Hope Just Ahead
In writing his letters to the new Christian churches of Asia and Europe, and to some of his friends, Paul wrote much of our Bible’s New Testament. It is from his letters that Christianity built its beliefs, and established its faith and basis for living. Paul took numerous journeys, recorded in Acts, with different companions. It was Silas and a young protégé, Timothy, who travelled with him from Philippi, the Macedonian capital, west to Thessalonica.
They had great success while teaching in the synagogue at the Macedonian capital. “Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women” (Acts 17:4). But this success was quickly followed by persecution, as some of the Jews became jealous—or zealous—and initiated a riot in the city, forcing Paul and Silas to flee.
They escaped from Thessalonica during the night and travelled some 80 km inland to Berea, where they taught in the synagogue, with a very different reception: “They received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men” (Acts 17:11, 12).
Paul and his companions must have been thrilled by the response. It’s amazing to think of how the Bereans were willing to entertain the radical ideas being taught by Paul. The popular idea in their synagogue, and all synagogues in Macedonia and the wider world—was that the Messiah would come to liberate Jerusalem from the hated Roman occupiers. Paul came to their synagogue and taught that the Messiah came to Jerusalem and was executed by the Roman occupiers and then came back to life!
This must have been hard for the Bereans to swallow, but they listened with an open mind, weighed the evidence from Scripture, and then believed. But soon the mischief-makers from Thessalonica heard what was happening in Berea and journeyed there to agitate the crowds against Paul. Immediately, some of the new believers escorted Paul to the coast and took him to Athens, leaving Timothy and Silas behind. Timothy later joined Paul for a short time in Athens before being sent back to encourage the fledgling church they had planted in Thessalonica (see 1 Thessalonians 3:1-3).
Paul then moved on to the great metropolis of Corinth, where he was joined by Silas and Timothy (Acts 18:5), who had come down from Macedonia. Timothy brought a thrilling report from the church at Thessalonica, midway between Philippi and Berea. The church was growing, and although it was being persecuted, the converts were standing firm in their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. But while the young church stood bravely against the persecution, they were nevertheless distressed. Apparently, some believers had died, and now the young church was confused: What were the implications of their deaths? Since they had died before Jesus returned, would they see their loved ones again? Was their death the final end? they wondered. The Thessalonian believers were both confused and sorrowful.
n Responding immediately to Timothy’s report, Paul took up his quill and penned what many scholars consider to be the first book of the New Testament to be written—Thessalonians.
“Brothers,” he wrote, “we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13).
Paul sent assuring words to the church that was grieving over the deaths in their community. He continued, “We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord for ever.
“Therefore encourage each other with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:14-18).
These inspired words of Paul’s are often referred to as “the blessed hope,” for they remind us of Jesus’ defeat of sin and its product, death, and of the certainty of His return to resurrect those who died believing in Him. The words have lived up to their reputation, bringing hope and comfort to millions through the past 2000 years.
These words might be the most often quoted at Christian funerals.
But think for a moment of the circumstances that prompted Paul to write these words. Someone had died in a church Paul had planted in Thessalonica, a church that is just as real as any church you might attend. The believers in that church were confused. Did this mean they would never see their loved one again? What were the implications?
I find it most comforting when I remember why Paul first sent this passage on the second coming of Jesus. He sent it to encourage a grieving church when someone in the community of faith had died! When I first realised this was the first message written in the New Testament, it elevated “the blessed hope” to a new level in my thinking. You could say that the comforting message of the blessed hope is what prompted the writing of the New Testament! Paul said, “Encourage each other with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18). And countless believers have. Paul’s message tempers the pain of loss experienced when a loved one dies and brings strength and courage as we relate to death.
Just outside of Rome is the Monastery of the Three Fountains. According to tradition, it’s where Paul was executed. The monastery is built in a swampy area where people were decapitated in the first century, and commemorates the apostle’s martyrdom. As I walked the lovely tree-lined lane to its chapel, my thoughts went to Paul’s last steps on this earth, as He followed His Lord.
Over some 20,000 km, Paul had faithfully followed wherever Jesus led, and now He’d led him here. I wondered about his last words to his friends, then I realised that although we don’t have his last words, we do have his last letter, and it summarises his life.
The missive is generally believed to have been written to his dear friend and travelling companion, Timothy. The second book, or letter, of Timothy was not written while Paul was living relatively comfortably under house arrest, as with the other prison epistles. His circumstances had dramatically changed for the worse; he was by then in the Mamertine Prison awaiting certain execution.
The letter contains a clear sense that Paul knows the sands of time have almost run out. He encourages Timothy to “come before winter” or it would be too late. In spite of the long, ugly shadows looming, Paul remains buoyant in his faith. He encourages Timothy to be faithful to his Lord as a pastor and evangelist, then shares his personal testimony of what was keeping him going.
“For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8).
The blessed hope was the theme of Paul’s ministry from his very first letter to his last. It had brought hope and encouragement to the grieving church in Thessalonica; now it brought hope to himself, a tired warrior facing execution. His message will always bring hope, wherever it’s read, encouraging you no matter your circumstances 20 centuries on.
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