Paul had already defended his reasons for coming to Thessalonica to spread the gospel – it was never about making a name for himself or financial gain; however, Paul wanted the Thessalonians to experience the grace of God through Jesus Christ (2:1-12). The false teachers did not like Paul spreading this “new gospel” because many people were abandoning these erroneous doctrines in order to embrace salvation in Jesus Christ. Fom the time Paul brought the truth about Jesus to Thessalonica, they “welcomed it not as the word of men, but…the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.” The Thessalonians immediately viewed Paul’s message as truth rather than man-made teaching (2:13) and their belief in Jesus Christ resulted in persecution (2:14). The Jews despised Paul’s teachings because it completely crumbled the foundation of their so-called religious system. The Jews killed Jesus Christ and now they sought to destroy anyone who continued to spread His message (2:15). Paul, who was a former member in their religious system, proclaims that their ways “do not please God” and is a prejudice religion which desires only Jews to be saved (2:16). Paul is quick to say that God called him to spread salvation through Jesus Christ to even the “Gentiles that they may be saved.” A stern warning is written to the Jews who felt that the Gentiles did not deserve salvation: “wrath has come upon them [Jews] to the uttermost.” Since the Jewish system of tradition and rules could never bring salvation, eternal punishment awaited those who rejected salvation through Jesus Christ alone (2:16). Salvation is not found in some crafty creation of man, but only through faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ for our sin. Paul wanted the church at Thessalonica to understand that his message was directly from God. There are many religions which have developed a twist on scripture, but we must stand guard and defend the truth of God’s word. We must never tolerate new revelation or the questioning of truth as revealed in the Bible. We must love God and His word with all our heart!
Dear God, guard my mind from becoming captured by doctrines and teachings of men. May I view Your word as divine and never look for man’s opinions in regard to scripture.
