Letters to the Thessalonians

The good news about Jesus that the Apostle Paul had brought to the Thessalonians was making a difference in their lives, but Paul wanted their relationship with God to grow even deeper. That’s why he wrote the two letters we know as the Epistles to the Thessalonians.

Filled with “the meat of practical Christianity” and illustrated with stories of life in our world today, Jon Paulien’s Letters to the Thessalonians leads readers step-by-step, passage by passage, through these epistles, showing how we, too, can have a deeper relationship with God – one that will prepare us for Jesus’ second coming.

The author gives practical pointers, such as that “thankfulness directs our attention away from ourselves to others,” and “we can handle suffering better when we see it as a fulfilment of Jesus’ prophecy “ of Matthew 24, and “the very idea of ‘casual sex’ is a fantasy. Promiscuous sex damages both parties deeply.” In connection with that last statement, Paulien lays out the stages of descent into sexual sin – the point being to help people recognize when they’re headed down that slippery slope so they can turn to God for help.

Of course, there’s more too: counsels on church life, information about the antichrist, hope despite the depredations of death, clarifications regarding the “unsecret” rapture, perspectives on the two sides of the judgment, and how to go about preparing for it all. The point is that God loves us, and He wants us to have the best life possible here and now. But He especially wants us to be ready to meet Jesus when He comes to take those who belong to Him home with Him forever.