“You also became 1imitators of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that YOU BECAME AN EXAMPLE TO ALL THE BELIEVERS…For THE WORD OF THE LORD HAS SOUNDED FORTH FROM YOU…in every place your faith toward God has gone forth…and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.” (1 Thess. 1:6-10) 1mimētēs: an imitator or follower.
What a complement from Paul to tell these Christians from Thessalonica, who were formally pagans and idol worshipers, but now are true followers of Christ. These believers we doing what we all should be doing, being an example to all believers. Paul praises them for being imitators or followers of the Lord.
1st Thessalonians is thought to be Paul’s earliest letter (the earliest work in the New Testament); In this work, The teaching on justification and the last judgment suggests that even the justified can ultimately be lost if they do not continue in the faith. “IT IS GOD’S WILL THAT YOU SHOULD BE SANCTIFIED: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable,THE LORD WILL PUNISH ALL THOSE WHO COMMIT SUCH SINS, as we told you and warned you before…For God did not call us to be impure, but TO LIVE A HOLY LIFE.” (1 Thess. 4:3-7)
WE MUST BE HOLY TO LIVE HOLY…
-Bill Stockham