Epistles of Paul 03

All right, good evening, everyone. It's nice to have you all with me in this study.

We're going to cover today the introductory verses of 1 Thessalonians.

We are going to cover a whole sum of four verses in 1 Thessalonians, from verse 1 to verse 4. Now, 1 Thessalonians had similar problems to the situations we have today.

As we go through, I would encourage you to try and spot them. The problems are not identical, but the principles are applicable. There are similarities in the principles. Now, as a background, wherever Paul went, we can see that he was attacked by different people. Some were Jews who spread the rumor that because he was not one of the regional apostles, for instance, he was not a genuine apostle. That was a challenge for Paul that he had to overcome. We see that many times he defends his position. We also see people that were coming into the church from the world, pagans, and they were severely persecuting the Christians, threatening them.

Now, these early Christians, particularly in Thessalonica, they had only been Christians for a few weeks, maybe three or four, when persecution really started on them. Now, the challenge of the area of Thessalonica, and in fact, was a challenge of all the Greek cities, is that there was sexual promiscuity, and that was very common, was very, very general across the society. In fact, it was regarded as an religious right, and therefore to live a life of godly chastity was to be regarded as one being a freak, and as in today's society, there was then, and there is today, great pressure on Christians, and particularly we see that in our children at schools today. It was great pressures to fall in line with the commonly accepted worldly sexual orientations and tendencies and practices. That's exactly what's happening today as well. Another problem that was happening in the Church was a misunderstanding about the coming of Christ, the second coming of Christ, and then a number of different ideas evolved, and Paul had to address that in this episode. So we can see that he had different challenges. We can even see in the Cepusil that he says to the brethren to respect those that are in positions of leadership over them. So there was some challenge to the leadership that Christ had set up in the Church. And so you can see a lot of these problems they had were very similar in principle to problems that exist in today's society.

Also, we see towards the end of the land that some people were actually indifferent to God's holy Spirit working amongst them and to the truth that was being proclaimed. So we are in now covering Paul's second mission trip. In Paul's second mission trip, it is in this section that we encounter ourselves in the story. Paul traveled to Thessalonika after being in Philippi. This second mission trip started in AD 50 and ended around about AD 53. AD 50, interestingly enough, is 19 years after Christ's death. So some people may attribute to that time cycle later, the time cycle of 19 years. So he was in Philippi and Paul and Silas had been thrown into prison in Philippi and then the Roman magistrates freed them and then he left Philippi and he went to Thessalonika. Now, many of the places where Paul preached, particularly in Thessalonika, have crumbled into absolute ruin, but Thessalonika itself is still a bustling circuit today. It then was the capital of Macedonia, this area, Macedonia, which is kind of north Greece today. So it was the capital. Now, today the city is called Thessalonika. Now, the account of Paul's founding of this church is recorded in Acts 17. So in Acts 17, we continue reading. We're going to read starting in Acts 17 just to get the account of beginning there in verses 1 and 2. And now, when they had passed through Phippolas and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonika where there was a synagogue of the Jews. Then Paul, as his custom was, went into them and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures. So we see Paul was there reasoning for at least three Sabbaths. And then we read in verse 3 explaining and demonstrating that the Christ, the Messiah, the Christ, had to suffer and rise again from the dead. You see, they were not, the Jews, were not expecting a suffering servant. Now that is prophesied in Isaiah 53 verses 2 through 11. We quite often go through Isaiah 53, the runabout of time of the Passover. So please feel free to go back and read that part of Isaiah 53 when it's talking about Christ coming, more specifically His first coming, as a suffering servant. But the Jews of that time were not considering those prophecies of the first coming as a suffering servant, but they only focused on His coming as a restoring King, in other words, as a Messiah. But Jesus' first coming at that time was not, His purpose at that time, was not to restore the Kingdom. That will be done at His second coming. And so we read a little later here in verse 5, the Jews who were not persuaded becoming envious. So Yah's carnal attitude took some of the evil men from the marketplace and gathered a mob, set the whole city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, and they were looking actually for Paul. So, so they attacked. And then we read a little later in verse 10, that the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. So they went to Berea. So if we look at this map again, and we see they were sent from Thessalonika to Berea. And you know the story about the Bereans being searching the structures carefully, the story of the Bereans. So they went to Berea. And then we read that, and the Jews in verse 13 says, and the Jews from Thessalonika learned that the Word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, and they came there and also stir up the crowds. So the Jews from Thessalonika then went, let's call it in a campaign, and went into Berea and also stirred up the crowds. So Paul then was sent to Athens.

So let's just again look at this map really briefly. Paul now was sent to Athens. From Berea, he was sent to Athens.

Right, so but Silas and Timothy stayed behind in Berea. So now if we just quickly look at 1 Thessalonians chapter 3 verses 1 and 2, 1 Thessalonians chapter 3 verse 1 and 2, we see therefore when we could not long endure, we thought it would to be left in Athens alone and sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith. So from there we see from Athens, Paul was in Athens, but then he sent the instruction for Timothy to go back to Thessalonika.

So that is what happened. He went back to Thessalonika. Now as we go back to Acts, we now read in chapter 18 because what happens is after these things Paul departed from Athens and went to Corinth. So he, after being in Athens for a little while, he then went to Corinth.

So from Athens, he went to Corinth. He was there for about a year and a half, and there he wrote 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. So that basically shows the context of the writing of 1st and 2nd Thessalonians during his second missionary trip when he was in Corinth. So we read in Acts 18 verse 11, and he continued there in Corinth for a year and six months, for a year and a half, teaching the Word of God among them.

So after some time while he was in Corinth, Timothy returned to Paul while Paul was at Corinth, bringing word or news of how the Thessalonians brethren were doing and of some of the problems that the Thessalonians brethren were encountering. And based on that, that's why he wrote then 1st Thessalonians. So there are three main objectives. There are others, but three main objectives that I want to highlight very briefly are of this letter of 1st Thessalonians.

First, to encourage these new converts in their trials. We can see that, for instance, in chapter 3 verse 3 to 5. There is a section of encouragement. Secondly, to give instruction concerning godly living. We see that in chapter 4 verse 1 through 12. Why? Because there was this pagan belief, this pagan approach of sexual immorality, and he's telling them about the need to live a godly life.

And thirdly, a third objective of this letter is to give assurance to the believers of the future coming of Christ, and particularly those that had died in the faith that they had not lost anything, so they would be resurrected at Christ's coming, so he gives them their hope. So now we can see that Satan is continuously trying to create troubles in the church with the intent to hinder the work of God. We, as true Christians, are always having troubles, just like the Thessalonian brethren were having.

Some of them were related to doctrinal issues, others related to godly living, and Satan used these to create difficulties in the brethren's lives. Once again, paganism, in the form of sexual immorality, was creeping into the church, and that's why Paul had to write to the Thessalonians about godly living. Secondly, preaching about Jesus as the Messiah, how Jesus' sacrifice is the sacrifice that really pays for our sins, that was an understanding that the Jews had great difficulty in accepting because of their background about the physical sacrifices of bulls and sheep and goats that we're doing.

Now, that section is addressed in a lot more detail in Hebrews chapter 10. I am not going to spend a lot of time in Hebrews chapter 10 at this moment, but I just want to highlight to you from verse 1 to verse 11, it's always showing that the law having a shadow of good things to come, and we can see he's talking here, as you read the context, you can see he's talking about the slow of sacrifices of rituals of ceremonies, and he says, for the law having a shadow of things to come, and not the very image of things that the law can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually.

So, you can see by the context, he's talking about the sacrifices of the ritual law, which they offer continually year by year. Make those who approach perfect, for then would they not have ceased to be offered? Yeah, if those physical sacrifices had indeed paid the penalty of sin, why did they need to keep being offered daily, monthly, weekly, monthly, annually?

Why did they have to do that? Because they don't. They were only symbolic. They were symbolic. You read here in verse 4, for it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away service.

And then we read in verse 10 and 11. By that rule, you have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all, and every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. So those sacrifices daily, weekly, monthly, annual could not take away sins, because they pointed to the ultimate sacrifice, which is Christ, which then he is suffering. The body of Jesus takes away the sins once for all. So that is explained very clearly, and that explains other scriptures that, for instance, says Christ fulfilled the law and the prophets. Now, quite correctly, we say that Christ obeyed the law, fulfilled the law, but he fulfilled the symbolism of the law, for instance, of sacrifices by being the sacrifice. He fulfilled, for instance, the law of the Passover by A.B. our Passover, our Passover, our True Passover Land. You see, so Christ, therefore, is the purpose, the final end purpose of the law. That's why we read, for instance, in Romans 10 verse 4, that Christ is the end of the law. Now, people then interpret that incorrectly by saying, oh, well, therefore, the law is not done away. Christ is the end of the law. Now, now, what he's saying is that the law pointed to Christ. Christ fulfilled the meaning of the law as being the perfect fulfillment of the purpose of the law, and therefore, Christ is our standard that we are to strive to emulate, to copy, to be. In other words, the ultimate purpose of the law, the law, all the principles of God's law, point to one thing, for us to be like Christ. And that's why the end of the law, the final end purpose of the law, is for us to be like Christ. And so, these challenges they were having in Thessalonica are some of the challenges that we have today, maybe with a different tone. For instance, people coming to the church with their own beliefs and says, oh, well, because Christ has now died, we have the grace of God, and therefore, once saved, you're always saved, and therefore, you are liberated from the law. Well, that's not what it's talking about yet. So, these are the sort of misinterpretations that people have.

So, let's continue reading then in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1. We read Paul, Silvimus, Silas, and Timothy, as we saw they had come back, and Paul now, having received their report about the situation in Thessalonica, now he starts writing this letter. So, he says, Paul, and Silas, that is, came back, and Timothy, they've come back from Thessalonica.

I'm now writing to you because of their feedback, because of their views about how you people in Thessalonica are doing. So, that's what he says to the Church of the Thessalonians, in God the Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now, let's look at this a little bit in more detail. In first place, he says, grace to you and peace. Grace comes from the Greek word karees, Greek 54-85, means gracious, deep, gratis, free. In other words, you and I, correctly, are justified freely by God's grace. And yes, ultimately, we will be saved by God's grace as a free gift, but we will be saved if we remain faithful to the end. And we, because of his grateful and gracious attitude, we return the responsibility or the need to act, the obligation, to now do the things that he tells us to do, because he's so gracious to us. We are now obliged to return the favor. That's what grace meant in that time. The church has a study guide called grace, which I recommend you to read, which explains that meaning of the word grace in the early New Testament time, which basically meant, in a way, that we are obliged because of that grace. We are obliged to return that. It's like somebody does something to you, and you say, thank you. Thank you, in a way, in a sense, means I'm grateful, but, you know, I owe you one. You know, I now need to pay you back. Not that you and I can pay back to God, but what he wants as a payback is us to be faithful to him and do what he tells us to do. That's what he wants from us.

So, yes, grace means grace to God because of his nature, of his kind nature. So, you and I can say, well, for giving us a sin, and therefore, Christ's sacrifice is what God's grace is. Yes, it is, but he's much more. You see, God is gracious to us and gives us wonderful, gracious gifts. He has a giving nature. He wants to give, and that is the grace of God, is this whole nature of God that he wants to give to us as his children. It's like any parent wants to give things to the children. It's just got that desire of wanting to give and wanting to give. And so, as children of God, we need to emulate and develop and become of the same attitude of being gracious to others as well. We need, therefore, to grow in grace. That's why we read in 2 Peter chapter 2 or chapter 3. Let me just double check. 2 Peter chapter 3 verse 18. That's why it says in 2 Peter chapter 3 verse 18, grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. So, we've got to grow in the grace. We've got to become gracious like God is, like Christ is. We've got to change our nature from human nature to God nature to divine nature. Our nature has to be changed. We have to be different, and therefore, we have to start to become gracious in everything we do. That's why it says grow in grace. We've got to grow in this attitude, this mindset of having and giving nature. That's what it is. We're going to grow in that. And that's Christ's mindset, and that's God's mindset. And Christ is the image of the Father. And so, that's why it says in the grace and knowledge. Now, what do you mean knowledge? You and I need to know what Christ is like so that we can imitate Him. We need to understand, like some people say, what would Christ do? We've got to understand how He thinks, how He reacts, so that we become more like Him. So, we're going to grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. So, in the grace and knowledge. So, that's what we're going to grow. Now, going back to 1 Thessalonians, it says, grace to you. It was God's goodness and kindness and loving care for you, maybe with you, and peace. Now, peace is the outcome of grace.

In other words, peace is the end result of grace. That's why it doesn't say peace and grace, but it says grace and peace. In other words, there's a rest, a calmness, a tranquility that we need to have in the church. A tranquility in the church. Why? Because of this giving, outgoing, caring attitude that engenders peace and harmony and growing in peace in the church.

That's what we're going to get. We're going to really strive for.

That's really something for us in the church to grow in grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ, so that the outcome may be peace. Now, then he says, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

God our Father, we are His children. God is begetting us as His children. We are the children of God. He is making us part of His family. Do we fully understand the love and care of a loving dad?

So our Father is far more than that. He's far more than any human father. So from our Father. So it's not just from God, but it's from God our Father.

So it emphasizes that loving care again of grace from a Father and this specifically, the Heavenly Father. And then he says, and the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is our Lord. Greek, word 2962, Kurios is a master, is a chief, he's the owner, he's the main, the main, the principal, he's the main controller, he's our master, who we belong to.

So, so yeah, we have God and the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, quite often people say quite correctly, Christ lives in me. But you know, that God the Father also lives in us. In John 14, let's just look at John 14, verse 23. John 14, verse 23, it says, Jesus also then said to him, if anyone loves me, he'll keep my word, and my Father will love him. And we, that's the Father and Christ, and we will come to him and make a new life. Our home with him. So, both the Father and Jesus are in us.

How? Through God's only Spirit. Through God's only Spirit. You see, there's only one Spirit, only one essence of God, only one characteristic attitude, mindset, essence that proceeds from the Father, which is the Father's, but also which is the Spirit of Christ. It's the same Spirit. You read in 1 Corinthians 12, 1 Corinthians 12, verse 4. He's talking about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12, verse 4, he says, they are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.

God's Spirit gives us various talents, various capabilities, various gifts, but his only one Spirit. Only one Spirit. Look at verse 13, that is 1 Corinthians 12, 1 Corinthians 12, verse 13. For by one Spirit, we all baptized into one body.

By one Spirit, that God's only Spirit, we baptized into one body. Which body is that? That's the body of Christ. Look at verse 27 of 1 Corinthians 12, verse 27. Now you are the body of Christ and members individually. So continue to read 1 Corinthians 12, verse 13. By one Spirit, that's God's only Spirit, only one Spirit, which is also the Spirit of Christ, is only one Spirit, and through that Spirit, they live in us. That's God's essence, God's mind, God's power, God's capability in us. By one Spirit, we all baptized, put into one body, which is the body of Christ, which is the Church of God, which is to marry at the resurrection, those as the bride, to marry Christ, and we are one body. So by one Spirit. So going back to 1 Thessalonians, we see that it says, grace and peace to you, grace and peace to you from God, our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. How? By that one Spirit. Now there's another interesting thing, yeah, that we should not neglect, and we really need to take note. Now some people don't see this, how it is described, yeah, in the structure, and it is important because God the Father is in us through His Spirit. Christ is in us through His Spirit, so they both are of the God family, and they both are in us, and as we know, we only worship God. We don't worship angels, so they are of the God family. So worship the Father, we can also worship Christ. Or some people say, where'd you get that from? Well, turn with me to Luke 24 verse 50 through 52. Luke 24 verse 50. Luke 24 verse 50 right at the end there. That's after He had been resurrected, after He had been with them for about 40 days, after His resurrection, verse 50 says, He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them, the disciples. Now, it came to pass while He blessed them that He was partied from them, Christ partied from the disciples, and carried up into heaven, into what we call the first heaven, because He was carried out as they could see. He was carried out, obviously, into heaven, ultimately, but they could see as He was.

And look at verse 52. Look at verse 52. And they worshiped Him, Christ, and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen. So, yeah, it is correct. We, generally speaking, pray to God, the Father, by Christ's authority, but it does say, yeah, also, that the apostles of the Christ is resurrected. Yeah, very clearly says they worship Christ. So, it's just an interesting point in there. So, going back to 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 2.

We give something else I want to mention here. It's interesting to see that in verse 1, it speaks to God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. It's got no mention of the Holy Spirit.

Okay. Then also, in verse 1, says a second time, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, no mention of the Holy Spirit as a person. And then look at verse 3, and then again there, it says towards the end of verse 3, it says, of our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father. Again, no mention of the Holy Spirit as a person. So, this is another very powerful proof, yeah, in the beginning of the Thessalonians, that the Holy Spirit is not a person. So, anyway, that's just between brackets. Now, continue reading in verse 2. It says, we give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers. So, yeah, we have Paul also exemplifying an attitude of care for the brethren, of making mention of the brethren in his prayers.

So, yeah, it is a question for us. Do we pray for the brethren? For those that are sick, for those near us, for those afar, for those that we know, for those that maybe we don't even know? Are we praying for the brethren? Do we have a prayer list that we go through it on a fairly regular basis? Because we forget names, so it's good to occasionally go through a section of prayer list and pray for some people. Another day maybe go through a different section of the prayer list and pray for other people and things like that. So, it is a good habit to have. Now, let's move on to verse 3. Remembering without seizing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope of our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father. So, interesting. There are three entities mentioned here. Faith, love, and hope. Can you see that? Your work of faith, the labor of love, and your patience of hope.

Faith, hope, and love. Do you remember these three? Well, let's just look at 1 Corinthians, right at the end of 1 Corinthians 12.

Right at the end of 1 Corinthians 12. I know that when it mentions the three is at the end of 1 Corinthians 13. But I'm specifically saying, let's look at the end of 1 Corinthians 12. Because 1 Corinthians 12, as you know, is talking about different gifts of the Holy Spirit.

And sometimes people can get bogged down with one gift or another gift, etc. But they neglect to note that at the end of 1 Corinthians 12 verse 31 it says, but earnestly desire the best gifts of the Holy Spirit.

And what are the best gifts? And there he goes in chapter 13, talking about love. And then at the end of chapter 13 in verse 13 he mentions, now abide, fight, hope, and love these three. But the greatest of these is love.

So in chapter 12 he's talking about spiritual gifts. But then he says, desire the best gifts. And then he says, aha, let me tell you something better. Because you could speak with tongues and all the languages, and if you don't have love, you're just an empty box of making noise.

If you don't have love, you're just an empty box.

And I can do everything for the poor. But if I don't have godly love, I'm nothing, and so on. And he says, love never fails in verse 8.

So they are different gifts. Now why these gifts? Why these gifts?

He says, chapter 14, verse 1, look at it, pursue love and desire spiritual gifts, but specially that you may prophesy. So pursue this special gift, which is love, but also other gifts, but specifically prophesy.

Oh, some people interpret the word prophesy as preach, which is, no, the word prophesy is a different word than preach. You see, prophesy is not preachable. You see, look at 14 verse 3, but he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.

So prophesying is speaking, is talking, speaking in a way when you and I are in a conversation and talking, if I am edifying the other person, if I'm exhorting in a positive way, if I'm comforting people, in other words, if I'm declaring God's wonderful positive things of edification, exhortation and comfort, I'm prophesying. And you know what? That can be in a conversation around the table when we have dinner. And you're declaring God's goodness and edifying. You see, that's not preaching. Yeah, maybe you could be in a sense when you're talking to other people come across a bit preaching. But the intent here is not to come across preaching, is the intent to come across edifying, encouraging, exhorting, a positive, comforting spirit, prophesying. Now granted, prophecy could also mean speaking about things of the future. But a meaning, which is very important in the structures, is to prophesy in the way of speaking edification, exhortation and comfort. Look at verse 4 and 5. He who speaks in the tongue edifies himself. Oh, he speaks in the tongue is kind of making himself important. You see, I can speak this language. Well, maybe he doesn't do it directly, but he can come across that way.

But he will prophesize. It defies the church. He that is being exhausting and in a conversation, helping other people. So people are in church and around in a circle, they're talking things and in a positive way, edifying the church. That is prophesying.

And therefore he says, I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more, then you prophesy. Oh, yeah. It's like saying, well, I wish you all could speak Spanish and Italian and French and German and whatever it is. Yeah, but more than that, it's more important in church for you to encourage and edify the brethren. For he who prophesies, he who edifies and exhorts and comforts the brethren is greater than he who speaks Japanese or Italian or Portuguese or whatever it is. You see, because unless you've got somebody that is going to translate, he says, but unless indeed he interprets, unless there's a translator, that the church may get a benefit from what he's speaking. What's good? So if you had somebody in church talking, for instance, some foreign language that you don't know, maybe it's Japanese or Chinese, then you don't know. Nobody there understands what he's saying. What's the good of that for the churches and the brethren's edification? Zero. Zero. Now, if he's saying good things and there's somebody translating, oh, maybe they will be the benefit. You see. So look at verse 12. Even so, you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, see, you want to have spiritual gifts. You want to have gifts of God's Holy Spirit.

Let it be for edification. Ask God, for instance, for a spirit that when you and I speak, when we speak, we may be encouraged to others and we may edify others. How many times maybe I, I know I do it, but how many times maybe you do it, maybe we all do it, we say something and unintentionally we hurt other people. And I didn't mean to do that. I meant to come encouraging, but somehow the way the words came out, it just didn't come out good. And then I, I feel so bad and I'm sure if you do the same thing, you're going to feel just as bad as, oh, no, why did I say it that way? I should have said it in a better way. And then you feel terrible for a day or two when you ask God for forgiveness and things like that. Why? Because you wanted to edify and what have you done? You, in your perception, you think that you have discouraged the other person. And so that is very important. So he says, you that are zealous for a spiritual gift, let it be for edification of the church. That's what we need to worry. And look at verse 24. Look at verse 24. Still, I'm still looking at 1 Corinthians 14 verse 24. For if all prophesy and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, so if you all are exhausting, if we all are edifying one another, are encouraging one another, are conforming one another, and you get a new person come to church, which is like the first person, the visitor, when he sees that, he is convinced by all, by the Spirit, this positive encouraging attitude in the church.

And he's convicted by all. In other words, that has a positive result for new people come to the church. Right, so we're talking about gifts. So back to 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 3.

So we're talking about remembering without seizing your work of faith, your labor of love, and patience of hope. Well, let's look at faith very briefly. Faith Greek 4102, pisces, which means believe in God, believe what God says, God doesn't lie. So you and I believe in what he says because he's faithful, he doesn't lie, and therefore we trust him. And that true belief in trusting him leads to works, leads to actions. So this faith is an assurance, is a fidelity being faithful, is an assurance of truth that the person is faithful. God is faithful, is an assurance of truth. And if he says something, he's going to do it. So I have faith in him. It was a trusting fully because he's going to do it because he says he's going to do it.

Now you and I read in James chapter 2, for instance, in verse 20, that says, faith without works is dead. So, right, it says, you show me your faith without works, I'll show you my faith without works, you know, because if I don't have works, faith is dead. So that you read in James chapter 2. So if God says to do something and we don't do, do we have faith?

Your parents tell you, well, don't cross the street now because there's a train coming, and you don't believe them and you cross the street and you get hit by the train.

Well, you don't believe them, you don't trust them. When God tells us something to do, if we're really trusting, we are going to do what he says.

So think about any law of God. We demonstrate faith by obedience. That's what James chapter 2, verse 18 says. We demonstrate faith by obedience. Now, there's another point that it really is important for us to think about, and that is the following. Whenever you see the word belief or believe, which in a sense is a derivative of faith, but whenever you see the word believe in the Bible, read behind it the word obedience.

So when he says, believe in God, says, obey God. Read behind it the word obey. I'll give you an example. In Hebrews chapter 3, Hebrews chapter 3, and we're going to read in verse 17. Hebrews chapter 3. Now, in the context, Yair is talking about the Israelites, and in verse 17, in Hebrews chapter 3, he says, Now, with whom was he angry forty years? You see, they were in the wilderness for forty years. Was it not with those who served? You see, those Israelites served in the wilderness, right? They served, and so he was not happy with them. And then he says, Whose corpses fell in the wilderness? In the woods, they died in the wilderness. They didn't go to the promised land.

And verse 18, And to whom did he swear they would not enter his rest? In the words of the promised land. But to those who did not obey, so they said, clear, tick, they do not obey, clear, tick.

But look at verse 19. So we see, so we see that they could not enter the promised land, the rest, because of, look at the word that's used there. You see, it switched the word now to unbelief.

But if you read in context of verse 17 and 18, you could have written behind that because of disobedience. They could not enter because of disobedience, but it used the word unbelief. So when you see the word believe, see behind, obedience. When you see the word unbelief, see behind it disobedience. Again, you see that in chapter 4 of Hebrews verse 9. Yeah, verse 9, it says, there remains therefore a rest for the people of God. And this rest is clearly, we know, that is for us, a rest. And we know it represents the kingdom, it represents a Sabbath rest, a Sabbathism, a Sabbath rest. But in the context, he's also talking about an act of obedience. Look at verse 6. Since that's Hebrews chapter 4 verse 6, since therefore it reminds that some must enter it to the kingdom for the rest, the spiritual rest. And those two, it was first preached, did not enter. Why? Because of the civilians. And so, for us to enter the kingdom, it requires belief, it requires obedience. All right, so let's continue in first Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 3. We talked a little bit about faith. Now let's talk about love. Love, Greek word agape, 26 Greek word number 26. In the New Testament, the word agape is used to describe the love of God. I know in the old ways, people say agape can mean just love. But in the Bible, the usage in the New Testament, when they use the word agape, it describes the love of God as opposed to other words for love like eros or filios.

So this genuine love, affection for the good of others comes from God. But it's also by works, because look at it. It says labor of love. Labor of love. You see, the other one is work of faith, and now is labor of love. Now the word labor comes from a different Greek word, 2873 kopos, means a beating, trouble, intense labor with trouble and toil. I think of a mother giving birth to a child, and she goes through labor. Intense labor with trouble and toil. And so, she's talking about labor of love. So intense work, labor with trouble and toil, to serve others. So that is the sort of love that we need to ask God, that we are prepared to sacrifice for others. And that's when you read 1 Corinthians 13, a love chapter that we referred to a little while ago. And in verse 4 through 8, goes into more detail about the slum. And then the other word that we have, Yah is hope. Greek 1618, opus, which is a confidence that God will ensure that things will be resolved. He has the solution. He has the final end result.

So, but the interesting thing is, it's not just hope. It says patience of hope. Patience is the Greek word for 5281, who promoni. It's a very powerful and interesting word.

It's often translated as perseverance. Patient enduring, sticking to it, really holding on to it. I usually relate to a South African word, a free cross word, that is used by the South Africans, called phaspite. Phaspite means fast for fast, for hard, and bait for bite. You bite hard, like bulldogged tenacity. You bite hard and you don't let go. So this patience is an endurance, is a stick to it, is something that you don't let go of this hope. You see, in Romans chapter 5, let's look at Romans chapter 5, very briefly, Romans chapter 5. And we're going to read in verse 3. Romans chapter 5 verse 3.

It says, and not only that, but we're also glorying in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, who promoni. That same word, patience. Perseverance, who promoni. So it says here, we also know that tribulations, trials, produce stick to it, that phaspite, that holding fast intrals. You know, it was that patient endurance intrals, not letting go, suffering like Christ did, and it did not let go. And then continue that. In Romans chapter 5, we read verse 3, now verse 4, and perseverance produces character. Perseverance, who promoni.

That patient endurance produces character, or experience, or document. It was approved, approved, tried character. So that patience endurance, holding fast, not letting go, perseverance produces character, and that, look at it, and character, hope, and character, hope is the same word. So that patience of hope, that we're talking about here in 1 Thessalonians, chapter 1, verse 3, it says that patience of hope, we are talking about here, that firm perseverance driven by hope, because we have this vision, we have this hope, which is founded in Christ.

We know that we will be resurrected. That hope is solid, is rock solid. So that's why it says, patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. Oh yeah, we have rock solid hope in Christ, in the sight of our God and Father, in the sight of God, under God the Father's scrutiny, because He's watching it, and He'll make sure it'll happen, and it will happen.

Therefore, we have to be patient. We have to persevere. We have to endure.

And so, going back to the beginning, it says, your work of faith, which means under great persecution. That like these Thessalonians were, by the Jews, and their organized mob, and their labor of love, and their enduring hope, they stuck to it.

Now, did you know that in this very book of 1 Thessalonians, in chapter 5, verse 8, it says, but let us war of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love.

So there's these three again, faith, love, and hope. It says, end as the helmet, the hope of salvation. You know, if you drive a motorbike, you have to have a helmet to protect your brain. Right? Protects you. If you have a fall, protects you. So, the helmet as a helmet, the hope of salvation.

You see, you know, you read about the armor of God, right? In Ephesians chapter 6, verse 11 through 17. But then it says also about the helmet. It's talking about hope. Hope. Hope is a helmet.

Hope. We are saved in this hope, as if you read in Romans 8, verse 24 and 25.

Why? Because we have the first fruits of God's only spirit. As you read in Romans 8, 23, we have the down payment, the guarantee, which is God's only spirit, Ephesians 1, 14. And so, this hope, we are saved in this hope. What is this hope? It's the guarantee, the down payment. We have the down payment, God's only spirit. And this hope permeates our mind, our brain. We have God's vision, God's goal, the picture of the kingdom of God to be sons of God.

Protect that with a helmet of hope. We need to have this hope well ingrained in our minds. We need to have this helmet well-boughtly into our minds. And so, the patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ is because you know, and you know, and you know that you know that God will deliver you. That is the hope, as we read here in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 3. Hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of God of our God.

And then it goes on in verse 4. Now, beloved brethren, your election of God. Your election.

You know that God's involved. He will deliver you. You know, we are elected to be participants of the divine nature. Aren't we? You read that in 2 Peter chapter 1 verse 2 through 4. We're elected to be participants of the divine nature. We know that God has this plan worked out from the beginning.

What? For you and I to be children of God.

He designed us, this whole thing, for you and I to be children of God. It's his own will. James 1, 17 and 18. And therefore, in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 4, knowing, beloved, your election of God. Know and know that you know that God has elected you. And that election is permanent. And that election is permanent. It's not that people of this group or that group went to the ballots and balloted for you and voted for you to be whatever. No, God is electing you.

He's called and he's chosen you, provided you and I return that grace. How? By obeying him.

By believing what he says and if we're doing. And therefore, we are elected. For what? To be kings and priests in his kingdom, to be his children, to be part of that royal family, the God family.

That's what we call the Enchilza. Therefore, he says, knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God to be the first fruits, to be in the kingdom. That's why you called. That's why you called now.

Why you and I are called now? For salvation?

Yes, but that's not the reason. Because if you were just being called for salvation, you could be called in the second resurrection. That's what we'll still be saying. Why are you called now?

You called now to be prepared, to prepare a people. As the church's logo says, preach the gospel, prepare a people. We are called now to be prepared. We are called now to be the first fruits. Why? To serve in the kingdom of God. We are being trained now to serve.

And what is that? That's prophesied. That is exhort. That's comfort. That is encouraged. That is uplift. That is edify. And that's the job you and I will have in the kingdom of God. And so, knowing, beloved brethren, your election, my God, I hope that in these four little verses of 1 Thessalonians, we have drawn out of it some very important principles that you and I can apply in our lives. Thank you, brethren, for your attention. May you have the rest of a good week. Thank you.