Another Bible Commentary: 1 Thessalonians

Paul spent a few weeks with this young church in the capital city of Macedonia in Acts 17, and they had some follow-up questions. They believed Jesus was coming back immediately. Not to assume what was on anyone’s reading list, but Isaiah 26 has salvation connected to faith, the promotion of the humble/oppressed/poor, the demotion of the proud, God making believers’ path through life easier, Israel’s failed mission to bring the world to God (Gentile inclusion), the resurrection of the dead, and justice for martyrs. Therefore, seeing all this coming to pass through Paul’s preaching to them might have created expectations regarding Isaiah 26:20’s “a little while”. 2 Peter 3:8 clarifies. Jesus is coming back quickly, which is to say that when He comes through the door it will be too late to do anything about it, but we don’t know when. Today is the day of salvation.

1:1 There are three human authors associated with this letter, for anyone trying to discredit Paul’s later writings by comparing them to earlier works like this. We are in the Father and in Christ (John 17:20-23). Again, we get grace and shalom on the front end.

1:3 See 1 Corinthians 13:13. Again, “Believe” and “Love” are in focus, with good works flowing out as a consequence.

1:10 See Romans 5:8-11 and Hebrews 7:25. Believer, you have nothing but good things waiting for you after this is over.

2:2 in Acts 16:16-24.

2:4 He installed a new heart with new motives in you (Ezekiel 36:26-27).

2:5 Paul was no flatterer (Acts 24:24-26). Also, see 2 Corinthians 2:17; Paul repeatedly defended his ministry against claims such as he was pocketing the gift to Jerusalem.

2:6-7 Note that to be childlike (Matthew 18:3-4) involves not standing on ceremony/authority.

2:8-9 Paul’s defense against claims that he was a huckster is also his grounds for telling believers living on handouts to get back to work (2 Thessalonians 3:11-12).

2:11 The honor/financial support in Mark 7:9-13 was given to elderly/infirm parents. The default setting for a father is provider rather than sponge.

2:12 Our Father encourages us and comforts us. You are a saint, so act like a saint. Behavior is fruit, not the root.

2:13 Jesus, the Word of God (John 1), works within us.

2:14-16 The sins heaped to the limit, similar to what we saw in Genesis 15:16. Paul would have heard of Jesus’ predictions of the events of 70 AD. Jesus’ predictions came to pass within two decades of this letter. Opposition to Gentile inclusion was not new (Jonah 4).

2:18 Plans fail sometimes. This doesn’t mean that they were out of God’s will or that you’re not in fellowship with Him. See John 15:18 and 1 Corinthians 6:17.

2:19-20 “crown” As in Philippians 4:1, the crown Paul wants is more saved people in Heaven.

3:3 See John 15:18.

3:6 They believed in Christ and loved despite persecution.

3:8 “standing firm” They trust Him. There’s no heroic effort required, for He is the Hero, and we’re in His story.

3:10 “lacking” Christian maturity is the unshakeable faith of Ephesians 4:13-14.

3:12 God does this for us.

3:13 God does this for us, too. If anyone is dangling a carrot of “glorification” in front of you, it is already promised to us (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24) and is as good as ours (Romans 8:30).

4:1 We want to please Father because we’re His kids, not as if we’re on probation (John 6:37). “Believe” and “Love” amounted to most of that (1 Thessalonians 3:6) for Paul’s readers.

4:3-8 Paul told them “Be holy”. How? Don’t act like the pagans (Leviticus 18). Don’t have sex with other guys’ wives or bugger them, etc. Be holy that way. This is basic Acts 15:20 stuff. As for the punishment in verse 6, that would have to be in response to sin, but Jesus took your sins away (John 1:29, Hebrews 8:12). Therefore, this is about your new identity in Christ as we discussed for 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. Why live like the damned anymore (Romans 6:2)? Moreover, since 1 Thessalonians 5:9 is very clear about our promised deliverance, punishing “all” refers to offenses like adultery being off-limits to both Jews and Gentiles.

4:9 Again, He is the Vine, and we are but branches (John 15:5, Romans 14:4, Hebrews 13:20-21, Philippians 1:6, Philippians 2:13, Jude 24).

4:11-12 These believers thought Jesus was coming back that week. Many had quit their jobs because they thought that the end was here; they wound up living on handouts from productive believers and even pagans (giving the Church a black eye – see Titus 2:10). Here, Paul just means “don’t be a bum”. Self-supporting retirees that still help others in need are fine; you don’t have to work for money until you drop dead (1 Corinthians 7:21). Also, Peter agrees with Paul about minding our own business (1 Peter 4:15).

4:13 Since Paul only had about three weeks with this church, they were shocked that after Christ’s victory over sin and death that believers would ever die earthly deaths. See 1 Corinthians 15:50-55; our bodies are part of a fallen world (1 Corinthians 6:13) that will be replaced. Christians are eternal beings, so our death is “sleep” as seen from here. When we are not in these bodies, we are with our Lord (John 14:1-4, Philippians 1:23). Paul didn’t say not to grieve, but not to grieve like the unbelievers who have no hope. See Paul’s feelings in Philippians 2:27. My own earthly father, the best one anyone ever had, died recently. We haven’t had the funeral yet at the time of this writing. It hurts, but it’s not a “goodbye” but a “see you later”. I say this with the certainty that he is also my brother in Christ (1 John 3:1). I can write to you about it all day, but the peace that surpasses understanding is something to be experienced (Philippians 4:6-7). I’ve heard unbelievers equate the feeling of losing a loved one to losing a limb; I still feel connected to him. Unbelievers call it denial or wishful thinking, but he is united with Christ (John 17:20-23, 1 Corinthians 6:17), and so am I, so we’re never truly apart. I am grateful that this man was my earthly father and look forward to seeing him again.

4:14-15 See Psalm 49:15. All the saints come riding with Jesus upon His return (Zechariah 14:5, Revelation 19:14).

4:16-17 “trumpet” like Numbers 10:7 assembling us, Leviticus 25:9-10 proclaiming freedom, Isaiah 27:13 calling us home, etc. This will be the last trumpet for us, not the last trumpet of Revelation. After a bunch of ominous honking, there’s Zechariah 9:14-17 signaling His return. See Revelation 19:11-21; we’re riding in with Him.

4:18 Our future really is encouraging.

5:1-2 Read these verses until they sink in. Many Christians are obsessed with end times prophecies, and there is no shortage of authors trying to profit from that. Jesus isn’t coming when we expect it. It’s almost like we’re trying to buy time to evangelize by predicting His return every day so as to keep delaying it. See Obadiah 5 and Matthew 24.

5:3 See Zechariah 1:11.

5:4 If you are a believer in Christ, you are ready.

5:5 We don’t belong. They can’t keep us.

5:6-8 Everything we’ve said about drinking (think of Jesus’ first public miracle at the Wedding in Cana, Psalm 104:15, etc.) has not just been negated. To be sober/sensible/alert, be like verse 8. Focus on our reality in Christ rather than getting bogged down in this world. Paul basically expressed a shortened Colossians 3 here. Think of Heaven; keep looking up. Notice that “Believe” and “Love” made another appearance. The “hope” of salvation is the confidence in Jesus, who said that He saved us and meant it. See Isaiah 59:17 and Ephesians 6:10-17.

5:9 We’re okay.

5:10-11 Notice that our salvation is not contingent upon our adherence to 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8, but upon Him. The pressure’s off, so don’t let legalism lure you into sinning as in Romans 7:5,8. You are free to “live right” like you really want to do with that new heart of yours. Living with awareness of Heaven above us and before us is way better than the default. We died to sin (Romans 6:2). It’s like comparing adults to babies pooping their pants; not only are the rashes and smell uncomfortable/unpleasant, but we’re above it now.

5:14 “idle and disruptive” See 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 and 2 Thessalonians 3:10. A job is just as fine a place to wait for the end of the world as anywhere (but financial independence is not prohibited – 1 Corinthians 7:21). The encouragement is like Isaiah 35:4. Patience is part of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and is part of being a loving person (1 Corinthians 13).

5:18 You don’t have to be grateful for every circumstance, but in every circumstance you still have plenty to be grateful for as a born again child of God. Paul was thankful to be in Christ even while he was in prison; being thankful for the prison isn’t what is asked of us. See Psalm 30:5.

5:23-24 Again, He is the Vine, and we are but branches (John 15:5, Romans 14:4, Hebrews 13:20-21, Philippians 1:6, Philippians 2:13, Jude 24). It’s been a while since we covered this, so here’s a refresher if needed: You have a body, a soul, and a spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23, Hebrews 4:12). Think of three concentric circles, or a snowman from overhead. The outermost circle is your body. You interact with physical reality through it, but “you” are not merely your body. If you lose part of it, your life is different, but you didn’t lose “you”. You have a soul, the next layer in. The word the New Testament uses for it is the Greek psyche from which we derive words like psychology. A soul is a personality. Your mind, will, emotions, etc., are soulish. Animals have bodies and souls. The Hebrew notion of “heart” as the core of your being includes your mind. However, you can be aware of your own thoughts and feelings, so “you” are not the sum of your thoughts. Sin, the power that was lurking near Cain, etc., can give you thoughts that you may think are your own. This will continue to be a problem until this reality gets replaced with a better one and you get your new body. Your mental state is affected by both your body and your spirit. You have a spirit at the center of it all. Unbelievers have spirits that are dead to God and alive to Sin. Believers have new spirits that are alive to God as well as the Holy Spirit motivating us from within. In conclusion, believers’ inner selves are Heaven-ready but our bodies will be replaced (1 Corinthians 15), and we’re growing into maturity as our minds are renewed (Romans 12:2). Unbelievers cannot help but sin all the time, but you have the ability to choose the godly way of life that is the only way your new self will feel fulfilled (Galatians 5:17). We will be physically resurrected and have bodies for eternity; the popular notion of being incorporeal in the afterlife is Platonist.

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