Introduction

What a joy it must have been for the Thessalonian Church when they received their first
correspondence from the Apostle Paul! After all, he had only been with them a very short while before he
had been run out of town. After his departure, wicked men came in and tried to discredit him by casting
doubt upon his motives for coming to Thessalonica in the first place. Paul was used to this kind of
persecution and would have never left the city, had it not been for his concern for Jason, the Jewish
convert who had so kindly allowed Paul and his companions to stay with him. You see, the city officials
had forced Jason to put up collateral that would be seized if Paul remained in Thessalonica. Not to
mention the fact that Jason more than likely would have been arrested for harboring “criminals”.

   As a result, Paul and his companions departed much earlier than they had intended, all the while
consumed with concern that the fledgling church that they had planted would not survive in the face of
such tremendous opposition. But God… is faithful. It is HE, and He alone, that always finishes what He
begins. I cannot help but wonder if seeing God complete the work in Thessalonica without Paul’s
assistance was the catalyst that would strengthen the apostle’s own faith and enable him to write these
words years later in his letter to the church at Philippi.