DRAFT ONLY

Introduction
      In these verses, Paul continues his thanksgiving to God for the Thessalonian church. He began by thanking God for them in v2, and now he continues by thanking God for the wonderful way they responded to the preaching of the gospel.

The passage
      It is clear to Paul that the Thessalonians were a chosen people. He and his fellow evangelists felt a real sense of God's powerful involvement in the mission to Thessalonica, and were able to see with their own eyes the dramatic effect of the gospel on the lives of the hearers. The Thessalonians were soundly converted - turning away from idols, giving their lives to Jesus, and looking forward to his coming in glory. They become imitators of the apostles and of Jesus, they accepted the word of life even though it brought persecution, and they set about the task of evangelism themselves. On these grounds Paul gives thanks.

      v4. Addressing the Thessalonians as "brothers" in the Lord, Paul expresses his sure belief that they are "chosen" by God. Note the term "brothers". It expresses the type of relationship that exists between Christians - family. Also note the use of the word "chosen". Bishop Lightfoot claimed that the "word was never used in the New Testament in the sense of election to final salvation".
      The issue of God's election to salvation of a select group of individuals, is a controversial one indeed. Article 17 of the Thirty-nine Articles presents the teaching of the Anglican church on this issue. No theologian wants to argue that election is an arbitrary device used by God to select a few for salvation while damning the rest. All want to see it as proceeding out of God's love for broken humanity, cf. 2Thess.2:13. Yet once election is viewed as the salvation of certain individuals, then the state of those who were left unselected does become a rather difficult moral problem. In the Old Testament, election is of the nation Israel, but in the New Testament Reformed theologians (e.g. Calvin) followed Augustine and argued that it is applied to the individual. It is most likely that when Paul says of the Thessalonians, God "has chosen you", he is doing nothing more than affirming that the Gentiles are now, in God's grace, incorporated into the chosen people of God. All races can now become part of the elect/chosen people of God, ie. the new Israel. This is the gospel - believe in Jesus and we can all be special in God's eyes, not just Jews.
      Paul goes on to detail the reasons why the Thessalonians are indeed members of the elect family of God.
      v5. First, he evidences the subjective experience of the preachers themselves. They felt that their mission in Thessalonica, and in particular their preaching of the gospel, came with an extraordinary dynamic. They weren't just proclaiming words. Paul makes three comments about their preaching:
        i] The gospel came in power. There was great power associated with their preaching. They felt it.
        ii] The Holy Spirit was present. God was in on the whole thing. They sensed it.
        iii] They felt a deep conviction. It is possible that this deep conviction or assurance refers to the experience of the converts, but it is more likely that it refers to the preachers themselves. They just knew that God was at work in the situation.
      So the subjective experience of the preachers supports the notion that these Gentile Thessalonians are truly part of God's chosen people.
      Note Paul's final comment. "You know how we lived among you for your sake." ie. You well remember our preaching, how we were so confident and on top of the world. It was because we were in the centre of it. God was working and we tapped into it.
      v6-10. Second, he evidences the effects on the lives of the Thessalonians. Their new life-style supported Paul's belief that they were now members of the chosen people of God. Paul details this view with reference to four pieces of evidence - four dramatic changes in their lives:
        i] "Imitators of us and of the Lord", v6. Instead of following the ethos of the age they set out to follow their Lord, as explained and lived out by the missionaries.
        ii] "Welcomed the message with joy", v6. Despite severe suffering and opposition, they responded to the gospel with joy, a joy that is given by the Holy Spirit. A joy so powerful that it overwhelmed their present trouble, Acts.5:41, 2Cor.7:4, 8:2. Obviously a joy of divine origin rather than of autosuggestion.
        iii] They took up the work of evangelists, v.7-8. They were a model church community, especially in their work of evangelism. They got the message out, so much so that many far and wide come to recognize them as followers of the new religion.
      Note the term "believers". It is used some twenty times in the New Testament as a title for the followers of Jesus. The term "christian" is used only once as a derogatory term. The actual title for the Christian religion itself was not Christianity, but rather "The Way". This term is used six times in the book of Acts.
      As for the basis of their zeal to get the message out, it had to do with the message itself. It was a word from God, not a mystical reflection of mankind. It was the "The Lord's message."
        iv] They were soundly converted, v.9-10. The effects of their gospelling work was that Paul didn't even need to speak of how the mission had gone in Thessalonica. The surrounding towns knew all about it by the time he came to them. All knew how the Thessalonians were soundly converted to the new religion.
      Note what Paul says about the conversion of the Thessalonians:
        a). Turned to God from idols. As one historian put it, "The attitude of Apostolic Christianity to the Polytheistic world was one of militant hostility". There was no way that Christ would be placed beside the idols of the day. The Polytheism of the age was totally rejected.
        b). Served their Lord. They entered into the service of a God who is living and true. They became his slaves. They took up their cross. Note the two key words. "Living", the word means active. Unlike the idols who do nothing, God orders all things both in heaven and on earth. They served an active God. Also the word, "True", it means real, as opposed to false or counterfeit. They served the God who exists.
        c). Waited expectantly for the second coming. v10. They possessed a sustained and fervent expectation of the return of Jesus. They looked forward to the day when they would be rescued from the coming wrath of God. For the New Testament, "the wrath of God" is the most notable feature of the coming day when Jesus returns. It was a central part of gospel proclamation and was therefore emphasised in preaching. The message of salvation stressed Jesus' resurrection from the dead. Our risen Lord will rescue us from that dreadful day. We may not like the idea of an angry God, but then we have little understanding of the significance of sin and how repugnant it is to our Lord.

The model church
      As far as Paul is concerned, the Thessalonians were a model church. This being the case, we can rightly assess if we come up to their standing. How well do we fit the model?

      I remember some years ago I was with a group of believers who were trying to identify the characteristics of a New Testament church. Somehow the word got around and it was interesting to find that a number of Christians were very happy to pass on the good news about their church. They had it. They were the model New Testament church and we were very welcome to follow their model, if we wished.
      This passage gives us a picture of a model church - "You became a model to all the believers". So let's look at some of the factors and relate them to our own church.

      1. Realising the Kingdom. The "gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power."
      It's clear that Paul's mission-team sensed that they were right in the centre of God's will as they worked to develop the Thessalonian church. The mission intersected with the will of God and mighty things were beginning to happen. Not only did they see results, but they sensed the involvement of the Lord in all that was happening. His power was active. The crucial issue for any church is whether it is aligned to the will of God. Has it placed itself in the centre of God's active intention to establish his Kingdom in power? It's here that things begin happen. Prayer is answered and the Kingdom realised.

      2. Imitators of Christ. "You became imitators.... of the Lord."
      To image a Christ-like life within a church community is a mighty thing indeed. To be like the master, to be seen to be like him, now that would be a great honour.

      3. Joy in distress. "You welcomed the message with... joy."
      It is a wonderful quality to rejoice in trouble. It is clear that we should possess such a joy, but it is also clear that it is a gift of God, mediated through the Holy Spirit. We should pray to possess such a quality - to take Christ's word to heart joyfully.

      4. Evangelists. "The Lord's message rang out from you.... your faith in God has become known everywhere."
      A church devoted to the business of getting the gospel out. Undertaking the work of evangelism. Not necessarily doing the up-front work, but none-the-less committed to seeing to it that the gospel is communicated in our district and to the ends of the world.

      5. No compromise. "You turned to God from idols."
      How easily we get sucked into worshipping the idols of this age. We get caught up into the materialistic milieu of our times. We adopt the life-style of success. To be a people militantly against the ethos of this age, now there would be something.

      6. Cross-bearing. You gave yourself "to serve the living and true God."
      It is not easy to willingly enter into servitude. Yet our Lord demands cross-bearing service, for he is one who is active in achieving his will and it is our task to be the servants of his will in this age and the next. Here then is another quality to desire for our church - discipleship.

      7. Hope. You "wait for his Son from heaven."
      To be always fervent in our eternal hope. To be possessed by a sustained expectation in the return of Christ. To wait fervently for the new Heavens and the new Earth. Now that's how we need to be.