I Thessalonians overview

(Originally written on January 18, 2006 in Book 20)

I Thessalonians

1:1 Greetings from Paul, Silas and Timothy

1:2-10 Paul thanks them for their faith. He says their faith is a model to all of Macedonia.

2:1-16 Paul reassures the Thessalonians that their ministry was not a failure because the Thessalonians accepted the word of God. Paul thanked them for being imitators of the churches in Judea which are followers of Christ.

2:17-3:5 Paul states he has been desperately waiting to return but has been prevented. When Paul could not bear not to know how they were doing he sent Timothy to find out and to minister to the Thessalonians.

3:6-13 Timothy has returned to Paul and gave him a good report of how the Thessalonians were doing. Paul encourages them to keep loving each other and loving God.

4:1-12 Paul tells the Thessalonians to live a pure life to please God. He tells them to refrain from sexual immorality like the non-Christians indulge in. Then he tells them to continue to love each others as brothers and to do so even more.

4:13-5:11 Paul comforts the Thessalonians who fear that the believers who have died will not rise when Jesus comes. He assures them that all who believe will spend eternity with Jesus.

5:12-28 Paul instructs them to do good to each other, encourage and respect one another and avoid evil and to continue to love God.

I Corinthians 12-14

Spiritual gifts come from God. Given as the spirit determine and are given for the common good.

13-14

-Tongues are languages of man, but also a language of angels/prayer languages
-Tongues are what only God understands
-Tongues edify self
-Tongues should only be spoken if an interpretation can happen
-Prophecy is used to strengthen, encourage and comfort man
-Prophecy edifies church
-Prophecy is for believers
-Two or three should speak in tongues (one at a time) with an interpreter
-All should prophesy
-Two or three should prophesy, but if a revelation comes to a man, that man should speak up
-Everything should be done in an orderly way because God is a God of order and peace