1 Thessalonians Chapter 1 OverviewWritten by LaRosa Johnson
Wed, 06/10/2009
Having looked at 1 Thessalonians as a whole, we now want to begin to digest things a bit further as we begin to survey each chapter. Today, we're going to focus our attention on the first chapter and get a broad look at how Paul opened his letter to Thessalonica Bible Church. So, if hearts and minds are ready for the study of spiritual truth, let's dive in.
First looking back at our general outline for the entire book, notice that we've broken down this first chapter into two primary divisions. The first verse (1 Thess 1:1) serves as the formal introduction, while the remainder of the chapter (vv. 2-10) have Paul expressing his appreciation for their great example of living out the faith. In looking at this breakdown, it's possible to say that there is really only one section, Paul's thanksgiving, but when you look at it deeper, it can be broken down further. So, let's spend some time walking through the text and surveying the chapter.
The first area of importance comes in verses 1-4 where Paul is able to give thanksgiving to God for the faith, love & hope that this church was able to exhibit. In giving thanksgiving to God, a major part of Paul's thankfulness included a constant remembrance of these believers in his prayers. Whenever Paul had the opportunity to think about Thessalonica Bible Church, he went to the Lord in prayer, thankful that they were able to have a steadfastness in their faith, an abundance in their love, and an undying hope for their Savior's return. All things considered, these believers were in the best possible situation in God's eyes, and it was exciting for Paul to have had such a fruitful ministry during his brief stay there.
Not only was Paul thankful for their faith, love & hope, but he was also grateful for their willingness to follow the example that he & his missionary team were able to put on display (vv. 5, 6). Even though his stay was short, Paul, along with Silas and Timothy, was able to impart biblical truth to this newly founded church in the power of the Holy Spirit; and, because their work was done in the power of the Spirit, it allowed them to model a godly lifestyle before these people. Not only did they get to hear the teaching of the Word of God, but they also got to see it lived out in the lives of these missionaries. Seeing that it was authentic, the members of Thessalonica Bible Church quickly became imitators of the godly example set before them. What's more, they did this even when it wasn't convenient to them, facing persecution and trouble all along the way.
Do you want to know the great thing about Thessalonica Bible Church so quickly becoming imitators of Paul, Silas, and Timothy? It's that they immediately applied the doctrine to their lives and became believers who were unashamed of sharing their faith with others (vv. 7,
. The Thessalonians took advantage of every opportunity given to them, becoming an example to other churches in the regions of Macedonia and Achaia, even spreading to the ends of the known world. In other words, they were active in evangelism and became a hub for expanding the gospel message; I would even dare say that they weren't only converting people to Christianity, but making disciples also. Looking forward into verse 9, we see Paul also stating the fact that the news of this church's faith had spread so fast & far that it had even reached him in Corinth, as well as the places he had traveled & ministered to. It was to the point that people already knew the gospel message before he got there because of the faithful ministry that had been started in Thessalonica.
Continuing on into the remainder of the chapter (vv. 9, 10), we find out what the definition of a Christian is, as well as what their work assignment is supposed to be. The first thing we see is that believers turn away from their idols and choose to serve a living and true God, the only living and true God. That is the first step, turning away from our old life and committing ourselves to live for Christ. Secondly, a believer is to patiently wait for the return of Jesus Christ (God's Son), who will rescue us from the wrath that is to come. At its very essence, that is at the heart of what it means to be a Christian; a Christian is someone who: 1) puts their faith in God for salvation, 2) loves God and serves Him with their life, and 3) patiently hopes & waits for the return of the Savior.
Even though this chapter is only ten verses long and serves primarily as an introduction and thank you, we can see that there's a lot of doctrine to be extracted, and we will do just that. As a recap, the main things that we take away from this chapter are: 1) Paul's thanksgiving for Thessalonica Bible Church, and 2) the work assignment that every believer is to have, as they emulate the model of the Thessalonians. Next time we'll look at chapter two, and further survey Paul's first epistle. Until then, keep serving our Lord!
devotion courtesy of Trailblazin Ministries
http://www.trailblazinministries.com/devotions/1thess005
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