1 Thessalonians

Chapter 1

vs 1

We so often think of these as the letters of Paul - I wonder how much of Timothy and Silas there is in them? Anyway, Thanks to them we know who wrote it and who it was written to.

vs 2

Corinth, Phillipi, Galatia, Colosse, Crete, and Thessaolonica - all these places Paul has visited and shared the word (not to mention all the other places he visits as we're told in Acts, or places he hadn't even visited yet, like pre-Romans Rome) and Paul probably prays for them all. And I'll be you he didn't pray like we do. He probably prayed according to normal Jewish custom. Perhaps that is why he was able to do it so faithfully. But perhaps also he believed in it, had faith in the power of prayer, and also cared enough about all these people that he was keen to uphold them in prayer.

vs 3

It's interesting to see the threefold mention of faith, hope and love which is so typical of Paul, but here they are mentioned in terms of what they grow - faith creating work, love producing labour, and hope inspiring endurance . So what's the difference between work and labour?

Well, in the KJV, nothing! They're the same word - ergon - which means industrious, productive work. However, in the NIV greek text, that word is only used for what faith creates. Love produces kopov, which is a wearying, bodily toil.

So why the difference? To me love is the more easily understood one - out of your love for God and for others, you will work yourself to the bone, stretch to any distance, and take on burdens and weariness. Faith perhaps is the spark, the firestarter, which creates in you the industrious spirit, without which you would otherwise sit around on the couch drinking beer in your underpants.

Hope inspires endurance, then, because you can stick it out when you know that, compared with eternity, these temporary workings and toilings are just that - temporary.

vs 4

Paul is (or should I say Paul, Silas and Timothy are) talking about the conviction they have of the truthful conversion and maturing in Christ of the Thessolonian church. They do so for the rest of this chapter, and that gives us a good precursor into what the book is about. This whole chapter is about why they can know this to be true.

vs 5

So the gospel came to them with words, power, the Holy Spirit and conviction. That's one proof. PS&T lived among them sharing the gospel in these ways.

vs 6

The actions of the Thessalonians changed too. And they were prepared to endure suffering for Christ. They also were welcoming of the message, and it gave them great joy.

vs 7-8

And they also shared their faith, even as far as going to neighbouring peoples to do so. Ok, so they sound like they were going on pretty well. Certainly PS&T don't even need to expand on that. Which is a shame, because imagine what else we could have learned if they did.

It is also possible that the churches at Macedonia and Achaia were there first and not planted by Thessalonia, but Thessalonia's maturity was such that it was a model for the surrounding churches.

The word for the the message "ringing out" actually means to emit or resound, so I'm going for the first one. But the other is also a possibility.

vs 9-10

When they say "They tell", do they mean the Macedonians and Achaians literally sent a report to them, or more that their own faith speaks volumes figuratively to PS&T? The word is apaggello and can mean both. Interestingly, the word "tell" as is found in the NIV (telling about the turning from idols) is not reflected in the greek - the one word apaggello seems to be used to infer the meaning twice, but is only printed once. So this could be a situation where the NIV translators are trying to push us toward the understanding of a literal report. I don't have a problem with that really. But the KJV ("they themselves shew of us") perhaps leaves it more open.

Anyway, the point is that because of the churches in Macedonia and Achaia, PS&T know the truthfulness with which the Thessalonians turned from their idols and put their faith and hope in Christ.