1 Thessalonians Day 11

2:11-13

11-12: 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.

Fathers discipline and encourage. They are an example to us and help us along the way. God is also said to be our father. He is our heavenly Father. When we become believers, we are adopted into the family of God and are His children! God calls us to Himself and when we die (or Jesus returns,) we’ll be with Him in heaven!

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.

They thank God for the faith of the Thessalonians. The Thessalonians didn’t just think of God’s word as worldly, but instead saw it in truth and believed. The word is alive and working in their lives.

God’s word grows us and changes us. If we look at our lives five, ten, or more years ago, we’ll see how we have grown in Him and become more like Him (although some of us (**cough** me **cough**) still have a long way to go. This work will ultimately be completed when we are taken to heaven. Praise God for His salvation to us and that one day we will be with Him in heaven!!

1 Thessalonians Day 10

2:9-10

9: 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.

Paul reminds them of his time with them. We know from studying Paul that he was a tent maker and would do that in order to pay for travels and needs. That way he didn’t need to depend on others to sustain his mission trips, but could focus on presenting the Gospel rather than raising funds. Paul also notes in this verse that they proclaimed the Gospel to the Thessalonians as they worked.

10: You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers.

Paul’s conduct while with the believers was worthy of repetition. He and Silas treated the Thessalonians well and were seen as respectable.

We should seek to live in unity with others, whenever possible. There are cases, however, where we must stand our ground and speak of what is right. Paul and Silas’ testimony among the Thessalonians was without reproach. They were in unity with the believers, but were chased out by the Jews who didn’t want the Gospel preached. We should seek to live our lives without reproach. Paul and Silas were not chased out because of bad conduct, but were chased out because the Jews didn’t want to hear the truth of the Gospel. Our reputation should be without reproach and our words should be words of truth.

1 Thessalonians Day 9

2:7-8

7: But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children.

The word “but” signifies a comparison between what comes after the word to what came before it. Instead of being greedy or seeking glory from people, they were gentle. If you’ve seen a mother nurse (or have nursed your own child), the mother is quite gentle, especially when the child is young.

8: 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.

They had become close friends through the sharing of the Gospel. We are called to love one another as Christ loved the church. It can be hard because, at least for myself, I tend to keep to myself and not seek to interact and become super close with others. I find that difficult. Paul, however, was open with them in sharing the Gospel and revealed more about himself than most people do with fellow believers because they had become dear to him. They became close.

We are to share the Gospel with those around us. We may not become super close with the people that we share the Gospel with, or even with everyone in our church, but we are to show love to them. Those who are closest to us can help us during out walk with Christ. They can call us out when we stumble and help us up when we fall. We are not called to walk this life alone. God has given us those people as gifts to help us along the way and we are also to help them. God is with us always, even when we can’t see Him, and has given us people to be with us that we can see (although there may be times in our lives that we don’t have anyone close to us.) Praise God for His loving-kindness!

1 Thessalonians Day 8

2:5-6

5: For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed –God is witness.

At this time, there were people who would come with flattering speech and would be paid by their listeners. Their goal was to make money by speaking things that people wanted to hear. Paul and Silas were different. They spoke words to glorify God instead of seeking to catch a profit or become popular.

6: Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ.

Paul is saying that they could have asked for things, but they didn’t. Their focus was on God’s glory and not on what they could get out of it.

We are told to do everything to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31) and Paul is leading by example. He did not seek any personal gain, but instead sought to glorify God through his words and actions. That should be our viewpoint as we live our lives. I know that I am selfish sometimes and do things for myself or to be noticed rather than for God. Thankfully He gives us second chances and does not leave us to struggle on our own!

1 Thessalonians Day 7

2:3-4

3: For our appeal does not spring from error or impurity or any attempt to deceive

Their message was not filled with false teaching nor did they desire to trick people by it, instead they sought to convey the truth and that is what made their message so appealing to some.

4: 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.

God has chosen to send them out to share the Gospel to others. Paul reminds us that our goal in sharing the Gospel is not to tickle man’s ears and be liked by them, but to please God who sent us. God tests are hearts, not to because He is unsure of our faith, but instead to show us where we are and to bring us closer to Him. In each testing of our faith, we learn to more wholly trust in God and grow in our knowledge and understanding of Him.

God sends us out to share the Gospel with others. We should do so not to glorify man (or ourselves) but to glorify God. In each testing of our faith, we will learn more about Him and grow closer to Him.

Some trials are hard and difficult to understand in the moment. To the brothers and sisters who read this, could you please pray for some friends of mine. I just found out yesterday that they lost their two-year-old daughter. They have two other children if you could pray for them as well. Their faith has been encouraging through this, but I know that it still hurts to lose a loved one. The funeral will be on Tuesday. I unfortunately can’t make it to the funeral because we live a few states away and only have one car. Thank you all in advance for your prayers!

1 Thessalonians Day 6

2:1-2

1: For you yourselves know, brothers, that our coming to you was not in vain

The Gospel never goes out in vain. Although not everyone will believe it, it will always accomplish its mission.

2: 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.

If you want to read more about their struggles in Thessalonica, it can be read in Acts 17:1-10. Basically Paul and Silas had come in to Thessalonica and Paul went in to the synagogues to reason with the people and explain the Gospel The Jews were not happy about people believing the words of Paul so they created a mob and tried to capture Paul and Silas. The fellow believers in Thessalonica sent Paul and Silas away at night in order to protect them.

We are not guaranteed an easy life, but we will have a Savior who will be with us through it all and who understands all of our trials and tribulations. Our hope is greater than our trials! The Gospel brings us joy and sets us free from the bondage of sin! If even one person comes to believe from our imperfect efforts, all the struggle is worth it! I am so thankful that God can use me, an imperfect sinner, to accomplish His plan of sharing the Gospel! To God be the glory!

1 Thessalonians Day 5

Chapter 1 Review

Questions

Who is the Author?
Who else is traveling with the author?
Who is the letter to?
What did we learn?
How can we apply what we’ve learned?

Answers (Answers for 4 and 5 may vary)

The author is Paul
Timothy and Silvanus (Silas) are traveling with Paul
The letter is to the Thessalonian church
We learned about prayer, the witness of believers, and are reminded of what Jesus has done for us
We can grow in our prayer life, realize how much our witness can affect others and seek to grow in our witness, and always be thankful for what Jesus has done and share the news with others

Some notes that I took while studying this chapter were:

people notice our testimonies
pray for our brothers and sisters
proof of our being chosen by God is in our daily lives
we are to be imitators, to turn from ourselves, and to await Jesus’ return

I look forward to going through the next chapter with you all!

1 Thessalonians Day 4

1:8-10

8: For not only has the Word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia,but your faith in God has gone for the everywhere, so that we need not say anything.

Their witness has been noticed by not only the people in their town, but by those in the surrounding areas as well.

9: 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

The other people knew what kind of people the Thessalonians were and noticed their change of heart. People notice when we change how we act.

10: 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 are also waiting for the return of Jesus. Paul reminds us that Jesus is the Son of God who was raised from the dead. This should point our thoughts towards the cross and how Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose three days later as Savior and conqueror over sin! Jesus rescues us from the wrath of hell (which contrary to popular belief is not ruled by satan, instead it is eternal punishment for all who do not believe and the wrath of God is the burning fire.)

This is the end of chapter one! That feels fast, but chapter one was only ten verses so that makes sense. chapter two is twenty verses so we’ll stay there a little longer. Tomorrow will be a review day 1) because I feel like reviews are helpful, especially when the reading is done in small doses like this and 2) I’m already behind in translating the Greek (Greek is not my forte) so an extra day to catch up will be wonderful and helpful. Hopefully I’ll be able to start adding my Greek findings in with these posts, but I’m not that confident in my Greek at this point so we’ll see. Anyway, thanks for reading and I pray that God can use this study to help you know Him more!

And any questions/comments can be emailed to rerouted.blog@gmail.com

1 Thessalonians Day 3

1:6-7

6: 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

It can help us if we find other more mature Christians who follow God and learn from them. They can often teach us things that we need to know and help us learn how to go through our trials. Ultimately we imitate Christ and imitating Him precedes how we imitate others. Paul was driven out from Thessolonica due to persecution so his mention of them receiving the Word in affliction makes sense. However, they had the joy of the Holy Spirit which aided both in imitation and during their afflictions.

7: so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia

We are always influencing the people around us. Just as the Thessalonians were influenced by Paul, Silas, and Timothy, they are now influencing other believers not only in Thessalonica, but also in the surrounding areas.

As Christians, we need to realize the influence that we have on those around us. If we are Christians, yet have a spiteful and vengeful attitude towards others, that is not showing the Gospel and will negatively reflect on Christ and fellow believers. I’m sure we all can think of at least one person who claims to be a Christian yet affects others negatively. Instead, we need to seek others who can be good examples to us and imitate them. Ultimately our goal is to imitate Jesus and He gives us people who can help us with that (as well as His Word and prayer.) We should seek to be good examples to others and point them to our glorious savior Jesus Christ! I know none of us are perfect, but if our focus remains on Christ, people will be able to see Him, even when we stumble.

1 Thessalonians Day 2

1:3-5

3: remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ

Paul continues his introduction by specifying what he is praying about. In his prayers Paul remembers the Thessalonians’:

work of faith (example: obedience to God’s word)
labor of love (example: hospitality)
steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ (example: remaining faithful with focus on Christ)

4: For we know, brothers loved by God, that He has chosen you

Paul reminds the Thessalonians that they are loved by God and are brothers with Paul in the faith. He also reminds them that God has chosen them.

5: because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.

The Gospel changes people. It is not just mere words that tickle your ears, but it is something that transforms the dead into life. The Holy Spirit enters a person when they believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior and the Holy Spirit convicts us of our sins. Paul also mentions his, as well as Silas’s and Timothy’s, testimonies among them.

We see in these three verses what we should seek to pray for in others (as well as in ourselves). We should pray to be known, and for others to be known, as workers of faith, laborers of love, and those who are steadfast of hope in Jesus. It is good for us to remember the power of the Gospel. I’ve heard it said before that we should preach the Gospel to ourselves every day. I know that I am encouraged when I am reminded of what God has done for me. I will admit that sometimes I have a hardened heart and think to myself that I’ve heard this a million times, but it is always encouraging and convicting to hear. The Gospel reminds us of what we’ve been saved from, how we’ve been saved, and Who we’ve been saved for. Sin. Jesus’ death on the cross. God. It is humbling to know what God has done in order to bring us to Him. Praise God for His mercy and love!