(1) Now regarding your question about the money being collected for God’s people in Jerusalem. You should follow the same procedure I gave to the churches in Galatia.
- Money being collected:
- Acts 11:27-30: During this time some prophets traveled from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them named Agabus stood up in one of the meetings and predicted by the Spirit that a great famine was coming upon the entire Roman world. (This was fulfilled during the reign of Claudius.) So the believers in Antioch decided to send relief to the brothers and sisters in Judea, everyone giving as much as they could. This they did, entrusting their gifts to Barnabas and Saul to take to the elders of the church in Jerusalem.
- Acts 24:17: After several years away, I returned to Jerusalem with money to aid my people and to offer sacrifices to God.
- Romans 15:25-27: But before I come, I must go
to Jerusalem to take a gift to the
believers there. For you see, the believers in Macedonia
and Achaia have eagerly taken up an offering
for the poor among the believers in Jerusalem. They were
glad to do this because they feel they owe a real debt to them.
Since the Gentiles received the spiritual blessings of the Good News
from the believers in Jerusalem, they feel the least they can do in
return is to help them financially.
- 2 Corinthians 8:1-21: Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia. They are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant joy, which has overflowed in rich generosity. For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will. They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem. They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do. So we have urged Titus, who encouraged your giving in the first place, to return to you and encourage you to finish this ministry of giving. Since you excel in so many ways—in your faith, your gifted speakers, your knowledge, your enthusiasm, and your love from us—I want you to excel also in this gracious act of giving. I am not commanding you to do this. But I am testing how genuine your love is by comparing it with the eagerness of the other churches. You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty he could make you rich. Here is my advice: It would be good for you to finish what you started a year ago. Last year you were the first who wanted to give, and you were the first to begin doing it. Now you should finish what you started. Let the eagerness you showed in the beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to what you have. Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have. Of course, I don’t mean your giving should make life easy for others and hard for yourselves. I only mean that there should be some equality. Right now you have plenty and can help those who are in need. Later, they will have plenty and can share with you when you need it. In this way, things will be equal. As the Scriptures say, “Those who gathered a lot had nothing left over, and those who gathered only a little had enough.” But thank God! He has given Titus the same enthusiasm for you that I have. Titus welcomed our request that he visit you again. In fact, he himself was very eager to go and see you. We are also sending another brother with Titus. All the churches praise him as a preacher of the Good News. He was appointed by the churches to accompany us as we take the offering to Jerusalem—a service that glorifies the Lord and shows our eagerness to help. We are traveling together to guard against any criticism for the way we are handling this generous gift. We are careful to be honorable before the Lord, but we also want everyone else to see that we are honorable.
- 2 Corinthians 9:2, 9-12: For I know how eager you are to help, and I have been boasting to the churches in Macedonia that you in Greece were ready to send an offering a year ago. In fact, it was your enthusiasm that stirred up many of the Macedonian believers to begin giving … As the Scriptures say, “They share freely and give generously to the poor. Their good deeds will be remembered forever.” For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you. Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. And when we take your gifts to those who need them, they will thank God. So two good things will result from this ministry of giving—the needs of the believers in Jerusalem will be met, and they will joyfully express their thanks to God.
- God's people in Jerusalem:
- Several factors account for their poverty:
- After their conversion to Christianity, many Jews in Jerusalem would have been ostracized socially and economically.
- The “experiment in community sharing” described in Acts 2:44-45 and 4:32-35.
- They supported a large number of widows (Acts 6:1-6).
- Persistent food shortages culminated in the famine of 46 AD in the time of Emperor Claudius (Acts 11:27-30).
- The Jerusalem church supported a proportionately large number of teachers and probably provided hospitality for frequent Christian visitors to the holy city.
- Jews in Palestine were subject to a crippling twofold taxation--Jewish and Roman.
- Galatia:
Above map from
https://openoureyeslord.com/2015/04/09/come-over-here-and-help-us-sermons-on-1-thessalonians/
(2) On the first day of each week, you should each put aside a portion of the money you have earned. Don’t wait until I get there and then try to collect it all at once.
- First day of each week:
- Early Christians met on Sunday, not the Jewish Sabbath (Saturday). They knew that all days were alike to the Lord (Colossians 2:16-17) but wanted to celebrate the day Jesus rose from the dead (Luke 24:1).
- Acts 20:7: On the first day of the week, we gathered with the local believers to share in the Lord’s Supper. Paul was preaching to them, and since he was leaving the next day, he kept talking until midnight.
- Set aside a portion:
- They were to put it into the common treasury so there would be no last-minute scramble when he came.
(3-4) When I come, I will write letters of recommendation for the messengers you choose to deliver your gift to Jerusalem. And if it seems appropriate for me to go along, they can travel with me.
- Appropriate for me to go along:
- Paul did accompany them to Jerusalem (Acts 20:16-21:17). This was his last, ill-fated trip to Jerusalem, during which he was imprisoned (Acts 21:31-33) and eventually shipped to Rome (Acts 27:1).
(5) I am coming to visit you after I have been to Macedonia, for I am planning to travel through Macedonia.
- Coming to visit you:
- Paul purposely delayed his second trip to Corinth:
- 2 Corinthians 1:23: Now I call upon God as my witness that I am telling the truth. The reason I didn’t return to Corinth was to spare you from a severe rebuke.
(6-10) Perhaps I will stay awhile with you, possibly all winter, and then you can send me on my way to my next destination. This time I don’t want to make just a short visit and then go right on. I want to come and stay awhile, if the Lord will let me. In the meantime, I will be staying here at Ephesus until the Festival of Pentecost. There is a wide-open door for a great work here, although many oppose me. When Timothy comes, don’t intimidate him. He is doing the Lord’s work, just as I am.
- Timothy:
- Paul had trouble with the Corinthians Christians not respecting his authority as an apostle and as a minister of the gospel. What might they do to a young, timid man like Timothy? So, Paul asks the Corinthian Christians to respect Timothy when he comes.
- Acts 16:1-3: Paul went first to Derbe and then to Lystra, where there was a young disciple named Timothy. His mother was a Jewish believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 Timothy was well thought of by the believers in Lystra and Iconium, so Paul wanted him to join them on their journey. In deference to the Jews of the area, he arranged for Timothy to be circumcised before they left, for everyone knew that his father was a Greek.
- Acts 19:22: He sent his two assistants, Timothy and Erastus, ahead to Macedonia while he stayed awhile longer in the province of Asia.
- 1 Corinthians 4:17: That’s why I have
sent Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord.
He will remind you of how I follow Christ Jesus, just as I teach in
all the churches wherever I go.
- 1 Timothy 4:12: Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.
(11-12) Don’t let anyone treat him with contempt. Send him on his way with your blessing when he returns to me. I expect him to come with the other believers. Now about our brother Apollos - I urged him to visit you with the other believers, but he was not willing to go right now. He will see you later when he has the opportunity.
- Apollos:
- Acts 18:24-28: Meanwhile, a Jew named Apollos, an eloquent speaker who knew the Scriptures well, had arrived in Ephesus from Alexandria in Egypt. He had been taught the way of the Lord, and he taught others about Jesus with an enthusiastic spirit and with accuracy. However, he knew only about John’s baptism. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him preaching boldly in the synagogue, they took him aside and explained the way of God even more accurately. Apollos had been thinking about going to Achaia, and the brothers and sisters in Ephesus encouraged him to go. They wrote to the believers in Achaia, asking them to welcome him. When he arrived there, he proved to be of great benefit to those who, by God’s grace, had believed. He refuted the Jews with powerful arguments in public debate. Using the Scriptures, he explained to them that Jesus was the Messiah.
- 1 Corinthians 1:12: Some of you are saying, “I am a follower of Paul.” Others are saying, “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Peter,” or “I follow only Christ.”
(13) Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong.
- Clarke: “The terms in this verse are all military: Watch ye, watch, and be continually on your guard, lest you be surprised by your enemies … Stand fast in the faith - Keep in your ranks; do not be disorderly; be determined to keep your ranks unbroken; keep close together … Quit yourselves like men - When you are attacked, do not flinch; maintain your ground; resist; press forward; strike home; keep compact; conquer … Be strong - If one company or division be opposed by too great a force of the enemy, strengthen that division, and maintain your position … summon up all your courage, sustain each other; fear not, for fear will enervate you.”
- Be strong:
- Ephesians 6:10: A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
- 2 Timothy 2:1: Timothy, my dear son, be strong through the grace that God gives you in Christ Jesus.
(14-15) And do everything with love. You know that Stephanas and his household were the first of the harvest of believers in Greece, and they are spending their lives in service to God’s people. I urge you, dear brothers and sisters,
- Stephanas:
- 1 Corinthians 1:16: (Oh yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas, but I don’t remember baptizing anyone else.)
(16-17) to submit to them and others like them who serve with such devotion. I am very glad that Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus have come here. They have been providing the help you weren’t here to give me.
- Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus:
- These were the three men who brought the questions of the Corinthian Christians to Paul. Paul asks that as they are sent back by him with his letter, they be received as devoted servants of the Lord.
- Fortunatus:
- Fortunatus and Achaicus were common names for slaves or freedmen (former slaves).
- Clarke: “This man is supposed to have survived St. Paul; and to be the same mentioned by Clement in his epistle to the Corinthians, as the bearer of that epistle from Clement at Rome to the Christians at Corinth.”
(18-19) They have been a wonderful encouragement to me, as they have been to you. You must show your appreciation to all who serve so well. The churches here in the province of Asia send greetings in the Lord, as do Aquila and Priscilla and all the others who gather in their home for church meetings.
- Aquila and Priscilla:
- Aquilla and Priscilla were a married Jewish couple who ministered with Paul at Corinth. Now, having been forced from Rome, they were in Ephesus with Paul, and sent their greetings to the Corinthian Christians.
- Acts 18:1-3, 18, 24-26: Then Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. There he became acquainted with a Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently arrived from Italy with his wife, Priscilla. They had left Italy when Claudius Caesar deported all Jews from Rome. Paul lived and worked with them, for they were tentmakers just as he was … Paul stayed in Corinth for some time after that, then said good-bye to the brothers and sisters and went to nearby Cenchrea. There he shaved his head according to Jewish custom, marking the end of a vow. Then he set sail for yria, taking Priscilla and Aquila with him … Meanwhile, a Jew named Apollos, an eloquent speaker who knew the Scriptures well, had arrived in Ephesus from Alexandria in Egypt. He had been taught the way of the Lord, and he taught others about Jesus with an enthusiastic spirit and with accuracy. However, he knew only about John’s baptism. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him preaching boldly in the synagogue, they took him aside and explained the way of God even more accurately.
- Romans 16:3-5: Give my greetings to Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in the ministry of Christ Jesus. In fact, they once risked their lives for me. I am thankful to them, and so are all the Gentile churches. Also give my greetings to the church that meets in their home…
- 2 Timothy 4:19: Give my greetings to Priscilla and Aquila and those living in the household of Onesiphorus.
- They were faithful and consistent to the very end. 2 Timothy is Paul’s last letter, written about 14 years after he had first met Aquila and Prisca (Priscilla). Nothing negative is said about these two believers in any of the writings of Paul or Luke. As far as the record shows, between Paul and Aquila/Priscilla there was always harmony. What about you? In what spiritual condition will you be in 14 years from now? May we not leave our first love and may we not lose the joy of our salvation.
- In their home for church meetings:
- The early church met in houses, because they had no meeting places of their own until the third century.
- Colossians 4:15: Please give my greetings to our brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church that meets in her house.
- Philemon 1:2: and to our sister Apphia, and to our fellow soldier Archippus, and to the church that meets in your house.
(20-21) All the brothers and sisters here send greetings to you. Greet each other with a sacred kiss. HERE IS MY GREETING IN MY OWN HANDWRITING—PAUL.
- MY OWN HANDWRITING—PAUL:
- Paul had a secretary (amanuensis) write the letters as he dictated them.
- Romans 16:22: I, Tertius, the one writing this letter for Paul, send my greetings, too, as one of the Lord’s followers.
- Galatians 6:11: NOTICE WHAT LARGE LETTERS I USE AS I WRITE THESE CLOSING WORDS IN MY OWN HANDWRITING.
- Colossians 4:18: HERE IS MY GREETING IN MY OWN HANDWRITING—PAUL. Remember my chains. May God’s grace be with you.
- 2 Thessalonians 3:17: HERE IS MY GREETING IN MY OWN HANDWRITING—PAUL. I DO THIS IN ALL MY LETTERS TO PROVE THEY ARE FROM ME.
(22) If anyone does not love the Lord, that person is cursed. Our Lord, come!
- Cursed - Anathema)
- Our Lord, come:
- From Aramaic, Marana tha. Some manuscripts read Maran atha, “Our Lord has come.”
- “Maranatha” became the common greeting of the oppressed believers, replacing the Jewish greeting shalom (“peace”). Every day, we should expect Him to come, and every day we should long for Him to come.
- F. F. Bruce: “If this word is divided as Marana tha, it means “Our Lord come”; but if we divide it Maran atha, it means “Our Lord has come.” It is an Aramaic phrase which found its way into the liturgy of the church from its earliest days.”
(23-24) May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. My love to all of you in Christ Jesus.
- Some manuscripts add Amen.
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