Participants: Jon Paulien & Jon Ciccarelli
Series Code: TBOTB
Program Code: TBOTB000002B
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00:04 about where Paul has been.
00:05 Let's talk about his heart a little bit. 00:07 Okay, I think to set that up I want to go back to basics. 00:12 Because Paul is doing mission work, he is doing 00:16 evangelism, and it is easy to think of numbers when we do 00:21 that, but for Paul it wasn't numbers, it was people. 00:25 And the relationships that he developed with those people 00:28 was very, very important to him. 00:30 I think all of that goes back to a statement of Jesus that 00:34 Paul would have remembered, and that is in Matthew 28:19, 00:37 20. Would you read that for us? - Sure, I'd be happy to! 00:41 In Matthew 28:19-20 it says: 01:00 There is an interesting thing about that text that many 01:03 people do not realize, there is only one main verb. 01:06 - only one! - and it isn't go. 01:08 Go is actually a participle in Greek, it means what it's 01:11 translated as but it is not the main verb and that is 01:15 obvious to somebody who is reading it in the Greek. 01:18 The main verb is, make disciples. 01:22 Jesus doesn't say to go into all the world and preach 01:26 the gospel, he doesn't say go into all the world and 01:29 scold people, hold a school, or what ever. 01:32 He says go into all the world and make disciples. 01:35 And how do you make disciples? It is one on one. 01:39 It's relational. The heart of the gospel is people 01:43 reaching out to people and meeting them for Jesus. 01:46 That is one of the beautiful things about Christian 01:50 television, it is because in a real sense it is one on 01:53 one as well, there may be one viewer here, or two or 01:56 three people viewing but they are interacting with 01:59 somebody on the screen and that relational thing 02:02 becomes very important, but it needs to go beyond that. 02:06 If you are coming to know Jesus, look for a community 02:10 of people that will support you in that. 02:14 Get to know other people who know Jesus and develop 02:17 relationships with them because that is all part of it. 02:21 It is a relational kind of thing. 02:22 Paul, it seems the Thessalonian church must have 02:27 really impacted Paul, they were different. 02:30 We will see this as we go through these letters. 02:33 We will see time and again they were different than 02:35 anybody else that he was interacting with, and he was 02:39 really excited to be with them, and he was really 02:43 depressed about losing them. 02:46 We find that in 1 Thessalonians 2 and 1 Thessalonians 3. 02:50 There are a number of texts where we see Paul's feelings 02:55 about the Thessalonians. 02:57 Why don't we take a look at 1 Thessalonians 2:17-18? 03:05 It says: 03:24 All right Paul says, I was orphaned. 03:27 What kind of language was that? Now these are words that can 03:30 be translated different ways, and there is no problem with 03:33 those translations and I am trying in these translations 03:36 to bring out some of the nuances of the Greek. 03:41 Those delicate little things that would have really 03:44 impacted the original readers. 03:46 He said I was orphaned away from you. 03:48 He's saying, I feel like a child who has just lost his parents. 03:53 This went deep with Paul, and he says again and again 03:57 with great longing, I wanted to see your face. 04:01 Paul didn't have Skype, Paul didn't have e-mail and so on. 04:06 So the instant kind of communication that we have today 04:10 was missing, it wasn't there for him and he missed them 04:15 deeply, and he missed them deeply. 04:17 He says I wanted to come to you again and again but 04:20 Satan forded us, Satan got in the way. 04:23 Of course scholars are always asking the hard questions. 04:27 What do you suppose that was? Generally I think the most 04:32 likely explanation it was that bond that was taken, 04:35 you remember in the previous part of the program? 04:37 The Thessalonian City Council said we are going to take 04:41 bail money from you, and if it was substantial, it 04:45 probably was, Paul returning to the city would forfeit 04:49 the bail and he said my presence there, my longing for 04:52 the Thessalonians is not a reason to bankrupt the church. 04:56 So Paul's saw the workings of Satan in the situation that 05:00 would not allow him to return to them although he deeply 05:04 desired to do that. 05:06 In Chapter 3:1, 2 he talks more about it. 05:09 It says this: 05:27 So if he can't go himself, he sends a friend. 05:32 A friend that he trusts. When it comes to relationships 05:36 it is all about trust, the word faith in the original 05:40 language really is very close to trust. 05:42 Have faith in God, do you trust God, do you trust to do 05:48 what He said? And with Timothy he trusted Timothy to go 05:52 and to share what he would want them to hear from him. 05:57 And also to bring back a report of how they are feeling 06:01 and what they are thinking of him and his mission 06:05 and so forth. 06:06 So he couldn't stand it, I am no longer am able to endure it. 06:09 I can just see Paul pacing back and forth in his room. 06:12 I've got to get back, I got to get back, I can't take 06:16 this any longer, he said Alright, I would rather stay in 06:20 Athens all by myself, and Paul such a relational person 06:23 it must have been hard for him. - it must killed him. 06:26 I would rather be in Athens by myself then have no news. 06:29 So he makes that big jump and sends Timothy back 06:35 to get a message. 06:36 1 Thessalonians, the letter we are reading, was triggered 06:40 by Timothy's return from Thessalonica. 06:43 Why don't you go and read verses 6-8? - It says: 07:15 We have got quite a window into Paul's feelings here 07:19 don't we, he's saying Timothy returned and reported 07:23 that they have a good memory of Paul at all times. 07:27 Yeah maybe he was a little worried that they didn't like 07:30 him anymore, or something, he hears that they still love 07:33 him and that they are longing to see him as much as 07:36 he is longing, and he is all excited about this. 07:38 This is very, very good and he is comforted. 07:41 Notice the words in our distress and in our difficult 07:46 circumstances, he is comforted that 07:49 they are still in the faith. 07:50 Paul may be like a lot of missionaries who are broken 07:53 away from their people and they wonder, are they going 07:55 to be okay without me? 07:57 Without the example, without the teaching, and so on, 08:01 are they going to be alright is the big question? 08:04 So Paul was excited, and he said, probably a little 08:08 exaggerated, I might just go on living now. 08:11 He was just so excited about that. 08:14 You know Jon, I don't know about all these feelings. 08:18 With Paul, is it okay for prophets and people like Paul 08:23 to have these feelings? 08:25 You don't think it's okay? - Well I always see Paul as 08:29 this strong guy that never had these feelings and 08:32 emotions, just pushes forward with the Gospel. 08:34 It's actually kind of encouraging. - that encouraging? 08:39 - yes to see that in him. 08:41 It is that way for me definitely because I think sometimes we 08:47 take the Biblical characters and put them on a bit of 08:50 a pedestal, Jesus belongs on that pedestal. 08:53 But Paul was in many ways was flawed as we are, he has his 08:57 struggles and we were seeing that clearly in this text. 09:02 Yet he forged ahead, you see his faith in God stayed 09:07 strong even under challenging circumstances. 09:09 What we see most clearly in this text, is the key of 09:15 relationships so Paul is deeply committed to the 09:21 Thessalonians, he loves them, he is burdened about them and 09:25 he wants them to be with him in every single way that 09:28 he possibly can. 09:30 And it causes me to think about relationships. 09:32 I have a couple friends who have studied this very, very 09:36 deeply and have come up with seven stages of relationship 09:40 that I think would be helpful for us to review 09:42 here and just briefly. 09:43 Stage 1: is the greeting stage. Hey, how are you? 09:48 How are you is in fact a bad question because you are 09:51 trying to pull them out deeper than they want to go, 09:54 somebody on the street. 09:56 But he says hello, greetings and etc. 09:59 Stage 2: is exchanging facts and reports. 10:03 How's the weather? Well it is kind of rainy here. 10:06 It's safe, when you don't know people too well that is 10:10 a safe place to be. 10:11 Stage 3: is exchanging opinions and judgments. Now that 10:15 gets more vulnerable you see because when I start giving 10:19 my opinions, someone else might reject me. 10:22 These are not too likely to reject my weather report, 10:26 although it can happen. - Right, right! 10:28 Some people like to be difficult you know but when you 10:33 start giving opinions and judgments, like what you think 10:35 about the government, or what you think about what is 10:38 going on in the church, there are people who would 10:40 disagree and that would be hurtful. 10:41 So at each stage our vulner- ability to others is greater. 10:45 Stage 4: is the stage of feelings. - now you are getting 10:49 touchy. - now it is getting deep and I really feel sad 10:53 today, people don't often reveal that part of themselves. 10:57 Many people are content just to stay with trading 11:00 information and trading opinions and judgments. 11:03 But when you start sharing your feelings you are revealing 11:07 yourself, if somebody rejects your feelings that is pretty 11:11 deep. - they are rejecting you. 11:13 - can you go deeper than feelings? 11:15 Well Stage 5: is where you come to the place where you're 11:19 comfortable enough with another person that you are 11:22 willing to share your faults, to confess your faults. 11:26 That is the level I think in which relationships with God 11:29 takes off, when we are willing to share with God, 11:33 our faults, if we confess our sins He is faithful and 11:38 just to forgive us our sins. 11:40 Stage 6: do you think there's even something deeper than stage 11:43 5? Stage 6: is when you are so comfortable with another 11:48 person that you are willing to let them share your faults 11:53 with you, or you're willing to be accountable to 11:56 them to let them tell you where you are at, that is pretty 12:00 heavy. I think one of the challenges, in many marriages, 12:04 is we all treat each other as if we are at stage 6. 12:08 Sometimes the partner is not quite there. - Yeah! 12:11 When we are telling somebody else what is wrong with them 12:14 that is a very high level, it requires a deep level of 12:17 trust, Paul in this letter really lets the Thessalonians 12:20 know that you are making some serious mistakes here. 12:24 But he is doing it grounded on relationship. 12:27 He has gone deep with them and his feelings are on 12:29 display, he is definitely at stage four with them. 12:32 Later on he even shares some challenges and he shares with 12:37 them some things that they need to do better. 12:38 So Paul in three weeks has gone as deep in relationships 12:43 as you can possibly go. 12:45 Something special must've happened in those three weeks. 12:48 - yeah. - it was really special. 12:51 Stage 7: it is total intimacy where there is no secrets 12:54 at all, that probably almost never happens in this life. 13:00 Mission is about relationships and there is a lady that 13:04 you and I both love her writings so much, Ellen White. 13:08 She wrote a statement about relationships in the Gospel. 13:12 Would you read that statement for us? - Sure! 13:42 I think that just it's right where all these texts were. 13:47 The idea that it is relationship that is critical, and as 13:52 we are tender and kind and comforting with people, we are 13:56 able to bring them in relationship to Jesus Christ. 14:00 We see Paul as this preacher who has no feelings, that is 14:03 not the Paul we saw in these texts. - No, yeah. 14:06 Well Jon it's been another good session together in this. 14:10 We thank you so much for joining us and coming to this 14:13 study and we look forward to being with you again next 14:16 time as we continue to learn about Paul and the words 14:19 the Spirit inspired him to write to the Thessalonians. 14:22 Take care and God bless! |
Revised 2023-01-25