Welcome to Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians): Being a Christian in the Greek, first-century city of Thessalonica was tough. Thessalonica was a big and prosperous city, but it was full of idols. The Apostle Paul and the first Christians there faced fierce religious persecution and tremendous political pressure to conform. But despite their suffering, they remained faithful. Our culture is different today, but following Jesus can still be very costly. Will we be faithful to the end? Recorded on Apr 27, 2025, on 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5a and Acts 17:1-15 by Pastor David Parks.
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This sermon is part of our series on 1 Thessalonians called Faithful to the End.
Sermon Transcript
Well, today, we’re starting a brand new 10-part sermon series called Faithful to the End from 1 Thessalonians in the Bible. 1 Thessalonians is a letter from the Apostle Paul to the Christians in the Greek city of Thessalonica in the early 50s of the first century AD. It’s an interesting window into early Christianity because it’s the first book written that would eventually be included in what we know as the NT of the Bible. Being a Christian in the Greek, first-century city of Thessalonica was tough. Thessalonica was a big and prosperous city, but it was full of idols. The Apostle Paul and the first Christians there faced fierce religious persecution. Also, there was tremendous political pressure to conform. But thankfully, despite their suffering, despite the opposition against the way of Jesus, God was faithful to them, and these early Christian brothers and sisters remained faithful to him. Our culture is different today, but following Jesus can still be very costly. How can we stand firm regardless of the cost? There are many lessons for us in 1 Thessalonians. So, if you have your Bible/app, please open it to 1Th 1. It’s a short little letter, so if you aren’t sure where it is, you can always look it up in the table of contents. But today, we’ll start the letter of 1Th, but then we’ll jump back to the story of the Apostle Paul first arriving in Thessalonica in Acts 17.
1 Thessalonians 1:1–5a (NIV), “1 Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you. 2 We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers. 3 We 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. 4 For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.” So, as in other letters of Paul in the Bible, he starts with a typical greeting. And Paul mentions a few other people who send their regards to the Thessalonians, including Silas and Timothy. Both of these men were with Paul when they brought the gospel to Thessalonica during Paul’s second missionary journey. After the brief greeting, Paul mentions how thankful he is for them and how often he prays for them. Like a proud dad, Paul is thankful because of the good spiritual fruit he saw in them after they gave their lives to Christ. He mentions their work produced by their faith, their “labor prompted by love.” This is a good reminder that we’re saved by faith, not by works. But saving faith always produces good works. I like to say it this way: The way of salvation is by faith in the person and work of Christ alone. But the way of the Christian life is all about doing the good works God has prepared in advance for us to do. As a pastor, I wish I could see something change when someone believes in Jesus, but only God can see and know the human heart. But what I can see (and what I’m thankful for about you all as well) is the good spiritual fruit that true faith produces—the fruit of the Spirit—when the gospel comes not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit, and with deep conviction. I’m so thankful when I see you love one another and serve one another. I’m so thankful when I see repentance and forgiveness. I love to see people who no longer conform to the pattern of this world but are transformed by the renewing of their minds so they experience more love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and so on. As a good pastor, Paul knew what to look for that would be evidence of saving faith and how important it was to celebrate the fruit when he saw it. He calls out their loving works and their endurance, inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. Both of these themes will be developed more as we continue in our series, but when he mentions their endurance, he’s referring to their endurance, their faithfulness, in the face of opposition and persecution for their newfound faith. As we start this series, let’s turn back to Acts 17 to consider the story of when Paul initially brought the gospel to Thessalonica. This will help us with the context of the rest of this letter. Acts 17:1.
Acts 17:1–4 (NIV), “1 When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,” he said. 4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.” So, just a reminder that Luke, a physician by trade who became a Christian through the ministry of the Apostle Paul, wrote two books of the Bible. The first is called Luke and is focused on the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. The second is called Acts and is about what happened next — what happened after the death and resurrection of Jesus, the spread of the gospel, the work of the Apostles, and the start of the early church. Here, we’re on Paul’s second missionary journey, when he made his way into Europe. And Luke writes that Paul and his companions, including Silas and Timothy, had come from Philippi. There, they had kind of the typical experience for Paul in that a number of people believed the gospel and became Christians. But others rejected the gospel and had Paul and Silas thrown into prison. When they were freed, they left Philippi, passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia as they traveled down the famous Via Egnatia, the main east-west road the Romans had built for war and trade. When they arrived at Thessalonica, the bustling and prosperous capital of the Roman province of Macedonia, a major place of trade since it was a port city on the Via Egnatia, Paul did what Paul always did: they stopped by the local Jewish synagogue. Paul was a Roman citizen, but he was ethnically Jewish. And his missionary strategy was to start in the synagogue to announce that Jesus of Nazareth, the one who died and rose again from the dead, was the Messiah, the anointed one that God had sent to save and rule his people. For three weeks, when the Jewish people gathered at the synagogue on the Sabbath (Saturday) for worship, he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, that is, from the OT in our Bibles, explaining and proving, Luke says, that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. And that this messiah was Jesus. Probably no one was better for this job than Paul. He had been trained as a pharisee, or religious leader, by one of the best, most respected rabbis who was part of the Sanhedrin, or the Jewish ruling council in Jerusalem. He knew the Hebrew Bible inside and out. But Paul had initially rejected Jesus as the messiah. He hated Christians and worked hard to try to stop their movement, overseeing the arrest and even execution of Christians. That is, until Paul met Jesus, and it changed everything for him. He had a vision of the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus and gave his life to Christ. After a number of years of study and ministry, Paul was sent out as a missionary from the church at Antioch. Really, no one was more qualified to do this messianic bible study in Thessalonica. But the result was also typical of Paul’s ministry. Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women. Some people heard the gospel and believed! Some people in Thessalonica went from death to life in Jesus’ name. And the church was born. But not everyone believed.
Acts 17:5-9 (NIV), “5 But other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, 7 and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” 8 When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. 9 Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.” So some believed, but some rejected the good news of Jesus. This is almost always the case. Jesus taught that this was normal in the parable of the sower in Mark 4. The farmer scatters the seed of God’s word, and some soils are ready for the seed to take root and grow into a great harvest, but other soils are not ready. That doesn’t mean they’ll never be open to the gospel, but not everyone is open all the time. But these unbelieving Jews didn’t just agree to disagree. Out of their jealousy, they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace (you know the type), formed a mob, and started a riot in the city. Not good. This would put tremendous pressure on Paul and his coworkers to leave and would intimidate the young believers to keep their faith private. And these enemies of the church were smart. They accused the Christians of treason. “They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” This meant that the Christians weren’t just part of a new religion; the Roman Empire would’ve been fine with that. Rome didn’t care who you worshiped so long as you recognized that Caesar was lord and you paid your taxes. But Christians believed that Jesus was Lord, Jesus was the ultimate King, not Caesar. Christians may not like paying their taxes, but they could not worship Caesar or give him their allegiance above their allegiance to Christ. So this accusation was very effective, and it certainly would’ve thrown the city into turmoil. Thessalonica was not a Roman colony, but it was a free city at this time. That meant they didn’t have to pay as much in taxes as other cities around the empire. This Christian movement didn’t just split the Jewish synagogue as a religious dispute; it could’ve jeopardized their status in the Roman Empire and could possibly have caused Caesar to deploy the army if he thought they were rebelling against him! We don’t know where Paul and Silas were when the mob showed up, but they arrested a man named Jason and some other believers, who had been hosting the Apostle and the others while they were in Thessalonica. Now, we don’t know for sure how much time had passed. Luke says that Paul preached in the synagogue for three weeks, but given how much Paul clearly loved the Christians in Thessalonica (as we’ll see in the weeks to come from his letter), I would guess he stayed with them for at least several months to be able to get to know them so well and teach them the basics of the Christian faith. Thankfully, Jason and the others were able to post bond and didn’t have to stay in prison. But what would come of all this chaos and opposition?
Acts 17:10–15 (NIV), “10 As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11 Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. 12 As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men. 13 But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. 14 The believers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. 15 Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.” This is God’s word. So, with that level of persecution and political pressure, Paul and Silas made the wise decision to continue their missionary journey. In the dark of night, they left Thessalonica for the city of Berea. There, they found people who had the good soil of faith and were receptive to the gospel message. They took it seriously. They examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true, and many people believed. But then, when their enemies in Thessalonica heard that Paul was in Berea, they chased him down there and stirred up the city against them again. Paul had to leave immediately, sailing for Athens. It was there in Athens that Paul, worried sick about his friends in Thessalonica, sent Timothy back to them (after Timothy and Silas joined him there in Athens), to see how they were doing and try to encourage their faith in the face of such strong opposition. When Timothy came back to Paul in Athens, he brought great news. The believers have been suffering a great deal for their faith, but they still believe. They are still faithful. Paul was overjoyed and wrote the letter that we know of as 1 Thessalonians back to them. He wanted to encourage them as well — to stay faithful, to keep following Jesus, to follow the way and the truth and the life, even when it’s costly. Even when they might be kicked out of the synagogue. Even when they might lose their jobs. Even when they might lose friends or family members who do not believe. Even if the whole Roman army showed up on their doorstep. Now, again, we live in a very different time and place. We don’t have the same pressures or opposition. But we are still trying to follow Jesus. And one of the big ideas of the book of 1 Thessalonians is this: Even in the face of great suffering and hardship for the faith, God was faithful to them, and they were faithful to him. Praise God. Over the course of this series, we will consider the many lessons from 1 Thessalonians about how to do this. We’ll see the value in Christian relationships, we’ll see how Paul did his ministry there, we’ll see how to live a holy and generous life, and we’ll be reminded of the hope we have, even in the face of death. We will learn to be faithful to the end. It’s still possible. God is still faithful to us. Will we be faithful to him, even if it costs us? Let us pray.
