This will be our last Sunday in 1 Thessalonians. I suppose the whole book could be summed up in the phrase found in chapter 2 verse 12: “live lives worthy of God.”  The balance of Paul’s letter is about doing just that.  Turn from idols to serve the living and true God; become a fellowship from which the Gospel rings out; stand firm in the Lord; be self-controlled; be holy; lead a quiet life; work ...[Read More]

FOMO or the fear of missing out is not something new. It’s been around for thousands of years. In fact, it was one of the issues Paul addresses here in Thessalonians. For many in the early church there were two false teachings that were playing on the fears and insecurities of the new believers. The first was that Paul had sent around a letter saying that the day of the Lord had already come and a ...[Read More]

Now, Paul turns to what we would call the rules for living.  Everyone has them whether they are spoken or not. Sometimes they are good – like the Boy Scout oath but they can be harmful rules as well – like the former professional wrestler, Maurice the Magnificent who said, “My father gave me one rule for living. Win if you can. Lose if you must, But always cheat.” While some, like Paul ...[Read More]

From Thessalonica Paul traveled to Athens and then on to Corinth.  From Corinth, Paul is writing to the church. He mentions Athens but says no more about it. However, we know from reading in Acts that he meets with a group of men there that likely has made him even more grateful and concerned about the new believers in Thessalonica.   Some of you probably remember the movie “Sunset Boulevard” with ...[Read More]