notes

Main point summary

For we long to be with you in order that we might bring you to full maturity in Christlikeness, in order that you might stand firm in the faith. Therefore we have sent Timothy to strengthen you and he has brought us encouragement by his positive report of your faithfulness. For we are truly alive, jealous for your sanctification because of our deep love for you. For we long to be with you again in order that we might continue to build you up in the most holy faith.

Discourse**

editing

NT

1 Thessalonians 2:19-3:10

esv

mine

For what is our hope or a joy or crown of boasting b before our Lord Jesus at his c coming? Is it not you?

For we know that when the Lord Jesus comes he will come with his rewards, and that is you my dear brothers. For you are the crown we will present back to him, resulting in our joy and boasting in the power of our great God for your changed lives!

For you are our glory and joy.

For it is the genuineness of your faith that is evident in the fruit of righteousness that is clearly seen in you. For this is why we glory and have great joy knowing you are truly born of God.

Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we were willing d to be left behind at Athens alone,

Therefore though I was alone in Athens, for I had left Silas in Brea, I couldn't bear to be without a report of your progress,

and we e sent Timothy, f our brother and God’s coworker 1 in the gospel of Christ,

and so to make sure you were cared for, I sent our brother Timothy who is known for his faithful service to God in preaching the truth about Christ,

to establish and exhort you in your faith,

in order that he might encourage you in the faith,

that no one be moved by these afflictions.

so that you would not be discouraged or moved by the afflictions we have faced for the name of Christ.

For you yourselves know that g we are destined for

For you remember that I told you while I was with you, that the Lord himself set me apart and prepared me through Ananias for trials such as these,

For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, h just as it has come to pass, and just as you know.

That is why we informed you about these things so you would not be surprised when you witnessed our afflictions, just as you are now seeing them come to pass.

For this reason, i when I could bear it no longer, i I sent to learn about your faith,

For this reason I was concerned about the afflictions you had witnessed in us, and wanted to be sure you were standing firm in your faith,

j for fear that somehow k the tempter had tempted you and l our labor would be in vain.

that is I was fearful that Satan might have tried to hinder you the same way he has tried to hinder us and I couldn't bear to see the message we had preached to you snatched away!

But m now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of n your faith and love

But we are pleased now that we know Timothy has been with you, and has shared with with us the progress of your strength in the faith and your love for the brothers

and reported o that you always remember us kindly and p long to see us, as we long to see you—

and we are equally excited that we have heard that you have not forgotten us, remembering us and longing for us in the same way we long for you-

for this reason, brothers, 1 in all our distress and affliction q we have been comforted about you through your faith.

for this reason my brothers even though we have suffered greatly we have been comforted in this joyful report of the progress you have made in your sanctification.

For now we live, if you r are standing fast in the Lord.

For you do not understand how much life this provides our distress, knowing that you are standing firm on the Rock that is Christ.

For s what thanksgiving can we return to God for you,

For is there isn't even enough thanksgiving that we can give to God to properly worship him for what he has done through you,

for all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God,

that is our joy in your progress is overflowing toward our God,

as we pray most earnestly t night and day

just as our prayers are for you, for we do not cease to prayer for you night and day,

u that we may see you face to face and v supply what is lacking in your faith?

in order that by God's grace we may come to you once more, and be able to build you up so that whatever is lacking in your faith might be brought to maturity and to the praise and glory of God the Father.

discourse

Notes**

Paul begins his letter to the Thessalonians with a heart of thankfulness and encouragement, knowing that the Word of God has faithfully penetrated the hearts of these dear brothers, 1 Thessalonians 1. Paul continues in 1 Thessalonians 2:1-18 to explain how he came to see the truth of their conversion through the means God used which was his faithful example. For it was his love and suffering for Christ that God's gospel might be glorified and people might be saved. This brings us to a study of 1 Thessalonians 2:19-3:10 where we see an up close and personal look into the heart of Paul, a man who had a great love for these beloved believers. 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20 Paul's Main Motivation going into 1 Thessalonians 3:1-10 Paul shows us within these two 2 verses that his ambition was to present the Thessalonians holy and blameless at the day of Christ Jesus, and that is what brought him hope and joy. We see him echo this same theme in a number of other passage including Galatians 4:19, Ephesians 1:4, and 1 Thessalonians 4:3. 1 Thessalonians 3:1-10 Beginning this section we see Paul's Main Point unfold. ... to establish and exhort you in your faith, V2b .. . that no one be moved by these afflictions. V3a He then followings up with several Means that allowed him to fulfill this purposes for the Thessalonians. Means 1: A Selfless Love V1 ... Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone ... and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, Means 2: A Love that Warns V4 For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know. Mean 3 : A Love that Prepares V5a ... for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain. Means 4: A Love that Prays ... as we pray most earnestly night and day Means 5: A Love that Exhorts ... that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith? ... The heart we see in the apostle's deep affection for his people is one that is demonstrated through the action of applying the Lord Jesus's commands in Matthew 22:37-40, and Mark 12:35-37. The greatest commandments are one of true love first demonstrated perfectly in the life of Christ himself John 15:13. Paul was willing through the sacrifice of his life, no matter what the cost, to see those whom Christ had given him come to fully maturity. Philippians 1:27-30. So what does this mean for us? Observation 1 : Discipleship A plan for discipleship. Our mission, though it is essential, doesn't stop at evangelism. Matthew 28:16-20 We are to teach others everything that Jesus has commanded us. Paul gives us through out these verses a wonderful plan showing some essential character qualities and discipleship qualities to help us with the task at hand. 1) A selfless love 2) A love that warns 3) A love that prepares 4) A love that prays 5) A love that exhorts. Observation 2: Love A heart that is focused on love 1 Thessalonians 3 V1,-3a, 5a, 9-10. This character quality is nothing new to Paul, for we see this same focus demonstrated in a few following verses 2 Corinthians 11:28, 1 Thessalonians 2:7-8, Observation 3: God's glory Paul's focus was not on fame or ministry advancement but a heart that was turn toward the glory of God. He shows this in 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20 by stating that the hope, joy and boasting was in what God had done through the power of the new birth and the glory that he would receive from the life given up to honor Christ through the maturity of these believers. I pray today that something I have shared will encourage you to consider who God has placed in your life to minister to or has it challenged you to review the commands of Christ to love him with all your heart, soul, and mind and your neighbor as you love yourself. Future Paraphrasing Plans I plan to continue my study of the material presented in Paraphrasing by working through the book of Galatians. Though this book has a different tone and context you can clearly see the same heart Paul displays for the Galatians believers as we have seen in 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20 and 1 Thessalonians 3:1-10. His desire is to see the Galatians stand firm in gospel truth among the temptation to defect to a different gospel, the gospel of human achievement. Since this is my 4th class, I plan to also review the material I have learned through Arcing, Bracketing, and Phrasing to continue to improve my understanding of scripture in order that I may faithfully encourage and exhort others with the truth God has shown me.