Silas brought the gospel of Jesus Christ to Thessalonica at
Paul's Second Missionary Journey.
Thessalonica on three Sabbath days, until he and Silas were cast out of Thessalonica (Acts 17:1–9).
didn't arise from error, impurity,
or any attempt to deceive
(1 Thess 2:3).
They taught not to please men, but to please God who tests our hearts
(1 Thess 2:4b). They didn't came with words of flattery, nor with an excuse
for greed (1 Thess 2:5). Nor did they seek glory from men (1 Thess 2:6).
Paul and Silas were gentle among them, like a nursing mother caring for her own children (1 Thess 2:7). They exhorted them, encouraged them to become more Christlike, and commanded them to walk in a manner worthy of God, as a father does with his children (1 Thess 2:11–12, Phil 1:27). Paul sent Timothy to them to strengthen and encourage them in their faith, so that none wavered under their sufferings which they were destined to undergo (1 Thess 3:1–3,
John 15:18–19, Mat 13:20–21), see The Parable of the Sower. Paul prayed for them to work out their positional holiness that they have in Christ by being saved, in a practical way toward others by showing love (1 Thess 3:12–13). Practical holiness is the power of the Holy Spirit to separate from the world.
Paul and Silas were sent to Berea, where they spoke in a Jewish synagogue
(Acts 17:10). These Jews were nobler than those in Thessalonica, and received the word with all eagerness and examined the Scriptures daily to see if these things were in accordance with the teaching of Paul and Silas (Acts 17:11). The Jews of Berea checked that the teaching was in line with the Scriptures. This is a correct way to check a teaching even today. Paul and Silas didn't mind people questioning them and asking tough questions. If a teacher doesn't want to answer such questions, gets upset and frustrated, or accuses you of not having faith, you should consider leaving that teacher and go to another one who accepts questions.
Paul wanted to come to the Thessalonians, but Satan prevented him (1 Thess 2:18).
At another occasions he was prevented by the Holy Spirit from going to specific places (Acts 16:6–7). We need to ask God in prayer to be able to find out which the case it is when we are hindered in some way.
God's wants us to be holy (1 Pet 1:14–16), see Psalm 101: How to live a holy life. That we refrain from sexual immorality (1 Thess 4:3–7, Heb 13:4, 1 Cor 6:18–20), see the 7th commandment in The Ten Commandments. See also Homosexuality and Sanctification. It means living our lives to please God (1 Thess 4:1), instead of living them to please ourselves (2 Tim 3:1–4), see 1. Deny himself and
2. Take up his cross in The Apostle Peter.
If possible we should live in peace with everyone (1 Thess 5:13b, Rom 12:18).
We shouldn't repay anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all (1 Thess 5:15, Rom 12:19–21), see Love and not revenge in
The Sermon on the Mount. We should rejoice in hope of God's glory and even rejoice in our sufferings (1 Thess 5:16, 18a, Rom 5:2–5).
Before Jesus second coming, there will be a rapture of the Christian believers, the Body of Christ, both of those who are alive and those who have "fallen asleep".
(1 Thess 4:15–17), see The Rapture. When Paul speaks of "asleep" (1 Thess 4:13)
and "fallen asleep" (1 Thess 4:14–15), he always means physical death for Christian believers. When king David died it also says that he "slept with his fathers" and was buried in the city of David (1 King 2:10), see this explained in
The Word-for-Word Approach in Bible Translations.
When the Bible uses a reference to sleep instead of death, it's using an idiom or
euphemism. At death, the physical body takes on the appearance of sleep, and so sleep-related terms are used to describe it. Paul declared that he much preferred to be absent from the body (=dead) because it meant that he would be present with the Lord (2 Cor 5:6–8). The Rich Man and Lazarus shows that the human soul doesn't sleep after death. Being dead isn't the same as sleeping.
This physical death occurs only in the the human body. It's only the body that dies. Our spirit and soul can't die, see Body, Soul, and Spirit in The Danger with Gnosticism. To die and be absent from the body means for a Christian to be immediately with the Lord in God's Heaven, see time 23:36–26:20 in
Isaiah 65-66 • Final Judgment and Glory of the Lord. However, people who reject Jesus will unfortunately go to Hell, see The Great White Throne Judgement.
When speaking of the resurrection, it's the body that is resurrected, that is, the spirit and soul receive a new immortal body. The Christians who are alive will then also receive new immortal bodies. The dead in Christ will rise first (1 Thess 4:16).
Then the Christians who are alive will be caught up (= the rapture) together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and then we will always be with the Lord (1 Thess 4:17).
There will be a false sense of peace and security during the 7-year Tribulation period
(1 Thess 5:2–3), see The Day of the Lord. It's probably at the beginning of this period that Antichrist confirms a 7-years peace treaty between Israel and its surroundings (Dan 9:27a, 11:21–12:13), see Visions and Dreams by Prophet Daniel.
Before Jesus returns, there will be a rebellion and the man of lawlessness (Antichrist) will be revealed, the son of destruction, exalting himself against every so-called god or object of worship (2 Thess 2:3b–4a), see The Horses in the Book of Revelation.
The coming of Antichrist is through the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders (2 Thess 2:9), see Who is the End Time Antichrist?
He will take his seat in God's temple and proclaim that he is God (2 Thess 4b),
see the end part in Ezekiel's temple.
When Jesus returns from Heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, he will take vengeance on those who have rejected God and on those who don't obey
the gospel of our Lord Jesus (2 Thess 1:7b–8), see The Sheep and the Goats.
They will suffer eternal punishment forever away from the presence of God,
when Jesus comes to be glorified by his believers (2 Thess 1:9–10a),
see What Does the Bible Say about Hell? God is just in doing this
(2 Thess 1:6–7a, Rom 11:33–34), just as he was at the destruction of
Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen (1 Mos) 18:25b), see The Life of Abraham,
and when he pours out the seven bowls of God's wrath on the Earth
at the end of the Great Tribulation (Rev 16:5–7), see the end part of
The Seventh Seal and the Seven Trumpets in the Book of Revelation.
See also God has wrath in God's Attributes.
One encouragement is that God hasn't destined us for God's wrath, but for salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Thess 5:9).
See also The New Testament of the Bible.
