Pastor's Ponderings: Monday Bible Study on Paul’s letter, 1 Thessalonians 1:6-10 (April 7, 2025)

April 7, 2025:  Monday Bible Study on Paul’s letter, 1 Thessalonians 1:6-10

Good morning after my break last week.  It is good to be back with you.  The best news is that I have a new computer, and it takes seconds to start, to move from item to item, and to open emails.  Prayers today for Sue who is having her first cataract surgery this week.  Please keep her in your prayers for good surgery, and a quick recovery.  Pray too for Annette who is having major dental work done this month.  Pray for our world, God's creation, to turn to the Risen Savior as His Church celebrates His Resurrection on Easter Sunday.  I hope that you will be able to be with us for Easter on the 20th of April.  Our brunch starts at 8:30 with items brought in by our members, and our festival worship is at 10.  Our musicians are busy preparing for this special celebration.  Offer a prayer of Thanks to God for their devotion to their singing and playing and keep me in your prayers to as I prepare for this most special day. 

 Today as we move to Paul's first letter to the church in Thessalonica, we discover something quite unusual.  These new Christians had become energized with the message of the Gospel in such a way that the news of their new faith, and their devotion to the Risen LORD, had spread from north to south, and east to west, all around them, and even to the north into places where it would have been unheard of for anyone to bring a message other than the multiplicity of Roman deities, who under the right conditions could be convinced to do the worshiper's bidding.  I know that sounds a little like the way in which we speak about Christ, but its reality was not similar at all.   The gods of Rome, and the somewhat different Greek gods, perhaps mostly different by the names that Greeks used for them, were petty, back biting, waring with one another, and were often malevolent toward those who worshiped them.  At least that is what the worshipers believed about what they would do.  Paul teaches them about a very different faith.  Faith in God's only begotten Son, raised from the dead on the third day, and Savior of the world, a loving, compassionate, caring Son, who died for the sins of the world, making it possible for all people to be forgiven through faith in God's Son.  So, in all of this the newly faithful in Thessalonica were so changed in their faith and action that others also found their message of Christ to be compelling because of the energy and excitement in Jesus.  Indeed, such energy and excitement get caught by many others.

In 1964 I traveled through the western United States on a six-week trip with my parents.  There were many firsts on that trip.  We went to Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.  If you remember your first trip to these spectacular national parks, then you probably also remember sharing your excitement at seeing Old Faithful erupt on the hour, or the vistas of the vastness and beauty of the Grand Canyon.  That excitement often causes others to plan a trip that includes both of these wonderful parks.  That is exactly what happened as the Thessalonians shared the Good News that had filled their lives.  As your pastor I have the privilege of sharing my excitement and faith every week as we gather for worship.   I am so thankful that God has blessed me with such a gift of speaking and working to live my life as an example of Christ's Love for everyone.  Let me explain a little further.  Another message both Melody and I share constantly as opportunity arises is how wonderful our lives have been because of our commitment to a large family.  Our children, whether biological or adopted, are a fulfillment of our desire to have a large family.  We knew that from the time that we were first married, and even before.  We were never put off by someone telling us that all of our children who were adopted would present all kinds of issues and would be extraordinarily difficult.  You all know the outcomes of these wonderful, now mostly young adults, who through our love for them, and the love of their brothers and sisters in Christ are making their way through life successfully.  Of course, our prayer has always been that others, through our witness, would consider doing foster care and adoption, allowing it to be a big part of their lives.  It is all about living our lives in Christ with the compassion that we have first learned from Him.  I hope that you can see how the Thessalonian's changed lives caused the news of their new faith to spread far and wide.  The message of their faith in Christ rocketed throughout the part of the world in which they lived.  This is especially important because Roman leaders were deemed to be a god at the time of their death, and even some living ones took that designation on as well.  The world in which these new Christians lived was full of opportunities to worship false gods, but the truth and power of Christ in His life, and in His Resurrection, filled the lives of these new Christians, and many who would come to faith in Christ after them.

I will be back with you tomorrow as we move forward with our texts.

With love in Christ, Pastor Kim