Part Fourteen of the New Testament Survey Series
Khen Lim
Image source: revphil2011.wordpress.com
Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians are written to encourage
new converts. This could not have come at a better time because all new
Christians were under fairly serious persecution then. The first letter
provides not just useful instructions for Christian living but also a promise
of Jesus’ Second Coming that resonates at the end of every chapter.
The second letter, on the other hand, deals with some of the
emerging common misconceptions relating to the Day of the Lord in which Paul
has noticed because some in the church had decided to stop working in order to
anticipate it. To the Thessalonians, both letters would have been very
comforting, reassuring and encouraging, which are the prime motives behind why
they were written in the first place.
A number of Paul’s appeals stand out in his first letter
starting from verses 4:1-12 where he counsels the Thessalonians, reminding them
of the three principles to leading a life pleasing to God, such as the
following:
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Avoidance of all forms of
sexual immorality
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A rooted desire to love
one another
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The importance to work
diligently using one’s own hands
From verses 5:1-11, Paul exhorts the Thessalonians to be
exemplary in the lives they lead as they await the coming Day of the Lord. The
letter ends with verses 12 to 28 with more similar encouragement from the
apostle.
Containing only three chapters, his second letter is a little
shorter; in fact, it is the shortest of all his letters found in the New
Testament but yet, verses 2:3-10 contain some of the most keenly studied
Pauline narratives to centre on the Day of the Lord. Herein,
Paul brings courage to the church to uphold themselves with instructions to
stand firm. More interestingly, he asks the Thessalonian Christians to avoid
those who lay idle and therefore, who do not live by the Gospel (3:6).
Timothy and Paul (Image source: worldevangelism.net)
It is interesting to note that while Paul’s authorship of the
second letter has gone relatively undisputed, the same cannot be seen of the
first. Apparently there is a contestable issue in which Paul might have had
co-authorship with someone like Silas and/or Timothy or alternatively, either
of them might have had some form of contribution.
Whatever that is said and done, there is no denying that the
main resonance of the letter is one of Paul’s writing. Even so, modern biblical
scholars have levelled other allegations. Some say the letter is “too similar.”
Amazingly then, there are also those who say it is “too
different.” It is inevitable that some of us would suspect that modern scholars
are simply looking for whatever they can find that sticks. The intent may not
really be to understand what the contents tell us and teach us but more about
finding faults by debating over nothing.
It is said that Paul wrote both letters around 50AD to 52AD.
The first letter could have been written in Corinth after he and Silas had
departed from Thessalonica where they had stayed for four to six months
following some disturbances that had arisen.
Paul’s two letters to the Thessalonians raise three crucial
points that relate to the End Times, God’s Word and God’s family:
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Eschatology
Paul’s discussions about the End Times are found in both
letters, generally in the following verses: 1 Thes 4:13-5:11 and 2 Thes 2:1-12.
In the first letter, he covers a number of related issues
including deliverance (1:10), comfort to the church (4:13-18), the timing of
the resurrection (4:13-16), the Rapture (4:17), the eminency of Christ’s Second
Coming (5:1-11, 2) and the already/not-yet teaching of the inauguration but not
consummated eschatology.
In the second letter, Paul talks of the judgement of those who
torment the people of the church (2 Thes 1:6-10) including the events that
would take place prior to the coming of Christ such as the ‘Day of the Lord’
(2:3).
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God’s Word
Paul mentioned God’s Word at least nine times across both
letters. In the first letter, we can find it in chapters 1, 2, 4, 8, 9 and 13
while in the second, we can find it in the latter part of chapter 3.
It is also interesting to note that Paul wished to stay clear
of the powerful Word of God so that it would be bring better impact.
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God’s family
By being his encouraging self, Paul nurtures the new community
through faith amidst very trying persecutory times and all this despite pressure
and alienation from friends and family as well.
Part Fifteen (Letter to the Hebrews) will be available on March 16 2016
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