Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1-2, Psalm 15

We come today to the first letter of Paul to the Thessalonians. If you recall, the city of Thessalonica was a very large and important city in the ancient world. It has not been as well excavated as some other ancient cities because it has persisted all the way into the present day without being totally destroyed. Modern Thessaloniki is one of the largest cities in Greece. Still, we know quite a bit about the city, and among those things is that it was a religious crossroads. There were a huge number of idols and idol makers in the city. Household idols of Roman, Greek, Egyptian, and even Persian gods have been found in excavations. The city also enjoyed a level of independence from Rome that few cities enjoyed. And finally, we know from Luke’s account in Acts that the people of Thessalonica were extremely hostile to the gospel, and that the local government was not particularly interested in stopping them from persecuting the Christians. The energetic persecutions meted out by the Thessalonians even spilled over to neighboring towns, as it followed Paul to Berea. All that being the case, the church in Thessalonica continued and appears to have thrived. They were never well off, and were constantly under threat, but from the letters to the Corinthians we know that Paul enjoyed bragging on their generosity.

The first letter to the Thessalonians appears to have been occasioned by a visit that Timothy made to the city when it became clear that Paul would not be able to return himself. Upon his report to Paul, he felt compelled to write a letter back to them. The opening chapters are a combination of encouragement and explanation for his absence. Because of the situation in Thessalonica, Paul was concerned that the new church, which he had only been allowed a few weeks with before being kicked out of the city, would have fallen away from the teaching of the gospel. To the contrary, Timothy reported to him that the Thessalonians were more committed than ever. This is enormously encouraging to Paul, and he goes on for quite a while about how much he appreciates the Thessalonians faithfulness.

The balance of the first half of the letter is Paul’s explanation that he really would rather have come to the Thessalonians himself, and does in fact care a great deal about them. He is not being stopped by fear of persecution, as he references his persecution in Philippi before coming to Thessalonica the first time. He is not being stopped by their poverty and inability to support him, as he demonstrated on his previous visit by working to support himself while proclaiming the gospel to them. He is not being stopped by other matters, as he was willing to wait for Timothy to return with report about them. No, Paul says he is not coming to them because Satan hindered us.

This is another of those strange instances where spiritual warfare pops up in the Scriptures with basically no explanation. But I do not think it is coincidental that Paul is being prevented from visiting Thessalonica, a city bent on persecution of Christians but that has a thriving church anyway, by the Accuser, Satan. The rest of this letter will have Paul addressing the questions and concerns of the Thessalonians: how to be faithful, how to get along with others when they are opposed to you, what will happen to those who have died, and when the Lord Jesus will appear to rule the world and vindicate their faith. These are not the kinds of questions that people enjoying an easy life ask. The Thessalonians were threatened, and not just by society. Paul is letting them know that spiritual powers are real and opposed to him as well. But just the same, he will be reassuring them that God has, through Christ, defeated these powers and will defeat the powers of the world in his own due time.