And when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews:
and Paul, as his custom was, went in unto them, and for three sabbath days reasoned with them from the Scriptures,
opening and alleging, that it behooved the Christ to suffer, and to rise again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom, said he, I proclaim unto you, is the Christ.
And some of them were persuaded, and consorted with Paul and Silas, and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.
But the Jews, being moved with jealousy, took unto them certain vile fellows of the rabble, and gathering a crowd, set the city in an uproar; and assaulting the house of Jason, they sought to bring them forth to the people.
And when they found them not, they dragged Jason and certain brethren before the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;
whom Jason hath received: and these all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus.
And they troubled the multitude and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things.
And when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.
And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea.
Dear Lord, our hearts are full of gratitude for what God has done for us on Calvary’s cross. We do thank Thee for Thy tremendous love in laying down Thy life for us, we who were sinners and rebels.
We do praise and thank Thee that we are now children of God. We are now members of Thy family. How we praise and thank You, Lord, that it is all of grace.
And Lord, as we continue together in Thy presence, we ask that Thou wilt bless Thy Word. Make Thy Word living to each one of us. We pray that there will be a freshness of life coming in the midst of Thy people; and to Thee be the glory. In the name of our Lord Jesus, amen.
From time to time, we have been sharing on the life of the body of Christ, the church. We would like to look into the lives of the other churches, especially those recorded in the book of Acts.
We want to see how they lived their lives together, what testimony they brought to the world, in what special areas they were being blessed, and in what respects they were weak. The reason is that we may learn from them the lessons that the Holy Spirit wants to teach us today.
So we have gone through the church in Jerusalem, the church in Antioch, the churches in Galatia, and also the church in Philippi—that is, the first church in Europe. This morning, we would like to continue with the life of the church in Thessalonica.
Now, Paul and Silas were asked to leave the city of Philippi. They travelled on to Thessalonica. Thessalonica was about a hundred miles from Philippi, and it was also in Macedonia.
As a matter of fact, Thessalonica, at that time, was the capital city of Macedonia. It was not only a political centre, but also a commercial centre. And there was a synagogue there.
You remember, in Philippi there was no synagogue; but here in Thessalonica there was a synagogue. And, as was Paul’s custom, he would go to the synagogue to preach the glad tidings of our Lord Jesus.
Those people who attended the synagogue were at least familiar with the Scriptures, the Old Testament. Therefore, Paul went to them and reasoned with them according to the Scriptures, showing how Christ must first suffer and then be glorified, and that this Christ was none other than Jesus, whom he announced to them.
So for three Sabbaths he went to the synagogue, and he argued with them from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ, that He is the Messiah whom God had promised to His chosen people.
As a result, a few of the Jews believed, and they joined Paul and Silas. Among the devout Greeks, a great multitude believed in the Lord Jesus, and also of the chief women, not a few.
Now, if you turn to 1 Thessalonians, you will find that when the Word was preached in Thessalonica, Paul said it was not in word only, but in power, and in the Holy Spirit, and with much assurance.
So when the Word was preached, it was preached with the power of the Holy Spirit. And not only that, but the Word was backed up by the lives of the preachers. The way they lived before the people reinforced the Word that they had preached.
Because of this, many came to the Lord in a very short time. It was so tremendous.
These people believed in the Lord in the midst of much tribulation, with the joy of the Holy Spirit. Because of that, the news spread all over Macedonia and even through Achaia. People knew how Paul, Silas, and Timothy had entered among them, how the Word was preached, and how, in the midst of tribulation, they received the Word of God with the joy of the Holy Spirit. Their faith was reported everywhere within a very short period.
But because of this, it aroused the jealousy of the Jews. So they probably made use of certain wicked men and raised a great confusion. They surrounded the house of Jason, where Paul and Silas had been staying, but they could not find them.
They brought Jason and some brothers before the politarchs—that is, the magistrates of the city—and accused them, saying that those who had turned the world upside down had now come there. They preached against the decrees of Caesar, announcing that there is another King, Jesus.
Finally, the magistrates took security from Jason and let them go. That very night, the brethren sent Paul and Silas away, and they went on to Berea. So you find that this was the beginning of the church in Thessalonica.
The church in Thessalonica was born through the travail of the apostles. They suffered in that city. And you remember that even before they came to Thessalonica, they had suffered in Philippi.
In spite of their sufferings, they entered into Thessalonica and faithfully and bravely proclaimed the gospel of Jesus Christ. As a matter of fact, you find the church in Thessalonica was born through the travail of the apostles.
This is always true. Everywhere the church of God comes into being, it comes through the travail of some of God’s people. A church is never organized; a church is always born. And there will be no birth without travail.
This was true in the time of the apostles, and it is still true today. Not only did the apostles travail to bring forth the church, but those who formed the church in Thessalonica also suffered a great deal.
It was in tribulation that they received the gospel of Jesus Christ, but with the joy of the Holy Spirit. You find that a church born under such conditions usually is stronger than one born peacefully.
If a church is born peacefully, probably those brothers and sisters in the church are not so totally separated from the world. But if they come to the Lord under persecution and tribulation, you will find their separation from the world is more complete. Their devotion to the Lord is more absolute.
So, as a matter of fact, suffering is good for us.
We know quite a lot about the church in Thessalonica, even though you find only a few verses about it in the book of Acts. The reason is that we know their condition and their life through the two letters that Paul wrote to them from Corinth.
When Paul was in the midst of the Thessalonians, he was as a mother to them. You find his loving care for these young believers. At the same time, he was also like a father to them, because he exhorted them and instructed them faithfully.
He loved them to the extent that he said he would not only preach the gospel to them, but would gladly give his own life to them. There was such love in the heart of the apostle Paul.
The letter to the Philippians, and these two letters to the Thessalonians, are among the most compassionate letters—love letters—that Paul ever wrote. How we hope that all God’s servants will be like the apostle Paul: that there will be such love in the servants of the Lord toward the churches of Christ, and such a willingness to spend and to be spent.
But we are not focusing on the workers. We are focusing on the life of the church in Thessalonica.
We have no time to read 1 Thessalonians and 2 Thessalonians, but I hope that you will read them very carefully. These are the first two letters written by the apostle Paul to the churches. He wrote them in about A.D. 52 and 53, only a few months after he left Thessalonica.
In the first letter to the Thessalonians, you find, first of all, that those who believed in the Lord Jesus in Thessalonica were literally soundly saved.
They were mostly Gentiles and idol worshipers. But you find how they turned to God from idols, to serve the true and living God, and to await the coming of God’s Son, whom God raised from the dead—Jesus, their Deliverer from the coming wrath.
In other words, they turned away from idols to God: that is the past. They served the true and living God: that is the present. And they awaited the coming of the Lord Jesus: that is the future.
Their turning from idols was complete. Their turning to God was absolute.
Now, brothers and sisters, many today turn to God, but they do not serve God. But with the Thessalonian believers, as they turned away from the idols that they had served and turned to the true and living God, immediately they began to serve God.
Every brother and sister served God with a whole heart. That is something commendable, and that is something that ought to be. We often say that we are saved to serve. We are not saved just to enjoy the blessing or to be saved for ourselves. We are saved with a purpose: to serve God and to serve His purpose.
Otherwise, we are self-centred and selfish, even when we believe in the Lord Jesus. So here you find that after they turned away from idols and turned to God, immediately they served God with their whole heart.
Not only that, but they waited for the coming of the Lord Jesus. They were in great affliction and tribulation. What gave them endurance? It was the blessed hope.
As the church of God, we have a blessed hope, and our blessed hope is the coming of our Lord Jesus. God has taken us out of this world. We are aliens, so far as this world is concerned; and as aliens, we will suffer.
In other words, suffering is no strange thing to believers. It is something we should expect, because we do not belong to the world, and the world will hate us because they hated our Lord Jesus.
But thank God, we have a blessed hope. Our hope is not on this earth; our hope is the coming of our Lord Jesus. There we shall be with Him forever.
So with this church, you find these important features: the past is a complete separation; the present is an absolute devotion; and the future is a blessed hope. That is what we find first in the church in Thessalonica.
Secondly, you remember Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:13. He said that faith, hope, and love abide. These are three things most essential to our Christian living: faith, love, and hope.
With the church in Thessalonica, you find that from the very beginning they had these three important elements: the work of faith, the labour of love, and the enduring constancy of hope.
Of course, we know faith is most basic to us. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. Everyone that comes to the Lord must have faith. We believe that God is, and that He is the rewarder of all who seek after Him. It is by faith that we are justified.
Everything is based on faith—believing in the Lord Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God. Otherwise, we are not the children of God. So faith is basic to us.
But it is from faith to faith. It is not that we believe once upon a time and then just stay there. Faith has to grow; it is from faith to faith. Not only that, but you will find that faith is perfected by works.
Of course, we know that we are not justified by the works of our natural man, because they are as filthy rags before God. We have no righteousness of our own. No one can be justified by his own work or by his own merit.
We are justified by faith in the Lord Jesus, in His finished work on the cross. That is very fundamental. But, on the other hand, after we believe in the Lord Jesus, how are we going to prove that our faith is genuine and real?
You remember the book of James. James tells us that we are justified by works—by works of faith, not works of the natural man. Faith without works is like a body without a spirit. You say you believe; Satan also believes, and trembles.
How are you going to prove your faith in the Lord Jesus? It is by works. You remember Ephesians 2: we are saved by grace through faith, and it is not of ourselves; it is the gift of God. Even faith is the gift of God.
But we are God’s workmanship, and we are saved to do the works that God has foreordained for us to do. So here you find that they not only had faith, but they had the work of faith. They proved their faith by their works.
And there is love. They not only loved the Lord Jesus, who loved them so much as to give Himself for them, but they loved the brethren. In the church in Thessalonica, you find that they loved one another. There was brotherly love in their midst.
Because there was love, you find there was a labour of love. Love is something invisible, but it is made visible by labour. If you really love, then you are willing to labour; you are willing to serve your brothers and sisters.
If there is love, there is nothing too lowly for you to do. So here you find this young church, only a few months old, but they had the labour of love.
Not only that, but they had the enduring constancy of hope in the midst of tribulation. They were filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit. Why? Naturally, when you are in tribulation, you will feel sorrowful and grieved. But instead, they were filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit because they had a blessed hope.
They knew the Lord was coming soon, and they cast their anchor in heaven instead of on the earth.
In the early days, when the early church in the first, second, and third centuries passed through tribulations and persecutions, do you know what they did? When they met each other, they greeted each other with the words, “The Lord is coming.” That was their greeting: “The Lord is coming.”
Brothers and sisters, we are now at the end of this difficult age. What is our blessed hope? We need to remind each other: “The Lord is coming.” It shows that our home is not here; our home is up there. We are waiting for Him.
That endurance comes from the blessed hope.
As a church grows older, there is a danger. You remember the church in Ephesus. The church of Ephesus had a glorious beginning, and they continued on.
Even when you read the letter to the Ephesians, which Paul wrote from prison, you find that the church in Ephesus was a church of love toward the Lord. But when you come to the end of the first century and read the book of Revelation, the church had existed for a number of years. What happened?
You find they still had works, they still had labour, and they still had patience. But it was no longer the work of faith, the labour of love, and the patience of hope. In other words, the springs within were missing.
That is always a danger, brothers and sisters. When we are in the beginning, when we are young and fresh, there is something living there. We really have that faith, that love, and that hope—there is power and motivation within us.
But as days, weeks, months, and years go on, gradually we may continue on. We may still have work, labour, and patience and endurance for the Lord’s sake, but the Lord may say, “I have this against thee, that thou didst leave thy first love.”
So it is very important for us to renew our faith, love, and hope before the Lord. The only way we can renew our faith, hope, and love before the Lord is to draw near to the Lord, commune with Him, and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal, to touch us, and to show us where we have fallen.
We must not just go on as a routine, but there must always be that fire within us—faith, love, and hope.
Brothers and sisters, this is something for which we need to go back to the Lord, perhaps daily. We need to go to the Lord and be under His light to see whether a living faith is still there behind our works, whether love is still there behind our labour, and whether hope is still there behind our patience and endurance.
Thank God for the life of the church in Thessalonica. You find it fresh and living, and no wonder their faith spread abroad—not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but wherever Paul went, people had already heard what was happening in Thessalonica. May the Lord really help us.
In this young church, if you read 1 Thessalonians 5, you will find that all the brothers and sisters, not just a few, functioned together. Paul had left them within a short time.
Yet, even without the apostles, they were on their own, as it were. But because the Lord was there and the Holy Spirit was in their midst, and because they honoured the Lord as their Head, they learned to care for one another and encourage one another.
Humanly speaking, we would say they were left as orphans. Nobody was really taking care of them—not even Timothy. Timothy was sent back just to see how they were doing. But they were not left to man; they were left to the Lord.
Today, if something like this happened, perhaps all the brothers and sisters would cry out, “You leave us as orphans!” They would not know what to do, and they would seek a pastor who would come and minister to them and do all the work for them.
Brothers and sisters, did you see what happened? That was not the case in the early church. After the apostles went somewhere, people were saved and gathered together unto the Lord, and then the apostles left.
They were left to the Lord, not to man. If the apostles had stayed there, probably the believers would have depended upon them. They would never have been brought to responsibility, because somebody was taking care of them.
But, brothers and sisters, as the church of God, every member of the body of Christ is responsible for the whole body.
In Thessalonica, though they were only a few months old, they learned to care for one another and encourage one another.
But we exhort you, brethren, admonish the disorderly, encourage the fainthearted, support the weak, be long-suffering toward all.
—1 Thessalonians 5:14
So every brother and sister was operating and helping one another. How? Under the headship of Christ.
At the same time, within a short period, the Holy Spirit had already manifested those who would be in leadership.
But we beseech you, brethren, to know them that labor among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you;
and to esteem them exceedingly highly in love for their work’s sake.—1 Thessalonians 5:12-13
They were so soundly saved. Our problem is that we are saved, but we are not soundly saved. If we are soundly saved and under the headship of Christ, brothers and sisters, our Head will take care of His body.
How can you imagine that Christ will leave His flock without care? He is responsible for them. So invariably, even within a short period, God had already raised some who were able to admonish them, to labour among them, and to lead them on in the Lord.
They were not appointed by name, but manifested by the Holy Spirit. There was no position and no title, but there was function.
It is a work of love: to lead, to encourage, to exhort, to strengthen, and to care. It is a work of love.
Today, brothers and sisters, we look at leadership as a title, as a position, as something that needs to be ordained or appointed by man. But in the early days, it was not so, and everybody recognised it.
It is a labour of love. Because of this labour of love from those who gave themselves to the church, the other brothers and sisters paid respect to them—not respect to a position, but respect to their labour of love. And it is a respect of love.
How differently we find it today. In Christianity today, leadership is a problem everywhere. How is leadership produced? Theoretically, we know that the Holy Spirit manifests those who lead, but after they are manifested, they are often not recognised. Why? Because everybody wants to be the head and not the tail.
There is such conflict between leadership and the body of brothers and sisters. In a normal church, you find there is harmony. On the one hand, those in leadership serve with love; and on the other hand, those being served respect those in leadership with love.
What a beautiful picture that is. And that is the life of the church in Thessalonica.
Paul was among them only for a very short period, and yet you find there were two things that he especially emphasised while he was in their midst. First, sanctification. Second, the coming of the Lord.
If you read 1 Thessalonians and 2 Thessalonians, you will find that Paul told them very plainly that the will of God for them was sanctification. God called them not for uncleanness, but in sanctification.
Today, brothers and sisters, we separate justification and sanctification. We preach justification: you are justified by faith, thank God for that. Then we just leave it there, perhaps for a year or even for some years, before we talk about sanctification.
But actually, justification and sanctification cannot be separated. As a matter of fact, we do not even know which comes first.
And such were some of you: but ye were washed, but ye were sanctified, but ye were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God.
—1 Corinthians 6:11
Here sanctification is mentioned before justification. So which comes first? They come together. When we are justified, we are sanctified. Why? Because sanctification means being set apart for God.
You are not justified so that you may be yourself, on your own, for your own purposes. You are justified that you may be set apart for God. That is sanctification—separated unto God from the very beginning, from the first day.
In the letters to the Thessalonians, Paul presented sanctification not so much as a doctrine, but more as a practice; not so much as a position, but much more as a condition.
The city of Thessalonica was a Gentile city, and those who believed in the Lord Jesus were mostly Gentiles. They came from a very immoral background. After they were saved, they were separated from the world, and how they needed to be sanctified—spirit, soul, and body.
As you look back into history, probably one reason for the success of the Methodists in the early days was that John Wesley emphasised sanctification by faith.
So, brothers and sisters, remember: we need to be wholly sanctified—spirit, soul, and body.
Not only must our spirit be separated unto God, but even our soul must be wholly sanctified. That is to say, even our will, our mind, and our emotion have to be delivered from the world and from self, that Christ may be expressed through our souls.
Even our bodies need to be sanctified, to prove to the world that we are a pure and purified people.
Sanctification: are we separated? Are we different? Spirit, soul, and body, wholly sanctified, that we may be blameless in the day of Christ.
So you find that Paul, at the very beginning, emphasised sanctification as a condition and as a practice. And that strengthened the people there.
On the other hand, Paul emphasised the matter of the coming of the Lord. They were in great tribulation. They believed in the Lord Jesus in great tribulation, and their blessed hope was the coming of the Lord.
So in these two letters Paul wrote much about the coming of the Lord. That is the only way that will keep us through tribulation in faithfulness to the Lord.
In 1 Thessalonians, his emphasis is on the day of Christ. One day, we shall, as the family of God, all appear before Christ. Christ shall come, and we shall all be gathered before Him. That is the day of Christ.
It is a day to which we should look forward. But unfortunately, it can also be a day some will be afraid of. When we are all gathered before Christ, it is where the judgment seat of Christ is spoken of.
During those few months, some of the saints died. The Thessalonian believers had not fully understood the teaching concerning the coming of the Lord, so they thought that those who had died would miss the blessing of His coming.
So Paul tried to comfort them. It is true that we need to wait for the coming of the Lord in our lifetime. From the first century until now, in every century and every generation, those who love the Lord have waited for the Lord to come in their lifetime. Brothers and sisters, this attitude is correct.
Even though our Lord has not yet come, we should have that expectation of His return in our lifetime. That is what God wants us to have. But somehow He has delayed, and many have gone to sleep.
The Thessalonian believers were looking forward to the Lord’s coming in their lifetime, to deliver them from their troubles. But some died, and they thought those who died had missed the blessing.
Paul said that when the Lord comes, the trumpet will sound, and those who are asleep in Christ Jesus will rise first. Then those who are alive and remain will be changed, and all will be caught up into the air to meet the Lord in the air. We shall be with Him forever.
That is the day of Christ, and brothers and sisters, this is the day to which we are all looking forward.
Paul looked forward to that day when he would see the Lord face to face, blameless, and see His reward. Yet it is also a day of which we should be afraid, lest when we see Him, we should be put to shame. May the Lord help us.
After a very short period, Paul wrote another letter to the Thessalonians. The reason was that someone had written a letter to the church in Thessalonica in the name of Paul, telling them that the day of the Lord had already come.
Now, the day of the Lord is different from the day of Christ. The day of the Lord is the day of judgment. If you look in the Old Testament, you will find that it is an Old Testament term: the day of the Lord. Throughout the prophecies, you find it is a day of judgment.
When this false letter came to the Thessalonians and said that the day of the Lord was already there, they were troubled. They were in tribulation, and they thought, “Well, this is judgment already. We have already missed the blessing.”
So Paul wrote again to comfort them and to tell them, “No, the day of the Lord has not come yet.” The day of Christ is what they were looking forward to; the day of the Lord is the day of judgment.
The day of the Lord will not come until there is apostasy—a falling away. In Christianity there will be an apostasy. The majority will fall away; only the minority will be faithful, following the Lamb whithersoever He goeth.
So there will be a general falling away. Brothers and sisters, are we almost in that time? Then the man of sin, the man of perdition, the Antichrist, will appear, whom the Lord will destroy with the breath of His mouth.
So Paul said, “Be comforted. It has not come yet. This tribulation is not judgment yet. It is God’s disguised love, preparing us for the day of Christ when we shall see Him face to face.”
These two teachings are emphasised in 1 Thessalonians and 2 Thessalonians. Brothers and sisters, how we need these two teachings today: sanctification, holiness, and the coming of the Lord. Be prepared for His return.
Finally, there is a disciplinary warning. A church is not a church if there is no discipline.
We may think that everything is love and therefore there should be no discipline, that everything is allowed—a free-for-all. Brothers and sisters, can you have a home with no discipline, a free-for-all? What kind of home would that be?
It is the family of God. There is order; there is discipline.
Some of the people there refused to work. They could work, but they refused to work. They relied on the love of the brothers and sisters to supply their needs.
Because they were lazy with their hands, they were very diligent with their mouths. So they became busybodies and caused problems in the church.
Paul said, “Do you remember, when I was with you, I worked with my hands day and night to set an example for you? If any will not work, neither let him eat.”
That is discipline. And if anyone does not obey, do not keep company with him. Leave him alone until he feels ashamed. But do not treat him as an enemy; still love him as a brother.
Brothers and sisters, today we do not want discipline. When discipline is exercised, we say there is no love there. But no discipline means no love.
You can read Hebrews 12. Our heavenly Father chastens us as sons because He loves us. He wants us to grow into maturity. If He does not discipline us, we are not sons; He just lets us go.
So do not despise the discipline of the Lord, and do not faint. By being chastened, we are made partakers of His holiness, of His divine nature. When we are disciplined, it is not a pleasant thing; but afterward, we bear the fruit of righteousness.
So, dear brothers and sisters, these are the lessons from the life of the church in Thessalonica. I believe that even though it was almost two thousand years ago, these lessons are very living for us today. May the Lord help us. Shall we pray?
Dear Lord, we thank Thee for giving us these two letters to the Thessalonians. We thank Thee for showing us the life of the early church.
We thank Thee for the encouragement and also the warning. Lord, we pray that by Thy Holy Spirit Thou wilt teach us all the lessons that we have learned together today. In the name of our Lord Jesus, amen.