August 26

<p><a href= "http://traffic.libsyn.com/thehighroadshow/2397S0826.mp3" target= "_blank" rel="noopener">Download</a></p> <!-- END 1047 Download Link --> <p>I Thessalonians 1-5 We are in the Church Stream reading from the New English Translation. 7streamsmethod.com | @7StreamsMethod | @serenatravis | #7Streams | <a href= "https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=YPPA8XGTQ2YHU">Donate</a></p> <!--more--> <p>Commentary by Dr. Drake Travis</p> <blockquote> <div>Lord Jesus, your word to us from Paul glistens with joy and wonder and endless hope. May we be strengthened by the joy we have in you and live accordingly.  Amen.</div> </blockquote> <div>Thessalonians is written to the Christians of a city we label as Thessalonica.  The locals call it Thess-a-lo-NEE-ki.  It is among the first of the 13 letters that Paul wrote to the first century churches - if not the first. Most who've studied the matter date the letter at 51 A.D. Paul wrote it to encourage the believers there and to settle questions they had about the Second Coming of Christ. Their puzzlement was about faithful Christians who had died and they were wondering how the deceased were going to enjoy Jesus' Return if they weren't here....legitimate and fair question, I'd say.  Paul had not been in the city long but the result of his visit was such a wave of conversions that his enemies perceived that Paul's visit was "destroying everything", so to speak. Prominent women were converting, plus such a large number of Grecians were getting saved that the whole country was hearing this news from Thessaloniki.  It was a city of 200,000 in Paul's day (just over 310K today with a metro area exceeding 1M). And it's intriguing how this book still pertains to them now - as well as the rest of us.  The Thessalonian Christians were being persecuted.  So Paul writes to comfort, strengthen, encourage, and instruct.  He instructs them to remain godly and dutiful in their daily discipleship.  He saw that their persecution could add tremendous power to th