Our Plans - 1 Thessalonians 2:5-20

Just as a side note, I am starting a 30 day online class that is going to take several hours of my day to complete. Because I paid for it and hopefully will be getting some really great stuff out of it, I'm going to make completing that days portion priority over a blog post everyday. I'm really sad about it, but this is really important to me so I might be a little bit MIA for the next month. Also work has been crazy busy for the last month or so and in combination with that and my project, this blog hasn't been getting the attention that I wish I could give it. Here's to hoping for the best. 2:5-6 - Paul continues to note that he and his companions brought the gospel to the people of Thessalonica without the use of "flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloak of covetousness… Not of men sought we glory… when we might have been burdensome, as the apostles of Christ." IN the lecture series by Luke Timothy Johnson, he said something to the effect of "preachers who spent their time in the service of a particular God were typically entitled to live off the people who they were preaching too." LTJ even said that Jesus had advocated for that type of lifestyle when he was alive, which I'm not too sure about. But his point was that Paul reminds people that he could have exploited them for his gain and been completely justified in doing so, but he didn't. He didn't try to take advantage of the material possessions of the people nor did he try to convince people of his message through manipulating them. 2:7-12 - He says that instead of being shady, they "were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children." He did this because he loved them and didn't just leave "the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because ye were dear unto us." He testifies that these people and God Himself that they preached the gospel "holily and justly and unblameably, we behaved ourselves among you that believe: as ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged everyone of you, as a father both his children, that ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory." The article on this chapter from gospeldoctrine.com quotes Carlos E. Asay as teaching, "This is a tender statement. In it, Paul expresses a love for the Saints in Thessalonica that is deep and abiding. His love apparently reached the point that he loved the people as much or more than himself. Little wonder they responded so well to his instructions." Let's remember that Paul wrote to the Thessalonians because he was so happy that they had remained faithful even though they faced many obstacles to their faith. Interestingly the article also mentions that Paul's constant need to reassure his congregations that he didn't not take advantage of them was due to the fact that "there appears to have been a strong contingent of members who opposed Paul and his teachings. The seemed to severely questioned his authority as a apostle, defamed his character, impugned his motives as an honest man, and in general have sought to discredit his accomplishments." This is a theme throughout Paul's letters that I really struggled with. Why did it seem that most of the people he preached to accept the gospel but reject Paul? Why did those who joined the church seem to slip right back into their former lives right after he left? I guess my main question was "why does Paul encounter such a non-comital group of people seemingly everywhere he goes?" Is it a matter of the message being hard to accept and stick with, or is it a matter of Paul being the common denominator? Were they constantly rejecting Jesus or Paul? I had never been able to put into words this aspect of Paul that I had always noticed but never really seemed to understand until I listened to LTJ's Pauline lectures. It's too much to go into here, but truly listen to it and it really helps to understand why people seemed to so easily accept Jesus but also so readily reject Paul. It makes a lot of sense and helped me understand why Paul spends so much time in his letters defending himself when the other writers really don't. 2:13 - Another reason why the people of Thessalonica were able to hang on to the gospel message despite persecution was that they "received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe." They accepted the gospel not because of the flattering words of Paul or because of his charisma, but because they believed that Jesus is the Christ. How people accept the gospel is really a good way to look at the way the church manages it's leadership. For instance, I always wondered why missionaries changed areas so frequently. Why not let one missionary stay in one area the whole time and make connections with the people? Well, part of the reason is because the people that the missionaries teach need to be accepting the gospel as a message of Jesus Christ and not because they are fond of a particular missionary. This is part of the reason that all church callings except the Apostles are temporary, to keep the message about Jesus and not about one particular person. 2:14-20 - There's a bit here that talks about the church in Judea and the Jews that I don't really understand. Paul's saying that the Thessalonians have suffered persecutions like the Christians in Judea have suffered at the hands of the Jews who killed Jesus. Because Paul had to leave the Thessalonians because of the riot that drove him out of town, he "endeavored the more abundantly to see your face with great desire… But Satan hindered us." The IM comments that Paul "did not give any details about how Satan hindered him from returning to Thessalonica, but it is clear that persecution from Jews had already forced Paul to take many detours in his journey." I think one thing that is important to note here is that just because Satan hindered Paul's plans doesn't mean that Satan hindered God's plan. To believe otherwise is to accept that God is not all knowing and therefore cannot be more powerful than Satan. That is definitely something Satan wants us to believe, that he is more powerful than God. I saw a thing the other day that I really liked that said something like, "Stop being sad that your life didn't turn out the way you wanted, but instead find joy in the place where you are." That really was powerful for me because I never would have thought that this is how my life would have ended up, but just because it's different than what I expected doesn't mean that it's not what was supposed to happen. I have been cared for and loved and provided for by Jesus the whole entire time and acknowledging that allows me to find joy in the journey. Likewise, even when it seems like our righteous desires go unfulfilled doesn't mean that we are on the wrong path or that we are being punished. Paul was exactly where Jesus wanted him to be, even though Paul might not have had that planned out for himself.