1 From: Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy. To: The church of the Thessalonians in union with God the Father and the Lord Jesus, the Messiah. May grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus, the Messiah, be yours! 2-3  We always thank God for all of you when we mention you in our prayers. In the presence of our God and Father, we constantly remember how your faith is active, your love is hard at work, and your hope in our Lord Jesus the Messiah is enduring. 

4 Brothers whom God loves, we know that he has chosen you, for the gospel we brought  did not come to you in words only, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit, and with deep conviction. 5-6 Indeed, you know what kind of people we proved to be while we were with you, acting on your behalf. You became imitators of us and of the Lord. In spite of a great deal of suffering, you welcomed the word with the joy that the Holy Spirit produces. 7 As a result, you became a model for all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. 1 Thessalonians 1:1-7 International Standard Version (English Standard Version link)

You probably picked up from the words above that Paul was really excited about the Christians at Thessalonica and he and his co-workers constantly thanked God for their lives. What were three things he saw in them that gave him such joy? (vs 2-3)

Firstly, their faith was not just head knowledge but it led to action. Then, the good things they did for one another sprang from genuine love. Thirdly, they hadn't lost heart and given up when people in the city had turned against them but had continued to hold on to the hope that had come to them through the gospel. Their hope had endured through the trials they had met up with. What did all those things convince Paul about them? (vs 4)

That's right. When you see lives that were once filled with wrong things dramatically changed and become filled with faith in Jesus Christ and a hard working love for others, you know that God has powerfully called them to Himself. They had been deeply convinced that the message of Jesus' death and resurrection was true and it had turned their lives around.

But there was another reason why Paul and the others were so thrilled about the progress these Thessalonians had made. What was that? (vs 5-6)

They had been willing to go through the same sort of suffering that Paul often went through as he took the message of Jesus Christ into the world. The book of Acts told how, just before coming to Thessalonica, Paul and Silas had been flogged and thrown into jail in the city of Philippi. After being released they had travelled on to Thessalonica where preaching the gospel had led to a riot and Paul was forced to leave the city. It’s very likely that the hatred of those who rejected the gospel had continued and that the Christians had experienced strong opposition and great trials. But because they had seen how Paul had endured such trials, they were willing to follow his example and joyfully cling to Christ.

What was the outcome of all that? (vs 7)

They had become a model for other Christians to copy. Just as Paul had shown them what a true Christian is like, they were now showing others what a true Christian should be like. Can that be said of your life and mine today? Do people see in us a lively faith that leads to gracious acts of love? Do they see in us an unquenchable hope that endures the difficult times which can come when someone truly loves Jesus? In one of his other letters Paul said to Christians at Corinth “imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1) That's a staggering thought, but it was happening in the lives of the Thessalonians. Could we say what Paul said of our walk with Jesus to others? May God make it true of our life.