Introductory remarks:
"The Greater part of this Epistle consists of exhortations. Paul had instructed the Thessalonians in the right faith. On hearing, however, that persecution was raging there, he had sent Timothy with the view of animating them for the conflict that they might not give way through fear, as human infirmity is apt to do. Having been afterwards informed by Timothy respecting their entire condition, he employs various arguments to confirm them in steadfastness of faith, as well as in patience, should they be called to endure anything for the testimony of the gospel. These things he treats of in the first three chapters" (John Calvin).
"Paul sends greetings from himself, Silvanus and Timothy to the Thessalonian church as being in God and Christ. He continually thanks God for their faith, love and hope in Christ. He says they know God has elected them because of the power demonstrated among them by Paul's group and because of the Holy Ghost. Their example made them an example to the believers in Macedonia and Achaia" (A Survey of 1 Thessalonians- By Brenda). This chapter may be outlined as follows: Salutation vs.1: The Thessalonians' faith and example vv. 2-10.
Salutation
Verse 1, "Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
LGT "Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus, to the assembly of Thessalonians in God [the] Father and [the] Lord Jesus Christ, grace to you and peace."
Paul uses his regular greeting to the Thessalonians with the addition of naming Silvanus and Timothy. Paul never elevates himself above other saints, but is especially careful to let them know that he is one of them. Paul says grace to you and Peace: Grace always comes before peace, for it is by grace that the believer has been joined to Christ in union with Him; therefore, once grace has taken its effect, Peace is enjoyed.
I have contended for a long time that the organized church, with its paid employees (pastors), is a man made invention. I do not believe that a minister should be paid and live off others. I realize that there are not many so-called pastor teachers who agree with me, but that doesn't change what I feel about grace teaching. J. Vernon McGee has written several paragraphs I would like to quote, for it comes very close to my grace position.
McGee writes concerning Paul's attitude toward the saints:
"Paul reveals his humility when he joins these men with himself. Silas and Timothy would have been unknown had not Paul associated himself with them. This is a very noble gesture on the part of Paul. He is always identifying himself with the brethren. He was not aloof, separated, and segregated above all the others who were working for the Lord Jesus.
This is something we need to remember today in regard to the ministry. Don't put your preacher on a pedestal; let him be right down among you. Those of us who are ministers are largely responsible for trying to make a difference between the clergy and the laity. When I entered the ministry, I bought a Prince Albert coat with a long coattail. I wore a wing collar and a very white shirtfront and either a white or a black necktie. When I stood up in the pulpit, I looked like one of those little mules looking over a whitewashed fence, and I felt like one when I wore that garb! One day it came to me how ridiculous it was for me to dress differently from the officers and members of my church. None of them wore a robe or a Prince Albert Coat, and I was so different from any of them. I don't think that God is asking me to live any differently either. However, when I am teaching the Word of God, I am to be very conscious of the fact that I'm giving out His Word and actually acting in His behalf [McGee is wrong with this phrase, for none of us act on behalf of Christ; Christ has no vicar in His stead], and He expects that of everyone who gives out His Word. But as far as living is concerned, God expects all of us to live on a very high plane; the life of the teacher or minister is to be no different from the life of every believer in Christ Jesus.
I wish I could eliminate this distinction between the clergy and the laity. According to the Word of God, it is a false distinction. God has a very high standard of living for all of us. I am frank to say that a paid ministry has been the curse of the church, although I don't think it could have been done otherwise in this day of specialization. However, we need to recognize that the heresies of the church have come in through a paid ministry."
The Thessalonians' Faith and Example
Verse 2, "We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers."
LGT "We thank God always concerning all of you, making mention in our prayers."
It is Paul's usual way of thanking God after making a salutation. "It may be observed here, (1) that the apostle was in the habit of constant prayer. (2.) That he was accustomed to extemporary [spontaneous] prayer, and not to written prayer. It is not credible that forms of prayer had been framed for the churches at Thessalonica and Ephesus, and the other churches for which Paul says he prayed, nor would it have been possible to have adapted such forms to the varying circumstances attending the organization of new churches" (Albert Barnes).
Verse 3, "Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father."
LGT "Unceasingly remembering your work of faith, and labor of love, and endurance of hope of our Lord Jesus Christ, and before God our Father."
Unceasingly remembering your work of faith: When we are praying, giving thanks to God, we are 'remembering your work of faith.' The Thessalonians' work of faith is spiritual activity inspired by faith; the Holy Spirit can only produce this activity. Faith is responding to the Word of God, and the work of faith is acting on the Word of God. Walking in the Light of God's Word is our adjusting our lives to grace doctrine. Believers receive Christ as Savior by responding to the Word of God, 'believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved' (John 3:16); the unbeliever is a sinner by nature, and a lost sinner for eternity by choice. McGee notes: "These Thessalonians turned to God from idols. Paul didn't go into Thessalonica and say, 'I don't think it is proper for you people to worship idols. That's a terrible thing to do.' He never said anything like that. When he went there he preached Christ! Idolatry wasn't repulsive to these people, but when they heard Paul present Christ, they believed God and they turned to God. When they turned to God, they automatically turned from idols.
People often say to me, 'You converted me.' I haven't converted anyone - I can't do that! One man said to me, 'You saved me many years ago, and I'll never forget you.' I answered him, 'I appreciate your not forgetting me, but I didn't save you. All I did was to present the Word of God. You believed the Word of God, and the Spirit of God did a work in your heart.' That is really quite wonderful, my friend." And labor of love: this is labor that love prompts; when we see a brother or sister in need, our love for them prompts us to help them in whatever their need is. As D.L. Moody remarked, "He got weary in his labor, but never weary of his labor." And endurance of hope of our Lord Jesus Christ: this hope of eternal life with Christ is all that the believer needs to endure what this veil of tears has to offer. Without hope in Christ, we are all lost and bound for a hopeless eternity. I have never heard of a man saying, 'I can hardly wait to get to Hell, I am so weary of this life, however, I for one have said many times, "I am really looking forward to being with Christ, and seeing all my loved ones that have gone to heaven before me." This is hope of heaven and eternal bliss springs eternal. And before God our Father: in the sight of God our hope is in His Redeemer, His only begotten Son. This meets with God's approval. Paul's prayer for the Thessalonians was before God the Father, in the name of Jesus Christ.
Verse 4, "Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God."
LGT "Knowing, brethren beloved of God, your election."
This verse has to do with God choosing the Thessalonians here to become an assembly of His. "This election is not the revolting belief that God chose a certain number of mankind to grace and the rest to perdition" (Marvin Vincent). The election of God is electing believers to walk in the light as He is in the light; I have said this many times, and it doesn't take an entire volume to say it. God did not choose some men to heaven and some to hell, He made a way that all men may come to Him through His only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, that every man has a free will either to become one of the elect, as part of His family, or reject Christ and become part of Satan's family; the choice is ours. McGee spent some three pages in his commentary trying to explain the Sovereignty of God, and ended with this pithy statement, "God offers a full and free salvation to this lost world today. He says to men and women, 'Take it or leave it.' That is where our freedom comes in. We can either choose Him or reject Him. There is no middle ground. Each person has the freedom to do one or the other."
Verse 5, "For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake."
LGT "Because our gospel came not unto you with word only, but also with power and with the Holy Spirit, and in much full assurance, just as ye know what manner we were among you, for the sake of you."
Because our gospel came not unto you with word only: the gospel did not come to them in mere words of eloquence, but it is a Living Word. As I have said many times, you cannot separate God from His Word. But also with power and with the Holy Spirit: the gospel of grace was preached to them by Paul, with power of the Holy Spirit, that is, the Holy Spirit moved in and through the Word of God, for He taught the Hebrew believers, "For the word of God is living, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and the marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Heb. 4:12). And in much assurance: the believers in Thessalonica received the Word with the full assurance that it was the Word of God. This certainly accounts for the zeal they had, and for which Paul commends them. Just as ye know what manner we were among you: the way we presented the gospel of grace to you, you were assured that we were from God. Paul says that he and his co-workers lived before them consistent with the grace they taught them. For the sake of you: with you, not only in our prayers, but also in our daily thoughts of being able to help you grow in grace and the knowledge of the Truth.
Verse 6, "And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holt Ghost."
LGT "And ye became imitators of us, and of the Lord, having received the Word in much tribulation with joy of [the] Holy Spirit."
And ye became imitators of us: you followed us in the word. You took the word of God to heart, and lived it. The message of grace Paul had given them, they embraced fully. Paul was very careful not to set himself up as the example, for he adds: and of the Lord: Paul says they were imitating him as he imitated the Lord. The word imitate does not mean in outward show alone, but they actually lived in the Word, that is, they walked in the light of the Word in fellowship with the Father. Having received the Word in much tribulation: they suffered much after Paul left Thessalonica (1Thess 2:14), and Paul sympathizes with them, for he knew very well what they had experienced. With joy of the Holy Spirit: only the Holy Spirit can produce joy in the Christian heart when experiencing trials and tribulations. We have all experienced joy, and we have all experienced tribulation, but I can't remember experiencing them simultaneously. Maybe someday I will have the grace as these first Christians in Thessalonica, and experience joy in the midst of suffering. This joy came from living in fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ, made real to them in the Word of God, imparted to their minds by the Holy Spirit.
Verse 7, "So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia."
LGT "So that ye became a pattern to all the believing ones in Macedonia and Achaia."
The church in Thessalonica lived the gospel of grace that Paul had taught them, and they became an example to the assemblies in Macedonia and Achaia. "Shortly after 146 B.C., all Greece south of Macedonia and Epirus was formed into a Roman province under the name of Achaia, and Macedonia with Epirus into another province called Macedonia" (Vincent).
Verse 8, "For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing."
LGT "For from you has sounded out the Word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and [in] Achaia, but in every place your faith which [is] towards God has gone abroad, so as no need [for] us to have to say anything."
For from you has sounded out the Word of the Lord: this could mean either "the Word from the Lord as its Author", or "the Word about the Lord as its object", or both. I prefer that it is both, that is, about and from the Author of the Word, the Lord Himself. The Word went from Thessalonica as a Trumpet heralding the Good News of the Gospel of Grace. Not only in Macedonia and in Achaia, but in every place: "This is a graphic picture, for Thessalonica was a great commercial and political center for disseminating the news of salvation (on the Egnation Way)" (Robertson). "In every place" means the then known world. Your faith which is toward God has gone abroad: it is obvious that their faith is now directed toward God, and no longer directed toward the heathen idols. "Thessalonica was connected not only with Macedonia and Greece proper, in its commercial relations, but also with the ports of Asia Minor, and not improbably with still more remote regions. The meaning is that in all the places which they trafficked the effect of their faith was seen and spoken of" (Barnes). So as no need for us to have to say anything: "Paul found that wherever he traveled the reputation of this church had already gone ahead of him. The believers were already talking about the church in Thessalonica; so it wasn't necessary for Paul to tell them anything about it. This reveals something of the great reputation this church had in that day" (McGee).
Verse 9, "For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God."
LGT "For they themselves concerning us report what entrance we have to you, and how ye turned to God from idols, to serve a true and living God."
For tyey themselves: the believers in Macedonia and Achaia, and every place that Paul had visited that said anything about them. Concerning us report what entrance we have to you: what affect our ministry had upon you. This clause is about Paul and his companions, and the message of the gospel of grace. No other message could have accomplished what this gospel accomplished among the heathen. This would put to rest all the false claims of the false teachers that Paul and his companions were preaching heresy. The result of Paul's ministry is described next: And how ye turned to God from idols: notice, Paul does not say "they turned from their idols to God," but "they turned to God from their idols." This may seem to be a middle matter to some, but it is very essential in understanding God's wonderful grace. I will let McGee explain the difference in these two terms: "We hear today that repentance is essential to salvation. Repentance and believing are presented as two steps in a process. Actually, they are both wrapped up in the same package, and you have them both right here. When Paul preached Christ, they turned to God from idols. I want you to see something that is very important. When they turned to God that is the work of faith; that is what faith did. The Lord Jesus said, ' . . . This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom He sent' (John 6:29). These people turned to God from idols; they turned from idols too. That's right - and that is repentance. The repentance followed the turning to God. It didn't precede it. When they turned to God, they automatically turned from idols." I would add one thing about repentance that will help us understand the process, and that is, the definition of repentance is simply "to change your mind", and this is exactly what took place, they accepted Christ by changing their mind regarding God, and the result was that they turned away from their old impotent idols. To serve a true and living God: to serve an omnipotent God over their impotent idols. The meaning of the word "true" means genuine, as opposed to the idols made with human hands, or nature, which was created by God.
Verse 10, "And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come."
LGT "And to wait [for] His Son from the heavens, whom He raised from among the dead - Jesus who delivers us from the coming wrath."
And to wait for His Son from the heavens: the second coming of Christ to the earth. "The hope of the second coming of Christ was real and powerful with Paul as it should be with us. It was subject to abuse then as now as Paul will have to show in this very letter. He alludes to this hope at the close of each chapter in this epistle" (A.T. Robertson). Paul taught the doctrine of the eminent return of Christ, and it not only comforted the Thessalonians in their trial and persecutions, but it also motivated them to holy living, and not to sit on their hands and wait for Christ to come. Whom He raised from among the dead: the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the foundation upon which every doctrine is based. Without the resurrection we have no hope. "Paul makes mention here of Christ's resurrection, on which the hope of our resurrection is founded, for death everywhere besets [overwhelms] us. Hence, unless we learn to look to Christ, our minds will give way at every turn. By the same consideration, he admonishes them that Christ is to be waited for from heaven, because we will find nothing in the world to bear us up, and makes firm, while there are innumerable trials to overwhelm us. Another circumstance must be noticed, to what this refers; for as Christ rose for this end - that He might make us at length, as being His members, partakers of the same glory with Himself, Paul intimates that His resurrection would be vain, unless He again appeared as their Redeemer, and extended to the whole body of the Church the fruit and effect of that power which He manifested in Himself, which He once showed in His own Person" (John Calvin). Jesus who delivers us from the coming wrath: Christ is coming back to earth again and will set up His kingdom and reign for one thousand years, and then the Great White Throne Judgment, when He will judge all unbelief, the quick, the living, and the dead. "It follows from this (1) that there was wrath which man had to dread - since Jesus came to deliver us from something that was real, and not from what was imaginary; and (2.) that the same wrath is to be dreaded now by all who are not united to Christ, since in this respect they are now just as all were before He died; that is, they are exposed to fearful punishment, from which He alone can deliver. It may be added, that the existence of the wrath is real, whether men believe it or nor, for the fact of its existence is not affected by our belief or unbelief" (Albert Barnes).
The next chapter is a continuation of this chapter.
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