Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy: To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to you and peace.
1 Thess
1.1
Who? [Paul with Silas & Timothy; 2.18, 3.2]
Whom? [Christians in Thessalonica; Acts 17.1-9]
When? [AD 50-51; written after Timothy returned with report on the Thessalonian church]
Where? [likely from Corinth after having gone to Athens]
What? [A letter to believers with whom Paul didn’t get to spend enough time (he’d sent Timothy to go check on them)]
Why? [To encourage peace amid persecution; endurance to end times; God’s sovereignty and believer’s faith in salvation]
Why do you think Paul so often in his letters opened with “grace to you and peace?”
1.2-3
Paul seems fixated on this triad—Faith, Hope, & Love. Where else do we read this from him? [; ; ; ]
What is/are the results of faith, love, & hope in the lives of the Thessalonian Christians? [work, labor, endurance;…also, check out the relation of virtue and result]
1.4-5a
Eternal hope is described as based in what truth? [Gospel]
What specific aspects of the Gospel are especially significant in this case? Why?