II Thessalonians 1:1-12

II Thessalonians 1:1-12

I.                    II Thessalonians 1:1-2

a.       V. 1

                                                              i.      Paul, Silas (or Silvanus), and Timothy are still together

                                                            ii.      “Our” has been added to “Father”, emphasizing the church’s familial nature

b.      V. 2

                                                              i.      Paul explicitly identifies God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ as the source of grace

                                                            ii.      Paul is being counter-cultural here, writing to a church enjoying God’s “grace and peace”, rather than the “peace and security” of the emperor

II.                 II Thessalonians 1:3-4

a.       V. 3

                                                              i.      Paul is obligated to thank God when he thinks of them

                                                            ii.      Their faithfulness to God, and love for each other has not only survived, its increased

                                                          iii.      “growing abundantly” and “increasing” are in the present tense, implying continued growth, almost organic in nature

1.      He prayed for these in I Thessalonians 3:10, 12

b.      V. 4

                                                              i.      The result of this growth and abundance is Paul boasting about them, which clearly indicates that this is not as cold a letter as some suppose

                                                            ii.      The persecution they are enduring, in the present tense, shows that they are still in the midst of suffering

                                                          iii.      Paul boasted to other churches with which he had contact because of their endurance

1.      Cf. I Thessalonians 1:8; II Corinthians 8:1-5

2.      Could this indicate that the Thessalonian church was one of the first to encounter persecution, and thus offered an example for those churches which would undergo persecution in the future?

c.       Do we see church growth as an achievement or a gift from God?

III.               II Thessalonians 1:5-10

a.       V. 5

                                                              i.      The Thessalonians might feel as if they are being punished for doing what is right

                                                            ii.      “’The very existence of such enormities’ as persecution is then ‘a manifest proof,’ or demonstration that there will be ‘a righteous judgment of God.” – Charles Simeon

b.      V. 6

                                                              i.      God’s justice=trouble for the trouble-makers, rest for the troubled

                                                            ii.      Cf. Isaiah 66:6

1.      “Recompense”, can have either a positive or negative connotation

                                                          iii.      Cf. Deuteronomy 32:35, Luke 6:20-26, Romans 12:19, Hebrews 10:30

                                                          iv.      “The God whom Paul is describing is a God who does offer love and reconciliation to his enemies, but if they refuse this offer and continue in opposition to his goodness and love, then it would seem inevitable that, having refused mercy, they must face justice.  Nothing in the NT suggests that God’s love is indifferent to justice, and that he bestows a free pardon on his enemies at the cost of failing to defend the persecuted against the persecutors.” – I. Howard Marshall

c.       V. 7

                                                              i.      Christ will be revealed “from heaven”, showing his current location

1.      He will come with angels of his power

a.       Cf. I Thessalonians 3:13

                                                            ii.      His final coming is not just parousia, it is apokalypsis, an uncovering or revealing of Jesus Christ.

1.      Retribution is part of that revealing

d.      V. 8

                                                              i.      Jesus will come with fire

1.      Cf. Isaiah 66:15-16

                                                            ii.      Jesus is being equated with God through the title “Lord”, the gospel with God’s word

1.      Punishment belongs to God alone, so that in attributing it to Jesus Christ, Paul is making a statement about Jesus divinity

e.       V. 9

                                                              i.      They pay the penalty, or get what they deserve

                                                            ii.      To be shut out from God’s presence is the worst punishment of all

1.      Cf. Isaiah 2:10, 19, 21; Philippians 1:23

2.      The opposite of I Thessalonians 4:17

                                                          iii.       “If there is any truth in Scripture at all, this is true- that those who stubbornly refuse to submit to the gospel, and to love and obey Jesus Christ, incur at the Last Advent an infinite and irreparable loss.  They pass into a night on which no morning dawns.” - James Denney

f.       V. 10

                                                              i.      Christ “in” his Holy Ones is part of the reward of the faithful

1.      Cf. I John 3:2

                                                            ii.      “to be glorified in his saints”- cf. Psalm 88:6

                                                          iii.      “to be marveled at among all who have believed”- cf. Psalm 67:36

                                                          iv.      Could this be an indirect reference to Philippians 2:10?

IV.              II Thessalonians 1:11-12

a.       V. 11

                                                              i.      Cf. I Thessalonians 1:2; I Thessalonians 2:12

                                                            ii.      There is a healthy tension between divine activity and human work

                                                          iii.      “Power” is almost always linked with the working of the Holy Spirit

                                                          iv.      It is God’s power which brings about the goodness which is a fruit of the Spirit (cf. Galatians 5:22)

b.      V. 12

                                                              i.      Reciprocal glorification

                                                            ii.      Our ability to do these things is because of God’s grace, or unmerited favor

c.       Only grace allows us to give glory to God, and only grace allows us to imagine the possibility of human glory