 Yeah, can we have kong pray for us, please and then we'll get started. Okay. I think kong is not available Would Asha be there? Would you be able to pray for us Asha so that we can you know? I can hear you. Yeah, go ahead. Yeah You can learn how to go truths and your word and what you have to say God I Think you professed it because she's pouring out Lord the truth of our lives and helping us to nurture and be nourished God, thank you God for the time we are together in learning and also to growing in wisdom and knowledge so that we may not just learn but the doers of what we learn about and hear Thank you so much for this class Let your will be done and not ours You need me pray Amen. Yeah, thank you so much Yeah So we will today cover first Thessalonians We'll try to cover as many verses as possible, you know in all of the five chapters which are there and I suppose next class would be a second Thessalonians, you know next week. So this week we will try to complete first Thessalonians and Next class we would be having second Thessalonians. So we are almost done with our course for this semester Alright, so let's get started So we will begin with first Thessalonians chapter one And now in this particular Letter, it looks like as if there are two or three Things that the Thessalonian believers were not very clear about and so Paul just addresses those issues Okay, so we don't have much Background to discuss regarding this particular letter It's just Paul writing to them to address some one or two things Which the believers probably had not been very clear about earlier. So he's just giving them this information Most of the letters is in fact very very personal Where Paul is pouring his heart out to these believers telling about how deeply he appreciates, you know, their faith and He talks about the deep love and concern that he has for them He also expresses his admiration for them for the way they are, you know holding on in the faith And it's just this one or two little things that they don't seem to be having much clarity about and so he's writing the letter just to you know To give them information regarding these matters so that they will be even stronger in their faith. Okay, so That's just a very brief background to this letter. So we will begin with the First Thessalonians chapter one If we could have somebody read out for us versus two and three, please First Thessalonians chapter one versus two and three We give thanks to God always for you all making mention of you in our prayers remembering without seizing your work of faith and labor of love and Patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of God and our Father Yes, so over here It's sounding very similar to what we already saw in Colossia I know in the letter to the Colossians there it talked about faith hope love and here again You have the very same theme being repeated where it talks about the work produced by faith I know by these believers it talks about the labor which has been prompted by their love And it talks about the endurance inspired by hope So very similar to the same things which motivated the Colossian believers So we kind of get the impression that these three things are going to be very very Fundamental for even us in our Christian walk, you know, so What are these three things first of course is the faith all that we do we We do it out of our faith in Jesus and faith, you know, like we had talked about in the last class Faith expresses itself in two ways first we have faith in Jesus that He knows what is best and so we choose to obey, you know, whatever he's telling us to do And then our faith also expresses itself in the in the sense that we don't believe that we can do this work on our own Ability we trust him to be to equip us to do the work which he has given us So the work which these Thessalonian believers were doing it was produced by their faith in Jesus They were doing it because they really trusted him and were willing to obey him and do what he was saying And the other thing that we see is that they're the work that they were doing it They did not think that they could do it in their own strength They were trusting him to provide them with the ability to do it So their work was motivated by the faith which they had in Jesus and all this work Which they were doing they were doing it out of love love for the Lord Gratitude for the Lord for what he had done and also a genuine love and concern for the people and the third thing that we see They had this Endurance inspired by hope So we know we will see later on in this letter that the Thessalonians were in fact undergoing great persecution Much suffering now in in that in the midst of that suffering they endured they held on in hope Why because I know their hope was placed in the Lord Jesus that he would come back and you know Receive them that he would take Take them home to be with him and so this hope Give them the strength to endure even though they were going through great suffering so Even in our own personal walk, we should be kind of you know looking at these three things is faith Motivating the things which I am doing and Am I doing it all out of an attitude of love towards the Lord and towards people and third Because of the hope which I have in Christ, you know, I should be able to endure So these three things is what we would look at even in our own Christian walk now moving on to the next Portion if we could have someone read out for us versus four and five, please This is the one in verse For Knowing the love of Revan your election by God Our gospel did not come to you in word only but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and much assurance as you know What kind of man we were among you for yours? Yeah, okay, so over here in our verses four and five he says The gospel message which we gave to you It was not given simply with words, but also with power now This is something which he you know talks about even in Corinthian's way. He says, you know I do not use big words to present the gospel to you. All I did was I Presented the simple facts about the gospel and it was the power of God which did the work. Okay, so in that in in those biblical times Greek oratory, you know the the Greek speaking the Greek speeches They were considered very Very something very big So if somebody could speak in that Greek oratorial style and give a long lecture in a very most Inspiring way with with deep philosophical thoughts, you know expressed in their talk If they could do all of that then such people were Respected and they were praised as great orators. So Generally when people would try to do any speaking or any teaching In those days, they would try to adopt this Greek oratorial style of Speaking you know to show off how deep their knowledge is and how good they are at impressing people So that was basically how Speeches were done teaching was done in those days. So Paul does the exact opposite He says I'm not going to try to impress people with my teaching skills All I'm going to do is in plain simplicity I'm just going to talk about the cross and you know like we saw in all of the other previous You know letters which we have been looking at we saw that the cross was something that was regarded as something very low in those days People had a very low opinion of the cross and so he Paul says Even if people have this very very low opinion of the cross, that's basically all I'm going to preach I'm going to preach, you know Christ crucified and that's all I'm going to preach because there's going to be power in that So the same thing he expresses over here when he says, you know The gospel which came to you was not given with simply words Not with oratorial skill rather. It was actually given with the Convicting power of the Holy Spirit. So these people who You know who place their faith in Jesus these Thessalonians. They were not just impressed by Paul's words They were deeply convicted on the inside by the Holy Spirit and Himself a divine work happened in their hearts Maybe, you know, we could have someone read out first Corinthians chapter 2 versus 4 to 5 First Corinthians 2 4 to 5, please First Corinthians 2 4 to 5 he reads My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words But with the demonstration of the Spirit's power So that your feet might not rest on human wisdom or on God's Yeah, you know, so it says over here Why why did Paul not use, you know Simply words. Why didn't he just use? You know that kind of Greek style of talking to preach the gospel Why because he wanted the faith of these, you know Hearers to rest upon God's power rather than, you know, his showing off his speaking skills Because you see Paul would be preaching today and he would be gone tomorrow He would move on to the next destination and he would be giving his preachers over there in the next destination Now what happens to the people who have been left behind in this first place where he did his preaching You know where they all got very worked up and they said wow What a wonderful speaker and you know, we are feeling so inspired by all the things that he said Once he's gone, he's gone. He's no longer there to inspire them And so we we learn something very very important regarding ministry, you know from from this Attitude that Paul had He would not try to just stir up people's emotions through, you know Through inspirational talks. It is good to have inspirational talks But that alone is not enough because you know people who sit or sitting over there in the crowd listening to your inspirational talk They will feel very inspired and then they'll go back home And then they'll face the same trials and difficulties which they have always faced and then they think yeah It felt so good sitting over there in the hall and listening to all of those big words and thoughts But now here I am back home and I'm facing the same, you know problems that I've always had on The other hand rather than giving an inspirational talk if that person had just stood over there and Preached from the scriptures and explained see this is what God is saying in his word Then when their time of trouble they can hold on to that word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit Which is there in the world would be able to you know help them and guide them in their problems So the reason that Paul does not use big words the reason He just simply presents the gospel truth is so that people's faith will not rest on human wisdom But it will rest on God's power. So the power of God which is there in that plain scriptures That power will work in people's lives and change them and transform them So which is why he says our gospel came to you not simply with words But also with power with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction, you know So that's one very important truth to keep in mind, you know, whenever we are sharing from the script Scriptures it is of course good to use some level of you know speaking skills and all of that But are we conveying that that scripture most clearly explaining it as simply as we can So that people will catch those truths The power in those truths is what is going to you know help them in their everyday life Because God will take charge when they stand on those scriptures God will come through for them. God will work on their behalf You and I we will do our talking and then we'll be gone. We will not be there for those people in their trials They need to be directed towards God's power And so it is so important how we preach the Scriptures to people Then he goes on to make another very important point If someone could just read out for us verse six. Yeah And you become full became followers of us and of the Lord having received The word in much vacation with joy of the Holy Spirit Yeah, so um these Here we we get to know that these uh, Thessalonian believers are living in the midst of severe suffering And in the midst of this severe suffering, uh, they choose to become imitators of the Lord Why because the plain scripture has been told to them So they have not gone away thinking about how wonderful paul is as a speaker They have gone away thinking about The lord whom paul was talking about and so they become imitators of the lord and another thing They become imitators of these apostles who are sharing the gospel Uh, why because these apostles are, you know, literally sharing out of their life They are they are Presenting themselves as an example of how to live. That is what we see in verse five It says the words have come to you with power and the Holy Spirit and deep conviction It also says, you know, how we lived among you for your sake So through their lifestyle also they taught so two things if you wish to be a powerful teacher Um, two things first Explain the scriptures as simply and as clearly as you know, how with the help of the Holy Spirit Second, let your lifestyle show Um, what you stand for, you know, uh, your christian walk So people will become imitators of the lord that you're pointing them towards and they will also imitate Your lifestyle the way you are living So because of the impact that the lifestyle of paul had on these people because of the impact that The the script the the simple scriptural teaching had on their lives Something happens to these people look look at the effect Look at the impact that it has on these people versus seven and eight If if someone could read out versus seven and eight so that you became Examples to all in messa donna and akia kubili For from you the word of the lord has sounded forth not only in messa donna and akia But also in every place your faith toward god has gone has gone out so that we do not need to say anything Yeah, so these people they watched paul they watched his lifestyle and they listened to the Simple gospel message which was clearly pointing them towards the lord and then they became imitators of paul And then what happens all the other believers in that region the people living in the entire region of mastodonia and akia They start imitating these believers so you see the believers imitated paul and imitated the lord jesus and they became more like paul and like the lord jesus and when they started living in a Very distinct and different way the people living in the entire region of mastodonia and akia was so impressed by them That they began to imitate these tessalonian believers and it says your faith in god has become known everywhere And so they have now become a model for all the other believers And it all starts off with paul just simply pointing these people towards the lord And through his own lifestyle showing them What it is to live the christian life it all started with that and then these tessalonian believers They go on to become a model for the people living in that entire region and Yeah, some details are given about that in verses nine and ten If someone could read out please verses nine and ten Nine and ten For they themselves report what kind of reception give us They tell how you turn god from Turn to god from idols to serve the living and true god And to wait for his son from heaven whom he raised from the dead Jesus who rescues us from coming wrath So everyone in this entire region is talking about them and talking about the faith The very simple faith that they had because once they heard the gospel What did these people do? It says they turned away from their idols and they began to serve the living and the true god And you know in the earlier verse in verse six we saw that they are in the midst of severe suffering And so it looks like when they turned away from these idols they were very deeply Persecuted by their neighbors, you know by their families It looks like that's what happened But they continue to hold on it says over there in verse six It says in the midst of severe suffering, you know, they they held on with the joy given by the holy spirit so They just relied on the holy spirit and the hope which he is placing in their heart And what is the hope that they have that is explained in our verse nine and ten They have turned to serve the living and true god Why because they are waiting for his son To come back from heaven and to collect them and take them to their no to their eternal home Because Jesus said I will go and prepare a place for you And if I'm preparing a place for you, I will come back and I will collect you So they have this hope and so they turn their back on all of the idols And they begin to follow this true and living god Eagerly waiting for the day when Jesus will come and collect them and take them, you know And like it says over here who will rescue them from the coming broth So they have been deeply convicted by the holy spirit of sin of righteousness of judgment It's purely a work of the holy spirit that has taken place in the hearts of these Thessalonian believers and so now they are enduring in hope of Jesus return That he will come and collect them and you know take them to his eternal home So we we basically see this in the first chapter now moving very quickly into chapter two In chapter two is where paul starts talking about How much he has you know emotionally invested in these believers and he also Praises them and comments them for their own sincerity in how they are following the lord So it it's more a personal thing that's discussed in chapter two Him and his feelings and how he has invested in them and these believe these believers in thessalonica how they have Chosen to take a stand for god and the sufferings that they have gone through for the lord all of that so Maybe we can start off by looking at verses one and two first the slowness chapter two Verses one and two, please. Yeah You know brothers and sisters that our visit to you was not without results We had previously suffered and being Treated outrageously in filipi as you know But with the help of our lord We dare to tell you his gospel in the face of strong opposition Yeah, I mean You know when we read the filipin letter We were not really told much about what the apostles went through You know in sharing the gospel over there But here you know some light is thrown on that it says we had previously suffered and been treated outrageously In filipi, which means they must have gone through some extremely serious trials and difficulties You know paul and the other apostolic team they went through extremely great difficulties When they were ministering and sharing the gospel in filipi And so it says you know the apostle says We dared to tell you the the gospel only with the help of our god After what they had gone through in filipi It's like they almost didn't have the guts to share In thessalonica because even over here it says you know in the face of strong opposition So in filipi, they've already been treated outrageously So do we do not know what kind of humiliations they were subjected to over there now after that experience They're almost feeling afraid to share the gospel here in thessalonica because there is stronger position Over here and it says that they were able to dare to do that Only with the help of far god So it was not something very easy and effortless that paul and his companions did It cost them a lot. They went through a deep suffering Just to bring the gospel to these people and there was a lot of opposition that they faced and So in verses three and four paul goes on to say yeah, if someone could read out versus three and four as three and four For the appeal we make does not spring from error or in pure motifs Now are we tricking to trying to trick you? On the contrary we speak as those approved by god To be entrusted with the gospel We are not trying to please people But god who tests our hearts Yeah, in fact almost all the wording used you know in the second chapter third chapter is like Very uh, you know all inspiring wordings It says over here that god has tested the heart of paul and his team And you know, he has declared them as people. I you know approved You know, it's like as if he tested their hearts Examine their motives and you know put a stamp on them say yes Approved these are people that I can entrust with the gospel You know it kind of makes us think when he looks at us You know those of us who are in ministry when he tests our hearts What does he see over there? What motivates us uh to uh to you know work in christian ministry? So when god tests us does he say yes, these are approved people? I fully approve of them and uh, you know, I now consider them, you know Qualified to take the gospel forward. That is is that what the lord would say about us So uh here in in teslonians very high standards are being set Uh, you know for people especially who have been called uh, you know to ministry So how are we serving uh with what motives and with what attitude are we serving, you know and And then he then he goes on to say in verses five and six and seven If someone could read out five six and seven, please Five six and seven You know, we never used flattery No, did we put on a mask to cover up? Greedy god is our witness We were not looking for praise from people not from you or anyone else Even though as apostles of christ We could have asserted our authority I was seven Apology, sorry Verse seven instead We were like young children among you Just as a nursing mother cares for her children Uh, yes, so here, uh, you know paul says, you know, we lived among you literally day and night We lived we lived among you so you know exactly. I mean what we did how we spoke how we worked It was all there, you know because literally they lived out their lives in front of these people Nothing was hidden. So he's he says as you very well know, you know, we didn't try to flatter you We didn't try to you know, uh, win your praise In the hope that maybe you'll start supporting us financially, you know We we could have asserted ourselves, you know and said you need you need to start, you know supporting us We didn't do that We were just it was just enough for us that we could take care of you like a nursing mother And so we see In this entire passage that paul's attitude What he feels towards these believers is the is the feelings that a nursing mother would have towards a little baby I mean, we all know about nursing mothers and their babies, right at that stage The baby will keep the mother up day and night. I mean the mother hardly gets to sleep It's like a very trying very exhausting process But at no point does the mother, you know, uh, say, oh, what am I going to get out of this? What material gain am I going to get out of this? The mother has no expectations and all you know of that kind You know, not as she do not as she look after the baby just to get the praise of people and you know So people will say oh what a devoted mother she is No, even if nobody's watching even if nobody's praising She simply keeps nursing and caring for that little baby Out of love. It's just pure simple Love towards the child. Not that she's going to get any material gain out of it Nor is it because she's going to get me praise from people for it. She's just Catering to that little child, you know, who keeps her awake day and night She does it simply out of love and so paul says, you know, that is how we have felt about you And then he goes on to say in verses eight nine and ten. I have someone could read out eight nine ten eight nine and ten So we cared for you because we loved you so much We're delighted to share with you not only the gospel of god for our lives as well Surely you remember brothers and sisters our toil and hardship We worked night and day in order not to be burdened to anyone While we preached the gospel of god to you You are witnesses And so is god Of how holy righteous and blameness Were where among you who believed You know, so he's he's talking to these people and they know all the facts So he's not bluffing in any way, you know, if he were, you know, uh, lying They would easily have caught the lie. They would have said, huh, you're writing this now But we all know what happened when you were actually living among us, you know, they would have caught the lie But here what paul is writing is facts something which these people have seen with their own eyes And so he says we loved you so much, you know that we were delighted to share our lives with you So, um, you know the the that that nursing mother, you know, she is not doing it for any kind of payment She delights in just giving her energy her time, you know, her entire life They're just looking after that child and she's not doing it for any gain She's just doing it out of love And and it actually brings her delight to to do that for her child and paul says that is how we felt about you people And so, you know, the the nursing mother doesn't demand from the baby saying now you pay me I've been out. I know sitting up for three nights in a row. Now you pay me No, I mean, there's no such expectation at all. And so here we have paul and his team Adopting the same attitude. They don't expect anything from these believers. They don't want to be a burden to them You know, they don't want the believers to have to support them. And so it's he says over here We worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone So they Did the ministry work and then beyond that they also went and, you know, earned a livelihood for themselves So that these believers would not feel the burden in any way Uh, it's just the most amazing selfless kind of Ministry that that has ever, you know, been worked out By people So, uh, these are very high standards of ministry that are being set for us over here. Uh, you know, in these verses um Going into verses 11 and 12. Uh, yeah, uh, how did they deal with the believers versus 11 and 12? So you know that we dealt with each of you As a father deals with his own children Encouraging comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of god Who calls you into his kingdom and glory? Yeah, so, uh, it says here that uh, they that paul and his uh team They were dealing with these believers as if they were own children You know, I mean, uh, we tend to notice this right when it comes to our own children We we are more forgiving. Uh, we are more patient We will go the extra mile Uh, you know, uh with the other maybe with other children Maybe we'll be a little more sharp and a little more stern and not really think things through But when it comes to our own kids because it's there in our heart that love that is there We are just more gentle and we are willing to give more second chances and all of that So here he says, you know, we we we have been we we used to encourage and comfort Those two greek words that are used over there for encourage and comfort It it's almost like uh synonyms. It's like as if he's say, you know, we gave you um comforting encouragement Because you know encouraging can be done in two ways by human parents You have fathers who will encourage their children, you know to achieve higher levels by threatening them by scaring them And you know, that's a kind of negative way of, you know, forcing them Into a higher level on the other hand, you have fathers who will be gentle and firm and They will not scare the child, you know into withdrawing rather they will be very comforting in the way they Encourage the child so that rather than the child disappearing into its shell That child will develop the courage to go and try out new things So there's a comforting kind of encouragement and there's a kind of threatening kind of encouragement that can be given And over here these the paul and his team are careful to give the right kind of encouraging Comforting and urging, you know, even as they're even as they are teaching these people to live lives that are worthy of God and uh, even as I was just looking at that particular verse, you know The scripture that came into mind Was about jesus himself and how he describes his teaching style So maybe, you know, if we could just quickly look at matthew chapter 11 verse 29 matthew 11 29 Matthew 11 29 Take my yoke upon you Learn from and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart You will find rest for your soul You know, that's one distinctive feature of our lord jesus christ He is gentle and humble in his teaching. Oh, I'm not saying he doesn't correct He definitely corrects. He can be very strict at times, you know Sometimes when we are, you know, heading off in the wrong direction, he can be very very firm in bringing us back He will not be careless with us. He's very careful. I mean, he does not want to lose us So, you know, he will be quite sharp and stern if especially if we are walking off into danger But uh, generally when we are submissive and we are willing to learn from him He is very gentle and humble in the way he teaches us as long as we are open and receptive We we we see a very uh gentle and humble teaching style So he is a comforting encourager That our lord jesus in the way he teaches us Of course, when we when we become rebellious when we refuse to hear his voice Then he has to take external measures and he's loving enough to do that. Uh, but otherwise, you know, we see that He's a gentle encourager and the apostles too in the same way. They were comforting encouragers Yeah So, uh, then maybe we can move on into verse 13 Yeah, just verse 13. Yeah For this reason we also thank god for this season Because when you receive the word of god, which you heard from us You're welcome. You're welcome. Not as the word of man, but as it is The word god which also certainly works in you Yeah, so, um He says over here When we presented the gospel to you, you didn't just think of it as a nice human philosophy You understood that these are literally the words of god that are being given. They are a divine Revelation that is being given and so it should be believed. It should be accepted. It should be practiced So, uh, the believers these Thessalonian believers didn't take it lightly They realized that this is not just a nice bunch of instructions No, this is in fact a divine commandment a divine revelation Uh, you know that is being given by god and so because they approached the the word which was being given to them With the right attitude, you know of reverence of submission of obedience Because they did that it says this this word is at work in you who believe So the word of god began to work in them and as a result of the word of god working in them amazingly powerful things happened Uh versus 14 15 16 if someone could read out versus 14 15 16 14 15 16 For you brothers and sisters become became imitators of god's churches in Judea Which are in christ jesus? You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the jews Who killed the lord jesus and the prophets and also drove us out? They displeased god and are hostile to everyone In their effort to keep us from speaking To the Gentiles so that they may be saved in this way They also heap up their sins to the limits The wrath of god has come upon them at last so uh Because they understood that the things which are being told to them are not just some nice thoughts from paul's head Rather, this is divinely from god that is being you know these words which are being given to them They respected that they submitted to that and so they were willing to go through the persecution in the same way The church in jerusalem went through persecution in the same way the jewish people Persecuted the new believers who are accepting the lord in judia and jerusalem and judia in the same way here These decelunions they suffered at the hands of their you know heathen neighbors at the hands of the Of the other idol worshipers so in the same way that so paul is stating over here That to the extent that the jerusalem church suffered To that extent even these people have undergone suffering because you know we we know one thing about the jerusalem church They went through very very difficult times because um that entire culture was a jewish culture And these believers are now going against the jewish traditions So the entire society would just cut them off You know you would no longer be invited for anything if you're going down the road They would probably spit spit on you, uh, you would nobody would want to employ you You know nobody's going to give you job opportunities Literally you know looking after your family on a day-to-day basis would become difficult They went through a great struggle the people and um the believers in jerusalem and judia And he says over here that these people these decelunions have suffered to that extent where they have been you know Ostracized by their community Where they are being treated as outcasts and they have gone through all of that Why are they able to go through all of that? It's because the word is at work in them that convicting part of the holy spirit You know that that's strengthening part of the holy spirit, which is there in them Uh that is sustaining them So it's such a good thing that paul and esteem did when they just simply presented the gospel and its simplicity They didn't use big words. They didn't use oratorial skills They just simply imparted the word of god as it is and the power of god Which was contained in those simple words began to work in these people's lives and it led to Such a great work divine work inside them that they were willing to end your persecution You know and go through all of that Yeah, just to kind of touch upon that galatians 2 10 if someone could read out galatians 2 was 10 Here actually, you know this pass if you were to look at the entire passage over there in galatians This is basically when paul visits jerusalem for a for a short period of time And so at that time there's some discussions that go on and then at that time, you know the Leaders over there in jerusalem They say just one thing that we are asking from you. Please continue to show You know support for the poor and over there they're actually talking about the poverty-stricken believers of jerusalem because they had been completely cut off from the economic system They were in an in an extremely You know difficult situation And so they they needed the help of other churches to in fact be able to survive from day to day And so that was the condition in which the jerusalem church was and now here paul is Testifying and saying that you thislonian believers have undergone suffering to the same level that the That the jerusalem church, you know went through So he has a very high opinion of them, you know coming very quickly into chapter three Maybe we can read out one large chunk Because here paul is expressing his deep concern For them How he was so anxious because you see he was aware of the of the strong Opposition that they were facing and he was wondering how they are holding up And he didn't have news, you know, because now it's so easy. You can just make a phone call and find out How the person is doing but back then, uh, you know It would take ship travel, you know all the way traveling by ship from one place to another just to gain information about How those people are doing, uh, so, um If you look at these verses, it talks about the The anxiety that paul was feeling on behalf of these thislonian believers You know, and it's so beautifully expressed in these in these verses in these words which paul uses to talk about What he's feeling in his heart, you know for these people, uh, so, um If If we could read out verses one to five, uh, this first thislonian chapter three, uh versus one to five Therefore, when we could no longer enjoy it, we thought it good to be left in Athens alone And sent him only our brother and mister god and our fellow labors in the gospel of christ To establish you and encourage you considering your faith that no one should be shaken by these applications for yourself Know that we are pointed to this for in fact, we told you before When we were with you that we would suffer tribulation just as it happened And you know for this reason when I could no longer enjoy it. I sent you Your faith less by some means the tentator had tempted you and our labor might be in vain Yeah, so two times in verse one and again in verse five he says, you know in the niv way the wording is more simple He says, uh, when we could stand it no longer And he again says that you know in verse five for this reason when I could stand it no longer I sent to find out about your faith. So, uh, Timothy has been a great help to them in their ministry in Athens But it's all right. They don't mind getting along without Timothy They would like to send Timothy to go back to the sysologians and you know, give them encouragement Hell, uh, you know, um, uh, you know Exhaught them to hold on in faith because he's so worried that maybe because of this intense persecution They, you know, they will drop the faith and go back into the world and he's so concerned for them like a parent And so he thinks it's better off, you know, we can manage without Timothy Even though Timothy is so important for the ministry in Athens, you know, he's like it's all right You know, we'll manage without Timothy. Let Timothy go back. Let him go there and you know Encourage them and build them up so that they'll be able to remain strong in the faith You know, when you're when you're when you're reading these wordings It really literally, you know, makes you picture a parent who's so anxious about the child Let us say, you know, that the child has now gone to a boarding school for the first time And now the parent every day is thinking. Oh, how is the kid getting along? How is the how is he adjusting over there? What's going on? Is he able to make friends in that new place? And you know, is he holding on to the godly values which you know, which he has been taught The you know, every day the parents concern is the parent is Staying over here in this city But his entire heart is over there in that boarding school with the child You know, because he's so concerned for the child and that is the picture that we get of Paul over here I mean, it's amazing. I think this is a divine love which god had put, you know In the hearts of this apostolic team for the people because nobody on their own can have that kind of a love So when they say that we you know, we have been dealing with you like our own children They literally meant it They were really They really felt for these believers like as if they are actually their own children, you know birthed spiritually So, uh, so that is the level of concern that you know, Paul has for the for the believers And so he sends Timothy to them. He says it's all right You know if we can manage without you you go over there You know, you talk to them encourage them and come back and uh, so We see the heart of Paul in this Yeah, brother Shay you have raised your hand. Please go ahead. Yeah Thank you pastor, uh, sorry to take you back to the previous chapter But I just also wanted to bring up something. Um, the latter part of that chapter Whip all along to see them Isn't it interesting that? Though he wanted to come again and again and again Or he testifies here Satan blocked their way Just I understand That we face spiritual opposition But you know One would wonder and this is not to exalt Paul who was Who had great revelation about the spiritual realm, you know, he tells us here that satan blocked their way So, I don't know if he could throw more light that how come we wasn't able to break through, you know How come satan actually? Limited them from going, you know to see them I just uh, just I just wanted to Get more Lights on that. Yes. Thank you, brother. Yeah, the very brief answer. Okay. Okay. I know we are a little over time So it's all right. You know, we will take we'll get our 10 minute break. Okay So but let's just you know finish with this and then we will take our break So you will get your you know full 10 minutes. Uh, yeah, uh, so, um There are times when the lord allows difficulties and trials to come right so in this particular On this particular occasion god does allow satan to block off this opportunity to go and encourage them So sometimes when these negative things happen God permits it in his divine will because he has already made other divine arrangements to take care of that particular issue So over here when Paul could not personally go to these people and build them up in their faith You know, maybe the holy spirit administered to those people in other ways So nothing was lost God permitted it god permitted the block but god took care of the situation So when when something happens and we pray against it and things don't change We don't need to worry because god is still in charge and god will make other divine arrangements to take care of Of you know, whatever is uh needs to be done So there are times when god will allow a trial or difficulty to come in which will prevent and block Something from something good from taking place And of course at that point of time we will we will go down on our knees and we will pray and we will say oh lord You know unblock this open the path But if god says no, it's okay You know, I have other I have something else in mind and I'm going to deal with this in a different way It's up to the lord and because one thing we learn is that Even though paul was stopped by satan from going over there that thecelonians did not fall They did not falter In fact when timothy comes back with a very good report with a very joyous report so satan tried a tactic he tried to block off what uh, you know, what paul probably would have done over there He Blocked it off thought he had succeeded very grandly But then the thecelonians did were not affected in any way Uh, the holy spirit would have you know Minister to them and some other maybe through other people or in some in some other manner And they remained strong. So sometimes yes, god allows a negative trial or difficulty to to prevail And he allows it knowing that in his greater wisdom and power he can make alternate divine arrangements to deal with that particular situation Is is what I suppose I would say Um, there may be other ways also of looking at it. But this is basically how um, I kind of thought about it Uh, does that help at all? Oh, thank you pastor. Thank you. That was good. Thank you. Yeah um so Yeah, so, um We'll come back after the the break. So now it's 954 So in that case, we will come back at 10 4 All right, so we'll log back in at 10 4. All right. Thank you