 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,
To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. The Thessalonians' Faith and Example 2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers,3 remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, 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. 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, 7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 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 forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. 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, 10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. Meditation The gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God for salvation to all who believe (Romans 1:16). Jesus is the only true King and God wants you to know His powerful proclamation of freedom that only His Spirit can bring. Paul and his missionary colleagues went to Thessalonica on Paul’s second missionary journey (Acts 17:1-10). Their brief stay had a big impact by proclaiming the gospel and planting a church. Paul’s letter is written to strengthen the saints. Paul and his colleagues support the church through prayer and encouragement (3), reminding them of the love of God who chose the Christians to belong to Him (4). The evidence of God’s pleasure to choose Thessalonican Christians was the power of the gospel proclaimed in word and spirit, leading to conviction and transformed lives (5). Believers “turned from idols to serve the living and true God” (9) and began to imitate Paul and the Lord (6). They became examples to other Christians (7) and testimony of their faith spilled out to other places. “Jesus is the only true King” was the message that the apostles preached to persuade people in Thessalonica (Acts 17:7). The spirit of God brought conviction, challenging the rule of Caesar, the power of the roaring regional economy, and other cultural idols. The power of the gospel comes when our faith is fully in Jesus as king. When we respond to God’s grace, being chosen in love, by turning from idols to serve the living and true God, we will find true freedom through obedience. Richly Dwelling -Do you know the power of the gospel in your life and in the life of your church? -Do you serve Jesus as King, the only true and living God? Or is your heart and hope captured by idols of our culture? -The love of God chooses us to belong to Him, evidenced by hearts that respond to grace through imitating the Lord. Ask the Spirit to bring this conviction and examine areas God has called you to turn from idols and obey Him. Key verse 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. Comments are closed.
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