From September 2024 we begin a new bi-weekly Wednesday afternoon Bible Study for the Anglican Church of Paphos at Saint Stephen’s, Tala. This will include worship, teaching and group discussion.
We will be studying the Apostle Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonian’s entitled The Marks Of A Model Church. As we ‘dig deeper’ into God’s word, it will both challenge and strengthen our faith as we allow His Spirit to shape our lives and help us to discern His purposes for us. In this letter:
- Paul gives us a model for mission and ministry, focusing on issues such as: self-giving; preferring the needs of others; and prayerful love.
- Paul also gives us a vision for being church, examining issues such as: evangelism; pastoral care; ethics and morals; fellowship, obedience; and future hope.
- Throughout this letter, Paul repeatedly returns to the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith: ‘Christ has died, Christ is Risen, Christ will come again.’
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
Background
Thessalonica was an ancient city in northern Greece. In Paul’s day 200,000 people lived there, mostly Greeks, but also some Romans and a Jewish minority. Thessaloniki (as it is now called) is still thriving and is one of the few cities that has survived from the New Testament era. In Acts 17:1-15, Luke explains how Paul went to Thessalonica in response to a vision, Acts 16:9, to: Come over into Macedonia and help us. Paul’s commission was to take the Gospel to the Gentiles (Acts 9:15; Ephesians 3:1-12) but he always started his ministry among the Jews. The local synagogue was the place where the Torah was known and Paul could, usually, get a sympathetic hearing – at least until persecution began.
Paul’s Purpose For Writing
Paul wrote the letter to the Thessalonians about 50/51 A.D., it was probably one of the first letters he wrote – though it’s argued that Galatians was written earlier (he wrote 2 Thessalonians just a short time later). 1 Thessalonians was written to a young church who were experiencing real problems in a world that wasn’t tolerant to their Christian faith.
Then And Now
I believe we can easily identify with these people because they, and we, live in a similar dangerous and perilous world and face many of the same problems and, in the coming weeks, you’ll see how up-to-date and practical this letter is. Within twenty years of it being written, 70 A. D., the whole of the Ancient East was embroiled in warfare and rebellion as the armies of Titus besieged Jerusalem, destroyed the temple and took the Jews into captivity. The movements that culminated in these events had already begun when this letter was written. However, in the midst of all this, these people had found, in the good news of Jesus, their reason and purpose for life had been drastically altered and reborn – and this letter clearly reflects that.
Why not read through 1 Thessalonians a couple of times before the course begins?
Study and discussion notes will be provided on the day, and via the website. Be sure to bring your Bible and a pen with you! Directions to Saint Stephen’s, Tala, can be found here
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18 September 2024 |
What Every Church Should Be |
WBS01 What every church should be (First Thessalonians 1vs1-10) |
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2 October 2024 |
The Pains Of Growing Up |
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16 October 2024 |
Helping Others To Stand |
WBS03 Helping others to stand (First Thessalonians 3vs1-13) |
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6 November 2024 |
Living To Please God |
WBS04 Living to please God (First Thessalonians 4vs1-12) |
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20 November 2024 |
The Hope Of Christ’s Coming |
WBS05 The hope of Christ’s coming (First Thessalonians 4vs13 – 5vs11 |
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4 December 2024 |
Life In The Local Church |
WBS06 Life In The Local Church (First Thessalonians 5vs12-28) |
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