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1 & 2 Thessalonians: New Testament with Lynne Wilson (Come, Follow Me) · Scripture Central

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Welcome back, Shalom. I'm glad to have you here as
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part of the scripture central team for 1st and 2nd
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Thessalonians. These possibly are the oldest
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books written in the entire New Testament.
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Some people think Galatians might precede it, but most
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scholars think 1st and Thessalonians were the first
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text written and the Gospels were being compiled and in
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different forms but not in the form we know them.
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Those came a little bit later, but because they're shorter
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letters, they are placed all the way down here in the Pauline
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corpus that they have wonderful themes.
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He focuses on rejoicing in the Saints faithfulness and
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encouragement for their progress.
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He encourages them to grow in charity and hope and
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faithfulness. They're just terrific books.
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Remember, he visited them on his second mission.
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This is part of the northern Greece area where he wanted to
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go to Emphasis and he was prayed over to Macedonia.
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So he goes over there and he visits them and he's only there
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just a few weeks before persecution comes and chases him
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out. And it's even on that same
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mission that he's writing these letters it.
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It's just a little bit later when he's in other towns, he
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describes being in Athens, and at least that's what the 4th
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century person wrote down. He may have been over in
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Corinth, which is where I probably think he was writing
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them from, because he stayed in Corinth for 18 months after
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Thessalaika. So that's probably where he's
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writing those from. You know, we use the first
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Thessalonians as one of the books to say this is Pauline.
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And then we attribute all the others that share the same
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themes and the same phrases. And these are the books that are
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attested to be written by Paul, First Thessalonians, First
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Corinthians, Second Corinthians, Galatians, Romans, Philippians
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and Feylemen. The others probably were
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included some editing by a scribe or Paul wrote an outline
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or something. I don't know.
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We are, we are not quite sure, but we're not positive that
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they're completely written by Paul.
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It was on Paul's second mission that he he left the area that we
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refer to now as Turkey. He's up in Troy, US, which is
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the city of Troy. And he had stayed there and had
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the vision that he was coming over and and then had left
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northern Macedonian and come to southern Macedonian.
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And then he wrote the letters from down there.
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Let's talk a little bit about Thessalonica and what it was.
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This capital area was a free city.
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That means they didn't have to pay taxes.
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That is huge. They are still under the same
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umbrella of Rome, but they are taxfree.
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The population was between 60 and 100,000, an enormous city
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for those days and age. And there were also many Jews
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there, because they found both Jewish and Samaritan synagogues
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in the archaeological digs. There was a Roman form, a
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Hellenistic stadium. There's a Temple of Surrapus
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there. Another way we can date the
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letter is because Paul is writing the letter with Silas,
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it's called Sylvanius and timothaneus.
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You know, they're using the Greek names, the longer endings.
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But in the book of Acts, this is with Silas, and Silas was with
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Paul only on his second mission. That's how we can date this to
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that time period. One more little detail about
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Thessalonica. Because it was this very wealthy
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city, archaeologists have found coins from all different
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countries there. They found coins with Zeus and
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Hera on them. They found coins from many,
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many, many other countries. And in fact, the city enjoyed
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such extensive wealth that they built temples to a lot of
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different people here. And Paul, when he comes, adds
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one more religion to this city and that's Christianity.
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As you recall, between the first mission and the second mission,
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Paul went back to Jerusalem and said, what are we going to have
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the Christians that are being converted without circumcision?
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What are we going to have them do?
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How much of the Law of Moses are they expected to live?
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So they have that Jerusalem council in about 5051 AD and
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Acts chapter 15 describes it. And that is now the message that
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Paul took to them when he was on that second mission.
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Just to refresh our memories of that second mission that Paul
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was on, I'm going to read a little bit from Acts chapter 17,
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verses one through 3, talking about the synagogues of the
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Jews, that he'd go into the synagogues to preach.
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And he says that he reasoned with them out of the Scriptures.
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And then skipping down to verse three, that Christ suffered and
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was risen. He goes on to say of the chief
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women there was not a few. You know there were many many
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women that came flocking to Christianity and it was a
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wonderful experience. Even though Paul wasn't there
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very long, the spirit of the Lord was poured out and the
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message was clearly communicated that Jesus was the Savior of the
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world. The 1st letter of Thessalonians
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is divided into two parts. There's only 5 short chapters
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and the first part is all on rejoicing in the Saints
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faithfulness and then the second part is on the encouragement for
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the Saints progress. So at the very beginning he this
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rejoicing section he gives them their greetings of peace and
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thanks see then and chapter 2 talks about his ministry there
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with them and hit their reception and the opposition
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that came around from his message.
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Then in chapter 2, verse 17 to 20 his desire to visit them, and
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then in chapter 3 his is news from Timothy that Timothy had
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been sent and visited them and gave them encouraging reports.
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And then the second-half is this encouragement chapter four and
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five, where he encouraged them to live and to please God and to
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seek sanctification and charity. In chapter 4 verses 3 through 8
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he attacks sexual immorality and then from 9:00 to 12:00 he
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builds up charity and self-sufficiency.
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And chapter 4, verse 13 to 18, he talks about that the dead
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Saints are going to come back and they're going to be with
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Christ when he returns. And then the last chapter,
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chapter 5, the 1st 11 verses talk about the timing of the
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second coming and then the relationship with each other.
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And verse 16 to 22, the relationship with God.
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And then the last five verses, 23 to 28, Paul's final blessing
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and prayer. I love verse one.
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When Paul again claims servitude, he is a servant of
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Christ. I can't say enough about our
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responsibility as disciples of Christ as baptized members to
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serve him. We need to go before him every
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morning and evening on our prayers and say, I'm here to
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listen, I'm here to learn, I'm here to serve you.
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What can I do? And it isn't slothful servant
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who has to be commanded in all things, you know.
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There is much we can do to bring about righteousness, however.
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Paul as an apostle identifies himself not here as an apostle,
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but as a servant. And I love it.
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Later on he'll identify himself an apostle in a few verses.
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But chapter one, verse one has a nice Joe Smith edition.
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He says Paul and Sibelius and Timotheus, you know those are
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their Greek names. And then here is the Joe Smith
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edition, servants of God the Father and of the Lord Jesus
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Christ unto the Church of the Thessalonians.
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And then skipping down to verse four in the NIV, it reads, for
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we know, brothers and sisters, and that's obviously using that
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word, Delfoy for all believers. You know it's 14 times in these
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letters, but it's always for disciples, regardless of the age
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and the gender, continues on those who are loved by God that
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he has chosen you. The idea of being chosen by God
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in the King James is using the word elect.
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You are of the elector, you are of the election.
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We find it seven times in the New Testament.
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And the word means to choose out.
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It's either a divine selection or a general choosing.
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But it's interpreted by many Christians to say, oh, we don't
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have any agency. We're either damned or saved and
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it's all up to God and it we trust that he knows best.
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But we define this very differently, and luckily we have
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in the Restoration clear statements against all the
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points that were brought about by this Calvinistic or early
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Christian thought that they were some damned and and some saved
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without any choice on their own. And as you recall, I've talked
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about this in the past it this type of Reformed theology is
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called the Tulip, total depravity, unconditional
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election, limited atonement, irresistible grace and
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perseverance of the Saints. Every single one of those were
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knocked down by Joseph Smith in the First Vision.
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So this word is defined very differently by other people.
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When we say your beloved of God, we think, yes, I'm so grateful,
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but he loves all of his children, you know, but we
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choose to be chosen if we are following according to Section
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122, Why are they not chosen? Because they care too much about
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the things of the world. Are you more worried about your
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physical appearance, or are you more worried about your internal
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condition of your heart? Section 29 uses this word,
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elected very early in the Church, he says in verse 9.
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The elect hear my voice and harden, not their hearts.
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That's the definition of the elect in the Restoration.
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So let's take that word back now into the Pauline epistle at
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first Thessalonians and say yes, they are those who have
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hardened, not their hearts. Continuing on to verse 5.
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This is also in the NIV. Our gospel came to you not
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simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and
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deep conviction. I love the fact that the Spirit
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was tied to power. The Spirit can be a very
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powerful thing. And so I thought it would be
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interesting to look up how many times power is connected with
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the Spirit in the scriptures and in the Bible.
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I found it 10 times. Then I thought, I might as well
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keep looking. And in the Book of Mormon it is
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57 times. Since the Book of Mormon is only
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a third the size of the Bible, you have to do the word ratios.
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And if you do the the statistics, it turns out to be
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17 times more often. Is the Spirit linked to power
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within a verse or a few phrases? And then in the doctrine
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cabinets it's even more than that.
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When you do the word ratios, it's only 35 times.
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But because it's such a small book, it's actually 26 times
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greater than the Bible. So in the Restoration, this
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spirit is a powerful message, and the Lord wants us to link it
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that way. First six, the First
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Thessalonians chapter One. Ye become followers of us out of
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the Lord, having received the Word in affliction with joy of
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the Holy Ghost. You know Christianity was
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nothing for cowardly converts. This was a place for those who
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are willing to fight for what they believed, those people who
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want to sit back. This is not a place, especially
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at this time when there was so much persecution, and I feel the
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same thing for our day and age too.
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Our religious persecution though, I think is a lot more
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intellectual or emotional rather than physical.
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And theirs was physical, especially under, you know, in a
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few years after this letter is written, when Nero's on the
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throne, continuing on to chapter 2, verse two, he now goes back
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to remind them of what it was like when he was first there.
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For those few weeks, there was a lot of animosity and there was a
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lot of persecution in the early church in this area.
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And I don't know if you remember, but in Acts chapter
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17, they described Jason, this good Christian who was
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imprisoned, and other church leaders as well.
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But let's read chapter 2, verse two.
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In the NIV, with the help of our God, we dared to tell you His
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gospel in the face of strong opposition.
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So even with the enemy barking at the door, he opened his mouth
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and shared his love of our Savior.
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Skipping up to verse 11 and 12 still in the MIV, it reads, you
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know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his
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own children encouraging and comforting and urging you to
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live lives worthy of God. And that's the beauty of the
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gospel. Those we serve, we grow to love.
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We feel like we're missionaries, are our children, are my primary
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kids, are my children, and we learn to love each other.
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And it's a gift of the Spirit. It's a gift from God.
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Continuing on to verse 14 in the NIV, it says you brothers and
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sisters become imitators of God, churches and Judea, which are in
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Jesus Christ because you suffered from your own people
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the same things that the churches suffered from the Jews.
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So he's saying in Jerusalem the early Christians are suffering,
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and even here in Thessalomica you guys are also suffering and
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you are being physically persecuted.
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In fact, about 50 AD and Acts chapter 17, other people were
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envious. So again, pride gets in the
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road. So Paul apologizes for not being
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able to stay with the Saints very long.
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In First Thessalonians chapter 2, verse 17 in the CSB, it reads
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Brothers and sisters, after we were forced to leave you for a
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short time in person, not in heart, we greatly desired and
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made every effort to return and see you face to face.
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But do you remember the Lord tells Paul you are staying in
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Corinth. I need you right here.
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You may think this is an awful Sin City, but I need you here.
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And that's when Paul sends Timothy up to see how they're
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doing and to check on them. Continuing on now in verse 19 in
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chapter 2 in the BSB, it reads, who is our hope?
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And he skips down a little bit. And he said, you yourselves in
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the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ and his coming.
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You know, initially the Christians thought that Christ
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was coming immediately. And he says, I just keep this
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vision in my mind. How do I get through these hard
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times? I think of you and I imagine you
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with our Savior. You know, earlier in in chapter
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one, he talked about that they needed to wait for Christ to
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come. The, the early Christians really
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thought this was going to happen right around the corner.
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Chapter 3, verse four, says, I kept warning you with what we
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would suffer persecution. And as you know, it has come to
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pass. That's the BSB translation.
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So he said, I warned you that it was going to be hard and I'm so
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sorry that you are being heavily persecuted.
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And we are told by our prophet now a day that it's going to get
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worse. Let me read to you from 2019
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General conference. The adversary is quadrupling his
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efforts to disrupt testimonies and impede the work of the Lord.
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He is arming his minions with potent weapons to keep us from
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partaking of the joy and love of the Lord.
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That is difficult, but there's opposition in all things, and
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the Savior will apply the greatest miracles and the
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greatest gifts, the Spirit, to combat that, Chapter 3, verse
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six and seven in the BSB reads. Just now, Timothy has returned
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from his visit with the good news about your faith, your
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love, and the fond memories that you have preserved.
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And we have been reassured. You know the days when
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communication was so difficult to get?
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He has to send someone hundreds of miles to get the message, and
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he's so grateful that the Saints are doing well.
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He continues on in verse 9 and 10 in the NIV.
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How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we
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have in the presence of our God? Because of you?
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Night and day we pray most earnestly.
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That's verse 10. I'm sure you have done the same
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thing for those whom you love, and I think it is a gift of God
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that we can pray for each other and know that angels will be
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sent. I believe in the administration
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of angels, both mortal and immortal.
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Verse 11 and 13 continues on in the NIV.
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May our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way
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for us to come to you. May the Lord make your love
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increase and overflow with each other for everyone else.
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And then verse 13. May he strengthen your heart so
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that you will be blameless and holy when our Lord Jesus comes.
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Very different view. However, Paul then turns on the
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timing, and this is what he says here in Part 2.
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Now it's the encouragement of the Saints.
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And this is what he says in chapter 4, verse one through 12.
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It's all on sanctification and love.
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I'll read verse one. Now.
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As for other matters, brothers and sisters, we instructed you
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how to live in order to please God.
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That's the NIV translation. And then in verse two, in the
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KJV it says for ye know what commandments we gave you by the
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Lord Jesus. So he's not giving them
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instructions. He is saying these came from our
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Savior. These are commandments from the
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Lord and they are for me as well As for you.
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First, Thessalonians chapter 4, verse 3 to 8.
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Next attacks immorality and this is a topic.
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Inappropriate sexual behavior is a topic in nine of his letters.
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This is a real problem in the Greco Roman world, and these are
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brand new converts and trying to completely change the paradigm
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from their culture to the culture of God is difficult.
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And so in verse three and four it reads in the MIV, it is God's
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will that you should be sanctified, that you should
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avoid sexual immorality, that each of you should learn to
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control your own body. And then in five and six he said
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not in passionate lust like the pagans who do not know God.
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And that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage
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of a brother and sister. Don't ever take advantage of
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anyone, anyone. And by brother and sister he
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means people in the in the church.
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He's not talking about incest here, I hope.
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I hope that wasn't a problem in Thessalonica, but continuing on
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to verse seven and eight again in the NIV, it reads God did not
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call us to be impure. Therefore anyone who rejects
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this instruction does not reject a human being but God.
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You know it's it's going back to he's fighting against the
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Epicureans. And I I want to emphasize that
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word rejects that in the NIV, but it's also disregards God.
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In the RSV, you know in KJV it's despises but I also like the CEV
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which is disobeys God. You know it, when we deal with
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pornography or adultery or fornication or anything in the
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whole realm of immorality, of not living a chase life, we are
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offending our God. He created our bodies for a very
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sacred purpose and when we misuse that, it is it is tragic.
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Paul next turns to charity and self sufficiently.
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So let's look at chapter 4. Verse nine is all the way down.
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Verse 12, I guess. And I'll read it from the new
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King James Version. Now concerning brotherly love,
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So that's would be Philadelphia. Remember there's all these
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different words for different kinds of love.
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Aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, to work
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with your hands that you may lack nothing.
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So see, this is the opposite of the Epicureans here.
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He's saying you know we are going to work hard and I don't
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want you being a bunch of lazy bums.
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Verse 17 in the JST add some interesting differences.
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I'll read the Joseph Smith changes.
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Then they who are alive shall be caught up together into the
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clouds with them who remain to meet the Lord in the air, and so
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shall we be ever with the Lord. Now the word that is used here
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for the caught up is the same roots that we use for the word
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rapture. And this is where that beautiful
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Christian phrase comes from, that those who are coming as a
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Christians from heaven and those from Christians on earth will
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meet together in the heavens at the coming of the Lord.
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And beautiful artwork try to describe this exciting exciting
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time. But any of us who have had
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departed loved ones look forward to this day and I look forward
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to meeting Paul. I look forward to being with all
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those Saints from the time of Adam on down.
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Those who are with Christ will come with him in great glory and
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might. And remember the world does not
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have to get any more wicked. The church has to become more
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pure. According to the Book of
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Revelation. First Thessalonians chapter 5,
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verse one and 11 now addresses the timing of the second coming.
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And he says in verses one and two in the MIV.
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Now brothers and sisters about the times and dates, you know
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very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in
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the night. Skipping down to verse six in
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chapter 5, let us not sleep. He's saying let's not be
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passive, let's not wait as if we were just dreaming about it.
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And then skipping out to verse eight, he says put on the
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breastplate of faith and love and for a helmet the hope of
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salvation. Now I don't know if you remember
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back in Ephesians he talked about the armor of God,
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Ephesians chapter 6, verse 10 through 17.
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And here we've got it again. Another sign that these are
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written by the same author, the same themes come forward.
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He says we've got to attack the adversary with the word of God
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and we've got to use our faith and our and the Savior salvation
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to protect our thoughts in our head, Verse 5 to 9 reads.
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God hath not appointed us to wrath but to obtain salvation by
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our Lord. Therefore, comfort yourselves
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together and edify one another. Isn't this beautiful?
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He's That's our role as Christians.
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We're not just to comfort those members of our own
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congregations. We're to reach out and comfort
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those in all of our sphere and edify them and testify of
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Christ. He continues on in verses 12 to
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15 to talk about relationships with each other.
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I love the verse 12 in the NIV. Actually, I'll read 12 and 13.
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We ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those
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who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who
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admonish you, Hold them in the highest regard in love because
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of their work. You know, I feel the same way.
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We're all a lay church and we need to give people a lot of
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slack and be grateful for their service.
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And if someone doesn't know how to counsel you correctly, don't
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be mad at him. He's just a voluntary.
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He didn't. He's doing the best he can, or
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she's doing the best she can. It's he's saying support each
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other, sustain each other. I love the idea that the mantle
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of the Lord blesses us, but it is our hands that are sustaining
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each other, first fourteen in the NIV reads.
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We urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle
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and disruptive and encourage the dishearted, help the weak, be
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patient with everyone. And then he goes on to talk
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about our relationships with God.
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So he's he's finished talking about relationships with people.
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And in verse 16 to 22, I'm still in First Thessalonians chapter
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five. He now talks about our need to
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draw on the powers of heaven. He says in verse 16, rejoice
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evermore and going all the way down to verse 22, I'm just going
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to read some of these. They're beautiful.
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Pray without ceasing or constantly is another
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translation in everything. Give thanks, or in every
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circumstance, whatever. Quench not the Spirit or in
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other translations, don't stifle the Spirit, Despise not
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prophesying, or don't reject even the prophecies either.
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Prove all things, hold fast to that which is good.
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Abstain from all appearances of evil.
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These are powerful statements on how we can go through the
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refiners fire and come out stronger, and those of us that
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are already partaking in the sacrament and doing our best can
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apply these things every hour of our lives.
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And then Paul gives his final blessings in this letter from
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chapter 5, verse 23 to 28, and I'll read from the MIV.
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Starting with verse 25, brothers and sisters, pray for us.
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Create all God's people with a holy kiss and skipping down to
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verse 27, have this letter read to all the brothers and sisters
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you know. This is I want everybody to hear
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this And then he closes it up and will now start with Second
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Thessalonians. This is also written in close
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proximity, probably again in the second mission with just a few
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months after the first was written in the 2nd letter of
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Thessalonians. The three main themes that Paul
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emphasizes are he hears that they are really being persecuted
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and so he wants to talk about how to endure persecution about
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Christ second coming and about the need to work together.
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It's a it's a very good unifying letter.
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I'll just go with a little bit through the outline here.
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He first gives salutations and thanksgivings and 1st 4 verses
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and then chapter one verses 5 to 10 to persevere through these
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persecutions. Then he gives this beautiful
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prayer. He actually gives 3 prayers in
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this letter, but verses 1112 is the first prayer and then
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chapter two he turns to the second coming.
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He first talks about the apostasy and Satan's power and
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then he gives another beautiful prayer for them.
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And then in chapter three he requests their prayers and they
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all need to work together. And he gives another prayer in
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verses 16 to 18 of chapter 3 and then his final salutations.
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But they think that's probably added added a little bit later.
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Let's start by reading chapter one, verse 2.
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Grace unto You and Peace from God our Father, the Lord Jesus
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Christ. It's just how he starts.
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Romans and Corinthians and Galatians and Ephesians and
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Flippians and Clausians and Thessalonians.
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You know this grace and peace. It's grace is the Greek greeting
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and then Shalom would be the Hebrew greeting or the Aramaic.
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So he has this great way of combining those two.
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First four and five in the NIV reads, we boast about your
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perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials that
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you are enduring, and as a result you will be counted
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worthy of the Kingdom of God for which you are suffering now.
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We do not encourage self-inflicted.
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As I talked about last week, self-inflicted pain is not what
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God asks for, but he does allow us to receive pain and
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persecution and to suffer so that we can fall on our knees
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and receive the strength of God and be empowered by him and
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become a new person through our Savior.
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We also read about this in Acts chapter 5, Romans 8, Flippians
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1:00 and all these are in my handout.
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I've got several of them where the Saints are persecuted and
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the Lord brings them through. Going back though, to chapter
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one, let's continue on. In verse six and seven in the
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NIV, God is just He will pay back troubles to those who
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trouble you and give relief to you when you are troubled.
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This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in
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blazing fire with his powerful angels.
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It sounds like Paul thinks it's just right around the corner,
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but in another chapter they'll go back and address the timing.
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Right now, though, he's just encouraging them to persevere
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during the persecution. And in verses 5 to 10, that's
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his whole thing I'll just read versus 9 and 10 in the JST who
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shall be punished with destruction.
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Now the word that he crossed out there is everlasting
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destruction. Joseph felt so strongly that
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heaven was a place where there was forgiveness.
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There were second chances, there's third chances, and that
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that we will all be resurrected and that all will receive a
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Kingdom of glory. And what we really, really
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desire in our hearts is what we do.
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And so if you really, really desire it, you will act in
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accordance what God is asking us to do, versus 6 to 8 in the ESV
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reads. God considers it just to repay
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with affliction those who afflict you, and to grant relief
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to you who are afflicted When the Lord Jesus is revealed from
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heaven with his mighty angels inflaming fire, inflicting
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vengeance. So you get the image that Paul
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really thinks this is going to happen and that all these people
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are hurting them, are going to be immediately punished.
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And that is something that early Christianity had to deal with
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for years and years because it didn't happen.
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It hasn't happened. It's Millennium now and we're
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still waiting. Verse 11 and 12 is this
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beautiful first prayer. We pray always for you that he
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may count you worthy of his calling of our God, so that the
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name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you and in him.
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That's the Bob translation. Then in chapter 2, Paul moves on
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to the Second Coming, and it's all about how to prepare for it
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from verses 1 to 15. I'd like to read from verse
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three in the Joseph Smith translation, Chapter 2, verse
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three. Let no man deceive you by any
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means and then he crosses out a whole bunch and he said there
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shall come a falling away first. Now do you remember back in Acts
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they talked about there were wolves in the church.
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They were wolves dressed in sheep's clothing kind of
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imagery. But here this falling away is
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referred to as a rebellion in the RSV or the NIV or a revolt
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in the Jerusalem Bible or I love the Nava mass apostasy.
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Nepal is telling them loud and clear Christ is going to come.
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Everything's going to be equal and and though there will be a
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punishment afflicted but it's not going to come until there is
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a mass apostasy. Verse three reads and the man of
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sin be revealed the son of perdition.
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Now in Latin perdition means to destroy.
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You know, this is not just a happen chance, It's planned
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defection. It's desertion.
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In fact, I like some of the other translations to rebel.
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The lost one is the JBA, man of lawlessness.
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The son of perdition has also the name of wickedness.
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You know, this apostasy was not a passive movement.
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The devil planned it. It's dangerous, it's it's well
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worked out and all his minions are now working full force.
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In fact we just heard from the prophet four times as much.
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Chapter 2, verse four in the NIV reads He will oppose and will
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exalt himself over everything that is called God or is
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worshipped so that he, meaning the devil, sets itself up in
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God's temple proclaiming himself to be God.
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So this is just two decades after Christ's ministry.
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This was not passive nor was it gradual.
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Jesus foretold about it. Do you remember in Matthew 24 he
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he gives them all this information and now Paul is just
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reminding them that that this is part of God's plan.
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But we can be saved and we can either come with him as angels
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from the other side of the veil or be on earth still and and
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join him. That way both will be united.
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Chapter 2, verse seven has another very long translation
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from the Joseph Smith translation and it it shows how
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Christ is in control of the situation.
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We can trust in God. He knows what's happening.
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I'll read to you from the JST. The mystery of iniquity does
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already work. And then here's the addition he
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it is who now worketh and Christ suffereth him to work until the
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time is fulfilled that he shall be taken out of the way.
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So it's it's God's allowing this because when we have opposition
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it sometimes spurs us into acting more valiantly and and
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taking us closer to our savior. Verse nine in the BSB reads the
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coming of the lawless one. That's that Satan again will be
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accompanied by the working of Satan with every kind of power
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and sign and false wonder. Satan and his minions have had a
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long time to learn how to make counterfeits.
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And not just with Moses in Pharaoh's palace did he make
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things look like they were happening, but in our own age we
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see Satan working overtime. In fact, our prophet said in
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2018, in the coming days it will not be possible to survive
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spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting and
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constant influence of the Holy Ghost.
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This was repeated and repeated and repeated in one conference.
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It was repeated four times. We have got to hold on to the
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word of God and and and seek greater spiritual manifestations
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and and seek the gifts of the Spirit and exert more faith
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because that will be the only way we can hold on during all
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these temptations of the devil. There's another good Joseph
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Smith translation edition in chapter 2, verse 9 and 10, and
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you'll see that he he puts in perspective the falling away,
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Joseph added. Yay, the Lord, even Jesus who's
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coming is not until after their cometh a falling away, and then
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back to the King James by the working of Satan with all power
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and signs and lying and wonders, and skipping ahead to verse 10
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because they received not the love of truth.
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We have to want to love truth more than we want to love, to be
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politically correct, or to be socially acceptable, or to
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assume that what our culture has taught us is right, is right.
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No, God has taught us what is right.
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That's where we need to go. I don't know if you remember
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back in your church history days, but I think one of Joseph
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Smith's favorite topics was the gift of the spirit and his His
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nephew George A Smith said the thing that Joseph spoke more on
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than anything else was the gift of the discernment of spirits
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because he felt it was so needed to discern what is right from
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wrong. And Brigham Young picks up on
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the same thing, and I'll quote from the Journal of Discourse is
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here. In all this, the power of the
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devil is limited, but the power of God is unlimited.
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Back to Thessalonians chapter 2, verse 13.
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This is the NIV. We ought always to thank God for
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you brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose
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you as the first fruits to be saved through the sanctifying
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work of the Spirit. Do you remember what he's
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talking about here with the first fruits?
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That's one of the things that was harvested first and taken to
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the temple. That was their tithes in
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whatever fruit production it was.
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You took your first fruits instead of feeding your hungry
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family, You took it to God and fed the priest, and you used it
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as an offering, and then they would be allowed to feed.
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And the Lord promises that he will feed you if you give to
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them first. So these first fruits are what
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is sanctified, what is what is given to God.
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It's very sacred. And he's saying you are the
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first fruits. You're the ones that mean the
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most to me because you're given to God.
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It sounds as if the early Christians were very interested
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in the timing of the second coming.
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I think I'm very interested in the timing of the second Coming.
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But Brigham gave some caution on that one too, and I'd like to
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read to you from him. Do not be too anxious for the
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Lord to hasten his work. Let our anxiety be centered upon
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this one thing, the sanctification of our own
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hearts, the purifying of our affections, the preparing of
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ourselves for the approach of the events that are hastening
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upon us. This should be our concern.
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This should be our study. This should be our daily prayer,
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seeking to have the Spirit of Christ that we may wait
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patiently the time of the Lord and prepare ourselves the times
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that are coming. This is our duty.
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Isn't that a great motivating message?
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Paul Nix gives his second prayer blessing in chapter 2, verses 16
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to 17, and I'll just read part of it in the MIV.
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God our Father who loved us and by His grace gave us eternal
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encouragement and Good Hope. Encourage your hearts and
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strengthen you in every good deed and word.
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Paul talks two or three times about the need to be
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self-sufficient, the need to work with your own hands.
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You recall back in the book of Acts, Paul was a tent maker and
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he joined Aquila and Priscilla and made tents with them to pay
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his way. And so this becomes a theme in
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chapter 3 from verses 6 to 15. This need to we all need to
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work. It's part of the law of
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consecration. We all have to work.
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We can do what we can. I'll read just from six and
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seven. In the MIV, we command you
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brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who's
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idle and disruptive. Follow our example.
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We were not idle when we were with you.
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Next, Paul requests their prayers, and in Second
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Thessalonians chapter 3, verse 15, he says, Finally, pray for
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us brothers and sisters that the Lord's message may spread, that
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we may be delivered from skipping ahead a little bit from
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the evil people and then down to verse 3 and he will strengthen
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you and protect you from the evil one.
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This is a promise that has been restored, those of us that have
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taken upon ourselves. Our covenants in the temple are
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promised that we will not be destroyed until our mission is
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complete if we live the teachings of our Savior.
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And I guess he got some reports that there were some pretty lazy
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people because in verse 13 he says brothers and sisters never
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tire of doing what is good. And you know, as a mom of little
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kids, I was always tired. And now in my life I am often
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tired. But he says don't be tired of
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well doing. Allow the spirit to rejuvenate
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you. In chapter 3, verse 14 and 15, I
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want to read from the MIV. Just take special note of anyone
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who does not obey. Don't associate with him
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skipping up to verse 15. Do not regard them as an enemy,
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but warn them as you would a fellow believer.
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You know, don't follow bad examples.
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Even if they're within the church.
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You know you can love them, but don't follow them.
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And then it ends with his own handwritten script, as he
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usually does. Verse 17 reads salutation from
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Paul with mine own hand, which is the token in every epistle.
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So I write the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
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Amen. You know, in a day and age where
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letters could be very easily captured and torn and replaced
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and misunderstood, and communication was so carefully
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taken out and these early Saints were in desperate need to
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communicate as the flock was being persecuted.
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And so Paul sent Timothy and Silas and others back and forth,
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back and forth, getting these letters.
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I am so grateful that we can get on our knees and hear from the
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Spirit, and we can listen to the words of the prophet as well as
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read them. May you draw closer to the Lord
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as we study these wonderful books of 1st and 2nd
39:11
Thessalonians this week. I pray in the name of Jesus
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Christ. Amen.