This lesson includes excerpts from my book Who is the Holy Spirit? A Devotional Journey Through the Book of Acts.[1]As we look forward to the Summer Olympics of 2021, I thought it would be appropriate to use this for the background of our selected text of 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 today.
Some years ago there was a PBS special called "The Real Olympics." I learned from this presentation that in ancient Greece to become an Olympic athlete took everything that one had—all your time, all your money, all your energy, all your focus. Anyone could become an Olympic athlete as long as they completely dedicated themselves to it. And they had better do that for any chance to win.
The games were so brutally violent that it was not an unusual thing for athletes to die, particularly in the wrestling and boxing games. To lose was complete dishonor, so the few rules that existed could be broken, particularly when the crowds cheered wildly. There were four results of the ancient Olympic games: winning, surrender, knockout or death. So the training was intense. The preliminary contests were intense. The ancient Greek athletes practiced progressive resistance training. This was the concept, which of course is used widely today as well, where the individual would begin early in their training with a low amount of weight or resistance and gradually build up more weight and resistance as the months and the years went by. The result was an athlete who could sustain tremendous amounts of strain and exertion. It was said that the ancient Greek athletes could most likely beat any of today's athletes without blinking an eye. Some of the greatest characteristics of those ancient athletes included perseverance, pain tolerance, skill and hope.
With complete dedication, constant progressive resistance training and perseverance a young athlete could take to the road to Athens. All along the way he would have great victories, certainly some discouraging and perhaps some damaging encounters. Then again that athlete could find some great victories—perhaps even to stand with an olive wreath on his head and with great fame for years to come.
Again, it takes little or no stretch of imagination for this kind of process to be compared to the Christian life and journey. And this is aptly demonstrated in our next passage of Scripture in Acts.
Read Acts 17:1-4.
Remember that Paul, Silas and Luke had been in Philippi. Now they traveled about one hundred miles to Thessalonica, heading south toward Athens. They traveled on the famous Egnatian Way, one of the world-famous roads built by the Romans. With stones several feet deep, laid painstakingly close, many of these roads still exist today.
Just as an athlete is very strategic in the path that they take in training and selective about the competitions they participate in, so was the Holy Spirit as he directed Paul. One of Paul’s strategies was to go to key cities. "He did not aim simply to preach the Gospel wherever he could find an audience . . . [Instead he moved forward] with a program for establishing churches in key centers from which the surrounding countryside could be evangelized."[2] Thessalonica was a premiere city in that day. "It was the capital of the province of Macedonia and had a population of more than 200,000, including a colony of Jews (and a synagogue)".[3]
Paul, once again empowered by the Holy Spirit, entered a Jewish synagogue, longing for his Jewish brothers and sisters to know the truth about Jesus. He wanted them to know that Jesus Christ was indeed the Messiah they had been longing to see. The Jews knew from ancient prophecy that there was one who was supposed to come and save them from all their trouble. In their minds was the idea of a great King riding proudly onto the world scene, transforming their oppression into a ruling kingdom and dominating the world. It is no wonder then that they had a hard time accepting the idea of a Messiah who would suffer and die. For centuries most practicing Jews had overlooked or ignored the passages of Scripture that described the Messiah who would have to suffer for the sins of the world.
Isaiah 53:3-6
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and earned our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
They could not or would not comprehend that their Messiah "could be both a conquering king and a suffering servant."[4] They did not understand yet that their sins, our sins, were so great that the only solution was for Jesus Christ, the only God-man, to die in our place. But not only would he die, he would rise again to prove that God had the power to release us from the awful guilt and consequence of our sin. We would not have to die forever, because he died once. We would not have to live pitiful, unforgiven lives, because he lives forever to forgive us when we seek him with all our hearts.
This is the message that compelled Paul to seek out people and tell them the good news of Jesus Christ. This is the message that Paul carefully and passionately explained to people on his road to Athens. And we see the great result in Acts 17:4: some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women. Not only did some of the Jews finally comprehend the role of the Messiah—that he had indeed already come to them and that he now lived to set them free—but so also did many of their Greek friends who were seeking the truth that would set them free. And that is how the Thessalonian church was born.
Somewhere a long time ago a tiny group of people came together in this same way in your community. A Christian church was birthed where you are because of what Jesus did for them. And now we gather together today because of what Jesus did for us.
Think with me again about the concept of progressive resistance training. In our Christian life, God permits us that path as well. Some of us live with the idea that the longer we are Christians the easier life should be, right? That is not the path to becoming a great spiritual athlete. Progressive resistance training in our spiritual lives means that opposition will come. It will come for many reasons. Among those is the spiritual battle we face when we turn our backs on Satan. He will do anything he can to tear us down. We must be aware that "our enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8) That old devil wants to defeat you so badly he will do it through full frontal attacks, through the subtleties of boredom, or just the drip, drip, drip of constant temptation. There are times, too, that he will manipulate others to try to destroy not only you, but the Church of Jesus Christ. Talk about Olympics trials! Look what happens next.
Read Acts 17:5-10.
You have heard about dishonest and biased judges at the Olympic Games. You have heard about athletes who sabotage other athletes. It is very disheartening, very discouraging, enraging, sad, and could be utterly defeating. In the same way politics can be used against the innocent. Declaring that another king had come was one of the greatest threats a Roman Caesar could face. He was supposed to be most powerful, not this man named Jesus they were calling King!
So now let's jump in to the first chapter of I Thessalonians, a wonderful, heartwarming letter. The first section, 1:1-10, is really a snapshot of the more in-depth expressions found in the remainder of the letter. After a comparatively brief stay in Thessalonica, Paul and his companions felt it important to write to these dear friends. It is striking that there is such incredible love and warmth for these people. You would think that that kind of depth of feeling could only come after extended friendship and fellowship. But the transformation of salvation and the power of the Holy Spirit can work just that quickly! Have you ever had a chance encounter with another Christian during travel and found that remarkable and immediate connection and consolation? I have. That is the power of the presence of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit leading us to recognize the unbreakable Kingdom bond that exists all over the world. Praise God!
That same bond carries further even after we have had fellowship together. To demonstrate that bond, Paul teaches us how to pray effectively for others: We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers. (v. 2) On those extended missionary journeys, the long walks from town to town, the hours watching the waves splash against the sides of the boats as they crossed seas, and in the quiet nights of reflection—these were filled with prayers and thanksgiving for their friends in Thessalonica. And these prayers aided in the continual transformation of those young Christians in their spiritual battles in that pagan culture.
We remember before our God and Father . . . What do you remember about your Christian friends? Do you reflect on their behaviors and reach out to them to encourage them?
Your work produced by faith,
Your labor prompted by love, and
Your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
What transformation! In contrast, their pre-Christian days may have been listed in this way:
Your work produced by duty,
Your labor diminished by selfishness, and
Your vacillating values inspired by the changing culture around you.
Thank God for the transforming work done in us that gives us new and better ways to be! Arnold Airhart wrote: "What it [the Gospel] does do, through the grace of humility, is to join all ranks in a fellowship of love and labor unmarked by either conscious condescension or servility."[5] In such a short time this group of believers acted out their Christianity in such a way that it encouraged the missionaries' hearts. What a wondrous fellowship that crosses miles and time. What a consolation that leads to further transformation and the reason to persevere in the faith.
And yet, Paul and his missionary colleagues recognized the continual pressure these dear folks were under. And so, they sought to encourage them. For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chose you . . . (v. 4) Remember that Paul wrote to a predominantly Gentile congregation that was pressed on one side by Jewish leaders who were willing to take legal action against them and on the other side a culture filled with pagan practices and idolatry including Egyptian religion, traditional Greek religions, and cultic practices from Somathrace.[6] Not to speak of the pressure from the emperor cult of the Caesar's. F.F. Bruce wrote: "Their practices are clean contrary to Caesar's: they are proclaiming a rival emperor, Jesus."[7] Craig Keener wrote: "Most of pagan culture reacted angrily to Jewish people's converting pagans from the religion of their ancestors; because a greater percentage of Christians were converts from Gentile backgrounds, they would face still greater hostility."[8] Folks under that kind of pressure need motivation to persevere!
The first mode of motivation was the fact that they were chosen. Of course there were Jewish Christians in this church who had lived with the life-long conviction of being chosen by God for his salvation. But the bulk of this group did not live with this in the hearts. They had to be reminded that they had been grafted in with all the rights and privileges of children of God. (Romans 11:11-32) And that election, given to any who open their hearts to the saving work of Jesus Christ, was grounded in the glorious love of God. "Proof of their election was the fact that the Spirit drove the Gospel home in their hearts."[9]
The second mode of motivation for perseverance, founded in their Holy Spirit transformation, was because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. (v. 5a) If they had been present, these missionaries might have leaned in, touched the hands of those up-hill-battling Christians and said, "I need you to remember this . . . " That unmistakable power that they responded to through the simple preaching of the Gospel was still transforming, still emboldening, still empowering them to live lively Christian lives!
The third mode of motivation for transformative perseverance came in the act of imitation. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. This is no pop-culture imitation on Tik Tok or YouTube. This is an imitation of the real person of Jesus Christ. The flat and narrow imitations of this world only mimic, they do not transform. When believers engage in the constant practice of doing their best to be like Jesus (not just appear to be like him) they reflect him in such a way that others are attracted to him and his Kingdom. We do not imitate to make people like us or to appear like us; we imitate to be like Jesus. This is why Paul can rejoice in their imitation. They don't behave like the missionaries. They behave like Christ! I don't want a Church full of human leader look-alikes. I want a Church filled with all of the diversity and beauty of each person created in God's image shining the light of Christ to the world.
The fourth mode of motivation was to tell them what witnesses they had actually become. Arnold Airhart wrote that "[t]his entire passage is graphic testimony from the primitive missionary church of the utterly transforming force of the gospel in pagan culture [and] the astonishing effectiveness of their witness (6-10) could be accounted for only as the outflow of divinely implanted qualities."[10] And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it, for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath. (v.7-10) While many commentators point out that Paul's language of all and everywhere are hyperbolic, could it not be possible that because of the strategic positioning in this cultural crossroads of a city that indeed the Gospel spread far more broadly? Of course, it could. That's the nature of the Gospel and its transformative power. Give it an inch and it will take a region!
Those Thessalonians Christians had gained not only the incomparably great salvation and hope to persevere, they also gained the understanding of the severity of God's wrath stored up for those who do not respond as they did to the Gospel. No wonder their lights were shining so brightly! The whole culture needed to know and imitate Christ to avoid his wrath. The decidedly eschatological bent of 1 and 2 Thessalonians always holds this in front of us as we read these wonderful letters.
Some of the troubles we face are a consequence of our own selfishness and sin. But we have a solution for that—the forgiveness of God and the strength of the Holy Spirit to deal with the consequences. But, some of the troubles we face are from the evil in the world, the wickedness of sinful people, the oppression of dark systems of power that need to be reclaimed for good. These points of resistance are not our final answer. Just like the ancient Greek athletic values of perseverance, pain tolerance, skill and hope, we can adopt those values and be overcomers through Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. We can more than recover from these battles and trials. We can come out the other side victorious because we know that our God is eternal and invincible; that no matter what threat comes our way, no matter what scars we sustain there is a hope that springs eternal because of our great Savior Jesus Christ and the ever-present power of the Holy Spirit!
And all along the way we will find people with similar stories that will encourage our hearts. We will find others who have an open heart and mind to the truth of God. We will be buoyed up by those whose witness will ring out for years to come. These are the kind of people that Paul and his companions found in Thessalonica.[11]
M.R. Hyde
Copyright 2021
[2] The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Moody Press, Chicago, 1990, p. 1155.
[3] NIV Study Bible, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1995, p. 1682.
[4] Wycliffe, p. 1155.
[5] The Beacon Bible Commentary: Vol. 9, Beacon Hill Press, 1965, p. 439.
[6] The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Intervarsity Press, 1993, p. 585.
[7] Paul Apostle of the Heart Set Free, Eerdmans, 1977. p. 225.
[8] Ibid.
[9] Wycliffe, p. 1155.
[10] Beacon, p. 441.
[11] Who is the Holy Spirit?
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