1 Thessalonians 1 5b-7

Pass it forward. We were an example to you, you became an example to others. That, in a nutshell, is the basic message of 1 Thessalonians 1:5b-7.

....You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit; so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedo'nia and in Acha'ia.   1 Thess 1:5-7 RSV

When Messiah chooses us, when we know that we have been purchased by his blood, we are wrong to say, "I have my ticket to heaven." Heaven is not a destination, it is new life from the moment you are born from on high. You will find that you are on a journey along a steep and narrow path but you are not alone. There are others who stepped on the path before you, and still more who will come after you.

Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1 RSV The way of righteousness is how we are to live. A. Roth in his "Aramaic English New Testament" teaches that "turning to YHVH" is a very Jewish idea. In the English speaking world we would call this action "repentance". When we turn to YHVH or repent of sin, we find the path of righteousness. The path is a way to live. A life of righteousness is a very specific way to live. I find that it does not come natural or easily on this difficult path. Y'shua/Jesus came to show us the way. Those who followed Y'shua gave the pattern for those of us who would follow them on the path. We in turn are to be an example for those who come after us.

The beauty of this walk of faith is that we do not need to become Pharisees, judging one another, practicing ritual fasting or other pious acts to stay on the path. Make no mistake, judgement (that starts from within), fasting and pious acts all have a place upon this path we walk but they are not the path. I personally believe that the Pharisees did what they did because they wanted to be righteous before God. I think that they wanted to be worthy of being imitated. But I know that we have an element that they did not have which keeps the Way from being added to or watered down by those who go before us. We have the breath of YHVH, the Holy Spirit who gives us life in addition to his Word which gives us the way.

The Gospel comes to all of us in Word, but for the chosen it also comes with the power of the Holy Spirit, the life breath of God. You can have religion with the Word but unless you have life, religion is all you get. With the Life of the Spirit you gain a relationship with YHVH. The power to live.

Why than is it so important to be tested, proofed, and to live as an example? For me, I know my YHVH but I cannot see Him. He constantly puts before me people who are walking on the path, who show me that even when it seems difficult, we have power to overcome the difficulty and to continue on. There are those who come after me, who watch how I walk, how you walk, on this steep, narrow path. They are encouraged by our walk. There are even many on the wide path of destruction, who have slid from the path or have not yet come to faith, who watch us walk in righteousness and they are encouraged to turn to YHVH, to repent. It is important that we follow Messiah so that those who follow us can give the glory, not to us, but to Y'shua!

Press on fellow Pilgrims.

Summer Reading; 1 Thessalonians

Years ago, while working at a local Christian school, I had two Greek students. Their home was Thessaloni'ca and they grew up speaking the language that I struggle to understand through books and commentaries. Talking with Dimitri about the meaning of words was joy. His sister Anthea was shy but charming. I think of them as I try to mentally enter the world of the Thessalonians, a place I have never seen.

Paul, Silvanus and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.

Who are Paul, Silvanus and Timothy?
Paul and Silvanus are Jewish men who are also citizens of Rome.

But Paul said to them (the Phillipan jailer), "They (the big wigs of Philippi) have beaten us in public without trial, Men who are Romans, and have thrown us (Paul and Silvanus) into prison; and now are they sending us away secretly? No indeed! But let them come themselves and bring us out." And the policemen reported these words to the chief magistrates. And they were afraid when they heard that they were Romans,   Acts 16:37-38

Both of these men have a Roman name as well as a Jewish name. Saul/Paul and Silas/Silvanus.

Timothy is half Greek, half Jewish. He was raised by his Jewish mother and grandmother in the land of his Father. When Paul met him and realized what a quality young believer he was, he invited him to come with him on his journey.

How did they become acquainted with Thessaloni'ca?
Originally, everyone who was a believer in Y'shua (Jesus) were in Jerusalem. In the beginning believers were Jewish or had become worshippers of YHVH in the Synagogue. The Lord gave the Apostle Peter a vision that he would include gentiles in the kingdom of heaven, a difficult concept for life-long Jews. Peter was the first to witness the Spirit of God filling Gentile men in the same way that he had experienced. Paul was also called to bring the Word of Life to everyone, the Jew first and then to the Gentile. (a gentile is any person who is not a Jew). He and Barnabas set out to fulfil that mission. Other men felt the same call to spread the gospel. The problem was that Paul and Barnabas rightly understood that while we still enter into a covenant with YHVH, that covenant had a different administration than it did under Moses. Among the many changes in administration, such as a new high priest and a new, perfect sacrifice, the sign of the covenant, which is circumcision, was now of the heart, not done by the hands of men in the flesh. Jewish men came from Jerusalem to share the good news of the gospel with the world. Hallelujah! But they misunderstood that under the new administration of this covenant, men who believe no longer need to be circumcised in the flesh. Because these men were known as Judisers I assume that they believed that under Y'shua, all the world would become Jewish and live under the old administration of Moses. To solve this dilemma they all went back to Jerusalem where it all began, to discuss with the apostles and elders how to have unity. The result was the famous letter of Acts 15:23-29. Silas (Silvanus) and a man named Judas went with Paul and Barnabas back to their home church of Antioch where the letter was received with joy for the encouragement it gave to a unified body of believers.

To make a long story short, Paul and his new partner, Silas, set off on a journey to encourage the churches that Paul and Barnabas had established with the letter from Jerusalem. Along the way they brought the good news of Y'shua  for all men to Phillippi. While there they were beaten and imprisoned. Instead of moaning about their circumstances, they praised God in the dark. God set them free from prison by knocking down the prison. Salvation came to the house of the Warden (the jailer) but the city asked them to leave. Thus bruised and cut but strengthened in Y'shua, they came to Thessaloni'ca where they got right to the mission of sharing the good news in the local synagogue. People of all sorts responded. There is no evidence that they told the assembly about the drama in Phillippi and what God had done for them, only what the Scriptures said God would do for all who believe.

Jealousy is an ugly attribute. It slips up on a soul and does not introduce itself, everyone but the jealous person sees it for what it is. After three weeks of speaking in the Synagogue of Thessaloni'ca where a few Jews and even more God fearing men became believers in the Way, believers in Y'shua/Jesus  (according to FF Bruce, God-fearers are gentiles who worship YHVH by doing everything according to Torah EXCEPT being circumcised in the flesh). Acts 17:5 says that the Jews became jealous. The rest of Acts 17 tells the result of their jealousy ending with forcing Paul to leave the infant church. Apparently Silas and Timothy stayed behind for a short while to establish the church in Thessaloni'ca. Would the breath of YHVH, whom we call the Holy Spirit, be enough to sustain this infant assembly of believers in the midst of so much opposition? Could the church stand under the weight of jealousy? Would they still respect Paul and his companions?

The first letter to the Thessalonians will give the happy answer.