Eternal Encouragement - 1&2 Thessalonians
Lanse Evangelical Free Church
May 4, 2025 :: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
Now, why are we going study 1st and 2nd Thessalonians this spring and summer? How come? I can think of a number of good reasons:
It’s definitely time to get back into our New Testaments. We have just been in the Old Testament with Daniel, and I like to toggle between the two whenever I can.
And it’s been a while since we did a New Testament letter. We did 1 Peter back in 2021 into ‘22, but we’ve mainly been dwelling in the gospels when we’ve been in the New Testament.
And it’s been a long time since we studied one of the letters of the Apostle Paul. In fact, it’s been 5 years since we studied a letter from Paul. We did Philippians back in 2020 during the first summer of the pandemic. And before that was Galatians in 2017. That seems like a long time ago! Many of you won’t remember that because it was so long ago, you weren’t here then, or you were too young to remember that.
And, on top of that, in my nearly 27 years as your pastor, I have never preached 1 and 2 Thessalonians all the way through. It seems like it’s high time to get into them for a balanced scriptural diet.
But even more important than all those things are what these Thessalonian letters are all about. And one good way of summarizing it is to say that they are full of encouragement.
How many here could use some encouragement? Raise your hand. Yes, me, too. I think we all can. So here’s the title I’ve picked out for this two-book series, and I lifted it from 2 Thessalonians 2:16. It’s called: “Eternal Encouragement.” Doesn’t that sound good?
Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 2:16 and 17, “May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word” (2 Thess. 2:16-17).
That’s what I’m hoping for, right there, with this series. That our hearts, church, would be encouraged and that you and I would be strengthened in every good deed and word. Eternal encouragement.
Now, some of your versions will have the word “comfort” there. “Eternal comfort,” and that’s a good translation. Giving comfort to our hearts. Assurance, confidence, consolation, especially when things get hard. But the word for “encouragement” can mean also more than that. Just like our English word “encouragement” can mean more than that, too. It can also have the meaning of “exhortation.” Like, the state patrolman that says, “I’m going to encourage you to slow down on this interstate.” Encouragement as a kick-in-the-pants or a course-direction. We need that sometimes, too, don’t we? Well, Paul is going to give some of that kind of strong encouragement to the Thessalonians along the way, as well.
Eternal encouragement. That’s forever! We’ve been learning a lot about forever recently. Everlasting life. And eternity. The Ancient of Days in the Book of Daniel. He always was, always is, and always will be. That’s eternal!
And we’ve thinking a lot about the future in the Book of Daniel. The Apostle Paul also writes a lot about the future in the two letters to the Thessalonians. These two books are also full of what theologians call “eschatology” or the doctrine of final things. In fact, the Apostle Paul talks about the return of Jesus Christ at least once in every single chapter of these two books!
We’re going to keep focused on the future. And, especially, how to live our lives now in light of the future. How eternity encourages us. That’s what we’re going to learn about. How what is to come affects our lives in the here and the now. Does that make sense? We’re going to see it right here in the first chapter of First Thessalonians. Let’s read the first verse.
“Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you.”
Our sermon title comes right out this verse. It is simply, “To the Church of the Thessalonians.” This letter and all of its eternal encouragement was written for this church family that was located in Thessalonica.
It’s a letter from, “Paul, Silas, and Timothy.” Mainly from the Apostle Paul, but he had these two other men on his ministry team, and they all cared deeply about the church of the Thessalonians, so they all got their names put on there.
And they wrote this letter about the year 50 or 51 AD, and they sent it to “The Church of the Thessalonians.” And that’s not a building. That’s a group of people who have formed a church congregation. And, in fact, it was the Apostle Paul who helped to plant that church.
This is a baby church.
Our teens are studying the Book of Acts right now on Sunday nights at Youth Bible Study, and I think they’ve just gotten to where the Apostle Paul has become a Christian and started to share the gospel beyond the boundaries of Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria. They are headed to the uttermost parts of the earth.
Paul and his missionary team are headed out into the Roman world to tell people about Jesus. And on their second missionary trip, they visited the province of Macedonia, and they hit a city called “Thessalonica.” It still exists today, but now they call it “Thessaloniki.” Same difference.
Thessalonica was a great big city in Paul’s day. Over 100,000 people. Maybe closer to 200,000. It was a great location. It is a port city on the Aegean sea with a great harbor, and it’s on the main commercial road called the Egnatian Way. A big bustling town founded by the Greek commander Cassander back in 315BC and named after his wife Thessalin who was the half-sister of Alexander the Great. (The big horn on the shaggy goat!)
Well, 360 years later, the Apostle Paul hits town, and the first thing he always does is to find the Jews and tell them about how Jesus is the their Messiah. We read us the story in Acts chapter 17. Paul taught in the synagogue for three Sabbaths. To the Jews first. And then he went to the Greeks. Teens, you’re going to see this strategy over and over again. Jews first, then Greeks.
And the Bible says that some of the Jews were persuaded! And some of the Greek men and bunch of prominent women! And they formed a church. A baby church. The Church of the Thessalonians.
But the rest of the Jews were jealous and angry, so they got some rabble-rousers together and formed a mob and attacked the house where they thought Paul was. And started a riot! And so Paul and the church decided that it was best if Paul and his team left town and went to the next place which was called Berea. And then they went on from there to Athens and then to Corinth.
And Paul got to worrying about the baby church.
“I wonder if they are okay.”
“I wonder if they are still there.”
“I wonder if they know we still care.”
“I wonder how they are doing.”
So, Paul sent his teammate Timothy back to Thessalonica to check on the church of the Thessalonians, and gather some good intel. And by the time Timothy got back, Paul was very encouraged! And so he wrote a letter back to the church of the Thessalonians to encourage them!
That’s First Thessalonians! This is one of the very first Christian letters. It’s one of the very oldest Christian letters that we still have, especially by Paul. The only one older by Paul is probably the book of Galatians. Paul wrote this letter while the events of the Book of Acts were still unfolding!
And he wants to encourage the church of the Thessalonians. He says that they are “in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Don’t miss that. I almost titled this message, “In God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ,” and started the sermon like so many Daniel sermons, “1 Thessalonians chapter 1 is about God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Because it is! We can’t miss that this letter, while addressed to the church and focused on their encouragement, is not ultimately about the church of the Thessalonians but about where that church is located.
And it’s not primarily located in Thessalonica! It’s located “in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
What a way to think, huh? This church. We’re not primarily the church in Lanse or Cooper Township or Clearfield County or Central Pennsylvania. We are a church “in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Wow!
And Paul ends his greeting with the blessing, “Grace and peace to you,” which is not just words, but the encouragement he wants them to have.
“Grace and peace to you.” Do you see how encouraging these two books are going to be?
Today, I have four main points of eternal encouragement from the first chapter of first Thessalonians. Four ways that Paul encouraged them that I think speak to us today, as well.
Here’s the first one:
#1. THE CHURCH OF THE THESSALONIANS WAS TRULY LOVED.
We’re going to feel this week after week as we read these letters.
There is so much affection from Paul towards this baby church. They were dearly loved. He was only with them, what, a few months at the most? But they are imprinted on his heart. See what he says about how grateful he was for them. Look at verse 2.
“We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ” (vv.2-3).
He just exudes sweet affection for this church. He couldn’t stop praying for them. He and Silas and Timothy were always bringing up the Thessalonians during their prayer times. And remembering before God all of what they appreciated about the church when they prayed.
Can you see the prayer meeting in your mind? “Lord, we just want to thank You for the church of the Thessalonians. We remember their hard work for the gospel (that came from their faith, Lord. They truly believed.) Lord, we remember their labor of love. They didn’t just play at love. They worked at it. They labored at love. Thank you for that! And, Lord, they didn’t give up. They had endurance. And that wasn’t from them. That came from You. That came from their hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. That He has come and is coming again. Lord, thank You for their steadfast hope and faithfulness!”
Every time Paul thought about this church, he was encouraged and just loved them and gave thanks for them before God.
How encouraging that must have been for them to read that letter. Right?!
Have you ever gotten a letter like that? Where somebody told you that they were praying for you and mainly that they were praying thanksgiving for you?! That they have seen these signs of God’s grace in your life and could not help but thank God for you!
“We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers.”
Who could you say that to this week? Who could you write a note to (a text, an email, a “snap,” a message) and just tell them how thankful you are for what God is doing in and through them?
Don’t send it to me. Look around the room right now. And think who you could send a note like this to. It might make all the difference for someone this week.
“We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers.”
They were loved.
And, church, this is how I feel about you. We’re coming up on 27 years now of ministry together, and I am so grateful for all 27 years. I’m so thankful to God for your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. And LEFC is not a baby church. We are 133 years old. We should be mature in this!
I love you, Lanse Free Church.
And keep it up! I think that when they got this letter from Paul, it was an encouragement looking backwards, but it was also an encouragement (in the other way) looking forwards, to not stop with their work, labor, and endurance from faith, love, and hope. Keep it up! Because you are truly loved.
And the truest, deepest, most fundamental love was not Paul’s love for his church, but God’s love for this church. Look at verse 4.
“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction” (vv.4-5a).
Paul calls them “brothers.” That’s easy to miss because we’re used to it, but that’s a very important word [Greek: adelphoi]. Paul uses it something like 20 times in these two short letters. That word emphasizes they are spiritual siblings. Brothers and sisters. They are family. They are loved.
They are the family of God. They are (v.4) “loved by God.”
And here’s how loved they are by God! They are chosen by God. They were loved by God before they ever knew Him. They were loved by God before they could ever choose Him.
“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you.”
Now, the whole doctrine of election (God’s choosing) is mysterious and difficult to wrap our minds around. And different Christians put it together different ways in their brains. But all Christians who believe their Bibles believe in God’s choosing. Because here it is in verse 4! And all Christians who believe their Bibles are thankful for it and are encouraged by it.
Because on our own, we would never choose God. He’s got to make the first move. And He has!
“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, [how?] because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction” (vv.4-5a).
Paul was there! He saw these believers become believers. He saw that God was at work in them. He knows how the Holy Spirit showed up on the scene.
Perhaps there were miracles. There definitely was a miracle. These people had been converted!
“Our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction.”
I love how he calls it, “their” gospel. He doesn’t mean that it came from them. It’s God’s gospel! It’s the gospel of Jesus Christ! But he loves it and owns it as his own. And so do they!
It came with power! “It did not come simply with words.” It did come with words. The gospel is words. You can’t share the gospel without words. But it did not come simply with words, only with words. It came with power! “...with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction.”
I’m not sure if that conviction was the Thessalonians or Paul’s, Silas’s, and Timothy’s? They really believed the gospel! They were sure it was true, and they shared it like it was true! “With deep conviction.” Either way, when they were done, they all had the same deep conviction! The missionary team and the baby church. Because these Thessalonians were genuinely converted.
That’s point number two:
#2. THE CHURCH OF THE THESSALONIANS WAS TRULY CHANGED.
They had (v.3) genuine faith, love, and hope. Those three items show up again and again in the letters of Paul. Faith, hope, and love. Paul could see that they had them, and that’s why he was sure that they were chosen.
You see, we know that we’re chosen because we’re changed.
We go from unbelief to faith.
We go from hate to love.
And we go from despair to hope because of Jesus Christ.
Paul saw tons of evidence of genuine conversion in this baby church.
And one of things he saw was that they began to live like he did. Look again at verse 5.
“You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit” (vv.5b-6).
Paul was so encouraged by how this fledgling church started imitating him and his team. They looked at his life, and they said, “I want to be like that.”
Not in everything, but in the essential things. The Christ-like things.
He says, “You became imitators of us AND OF THE LORD.”
In the ways that Paul followed Jesus, the Thessalonians began to follow Paul. And here was one of the key ways–they had joy even when they were suffering. Even when they were being persecuted.
Did our Lord Jesus do that? For the joy set before Him, He endured the Cross.
Did Paul do that? Right before they went to Thessalonica in Acts 17, they were in a city called Phillipi in Acts 16. And Paul got into trouble there and got thrown into prison with Silas. And you know what they did there?
They sang! They sang with joy in their prison. Who does that?! Somebody who is genuinely changed. That’s who.
And Paul could tell that the Thessalonians had been truly changed. Timothy brought back word that they were holding on even when things got tough. More than just holding on. They were rejoicing just like Paul and just like our Lord because the Holy Spirit was at work in them.
Have you ever had joy despite your circumstances? Have you ever been able to rejoice even when life was dark and hard? That’s the Holy Spirit at work in you and it’s a sign that you’ve been truly changed. How encouraging!
We think it would be encouraging to not have to go through the trial, but it’s a mark of genuineness when we go through the trial and we still can sing in our prisons!
The Thessalonians followed Paul’s pattern of life so well that they began to be an example for others! Look at verse 7.
“You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.”
How encouraging was that?! To be so truly changed that other people are now following your example!
Here’s point number three:
#3. THE CHURCH OF THE THESSALONIANS WAS TRULY EFFECTIVE.
This little baby church was having an outsized effect on others.
Paul says that all of the believers in the northern province of Macedonia (that where Thessalonica was) and all the believers of in the southern province of Achaia were keying off of this tiny church!
Now that may not have been that many people, but it must have been encouraging to this little church that other people were watching them and being encouraged to live like Jesus, too!
Can I encourage you, church? I believe that people are watching you and that you’re being a model for the believers in our region. I think that other Christians are cuing off of you right now.
That’s a big responsibility, but a good one! Are you aware of that? Are you intentionally living your life right now as a model for others? If someone was to say, “I want to live as a true Christian, so I’m going to live like you do...” are you ready for that? Because that’s how it’s supposed to work. People are supposed to look at our lives and say, “That’s what a follower of Jesus looks like. So I’m going to pattern my life after theirs.”
Not perfectly, of course. And not in every respect. Not everybody is supposed to act like a quirky fifty-two year-old former circus performer like me. But they are supposed to track after my faith, after my love, after my hope. They are supposed to see my work, my labor, my endurance. And my joy in spite of suffering.
Are you ready for somebody to follow you? The Thessalonians were after just a few months of being discipled by Paul. So much so that they were effective throughout their region and beyond! Look at verse 8.
“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” (vv.8-9).
The church of the Thessalonians had become famous. Not for being slick or cool, but for being real. And really committed to the gospel.
“The Lord’s message rang out from you.” I love that! It sounded forth. It echoed. It reverberated. They heard the gospel and they believed the gospel and they shared the gospel. They heard the gospel and they believed the gospel and they shared the gospel. They heard the gospel and they believed the gospel and they shared the gospel.
So that it reverberated throughout the land and is still reverberating today! Here we are reading about it in central Pennsylvania in 2025! I think that’s pretty effective!
How encouraging that must have been to read that in Paul’s letter! Their faith had gone viral. May it be so for us, as well. They didn’t keep the gospel to themselves. It rang out from them.
I want the gospel to ring out from Lanse Free Church. Who could we tell? Who could you tell this week about what the Lord has done for you? How He has truly loved you and truly changed you. Is there a name when I ask that question? Is there a face? Somebody you know that you should be talking to this week. Maybe today?
Let it ring out! Let the gospel sound forth and echo throughout Central Pennsylvania and beyond. Paul says that they were so effective, he doesn’t have to tell people about the Thessalonians. Everybody’s heard the story. That might be an exaggeration but it’s based on truth. People were telling Paul the story! About how the Thessalonians heard the gospel and were genuinely converted. Verse 9.
“They tell how you [Thessalonians] 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” (vv.9-10).
That’s how truly changed they were. They were no longer worshipping fake and dead gods like Zeus and Apollo and Artemis and Athena. They were no longer worshipping fake and dead Roman gods like Jupiter, Mercury, Venus, and Mars. Now, they were serving the true and living God. The everlasting God. The God Who Lives Forever (like we said last week in Daniel 12).
And now their lives are taken up by waiting. Waiting for the return of the King of Kingdoms, the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 10 again.
You have turned 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.”
Point number four and last:
#4. THE CHURCH OF THE THESSALONIANS WAS TRULY SAFE.
Because they had come to believe in Jesus Christ–the One who had been crucified on a Roman cross but had not stayed dead. Christ the Lord is still risen today!–they knew that they were safe from the wrath to come.
It’s not that God is not wrathful. He is. He is holy! God is going to judge the world in wrath bringing justice against all sin and wickedness. And we all deserve God’s wrath. We all deserve shame and everlasting contempt.
But Jesus has:
“Fully paid for all our sins
with His precious blood,
and has set us free
from all the power of the devil.” [Heidelberg Catechism Question #1]
And He has come back to life to give us everlasting life. We just have to wait for Him! We are safe if we are in Jesus.
I don’t know when He is coming back. I just know that He IS coming back, and He will rescue me from the coming wrath.
And that is eternal encouragement.
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