ___________, the cornerstone, and the _______________.

Silvanus = Silas (the Greek “nickname” for the Latin name, Silvanus.) When Paul and Barnabas split, Paul chose Silas as his mission partner. The likelihood of Silvanus being a Gentile, even Latin, is high. He was Peter’s scribe (I Peter 5: 12). Most likely, he also served as scribe of this letter, not only writing what these apostles dictated, but perhaps editing it collaboratively so that it might culturally translate.

Timothy = “son” and disciple of Paul; Greek/Jewish; trained to be a pastor to follow Paul, the church planter. Undoubtedly, Timothy’s ethnicity and knowledge of Greek history and culture was invaluable to the mission to establish a church in Thessalonica. The Greek city-states had their problems with each other even after Alexander united them. Ever since he did the Macedonians considered themselves to be the champion leaders and the other states, including Athens resented them. Timothy humbly serving the new church in Thessalonica would have gone a long way to endear them to the gospel of reconciliation. Timothy’s Jewish mother and Jewish mentor supplied him with the biblical knowledge needed to serve the church in Thessalonica. If Paul needed any help, Timothy would be his right-hand man.

Not only is the letter writing a collaborative effort, but also the entire mission to establish the church is a team project.

Thessalonica (present day Thessaloniki, Greece) = Roman Colony of _____________________.

Rich heritage of ___________________ the ___________ (356-323), the champion of Macedonia who forged an empire extending as far east as ________________ , conquering all of Persia, adding the Middle East, Egypt and uniting the Greek city states. (The city of Philippi is also Macedonian, named after Philip II, of Macedon, ______________’s father. Thessalonica was name after Alexander’s half-sister.) Alexander conquered the known world then wept because there were no more worlds to conquer. He was a universalist declaring that he was “sent by God to unite, to pacify and to reconcile the whole world…to marry the East to the West.” It is no accident that Paul landed in Macedonia, where his message would find so many correlations, the gospel delivering true union, peace and reconciliation.

Acts 16 – 17:9 The Macedonian Call and Mission
How long did Paul stay in Thessalonica? __________ __________!
Paul’s purpose in writing this first letter = to encourage new believers with whom he had spent little time

How does Paul describe the church of Thessalonica?
He does identify the members by earthly citizenship and residency, but he adds the following descriptions:

= church, “the assembly,” “congregation,” literally, “called out ones.”

= the English preposition “in,” and when it is attached to the titles and names of God, it means _____________ with God.

= common name for the one, true God.

= title for God, distinguishing a Person of the Godhead from the other two Persons. It is attached here to “theos.”

= title for God, referring to his role in the _________________, and here, as in numerous places, it is assigned to _______________.

=given name “Jesus.” The incarnation added humanity to the divinity of the Son of Man and this God-Man was given a name as a true human being. Jesus = “he saves,” the same meaning as the Hebrew name, “Joshua.”

= title meaning “anointed one,” correlative to the Hebrew title, “Messiah.”

Jesus, the Man is regularly given two titles describing his divinity. “Lord” refers to the divine party of the covenant describing the role of Controller. “Christ” refers to the divine Liberator of God’s people describing the role of Redeemer. The Christ is the human representative of the covenant.

How does Paul describe the church? Our earthly connections and identity are important in defining a particular congregation but this is overshadowed by our corporate union to God.

= grace, divine favor undeserved by its recipients. Paul uses this as a blessing upon the church. For him it is more than a formality, a mere greeting. He offers it more like a minister offering a benediction than a stranger passing you on the street saying, “Good morning.”

=peace, cessation of all strive, internal and external, divinely derived and given. With grace, peace is a regular Pauline blessing.
As Paul offers this two-fold blessing, he is also commending these are characteristics of the church. If we are truly united to God, the giver of grace and peace, then we should see them manifested within the relationships of the church. The world should observe the church to be gracious and peaceful.
Telos = the main point a Greek word = the end of a goal oriented process.
What’s the main point of 1:1? We could say that it is merely to address and open the letter but Paul does more than that with his salutation and address: He sheds light upon our union with God as the source of our offering grace and peace to one another.

1:2-3 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.

= to give thanks; return gratitude. (does this sound like any liturgical word you know, that has come into the English language?)
-Christians not only thank one another for gifts and love expressed, but we also give thanks “to God,” for one another.

=always (adverb); Does Paul mean that he never prays for the Philippians as he is “always praying exclusively for the Thessalonians? When he is preaching or eating, how is it that he would “”always” and “constantly” pray gratitude for the Thessalonians?
-Paul prays ______________ for them, and every time he does so, he ___________________ gives thanks for them. Woodenly, we would say, “this is not a literal understanding of the term, ‘always,’ or ‘constantly.’ My Dad told me ‘never say never.’” But this is how we most typically use words like “always’ and ‘constantly.’ This is not a lab report; Paul does not live in a laboratory. He is writing a letter in common language and his language is indeed accurate. Mathematical precision is only one perspective on accuracy.
(Remember: as we look especially at the next phrases, we always keep in mind the telos – what’s the main point?)

= your work of faith; In the study of Systematic Theology, what is odd about this phrase?
Paul clearly in his teaching distinguishes between ___________ and ______________. Why does he put them together here?

-What is a “work of faith”? If faith is a gift of God (Ephesians 2:8-9), what does “work” describe? As God gives to us faith, he does not download into our brains a database or a program, immediately installing a corpus of knowledge that we access without any mental or spiritual process. Rather, His gift allows us to mentally process truth and the Holy Spirit progressively teaches us that truth. It is a process, though at all times that faith is sufficient and alien, in the sense that God is the ultimate and sole source of it. There is a process through which we are engaged and gives way to an accurate description of that faith as “my faith” or “your faith.”

= do you recognize this Greek word for love? “Agape”? Self-Sacrifice….all love is God-given and this love does require labor on our part. “Labor” does not merely mean “expression.” It means work.

= steadfastness of hope; The apostles qualify hope with words of certainty. God-given hope is certain. In our experience hope ebbs and flows and sometimes disappears. A certain hope is a work of God in us, which we express, living according to it.

*This faith, love, and hope is rooted in Jesus Christ, our Lord, in our union to him.

Telos =

1: 4-5a 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.

This sentence is interesting in light of Paul’s brief ministry on location in Thessalonica. Truly, our embrace and application of the gospel toward sustained godly living is a work of God. The rest of us are mere instruments. The reason most often supplied for Paul’s relatively short ministries in the urban centers of the Roman Empire toward the planting of the church = the establish synagogue community supplying Jewish converts to the church, who knew the Old Covenant Scriptures, providing a rich and mature foundation. But, here in Thessalonica there were very few Jews. The church was formed largely from the Gentile community steeped in Alexander’s universalism.

=brothers; Paul’s use of the masculine term does not exclude, “sisters.” In our present day, we are concerned about gender equality, but Paul has another concern in mind rooted in the biblical use of “sons.” In ancient communities and in many present day ones, inheritance falls to the firstborn male. As you may know, the history of redemption “messes” with this custom by passing inheritance along to a second born son, but nevertheless, it goes to a male heir. Paul doesn’t take issue with the gender specific system but instead declares to all of us, regardless of gender that we “are all sons of God,” “joint-heirs with Christ Jesus,” the “true son of Israel.” Paul is not attempting to describe women as second-class or exempt from inheritance. Rather, he certainly and clearly includes them. Even the second Person of the Trinity is described in this language of inheritance as the “Son of God,” that is the infinitely divine heir of the heavenly Father, and he incarnates as a male human being, Jesus of Nazareth. To best describe our union to this one, true heir, we are all “brothers” sharing in the inheritance of the One Man.

= selected, elected, chosen. This is a noun, singular with a feminine ending. The actions of God often take a feminine ending when applied to the church, Christ’s bride. It is singular as it is applied to one, single group, the full membership of the church. It is also passive making it clear that this selection is solely the work of God.

How does Paul know that God has chosen the Thessalonian members of the church?

=our gospel came to you; this gospel, “evangelion,” is the word that gives to us the English “evangelism,” the proclamation of nothing but the gospel. Paul and the other apostles own the gospel; it is their message to proclaim by the command of Jesus Christ. The first proof that the Thessalonian church has been chosen by God is that the gospel came to them. Prior to any reception of it, the gospel is delivered to us.

How did the gospel come to the Thessalonians?

= “not in the word alone,” is better than, “not only in the word.” “Monos” is an adjective not an adverb and so it describes the sufficiency of the word of God – “the word alone.” The gospel is the very word of God; it is the central message of the word and it is the key to all of the word. All Scripture is informed and controlled by the gospel. There are no portions of Scripture that contradict the gospel or present a different climax, solution, or direction other than that of the gospel.

This “word alone,” is accompanied by the work of the Holy Spirit…

= “but also in power and in the Holy Spirit.” The power is indelibly connected to both the word and the Holy Spirit. This is one of the proof texts used for the past five hundred years in the Reformed movement of the church for emphasizing the phrase, “by Word and Spirit.” The preaching of the gospel, the teaching of the word is consistently accompanied by the Holy Spirit, the “teacher,” who applies the word to our hearts and to our obedience. Paul is confident that the Holy Spirit moved him and others to preach the gospel to the Thessalonians and that He attended and applied the gospel to their hearts and to their obedience.

= “and with full conviction.” Now we come to their reception of the gospel. This is a beautiful description of any of our genuine and lasting reception of the gospel, making us members of the church, chosen by God. The Holy Spirit has fully and sufficiently worked the gospel into us that we firmly believe the gospel and live according to it, persevering in it.

Telos =

“It is impossible to overstress the importance of the arrival of Christianity in Thessalonica. If Christianity was settled there, it was bound to spread East along the Egnation Road until all Asia was conquered and West until it stormed even the city of Rome. The coming of Christianity to Thessalonica was crucial in the making of it into a world religion.” William Barclay

1: 5b- 7 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, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy not only proclaimed the gospel to the Thessalonians, but they lived according to the gospel proving that the Holy Spirit was applying the gospel to their lives. As Macedonian Greeks, the Thessalonians would have been exposed to a number of systems of virtuous living. The Greeks were known for the development of such systems. All of these systems had founders, leaders and representatives commending the system to others, calling them to become adherents. The Thessalonians recognized a difference between these systems’ leaders and Paul along with his fellow leaders. And so, they embraced the gospel and formed the church of the Thessalonians.

= imitators; does this word, “mimitai” sound like an English word related? ______________.
This word in biblical text and beyond the biblical text describes what it means to be a disciple, a follower of someone else. To be a disciple of Jesus means to imitate him. Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy were disciples of Jesus and so anyone who followed them, imitating them, would be following/imitating Jesus.

Here is a list of every use of this word in the New Testament:
I Corinthians 4: 15-17
I Corinthians 11:1
Ephesians 5:1
Hebrews 6:12
I Thessalonians 1:6 (our text under consideration)
I Thessalonians 2:14

How have the Thessalonians imitated Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy?

They have ________________ the _______.

How so?
In ________ _______________
with ______ of the ___________ ___________

they became an ______________ to others.

-Paul agrees with Peter who spoke of us following Christ who suffered first then entered into glory. The Thessalonians did not receive the gospel without personal sacrifice. They did not reject the gospel breaking under opposition and persecution. The gospel is the only path to freedom and so they took it regardless of the consequences.
-They did not regret doing so but in the midst of suffering they experience true joy united to the Holy Spirit within them.
-As they imitated Christ by imitating Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, additional believers in Macedonia and Achaia imitated them!

Christ Apostles Church

Christ Apostles Church

Jesus taught the apostles, who in turn, taught the church.
Each generation of the church looks back to the apostles to learn, retracing their teaching and modeling to Jesus.

The pattern of Christ’s life

then

First ______________ then _____________

300 years or so after the more civilized Greek city states, including Achaia united under the rule of Alexander the Great, the Macedonian, the Thessalonian church influenced the Greek communities, now under the yoke of Rome, in a much different way. Alexander’s legacy was not a long lasting empire able to withstand Rome, but instead a Hellenistic culture that informed the Roman culture. The Thessalonian church’s legacy was much more profound. This legacy of living by the gospel accelerated a discipleship movement of a growing number of communities following Jesus by following the apostles by following the Thessalonian believers.

How is it that the Thessalonians attracted masses of imitators?

1: 8-10 For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

-The Thessalonians proclaimed the word of the Lord! They began in Macedonia, where they lived, then in Achaia, to the south in Greece proper, then through out the world!
God used the city’s strategic, geographic location but more so he enlisted people to proclaim the word of the Lord, the gospel and even more so he used their active faith, the living of the gospel observable beyond words.

How specifically did they proclaim the word of the Lord?

= “your faith in God.” They did not merely deliver a message, but they proclaimed a message they believed, holding to it with personal conviction. So connected and invested were they to the word of the Lord that their proclamation of the gospel was sufficient and so, Paul and others were not needed to endorse it.

-Along with the gospel they also told others how it is that they had received it. They told their story. Some Christian traditions, mostly of the 20th century teach members of the church how to present “their personal testimony.” While this is valid and has biblical precedent here, many times in recent experience, the personal story upstages the actual gospel. The Thessalonian story connected their personal reception to the apostolic proclamation and also to the new recipients.

-Their personal story emphasized _____________________.

= “to turn; to turn around; to change one’s mind and course of action, for better or for worse; to return. (From Alexander the Great’s writing to Augustine of Hippo’s writing, this word is used consistently to refer to conversion/repentance.)

True repentance = ____________ __________ to ________ God.

What else along with repentance did their story include?

= “to wait, to expect.” Their life was one of resting in Christ, waiting for his second coming. Their eyes were set with certain hope upon the Final Day. The coming Jesus is the Jesus risen from the dead and the Advocate, who will rescue us from God’s final wrath of the Final Day of Judgment.

The gospel delivers us from our idols through ___________________.
The gospel positions us to ___________ the true and living God.
The gospel frees us from ______________ as we rest in the resurrected Jesus.

Telos =

Chapter 2: 1-2 For you yourselves know, brothers, that our coming to you was not in vain. But though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict.

Acts 16-17
-Paul first proclaimed the gospel in Thessalonica in the
_________________.
-The result = a __________ mob attacked the house of Jason, the host of Paul and Silas. They were dragged before the city authorities, who released them as Jason paid a security fee.

Telos = much conflict is not an indicator that our gospel
proclamation is in vain, nor does it decrease our boldness in the gospel.

2:3-8 For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed— God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.

= range of meaning – from encouragement to exhortation; from comfort/consolation to appeal/request. How do we know the precise meaning of any word used?
_______________, _______________, _______________

The Westminster Confession of Faith, Chapter 1.IX = The infallible rule of interpretation of Scripture is the Scripture itself: and therefore, when there is a question about the true and full sense of any Scripture (which is not manifold but one), it must be searched and known by other places that speak more clearly.

Here “appeal” is a synonym for “declare to you the gospel” in (2) above. For Paul, there is little difference between proclaiming/declaring the gospel and making an appeal/request to the audience to receive the gospel.

= appeal/request

One more note on context:
The Concentric Circles of Contextual Analysis
Circle One = the phrase, clause, sentence
Circle Two = the paragraph
Circle Three = the book
Circle Four = other writings by the same author
Circle Five = other writings connected historically to primary text
Circle Six = the Testament to which primary text belongs
Circle Seven = the whole of Scripture
Circle Eight = the whole corpus of Greek or Hebrew Literature
(This aids us in discovering the original meaning, intent and purpose of the text, refraining from our imposing upon the text a personal meaning, intent and purpose.)

…Back to the declaration and appeal of the gospel….
Paul writes about the source of his gospel declaration and appeal:
It does not spring from _____________ or from ______________
or from _________________.

The source = God entrusting to them the gospel, approving them to be spokesmen.

Therefore…. Gospel proclaimers seek to please ______ not ______.

Paul then speaks concerning the motive for preaching the gospel….

The motive is not ______________ or __________ or _______________ ________.
But rather the motive is…
…Gentle __________ for loved ones.

Philippians 1: 15-18 Paul on motives in his letter to the other Macedonian church.

Excursus on English Translations:
(7) ESV = But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children.
KJV = But we were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children.
NASB = But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children.
NIV= but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children.
What does Paul literally say? Well, believe it or not, Paul literally uses a “play on words,” highly figurative language, a pun or double figurative expression to figuratively describe his motive for proclaiming the gospel. Paul likens his motive for preaching the
gospel to a nurse who cares for infant children. What does he write?

= we came born an infant in the midst of you. Just as a nurse keeps warm one’s children. Paul likens his preaching of the gospel to that of the humble infant, with no ulterior motive or legal claim and at the same time likens it to the nurse, who warmly embraces and nourishes babies – for the good of the babies.

Like a loving mother, Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy possess an affection for the Thessalonians moving them to share both the ______________ and _____________ with the church in Thessalonia.

Telos = The gospel is rooted in covenantal relationships. The message is not merely a declaration of justification, as glorious and liberating as that is. But it is also a message that includes the “ministry of reconciliation” and covenant fellowship. The love of God graciously given to us introduces us to loving relationships in which we act out our affections for one another, considering each other “dear.”

The Church is not merely a _________________ of people for an event, like a worship meeting, but it is a community of loving
____________________.

How did Paul and his mission team express their love for the church?

2:9-12 For you remember, brothers our labor and toil: We worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers. For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

1) They worked 24/7 so as not to be a financial burden on these new Christians in the church-planting phase.
(In the PCA church-planting movement, our church planters raise their own funds from outside sources for 3 to 5 years. The main source of funding is established congregations and generous donors. Some of our church planters are “tent makers.” Paul and his team both received gifts from others and they were also tent makers with the strategy of establishing the new congregation without the financial burden falling solely on the new Christians. These financial comments of Paul, sprinkled through out his epistles have led the Christian cults, like Mormonism and the Jehovah Witnesses, to insist that there should be no “paid clergy,” in the church. Indeed they harshly criticize the church for compensating their ministers. But a full reading of Paul on this topic does not support their criticism and practice. Both the Church of the Latter Day Saints, with its mandatory tithe collected monthly from all members and the Kingdom Hall’s continuous raising of funds from members and neighbors betrays their hypocrisy or at least their misunderstanding of how money works in the kingdom of God.)
Application for Ministers:
a) earn your keep; work diligently as pastors so that no one
can accuse you of being lazy spokesmen of the gospel;
b) As you are proclaiming the gospel in the church, live it;
c) Don’t make financial concerns a prominent pressure and crisis in the establishing of new congregations; make personal sacrifices to keep the church solvent.
Application for Church Members:
a) If you are a new Christian, rest assured that God provides for his church through all its members working and giving together far beyond the needs of a local congregation;
b) If you are a mature Christian, plan to be a part of the diligent work of the apostles so that financial concerns do not control the decisions and development of any congregation;
c) Read all of Paul’s comments about compensating pastors who have been set aside to serve the church. For example, not only does Paul write here that Timothy worked night and day so as not to be a financial burden to the church, he also writes to Timothy, “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,’ and, ‘The laborer deserves his wages.’ (I Tmothy 5: 17-18)

2) They conducted themselves in a holy, righteous, and blameless behavior. They not only preached the gospel but they lived according to it.
(Rather than talk about the failed ministers of other denominations, we must acknowledge that PCA ministers have ruined their lives and congregations by committing the following sins: Homosexuality; Adultery; Heresy; Alcohol and prescription drug abuse; laziness; gossip; deceit; embezzlement…)
3) They instructed the new Christians to behave obediently unto God.
-In the previous paragraph Paul has likened his mission team to a loving and nurturing mother. Now, he likens them to a loving Father, who instructs his children.
-What is this instruction?

-The root verb = “parakaleow,” meaning instruction given by one who comes alongside another, as a fellow member of the fellowship of the church. Often we think of “exhort” as an action committed in a top down manner, a superior telling an inferior what to do. But this is not biblical exhortation. The only Head of the Church is Jesus Christ and all of us who serve in the church, serve as followers of Jesus. The authority of the exhortation belongs to Christ alone. And so, as we exhort one another, we must remind each other of this important fact. The range of meaning of this verb runs from “exhort” to “encourage.” In this verse, Paul chooses a synonym with the narrow meaning, “to encourage” in order to be clear.

= from the root verb, “to encourage, to cheer up, to comfort.”
It appears here in its participial form, attached to the main verb, “to exhort,” and so a more accurate rendering of the verse would be , “we exhorted each one of you with the purpose of encouraging you…”

= one more participle, from the root verb, “to testify, to bear witness.” Does this sound like an English word? _____________.
How do those who lose their lives for the sake of Christ and his gospel testify and bear witness? The whole chain of verbs is best translated: “we exhorted each one of you with the purpose of encouraging you and testifying to you to walk in a manner worthy of God.” The apostles testify and bear witness to the words and life of Christ and then to their following after him. Their exhortation is thus not only encouraging but also connects us to Christ and to the apostles. We are in this together. Biblical instruction occurs in true community.

God has called us into his kingdom. As citizens of his kingdom, we build a community that is thoroughly informed by this kind of instruction toward a holy behavior.

Telos =

2:13 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.

Paul returns to giving thanks for the Thessalonians (as he did in
1:2 We give thanks to God always for all of you.

= to give thanks; return gratitude

The Thessalonians received the apostles’ word as the very words of ________.
This word of God is active in the lives of believers.
As Paul instructed Timothy: All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. (II Timothy 3:16-17)
-And the author of Hebrews = For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

A Few Reasons for Refusing to Accept the Apostles’ Writings as the very Words of God:
1) We don’t like what they say; we find the gospel and the moral commands flowing from it to be offensive;
2) We believe the writings to be fraught with contradictions, mistakes, and falsities;
3) We have adopted non-biblical systems, views and lifestyles, which do not include portions of the apostolic teaching;
(Do you hold to a biblical world view?)
4) We have not been visited by the Holy Spirit who enlightens our minds, opens our hearts, and effectually calls us to faith in Christ and repentance of our sins. (The Apostolic Writings are amazingly preserved and documented historic writings founded upon the Old Testament, more accurately preserved than any other corpus of literature: go to my blog, www.nathanlewis.org to read more about the Dead Sea Scrolls as an apologetic for the veracity of the Bible. Nevertheless, if the Holy Spirit does not open your mind and heart, then you will never embrace God’s Word.)
2: 14-16 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 God’s wrath has come upon them at last!

The Thessalonians proved to be members of the church as they accepted the apostolic words, the very words of God. And so, they were not only imitators of Jesus and the apostles, but also imitators of the existing churches in Judea.

The imitation that Paul highlights = _____________________
The Thessalonians were persecuted by their fellow Macedonians just as the Jewish Christians in Judea were persecuted by their fellow Jews.

Paul is not anti-Semitic in these comments for the following reasons:
1) By mentioning the Macedonian persecutors as well as the Jewish persecutors he views persecution to be a sin of humanity as a whole – it is human nature to cruelly treat those who do not adhere to our particular beliefs and lifestyles;
2) In mentioning the Jews killing Jesus and their prophets, he does not do so in an accusatory vacuum, but all too painfully remembers that he formerly was a persecutor of Christ and his followers, arresting and murdering them. One of his favorite stories told in his mission ventures was his conversion story including Jesus appearing to him on the Road to Damascus, confronting him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me.” Paul wrote to Timothy: “I am the chief of sinners.”
3) Paul is not anti-Semitic. He himself is Jewish, not only culturally, but he views the Christian faith to flow from the Jewish faith, emphasizing the continuity between the Old and New Covenants.

Paul accuses the Jewish community of the first century to be racist: They refused to allow or to tolerate the Jewish Christians from sharing the gospel with the Gentiles! For this racism and exclusivity Paul insists that the wrath of God has come upon them.

= divine wrath; contextually, Paul assigns this wrath of God to the present rather than to the future Day of Judgment. Paul writes that this wrath of God has “finally, after all this time” fallen upon the Jewish community. The Babylonian and Assyrian captivities were punishments for idolatry. The 400 years of divine silence was a result of Israel’s disobedience. Through all of this time, a remnant of faithful followers of God in the Jewish community enjoyed a true covenantal relationship with God. But a majority were hardened generation by generation. As God’s redemptive work comes to a climax in the incarnation and work of the Son of God, Jesus of Nazareth, so does this hard rebellion of the Jewish community. The wrath of God falls upon his crucified Son satisfying God’s wrath for the sins of his children, true sons of Abraham by faith. But the rebels at last receive the wrath of God upon themselves as they refuse to unite to the Messiah, their only hope to escape divine wrath. Once again, Paul is not anti-Semitic in telling us that he believes that his own people have become targets of divine wrath. He believes that Gentiles who rebel against Christ are also targets of divine wrath.

The Gospel = God has made a way for us to escape divine wrath. That way is faith in Jesus Christ.

2:17-20 But since we were torn away from you, brothers, for a short time, in person not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face, because we wanted to come to you—I, Paul, again and again—but Satan hindered us. For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? For you are our glory and joy.

How were Paul and his mission team torn away from the Thessalonians? Acts 17: 1-15
It may not have been Paul’s intention to merely spend three weeks in Thessalonica. He had no choice as he was run out of town, and so he, like us, must rest in God’s timing and direction of the mission to establish the church.

How did Satan hinder Paul and his team from returning? Acts 20+
John Calvin suggests that the hindrance is circumstance. Pressing needs keep Paul traveling towards Jerusalem where in the end he is arrested, appeals to Caesar and is sent off to Rome. All along the way Paul has opportunities to expand the kingdom of God and to build the church. Even though Satan sets traps, arranges delays and detours, nevertheless, the mission continues – even during house arrest in Rome!

Consider again to what extent Paul expresses his love for and admiration of the Thessalonians in (2: 19-20).

= joy. Paul mentions joy twice in this section. In biblical context and in Classic Greek, “joy” is a condition of the soul, experienced deeply within a person and shared by a communion of souls in the church. It is enjoyed regardless of circumstances and is rooted inseparably with other divine gifts such as faith, love, and hope. Of interest is Paul’s final sentence in this section: For you are our glory and joy.

= glory, the very manifestation of divine presence, power, and authority in the midst of his people and in his world, through out his creation.

How is it that Paul can say, “For you are our glory and joy”?
Glory has its source in the very nature and acts of God. Glory is displayed as it emanates from God. Joy springs in our souls as God gives it to us. But here in this text, Paul says that glory is manifest in the people of God. There is a relational display of it. Just as glory is manifest in the waterfall or the storm, so it is also manifest in the faith and fellowship of the church. The glory of God transfigured Moses’ face so that it shone like the sun as he descended the mountain to mix with the people. Similarly, the people of Christ, the church, shine like the sun and we see in each other the glory of God. Similarly, joy, which is a condition of our souls sourced by God, his Holy Spirit ministering to us internally, is also shared in the church. When we see God at work in our fellow sisters and brothers, our joy increases. Even though the Thessalonians were fraught with trials and sufferings they nevertheless did the work of Christ and thus become a source of Paul’s joy to the extent that he is able to describe them as his joy.
How does this inform our relationships in the church today?

3:1-5 Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone, and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith, that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know. For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain.

Telos =

All of us, even Paul and his team, struggle with circumstances and we fear that our sisters and brothers will fall to discouragement assessing ourselves by circumstances rather than by the work of God in our lives.

Paul speaks here of the afflictions that have befallen his team, including himself, rather than the afflictions befalling the church in Thessalonica. He fears that they would become discouraged by these afflictions as they hear about them.

Do you ever become discouraged upon hearing of the afflictions of others?
The solution = to establish and exhort you in your faith…
It takes a coworker in the gospel of Christ to do this work.

Whose coworker is Timothy? _______’s coworker!
We are coworkers in this relationship instrumentally. The work we do as coworkers supplies one another with a source that only comes from the fountain of the divine.

= to firmly establish, to comfort, strengthen, and support.
Faith is a ______ of God. We are not the source of our faith or anyone else’s faith, but we are instruments to strengthen that faith, to aid one another in establishing our lives upon that faith.
Growing in Faith
Jude 1:20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith…
Luke 17:5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”
Acts 14:21-22 When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.
Acts 16: 4-6 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.
( the use of the definite article does not change the meaning of faith to “religion.” Rather, it describes a lifestyle established on faith, a corporate practice of faith.)
Romans 1: 1-6 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ…
Romans 1:12 …that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.
Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
Hebrews 6:12 so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
Hebrews 12:2 …looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith.

= to exhort, to encourage (Do you remember what this means?) Exhortation is our speaking the words of God toward the establishing of another person’s faith. Sometimes an exhortation can be crushing, but this crushing should not be of one’s spirit or hope but of one’s sin and delusion. We exhort as coworkers of God, coworkers in the gospel of Christ.

Paul is concerned that the Thessalonians would become discouraged upon hearing of his afflictions and so, he sends Timothy to exhort them towards encouragement.

3: 5-10 For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain. 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. For what thanksgiving can we return to God for you, for all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God, as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith?
Timothy visits the church at Thessalonica then returns to Paul with a good report of their steadfast faith and love!

= the telling of the good news. In this context Paul is not referring to the gospel but of the good report of the results of the gospel.
Instead of fear moving them to discouragement, the Thessalonians long to be with Paul and his team, the result of faith and love! This produces ___________ and _____ in Paul towards a deeper desire to spend time with the Thessalonians.

For what reason does Paul desire to visit them?
(I thought that Paul assessed their faith to be strong? We can always stand to grow more in faith.)
What is lacking in your faith?

Telos of 3: 1-10 =

3: 11-13 Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

= establish your hearts blameless in holiness
(At our most recent annual officers’ retreat, Eric Costa led us in a discussion of the book, “Singlenesss of Heart.” A divided heart is a sinful, idolatrous one. Singleness of heart speaks of internal, holy devotion to God and to the things of God.)

These verse are written in the form of a benediction = God’s blessing upon his people, expressing his powerful and loving presence with them toward their good and holiness.

= “personal presence.” The range of meaning allows the speaker/writer to describe the first step of “personal presence,” namely “coming,” a “personal entrance.” In classical Greek the word is mostly used to describe the expectation cult members, who worship a hidden divinity, who makes his/her presence felt by a revelation of power and a promise of visitation. In the Koine Greek of the N.T., the common language of first century Macedonia and the known world, the word can be used informally to refer to anyone’s coming. Paul uses it casually in this manner in 2 Cor. 7:6 and Phil. 1:26. But it is Paul who chooses this word, with its potent and mysterious references in classical Greek to communicate his theology of the second coming of Christ. The main reason Paul chooses this word to describe the Messianic Advent in glory to judge the world at the end of the age is because Matthew records Jesus and his disciples using this word to describe the coming of the Son of Man. See Matthew 24:3, 27, 37, 39. This is certainly one of the key words in the N.T., used sparingly but strategically by Jesus, Paul and Peter.

Eschatology
The study of last things
Described by the word, “parousia”

Matthew 24: 3 As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?
The disciples use the word within the context of the Messianic Judge at the end of the world.

Matthew 24: 27 For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
Jesus uses this natural illustration to describe his second coming as a worldwide, visible event – just as everyone can see the lightning in the sky so everyone will see his coming at the end of the age. Jesus’ inclusion of the lightning coming from the “east” and moving “west” has birthed the folklore as seen in C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia: Aslan’s country is in the east across the sea. From there he comes to the west, the land of men. This folklore is also strengthened as the sun rises in the east daily and sets in the west. Jesus’ purpose in this illustration is to describe the “visibility.”

Matthew 24: 37-42 For as were the days of Noah so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.
Jesus now uses a historical illustration to describe the swiftness of his coming. It took Noah 120 years to build the ark and all the while he warned his community, who scoffed in disbelief. But one day, the rains came, increased and did not stop until the flood drowned them all but for Noah’s family. Even though they were warned for a long period of time, the flood swept them away by surprise! This swift judgment, Jesus says, describes his coming as Judge on the final day. To this historical illustration, Jesus adds two brief illustrations to make his point. Just like the wicked in Noah’s day, who were swept away by the flood, so one of two men working in a field will be swiftly taken away into judgment while the other is kept safe in the field in the love of God. Just like the wicked who were caught unaware and swept away in the judgment of the flood, so one woman at the mill we be taken away in judgment and the other will be left at the mill, safe in God’s love. For some reason, a large number of Christians flip-flop the characters in Jesus’ illustrations. Doing so profoundly alters one’s understanding of the end times, the coming of the Son of Man to judge the world.

I Cor. 15:22-24 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.
In this chapter Paul is presenting the resurrection of Jesus assuring us that united to Jesus we shall also be resurrected on the final day. Paul emphasizes Jesus, the Judge, under whose feet everything has been subjected. This is the immediate context. Those who belong to Christ are resurrected on the last day and every opposing power and authority is brought to justice and punishment on the last day. This is eschatology 101: All of us are united to Adam the failed human representative and so all of us have inherited death. All of us who are united to Jesus, the second and prevailing Adam shall inherit resurrection life.

I Thess. 3: 13 Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
Our text is God’s blessing upon his church in these last days:
“May the Lord make you _____________ and abound in
________ for one another and for all.” The purpose of this is “the perseverance of the saints,” making us more and more holy.
The parousia is the reunion of Jesus with all his saints. Paul believes that God’s blessing falls upon and informs the lives of believers in these last days.

2 Thess. 2:8 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. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 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.
Paul’s main point is that we should not be upset or alarmed by those who pose as authorities on eschatology telling us about the timing and fulfillment. (Still to this day there is much deception and speculation.) Paul tells us that the work of Satan through the man of lawlessness must be done but that the work of Christ is to kill him by the breath of his mouth. Christ will do this when he comes again. Therefore, we should not be disturbed or afraid. Christ will prevail. The purpose of Paul writing this 2nd letter to the church at Thessalonica was to correct misconceptions about the second coming.

2 Peter 3:1-8 This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

I John 2:28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.
This is what we are to do in these last days in light of everything we have been told about the wicked world and Jesus’ coming as Judge: _______________ in _______. As we are united to Jesus we possess confidence. As we distance ourselves from Jesus, we set ourselves up for shame at the parousia.
Interesting Note: John is also the author of the final book of the Bible, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ,” also titled, “John’s Apocalypse.” John does not use the word “parousia” in the entirety of this book. Nevertheless, there is much about the parousia in this book, which presents as its key word, “overcomer.” Christ Jesus is the Overcomer and all who are united to him are overcomers.

Bottom line = these key verses structured around the word, “parousia,” together with the final book of the Bible, which does not include the word, “parousia,” present to us a positively triumphant eschatology. Christ and his church win! Whatever eschatological view you choose to embrace, if it is to be biblical, then it must be hopeful.
4:1-8 Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Paul now concludes this section of his letter of encouragement, in which he has commended the church for her faith and practice amid much suffering, by urging the church to excel even more!

What is the difference between “ask” and “urge”? Why does Paul write both when, perhaps, one of the two would do?

=to ask or make a request. In this case Paul is politely making a request.

-The root verb = “parakaleow,” meaning instruction given by one who comes alongside another, as a fellow member of the fellowship of the church. (3rd time this word is used in this letter). Added to his polite request, Paul now urges the church to receive and to practice his instruction.

The difference is depth of relationship and the defining of roles in the relationship. Paul is kind in his polite request and he has every right in his role as an apostle to urge the church to follow his instruction. Both his “asking” and “urging” is “in the Lord Jesus.”

=to walk and to please God. Walk is a metaphor for the lifestyle of any disciple of Jesus. Walk emphasizes behavior. Our thoughts, words, and actions may please God as they are holy in obedience to him. Paul repeats that the Thessalonians are pleasing God through right behavior but he says that they can do even more!

Paul reminds them of the instructions he gave to them when he first met them and formed the church. These instructions support the “will of God.”

= the will of God.
Have you ever wondered what God’s will for you is?
Books have been written on this topic and discussions in the church in my lifetime approach this question as if it is most difficult to discover God’s will for any one of us. Most people asking this question are interested in discovering the specific details of their future. Notice how Paul treats this topic of God’s will…
For this is the will of God, your sanctification.
There it is – plain and simple – the answer you’ve been looking for.

=your sanctification. “Sanctification” is God making us holy. A fine definition =
the state of being made holy,” or “consecration by the Holy Spirit.” God’s will for us is that he make us holy.

What is interesting about this statement of Paul is that connects God’s will for us to God’s actions upon us for our good. When we ask the question, “What is God’s will?” we are most usually asking, “What does God want me to do with my life? Should I rent or purchase? Should I be an engineer or a Bible translator? Should I marry or remain single?” First and foremost, God’s will is connected to his actions. Just as it is so that a human being’s will is connected to his/her actions.

Is there anything for me to do, then? If God is going to make me holy, what will my experience of this process be?

Paul attaches instructions for us to follow to his statement: for this is the will of God – your sanctification. These instructions inform our behavior.

=Instruction # 1 Abstain from sexual immorality. The English word, pornography, comes from this Greek word. It is used to refer to prostitution, fornication, and every unlawful kind of sexual intercourse. It is also used figuratively to describe idolatry. The immediate context suggests sexual immorality.

How is it that we can abstain from sexual immorality?

=to control his body in holiness and honor. How do you do this? The meaning of this clause is contrasted to the meaning of the next clause…

= not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God

Are you struggling against sexual immorality?
*God is concerned about our bodies as well as our souls.
*The Holy Spirit controls us and the result is self-control.
*We can control our bodies – mind connected to the will connected to the body.
*Self-control is contrasted to lust: Self-control is our master over our desires; lust is our desires mastering us.
*Holiness as a context for self-control of the body leads us to choose moral behavior.
*Honor as a context for self-control of the body leads us to consider the dignity of the body and of human relationships.
*Knowledge of God leads to moral behavior; lack of knowledge of God leads to immorality.

Do you need ultimate motivation to do what is right?
Consider the wrong and harm in relationships.
Consider divine punishment for such sins.
Consider that your sin is significantly against God.

=describes the Lord as the avenger. Only used twice in the N.T., here and in Romans 13:4, for the civil magistrate is the servant of God, an avenger, who carries out God’s wrath upon the evildoer. God, the avenger and his avenging servants do so according to law.
-God has the right to discipline and to punish lawbreakers. Our sin is the breaking of divine law and thus it is an assault against God. An avenger is different than an aggressor. The avenger has the right to administer justice.
-This is not the first time Paul has taught the Thessalonians that God is avenger. He has warned them, supplying this accurate view of God, the avenger, as a deterrent to lust.

-The prepositions are important to the meaning and thus to our freedom from sin.
“for God has not called us for impurity but in holiness.”

for = purpose. God’s calling of us is a purposeful act. God’s calling of us supplies the very purpose of our existence. This purpose is not “impurity.”

BUT… (this is an interesting contrast; we would expect the contrast to be: God has not called us for impurity but for purity/holiness.) This is not what Paul writes, God has not called us for impurity but in holiness.

in = spatial or relational context and solidarity. Infinitely holy God has called us within the context of his holiness. He has called us to be united to him in the context of holiness. He is holy, our relationship to him is holy, and thus our character ought to be holy. Impurity destroys this union of space and relationship. Our position in a holy relationship informs our behavior.

Our sin = our disregard of _______.

What has God given to us to make us holy? ________ _______

Telos of 4:1-8 =

The popular definition of freedom =

The best definition of freedom =

4:9-12 Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

(Interesting observation = The Thessalonians were struggling with lust but not with love. We commonly think that one sin destroys its counter-virtue, but this is not always the case. A person or group can be so inconsistent, consumed by lust yet expressing much love.)

What is Paul’s instruction to the church?

1. To __________ ____ ______________ more and more!

2. To live ______________ ( Christians should not be obnoxious, arrogant grandstanders but rather, humble, helpful neighbors.)

3. To _______ your ______ ___________ (this does not mean, “mind your own business,” or “Don’t interact with your neighbor,” but rather “meet your responsibilities so that you are not a burden on society.)

4. To __________ with ______ __________ (As Paul will write to the church in his second letter: “If a man does not work then he shall not eat.” The Puritan work ethic was born out of such biblical commands.)

Paul is concerned about what other people, especially about what unbelievers think of Christians! He instructs us to care about what unbelievers think of us! Our behavior must reflect our union with Christ and this must be what is visible to unbelievers.

=”the ones outside/without” This is obviously “us and them” language, but it is certainly not a derisive title or label: it is a pronoun and an adverb stuck together to simply describe those who are not members of the church, the community of faith.

Telos of 4:9-12 =

4:13-18 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. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

= certain hope. Eschatology is that field of theology concerned with the coming of the Lord and in our day, mostly concerned with the second coming of the Lord. It is best to keep both advents of Christ in view together to inform how God is fulfilling all redemption, reconciliation and restoration. Paul’s eschatology keeps both advents inseparably connected to build our certain hope in God. Paul teaches eschatology toward our encouragement.

= the verbal command “you encourage.” This is a form of one of Paul’s favorite words in this letter = “parakaleo,” its range of meaning already presented in the notes. Not only is the purpose of “end times” discussions to encourage us, but also, the purpose of Paul’s command is for us, the church, to discuss the coming of Christ and to live in the certain hope of its completion.

-All the words between these two words is Paul’s instruction concerning his eschatology. In (13) he desires that the Thessalonians be informed about the connection between the first and second advents of Christ, the entire coming of the Lord.

The specific concern in the church at Thessalonica = what happens to a member of the church upon ____________.

= euphemism for death. These new Christians did not have the assurances of the Old Covenant Scriptures fixed in their minds and hearts – e.g. precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his saints (Psalm 116:15)… A good name is better than precious ointment and the day of death than the day of birth (Ecclesiastes 7:1)… “I know that my Redeemer lives and at the last he will stand upon the earth. (Job 19:25)…Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return and come with singing unto Zion and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads. (Isaiah 35:10) This is the Old Covenant Eschatology and is flows toward New Covenant specificity in the writings of Jesus and his apostles.

A biblical eschatology = an eschatology of ___________.

One of the main topics of eschatology is the death of the saints. What happens to us when we die? Hellenistic theories included the idea of death as a permanent destruction of a person body and soul. John Calvin suggests that Paul uses the euphemism of “sleep” for death to correct this idea. The biblical view of death includes a separation of body from soul. The body of a saint does decay in the grave but is kept safe unto resurrection on the final day. The soul of a saint immediately passes into the heavenly presence of God. As Paul writes to the church at Corinth: to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. This biblical teaching is most difficult to accept for those who have been educated according to the rationalism of Hellenism. In Corinth, Paul wrote against the more educated views and he is equally concerned for the church at Thessalonica. As Calvin says, death for the Christian is not “ruin and destruction.” Hence, the Christian euphemism, “passing” for death. We say of our loved one: “She passed on last night, into the loving presence of God.” As Johann Cruger wrote in his hymn, “Jesus Lives and So Shall I,” “Jesus lives, and death is now but my entrance into glory.”

Paul’s Teaching:
(14) What we believe about our deaths is founded upon the death and resurrection of Jesus. His entire teaching in this paragraph argues that death in no way severs a Christian’s union to Jesus Christ. His main concern is to establish the eternal and blessed union in Christ Jesus which belongs to a Christian should he die.

God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

Our death and resurrection is ___________ to Christ’s death and resurrection. For the sake of his Son God brings us through death and assures our being raised unto glory.

(15) Those of us who do not die but are alive at the second coming of Jesus have no advantage over those of us who have died prior to the second coming of Jesus. All of Paul’s writing in the canon of the New Testament are the inspired words of God but he adds here, for this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, to make absolutely certain that we understand that this instruction is truly part of the whole inspired revelation. He wants to make sure that we do not fall for worldly ideas that would compete with this encouraging doctrine of eschatology.

(16) Jesus the Lord will personally descend again and the first recipients of the blessings of union in him will be those of us who have died. The dead in Christ will experience resurrection first.
The dead will rise at the __________________ of Jesus. How much authority is endowed in the coming Lord Jesus? It is the divine authority of God the Father, the same authority conferred upon the greatest messengers of the Old Covenant, namely, the __________________ of the Lord. Now that Christ has died, rose, and ascended, his voice takes the place of the older messengers, who like him, have delivered the commands of the first Person of the Godhead.

= “of an archangel.” What is an archangel? An angel of _____________ __________.
Angels are God’s heavenly messengers, fiery and mighty beings of an other worldly appearance and nature. At times, to mitigate fear and to assure their communication with human beings, they have taken the appearance of humanity, sometimes so masked that we might mistake them for human beings. But an archangel rarely, if ever, has been so disguised. In the New Testament, two archangels are named, Gabriel and Michael. Gabriel announces the birth of Jesus and Michael, recorded in Jude – contending with the devil disputing about the body of Moses….Both inform our understanding of God keeping safe the bodies and souls of his saints. He has sent Jesus to unite us all to his eternal love and he sends his archangel to assure the passage of a saint, like Moses, who is a target of the enemy’s attempts to thwart such passage. Paul is building our certain hope toward our encouragement in Christ.

= “trumpet of God.” This may be a figure of speech for the actual voice of God or it may be that the world will actually hear the sound of a trumpet. The trumpets of the Old Covenant feasts or battles were the shofar, the ram’s horn, calling the people into the presence of God, who dwells in the midst of the feast and who is the commander of the fight against his and our enemies. It was a sign of God’s presence with his people. It was his call of his people to enter into his presence. (I think of the final trumpet call of God to be the voice of the Lord, breaking the cedars of Lebanon, as the Psalmist describes the very voice of God.) On the final day of the Lord’s coming, he shall call the dead to join him as surely as he will call the living.

(17) Those of us who are living at that final call will join the resurrected dead and together we will meet Christ Jesus, our Lord.

The location of our joining the resurrected dead = ____ _____ __________

The location of our meeting Christ = ___ ____ _______

The first important point is that there is no difference between the dead and the living who belong to Christ. All of us together shall experience safe passage from this world to the next.
The second important point concerns the location of our meeting Christ. The location profoundly speaks of our immediate translation for this world, our final freedom from the limitations of space and time as we have only known in this world. It speaks of God’s rescuing of us and more profoundly of our actual resurrection and glorification. Our bodies shall pass from this world to the next as freely and speedily as the souls of the dead have passed immediately upon expiration. Some Christian eschatological systems insist that Christ will return to earth and together with his church will reign for a period of time upon the earth. These words of Paul do not prevent such a system but they also do not establish it. Other systems insist that after this translation in the air, Christ and his saints will return to earth to reign for a period of time. Once again, these words to not establish nor prevent such a system of thought. Paul is not putting forth in these words one system over another, but is powerfully presenting our resurrection and fully completed union with Christ on the last day. We must search the Scriptures elsewhere for indicators of Christ’s role and his church’s role in the winding up of the affairs of this world. Once again for our encouragement, Paul says that in this one moment of translation, we will eternally enjoy the full fruits of our union to Christ, unlike any experience of the union we have enjoyed prior to it.

(18) Therefore, encourage one another with these words.
Don’t argue about the possibilities and the chronologies. The instruction, once again, is that we have the certain hope of the complete experience of our union to Christ, no matter if we have died prior to this great event or we are found alive at his coming.

Telos of 4:13-18 =

5: 1-2 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.

Paul addresses one of the most popular questions in eschatology – the “when” question. The “eschaton” is the “Day of the Lord.” When will Christ come again?

The apostles’ timeline =
Christ’s 1st Coming/Ascension… “last days”………… “Day of the Lord”

The History of Redemption =

…………………………………….. ……………………………….

The Thessalonians knew early on in their organization and learning that the Day of Lord would come suddenly at the close of human history in this world. Concerning the timing, Jesus said, But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. (Matthew 24:36)

Paul’s interesting choice of words concerning a topic of which we are unable to pin-point the timing:

= “for you are fully aware.” The second term here means precise, accurate ascertaining! The second term is the verb “to know.” For those of us who are curious to know the precise timing of Christ’s coming, it is as if Paul is saying, “You absolutely know that you know nothing about the precise timing.” But this is not what he is saying. Rather, he is saying that the Thessalonians most assuredly know something about the timing.

What do they know with surety? Christ’s coming will occur
___________________ without any ______________.

Paul supplies us with a powerful image, a figure of speech, to communicate the suddenness and unpredictability of the coming of Christ: like a thief in the night.

= The Day of the Lord. This is the Final Day of this world as we know it. On that day, the prophets and apostles foretell as Judgment Day.

Another timeline:

The Day of God’s Patience……………………The Day of the Lord.

(The Day of the Lord is a rich biblical title for God’s sovereign rule over the world at all times. In the Old Covenant, the prophets speak of The Day of the Lord coming upon the nations in their rebellion, but they also speak of The Day of the Lord as the final event in human history and in this latter reference, they speak not only of God’s judgment but also of his blessings poured out upon his chosen ones. Paul uses the title here to refer to the final event.)

Telos of 5:1-2 =

Paul continues to build hope toward encouragement.

5: 3-5 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. But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.

Paul echoes the prophet Jeremiah: Peace, peace where there is no peace. Paul supplies another figure of speech to help us understand the unpredictability of the coming of Christ = as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman. (He echoes Jesus in Matthew 24, “labor pains.” For those who are not united to the Prince of Peace, the coming of Christ, The Day of the Lord, will bring sudden destruction with no escape.

In contrast to this sudden destruction Paul insists that those united to Christ will not be taken by surprise, even though we do not know the timing of the event. The reason supplied is that we are ___________________ of ___________, _________________
of the _________.

= “children of light…children of the day.” This is a beautiful description if not two names for Christians. Paul may be offering a play on words connecting “The Day of the Lord,” with “children of the day.” The children of God have no fears of The Day of the Lord but instead we look forward to it with the certain hope that we will be found united to Christ, that the judgment of God will find us to be righteous in him.

Telos of 5:3-5 =

How then, shall we live in light of the coming Day of the Lord?

5: 6-11 So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.
(6-8) Paul echoes Jesus’ parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25. Five of them sleep while five are prepared and vigilant.

We must be _________________! We must be _____________.

Christian Vigilance
Matthew 24 – Parallel Passage
1. We must be aware of the times: In Matthew 24: 42ff. Jesus says, Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
2. We must be wary: Matthew 24: 4, See that no one leads you astray.
3. We must be prepared: Matthew 24:44, Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
4. We must be actively holy, Matthew 24: 4ff. Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Christian Sobriety
I Peter – Parallel Passage

=free from every mental and spiritual “drunkenness.” Well-balanced, self-controlled… like a well-trained and disciplined athlete. To help us understand what it means to be sober, Jesus actually mentions in this text “drunkenness” from intoxication, as an opposite condition. In contrast we are to be sober, not merely our never getting intoxicated but in every way exhibiting self-control. Paul says elsewhere, Do not be drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit. (In Classic Greek, Epicurus uses this term! –a fine example of a Hellenistic system promoting not only the enjoyment of life, but also moderation toward morality. Only one branch of Epicureanism can be described by “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow, we shall die.” Another strong branch of Epicureanism promoted moderation in all things. The only problem is that its system, based on the philosophy of Epicurus was bereft of the role of the Holy Spirit in self-control. Christian self-control is established in Spirit control.)
I Peter 1:13, Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
I Peter 4:7, The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers.
I Peter 5:8, Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
Both I Thessalonians and I Peter present instruction for us as we live in these last days building our certain hope in the coming of Jesus on The Day of the Lord. The word, “sober” is found exclusively in these two books of the N.T. in this eschatological context.

The ______________ is the reason Paul supplies for our vigilance and sobriety.

irregular form of
= to destine or appoint. The more common use is “to make.” All of these uses connote control, and in this context the controller is God. (Some Christians think it necessary to argue against God controlling us prior to our creation as if such an infinite control does violence to our wills. Here, the timing of God’s control is not specifically described as it is the six times Paul uses the term “predestine,” with make the timing clear by use of the prefix. Nevertheless, even when God destines within time and space where our wills are active, his control of us is supreme. The real issue is our relinquishing of arguments against divine control.) Without such a relinquishing, it is most difficult for us to embrace the gospel.

= “wrath.” This describes God’s just punishment for human sin poured out in real time and space. Paul writes, God has NOT destined us for wrath. This alone is the gospel! But Paul continues to describe the gospel in positive terms.

= “obtaining,” a gerund noun, which the ESV translates as an infinite verb. In doing so, we lose the idea of an ongoing action on our part as we not only have received a completed and secure salvation through the work of Jesus in his death and resurrection but also as we experience an unfolding and increasing reception of the benefits of his work. Clearly Paul speaks of our “obtaining” as a work that is “THROUGH JESUS CHRIST.” We are not helping God save us. All of our work exhibiting that we have been “saved,” is the work of Christ through us. This clause does NOT mean that Jesus enables us to do the work, but that we receive and experience it as we are united to him, who had done the work for us. This is why Paul writes in (10) who died for us.

Why did Christ die for us? So that we might _______ with _____.

Once again, just as he has done so in (4:18), Paul commands the Thessalonians to encourage one another with these words. This time he adds, as you are doing. This in itself is encouraging! It’s good to know someone else observes what we do rightly.
Telos of 5: 6-11 =

5:12-13 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.

Paul’s team did not leave the church at Thessalonica bereft of pastoral oversight and care. Little is known of those who led this congregation. In other cities, Paul appointed his team members to remain, but we are uncertain as to who was appointed or who rose in the congregation to serve in Thessalonica. From these directives we do know that a plurality of leaders served this congregation.

Paul’s Description of the Church leaders:

= “those who are laboring among you.” This verb means to work hard, to become wearing from struggle. These church leaders are not lazy nor do they work at a pace that is comfortable or manageable. They are, like Paul, pouring out as a drink offering…

= “are over you in the Lord.” This verb means to rule, to direct, to manage. Coupled with “in the Lord,” this participial phrase describes an office of authority in the church. The authority belongs to God, who administers it through mere human instruments. This phrase describes these leaders as elders of the church.

= “are admonishing you.” This verb means to warn and to instruct. This is the verb that Jay Adams chose to describe his method of pastoral counseling, spawning what we know today as “Nouthetic Counseling.” This method teaches pastors and members of the church to use the Bible in counseling, to instruct and to warn people according to the word of God.

How is the Church to respond to such leaders?

= “to respect.” This verb means “to know someone.” It is widely used in the context of knowing God and one another. To know a leader means that there is not only a personal relationship but also an understanding of the authoritative office the leader holds, knowing the “God-connection.” Today we emphasize that all of us may equally “know God,” and so in our anti-authoritarian age, we do not recognize lines and offices of divine authority and thus we do not know our church officers. (When I was a child, one of my father’s pastoral colleagues was Fred West. We were encouraged to address him, “Hey, Fred!” Recently, I discovered his Christmation into the Antiochan Orthodox Church. He is now “The Very Reverend Fr. Alban West” of St. George Orthodox Church in SE Portland!

= “to esteem.” This verb means to think, to consider, to regard. Coupled with “very highly,” this verb contextually takes on the idea of esteem. But notice the balance between high regard and love. There is a personal element, a mutual component connected to the respect. Also note that the reason for such a response is “the work” of the officers.
Closely connected to these responses is Paul’s command to peace at peace with one another in the church.

Telos of 5: 12-13=

Paul now turns to instruct member-to-member service in the church:

5: 14-15 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.

Telos of 5: 14-15=

5: 16 Rejoice always,

Telos of 5:16=

5: 17-18 pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Telos of 5: 17-18=

5:19 Do not quench the Spirit.

Telos of 5: 19=

5: 20-21 Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good.

Telos of 5:20-21=

5: 22 Abstain from every form of evil.

Telos of 5:22=

5: 23-24 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

Telos of 5:23-24=

5: 25-28 Brothers, pray for us. Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss. I put you under oath before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

Telos of

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