Identify the True Church
1Thessalonians

1Thessalonians Identifies the True Church.  The chapters of this book can be viewed with the following themes:

1. Chapter 1: The power of God.
2. Chapter 2: The pastor of God.
3. Chapter 3: The people of God.
4. Chapter 4: The presence of God.
5. Chapter 5: The perfecting of God.

Paul wrote this epistle because there were people who went into this church, after Paul left, and taught doctrinal error. We have the same problem everywhere today. People lift up their man-given credentials but the Bible tells us to look for 'the power of God', which is the true evidence of God's approval. Since 'the power of God' does not change but is evident everywhere and to everyone, that is the basis for this epistle. 'The power of God' will affect the lives of God's true people and God's true church. Therefore, this is how you tell a true church from a false church.

The most important human, within the true church, is the pastor. Therefore, the next chapter tells us how to tell apart 'the pastor of God' from a false pastor. A true pastor will lead people to have lives which show that they are 'the people of God' by their living a life which is different from lost people. God's people need to do their part in the ongoing personal relationship with God which is through the Son of God. (This relationship is part of true Biblical salvation.) Therefore, God's people need to do their part to maintain 'the presence of God' in this relationship. (We can never lose our salvation and He will never leave us but we can abandon our relationship just like a married person can abandon their marriage relationship.) In the Bible, the word perfect is defined as: 'spiritually mature'. Thus, our last chapter tells us how keeping 'the presence of God' in our life will lead to 'the perfecting of God' within our lives. This last chapter tells us how to act as 'spiritually mature' saints of God. Thus, this epistle can be described as: 'How to tell the true church of God'.

1. Chapter 1: The power of God.
1. It gives God's people God's election  (1Thessalonians 1:4)
2. It supports the true gospel of God  and gives people the Spirit of God , which is the true Biblical salvation (1Thessalonians 1:5)
3. It causes people to follow the Lord  and God's pastor (1Thessalonians 1:6)
4. It brings the joy  of God (1Thessalonians 1:6)
5. It causes God's people to be examples  (1Thessalonians 1:7)
6. It causes God's people to be witnesses (1Thessalonians 1:8)
7. It causes God's people to turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God  (1Thessalonians 1:9)
8. It causes God's people to wait for his Son from Heaven  Who will bring His reward with Him (Revelation 22:12) - (1Thessalonians 1:10)
9. It will delivers us from the wrath to come  (1Thessalonians 1:10) That is, the saved will not go through the great tribulation.
2. Chapter 2: The pastor of God.
1. He will preach with boldness in spite of persecution (1Thessalonians 2:1-2)
2. He will contend with people who teach doctrinal error (1Thessalonians 2:1-2)
3. His message will be honest (1Thessalonians 2:3)
4. His message pleases God even while upsetting men. Not 'politically correct'. (1Thessalonians 2:4)
5. He does not seek his own physical needs from the church but relies on God for physical needs. (1Thessalonians 2:5-6)
6. He loves the church members and gives himself for their spiritual growth (1Thessalonians 2:8)
7. He lives holily and justly and unblameably  (1Thessalonians 2:10)
8. He is like a father  teaching God's people to walk worthy of God  (1Thessalonians 2:11-12)
9. He thanks God for God's people accepting truth and receiving spiritual maturing (1Thessalonians 2:13)
10. He praises God's people for living in truth during persecution (1Thessalonians 2:14-16)
11. He rejects commands to stop doing God's will (1Thessalonians 2:15)
12. His joy  is in God's people receiving rewards from God (1Thessalonians 2:)19-20.
3. Chapter 3: The people of God.
1. They are established and to comforted (in their) faith  by the pastor (1Thessalonians 3:1-2)
2. They are not discouraged by afflictions  (1Thessalonians 3:3)
3. They believe true prophecy (1Thessalonians 3:4)
4. They have true Biblical faith and charity  (1Thessalonians 3:6)
5. They comfort  their pastor (1Thessalonians 3:7)
6. They each personally stand fast in the Lord  (1Thessalonians 3:8)
7. They increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men  (1Thessalonians 3:12)
8. God the Father will stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness  (1Thessalonians 3:13).
4. Chapter 4: The presence of God.
1. It will cause God's people to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more  (1Thessalonians 4:1)
2. It will cause God's people to know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus  (1Thessalonians 4:2)
3. It will cause God's people to be sanctified  (1Thessalonians 4:3)
4. It will cause God's people to abstain from fornication  (1Thessalonians 4:3)
5. It will cause God's people to keep his flesh in sanctification and honour  (1Thessalonians 4:4)
6. It will cause God's people to avoid the lust of concupiscence  (1Thessalonians 4:5)
7. It will cause God's people to fear the Lord  and avoid defrauding  (1Thessalonians 4:6)
8. It will cause God's people to live in holiness  (1Thessalonians 4:7)
9. It will cause God's people to have brotherly love  towards all people, especially the church of God (1Thessalonians 4:9)
10. It will cause God's people to study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands  (1Thessalonians 4:11)
11. It will cause God's people to walk honestly toward them that are without  so that they prove that they are trusting God for their physical needs (1Thessalonians 4:12)
12. It will cause God's people to not be ignorant  of true prophecy and doctrine (1Thessalonians 4:13-17)
13. It will cause God's people to comfort one another with  true prophecy and doctrine (1Thessalonians 4:18).
5. Chapter 5: The perfecting of God.
1. It causes God's people to trust God and keep their noses out of what God has reserved for Himself (details of the times and the seasons ) (1Thessalonians 5:1-2)
2. It causes God's people to trust what God has revealed even though they do not know the entire details (1Thessalonians 5:1-4)
3. It causes God's people to walk in God's light  (1Thessalonians 5:4-6)
4. It causes God's people to watch and be sober  (1Thessalonians 5:6)
5. It causes God's people to avoid being drunken  and spiritually asleep  (1Thessalonians 5:7)
6. It causes God's people to put on the armor of God and obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ  ['increase our spiritual life through spiritual growth'] (1Thessalonians 5:8-9)
7. It causes God's people to look forward to being with our Lord Jesus Christ  (1Thessalonians 5:10)
8. It causes God's people to comfort yourselves together, and edify one another  (1Thessalonians 5:11)
9. It causes God's people to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; And to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake  (1Thessalonians 5:12-13)
10. It causes God's people to warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men  (1Thessalonians 5:14)
11. It causes God's people to never render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good  (1Thessalonians 5:15)
12. It causes God's people to do all of 1Thessalonians 5:16-22.
13. It causes God's people to be sanctified  and blameless  (1Thessalonians 5:23)
14. It causes God's people to pray for pastors and missionaries (1Thessalonians 5:25)
15. It causes God's people to receive the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ  (1Thessalonians 5:28).

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