To the Church of the Thessalonians

“Paul, and Silvanus [Silas], and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: grace unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Thessalonians 1:1, 2).

 

The Apostle Paul visited the City of Thessalonica about 50 or 51 A.D. during his second missionary journey.  During this trip, he had intended to go into Asia and preach the Gospel there, but the Holy Spirit prompted him not to.  He would have then traveled to Bithynia, but, again, the Spirit forbade him to do so.  It was then that Paul had a vision.  In it he saw a Macedonian man who prayed for Paul to come to Macedonia and help them.  Such clear direction from the Lord couldn’t be ignored.  Paul and his group, which included his fellow minister Silas, and the young disciple Timothy, promptly reversed directions. They passed through the towns of Amphipolis and Apollonia and came to Thessalonica. 

 

Whenever Paul came to a new city, it was his custom to enter the local synagogue and reason with the Jews concerning the scriptures.  So, on three consecutive Sabbath days he shared the prophecies with them concerning Messiah’s suffering, death, and resurrection.  They spoke of Jesus of Nazareth fulfilling all of the prophecies about the Messiah, and so, therefore, He was the Christ.  There were some Jews who believed Paul, as well as a great multitude of Greek Gentiles and a good many prominent women.  This made the unbelieving Jews envious, and they gathered some local thugs to create a disturbance, apprehend Paul and Silas, and have them imprisoned. 

 

The threat was so pronounced that Paul and Silas were forced to leave the city altogether and go to Berea.  The infant church that now existed in Thessalonica went through a period of persecution and suffering that was meant by Satan to destroy them, but their faith held strong!  Paul was so concerned about them that he dictated two letters to the church.  He also sent the faithful disciple, Timothy, who Paul referred to as “my own son in the faith,” to nurture and establish them in the Lord and send word back to Paul about their spiritual health. 

 

That a fledgling church that was so new to the faith could withstand such a fierce onslaught from the enemy is a testament to the faithfulness of the Lord, and the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  For this reason, Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians give us valuable insights.  We can use them to fight the good fight of faith when we are under fire and suffering persecution for what we believe.  Though the Church in America and many European countries has been at ease for a long while, the time is swiftly approaching when the enemy will come in like a flood and assault all those who confess the Lord Jesus as their Lord and King.  We can see such hatred against the Gospel already manifesting itself in civil suits against Christian businesses and Christian churches, but this is just the tip of the iceberg.  In a letter to Timothy, Paul wrote, “…all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.  But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.  But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; and that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” (2 Timothy 3:12-15).

 

One of the many lessons that we can learn from the letters to the Thessalonians is that in the face of persecution we must never temper the Gospel, or water it down so as not to attract persecution.  Before coming to Thessalonica, Paul and Silas had just come from the city of Philippi where they were “shamefully entreated,” beaten, and imprisoned for preaching the Word of God.  Their bodies were still in pain from the wounds they received there, but Paul writes, “…we were bold in our God to speak unto you the Gospel of God with much contention [opposition and conflict].” (1 Thessalonians 2:2).  Despite the possibility of being punished again or killed, they were bold to speak all that God laid on their hearts.  We, too, must never shrink from speaking the truth in love to those who need to hear it because we fear what they may do to us.  When the Apostles were threatened by the High Priest in Jerusalem, and told not to speak or teach any more in the name of Jesus, they returned to the company of believers and prayed for boldness to speak the Word in Jesus’ name.  As a result, the place was shaken as by an earthquake, and they were all filled with the Spirit and with boldness! (See Acts 4). 

 

Another thing that Paul expressed in Thessalonians, and demonstrated by his own example, was the fervent love and care that he had for the people of God.  This is the same care that we should have for one another.  Paul reminds them, “…we behaved gently when we were among you, like a devoted mother nursing and cherishing her own children.  So, being thus tenderly and affectionately desirous of you, we continued to share with you not only God’s good news (the Gospel) but also our own lives as well, for you had become so very dear to us.” (1 Thessalonians 2:7, 8 AMP).  As the Church goes through trying times, we must be especially patient, loving, and compassionate with one another, laying down our lives to serve the House of God.  “For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 3:8).

 

Paul’s exhortation to the Thessalonians was that they would love one another in the same way that he and Silas loved them.  He said, “And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: to the end He may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.” (1 Thessalonians 3:12, 13).  Charity is the bond of perfection, we are told.  We are fulfilling all of the Law when we love God with all our heart, mind and soul, and our fellow man as ourselves.  There can be no greater achievement in our life, for God is love.

 

The attitude with which the Thessalonian Church received the Gospel message is worth noting.  This provides a key to the success and victory that they enjoyed even during their struggles.  Paul expressed it this way: “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the Word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the Word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.” (1 Thessalonians 2:13).  Our doctrine is not of men, Dear Ones; it is from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.  God uses mere men and women to proclaim the Word of God; but in order for it to have power and force, it must be received as the Words of God, and not men.  The real source of our faith is the revelation of Jesus Christ.  When Christ reveals His character to us in new ways, and we say, “Lord, if that is you, invite me to be as You are, and do what You do,” then we are transformed in a measure.  The Lord can then manifest Himself in us.  It is God’s Word that changes us, not men’s.  

 

Paul exhorted the young church at Thessalonica to walk in righteousness, even abstaining from all appearance of evil in order to be good examples of the Christian faith.  As in most Greek cities at the time, the inhabitants of Thessalonica worshipped idols, and the array of Greek gods that were reverenced at the time.  Immoral and promiscuous practices were often encouraged as part of their worship, and both men and women had very loose attitudes toward casual sex.  Paul wrote to them saying, “…God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.” (1 Thessalonians 4:7).  He couldn’t have been clearer than when he told them, “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: that every one of you should know how to possess his vessel [his body] in sanctification and honour; not in the lust of concupiscence [unbridled lust], even as the Gentiles which know not God…” (1 Thessalonians 4:3-5).  We, too, must keep ourselves clean.

 

Before Paul and Silas began this second missionary trip, they had come from Jerusalem where the Apostles had delivered to them a short list of things that the Gentile believers as Christians should observe.  There had been a great deal of controversy over what Jewish statutes the Gentiles should be required to keep and which ones they didn’t need to.  Male circumcision was one that was at the heart of this controversy.  Abstaining from fornication was one of the things included on that “short list.”

 

One important theme that Paul repeats in both his letters to this persecuted church is the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.  He wanted them to be grounded in the hope of the resurrection of those who were dead in Christ.  He wanted them to be assured of the life awaiting them beyond this world.  “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13). 

 

When we go through trials of any sort, it is good that we keep in mind the Kingdom that God has prepared for them who love Him.  The sufferings of this life, along with all of the frailties of these earthen vessels, will one day be replaced with celestial bodies that will never grow old and wear out.  Every wrong committed in this life will be made right.  All wickedness will be avenged.  Every lie will be exposed.  The meek and the poor in spirit will inherit the earth, and the pure in heart shall look on God.  Those who mourn will be comforted, and those who hunger for truth will be filled.  Forever we will behold the glory of the Lord!

 

Paul writes, “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.  For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.  Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18). 

 

There were apparently those in Thessalonica who thought that they were already in the last days and could look for Jesus’ return at any time.  Some believed that He had already come.  In his second letter to them, Paul clarified this, saying, “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.  Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 NKJV). 

 

Before the coming of the Lord there will be a great falling away.  This will be one of the obvious signs of the end times.  Although there have always been ebbs and flows in the number of Christians in the world, this will be something quite different.  As apostasy, hypocrisy and complacency cause people to leave the church in one area of the world, revival brings folks into the fold in other parts.  Many western countries are experiencing an exodus from the churches while believers in China for example are increasing rapidly.  In the end time, however, there will be many who walk away from their profession of faith, and the saying that there are many called, but few chosen, will become apparent.

 

There are many who profess to be Christians who do not bear the fruits of righteousness in their lives.  They have made a verbal confession of faith, but have not turned their hearts over to Christ.  They are still in full control of their own lives and don’t understand the need to follow Christ or let Him pilot their ship.  These are the tares that Jesus spoke of in His Parable of the Tares and the Wheat.  It is sometimes hard to discern who the tares are, and who the wheat is – they can look very similar.  This is why Jesus said that He would wait until the time of harvest before separating them.  Otherwise, there was the danger of pulling up some wheat along with the tares.  This is part of the mystery of iniquity that Paul talks about.  (See Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43).

 

Paul writes, “And now you know what is restraining him [the wicked one] <from being revealed at this time>; it is so that he may be manifested (revealed) in his own <appointed> time.  For the mystery of lawlessness [iniquity] (that hidden principle of rebellion against constituted authority) is already at work in the world, <but it is> restrained only until he who restrains is taken out of the way.  And then the lawless one (the antichrist) will be revealed and the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of His mouth and bring him to an end by His appearing at His coming.…” (2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 AMP).  There will come a time when the good influence of the righteous will be removed from among the ungodly.  God Himself will call them away: “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you…” (2 Corinthians 6:17).  This will usher in the reign of the antichrist: the embodiment of that spirit that has been working behind the scenes all along.  As the Apostle John said, “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.” (1 John 2:18).

 

Jesus’ words in Matthew 24 speak plainly of this time.  He said, “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.  And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.  And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.  And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.  But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” (Matthew 24:9-13).

 

In these last days, we are going to witness the formation of two strong churches.  One will be very visible to the world and very prominent.  It will be government-sanctioned and allowed to operate only under government mandated guidelines.  Fear of the State will be at the heart of all they do.  The Word of God will be banned as a book that inspires hate thought and hate speech among those who read it.  As in the Prophet Samuel’s day, the Word of God will be precious (or rare), and there will be no open vision (or revelation) (See 1 Samuel 3:1).  Even one page from a Bible will be considered most precious above rubies.  Though members of this church take the name of the Lord Jesus upon their lips, their true Lord will be the antichrist who will operate under the direction of the prince of the power of the air, and the god of this world: Satan.  The gospel they preach will not be one of repentance and reconciliation to God, but a social, liberal-minded gospel based, not on faith, but on good works.  Writing of this to the Thessalonians, Paul said, “Even him [the Antichrist], whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.  And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12).  The name of this first great church will be MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. (See Revelations 17:1-6).  She will also go by the name of THE GREAT WHORE.  Though you may never see these names literally displayed over the doors of her churches, this is how God regards her, and how He refers to her.  You have seen her prototypes already in Russia, China, and other communist countries.  Read 2 Timothy 3:1-5 for a description of the members of this church, and for Paul’s assessment of their condition: “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

 

The other great church will be the Body of Christ.  It will be an invisible church, not marked by synagogues, mosques, temples or church buildings.  Their worship may mostly take place underground in small groups of believers.  They will be under great persecution, and many will be martyred for their testimony.  Like Jesus, they will be despised and rejected of men.  They will know sorrow and be acquainted with grief.  Those who are part of this Body will be those who love the truth and have forsaken all to follow the Lord.  Filled with the Spirit of God, they will do exploits, and work miracles.  They will speak with great authority, even as the oracles of God, yet will be meek and lowly of heart, and humble of spirit.  Each member will be directed by the Holy Spirit from which each one will receive their “marching orders”.  She goes by the name of Mount Zion, the City of the Living God, the Heavenly Jerusalem, the General Assembly and Church of the Firstborn, and the Body of Christ.  Though you may never see these names literally displayed over the doors of her churches, this is how God regards her, and how He refers to her.

 

Contrary to what some may teach, there will be no secret rapture of the Church prior to the tribulation of those last days.  Christians have been going through great tribulation from the time that the Church was first formed.  Most all of the Apostles of Christ were martyred in various ways.  A multitude of early disciples were burned by fire, fed to wild beasts in Roman arenas, and stoned to death by zealous Jews.  Protestants were martyred by the droves during the Inquisition.  Many have lost their lives also in modern times at the hands of those who hate the faith.  How can we expect to be saved from tribulation if God did not spare them, or His own dear Son for that matter!

 

Jesus said, “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.  And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” (Matthew 24:21, 22).  If the saints are already raptured during tribulation, why the necessity of warning His disciples about it, and why would God shorten it if the elect were already going to be gone?

 

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  And He shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” (Matthew 24:29-31).  When will the Lord gather His elect?  “Immediately AFTER the tribulation of those days.” 

 

It is not my intention to be contentious, Dear Ones.  Regardless of when we expect to meet the Lord in the air, it is essential that we be prepared at all times, keeping our wicks trimmed, and our vessels full of oil.  Like the Thessalonians, let us determine to walk worthy of our calling, in faith and love no matter what we may face in the future.  To be forewarned is to be forearmed!

 

“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.  For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.  For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” (1 Thessalonians 5:1).