First Thessalonians is Paul’s first letter to the church at Thessalonica which he himself founded. This letter was written while Paul was ministering to the church at Corinth in the accompaniment of Timothy and Silas (1 Thessalonians 1:1). It is not clear about exactly how long Paul spent with the Thessalonians before leaving, but scholarly parlances place this period at around three weeks or three months, subject to different scholars (BTM). Being that Paul had received a number of offerings from the church at Philippi serves as enough evidence for having spent three months at Thessalonica (Philippians 4:16). The first letter to the Thessalonians was a piece of encouragement to the Thessalonians with regard to Timothy’s reportage (to Paul) upon returning from his progress overview mission at Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 3:6). The letter generally talks about the return of Christ Jesus (second coming) and thence encourages the church to be well prepared for his coming – Paul talks of Jesus coming like a thief. Paul also talks about the day of the Lord in which upon ending, Christ and his saints will descend to the earth – contrary to the rapture where Jesus will meet his people in the air. He also talks about hope, and descriptively tells the Thessalonians to live in it (BTM).
Thematic Review by Chapters
The following are some of the themes captured in each of the five chapters.
Chapter 1
Thanksgiving – Paul begins by mentioning about how he gives thanks to the Lord in prayer on behalf of the Thessalonian church. He applauds them for their continued service and reverence to the Lord and urges them on (Maxwell 80).
Redemption – citing proof from the testimonies given by the believers at Macedonia and Achaia, Paul congratulates the Thessalonians for their firm faith in God and their redemption from worshipping idols to serving God (1 Thessalonians 1:9).
Coming of Christ – Paul briefly mentions to the Thessalonians about the son of God who from heaven, shall come back to save his people from the wrath of God upon the earth (1 Thessalonians 1:10) (Maxwell 89).
Chapter 2
Rejection and Acceptance – The church at Philippi had been revolting against Paul and his servants while doing God’s work of spreading the gospel at Philippi. Paul mentions this to the Thessalonians, and then comparatively mentions how Thessalonica accepted God’s word instead of pushing it away (1 Thessalonians 2:2, 13). Paul also equates the rebellion that the Thessalonian believers faced from their fellow Thessalonians, to that of the Judeans (Maxwell 156).
Chapter 3
Steadfastness – When timothy was sent back to Thessalonica to check on the progress of the believers’ journey in faith, he found that the followers of Christ were still staunch and steadfast in serving the Lord God (Maxwell 162).
Sovereignty of God – Paul repeatedly mentions that all they do is through God who strengthens them, and that to be able to come back for a visitation to the church at Thessalonica will take the Hand of the Lord.
Joy in the Lord – Paul expresses his sincere joy towards the Thessalonians in the name of the Lord because of their firmness in following the teachings of God and serving Him wholeheartedly (1 Thessalonians 3:9).
Love – Paul mentions that just as he and his servants have the love of God towards the Thessalonians, so should the people there have love amongst each other (1 Thessalonians 3:12).
Chapter 4
Instruction – Paul instructs the Thessalonian church on what to do and what not to do for the glory of the Lord. He asks them that while they keep on striving to please God, they should desist from all forms of sexual immorality and should learn how to control their bodies. Paul contrasts the holiness derived from sexual purity, and the uncleanliness of the heathens (Maxwell 184). He also warns against taking advantage of each other and rejecting his instructions as it is not God’s will. He urges the Thessalonian church to be humble in the Lord to avoid grief and to earn the respect of recluses.
The day of the Lord – Paul tells the Thessalonians that they should be less ignorant about those that have died. He affirms the church that on the Day of Judgment, those who will be left on the day of the Lord’s coming will certainly not be judged before those who had earlier “fallen asleep” He says that the Lord will descend from the heavens with great command, accompanied by the loud voice of the archangel (Maxwell 241). Paul asserts that the trumpet of God will then be sounded, and all the dead shall come to life, and those who are still living will “meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
Chapter 5
Wrath of God – Paul writes to the Thessalonians about the destruction that will descend upon the earth and those who will be left upon the second coming of Christ (Maxwell 209).
Reverence – Paul asks the church at Thessalonica to hold with great regard those who work very hard in the name of God, and also to the prophecies that will come to pass (Maxwell 256).
The purpose of this letter by Paul to the Thessalonians was a show of concern to the church he had built at Thessalonica. Being that there were many perpetrators of false prophecy and false priesthood at the time, he had to make sure that the people of God were still leading a righteous path. Paul was very determined to make the word of God genuinely known and was therefore keen to follow up on progress (Maxwell 265).
Advantages of using Bible concordances
A concordance is a helpful instrument for conducting thorough and well informed studies on the Bible.
Since a bible concordance is alphabetically placed, it is an easy to use tool for information gathering.
A bible concordance is helpful in locating specific pieces of information or passages in the Bible and hence saves on time.
A bible concordance makes it easy for the reader to find a verse whose exact contents cannot be remembered.
A bible concordance is specific in translation and hence it becomes easy for the reader to track the various translations existing for a certain verse or section.
It is a helpful tool for when a reader is conducting a word study to find out the deeper meaning of the word.
A concordance is useful in the learning of meanings of words that are of Greek, Aramaic or Hebrew origin.
Benefits of commentaries
Commentaries give the reader a broader contextual meaning of a chapter or verse
Commentaries provide a moral approach towards elucidating bible chapters and verses and hence makes it less complicated even to the reader who does not understand complex meaning e.g. a child.
These two tools of summarization are important in harnessing meaning out of some of the complex biblical stories, parables and proverbs that can be a daunting task to an average person with no form of theological pursuance.
Chapter review
This paper will reflect on the biblical framework highlighted on chapter 1
Paul was an apostle of Christ who was, throughout most part of his adult life, influenced and inspired by God to spread the gospel. This epistle was written to the Thessalonians as a means of showing concern to the church of God. Paul begins verse 1 by giving thanks to God for His goodness upon them. Verse 2 is a dedication to the people of Thessalonica, and an attestation of the interceding that Paul was performing on behalf of these holy people of God. Verse 3 is a lead-on of the dedication of the work of their hands to God the Father, and applauding them for their continued service and work in the name of the Lord. Paul asserts and guarantees the church in Thessalonica that it is them (Thessalonians) that the Lord has chosen to make His presence known – this is captured in verse 4. Paul gladdens and rejoices at the way the Thessalonian church received the word of God, stating that it not only impacted them by word of mouth, but also by power (specifically of the Holy Spirit). He reminds the people of how he and the other apostles cohabited in harmony among the Thessalonians – this is a show of Paul’s humility in the work of God. Verse 6 rejoices at the perseverance of the Thessalonian church despite going through bouts of suffering in the struggle to make the word to God known. He applauds them for their selflessness and open arms in receiving God’s word. Verse 7 elaborates how Paul’s church at Thessalonica set an exemplary tread for the other churches at Macedonia and Achaia, with Paul adding that the Thessalonian church was the model for all the believers in the other two churches. Verse 8 is a commendation of the faith that the Thessalonians had in God – it had spread to such an extent that Paul had but little to comment on. He was joyous to the Lord for such a people as those in the church at Thessalonica. Verse 9 continues to praise the faithfulness and unwavering commitment of the Thessalonians to serving the Lord. The Gentile masses were also getting converted in large number during this time, and so Paul was very happy about this church and the work they were doing in the name of God. Verse 10 is a promissory statement which asserts of the fruits of the work that the church of God was performing – Jesus is coming to collect his people; his Thessalonian church (Maxwell 314).
Works Cited
Swindoll, Charles. “First Thessalonians.” The Bible Teaching Ministry of Charles Swindoll. 2017. Electronic.2017.
. Maxwell, John. Maxwell Leadership Bible-NKJV. Ed. Tim Elmore. 2nd Revised ed. Newyork: Thomas Nelson Incorporated, 2014 Print.
