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1、143FirstThessaloniansINTRODUCTIONTOTHEBOOKAfathertookhissontothehistorymuseum,believinghissonwouldfindtheancientartifactsandhistoricaldisplaysasinterestingashedid.Theywanderedthroughthemuseumforabouttwohourswhenfinallytheboystoppedhisdadandsaid,"Dad,can'tweg
2、otoaplacewherethingsarereal?"(Wiersbe,p.156).SomepeoplefeelthatwayabouttheBible.Tothem,it'sanoldandmustyreligiousmuseumthathaslittlerelevancetomodern-daypeopleandproblems.Buttheyarewrong.InthesetwoletterstotheThessalonians,Pauldealswithmanyofthesameissueswef
3、aceeverydayofourlives.Itisabookforrealpeoplewithrealproblemswhoneedrealanswers.Today,wearegoingtolaunchanewstudyofthefirstofthesetwogreatletterswrittenbyPaul,andIhavenodoubtthateveryoneofusinthisplacewillbegreatlybenefitedbyitstimelymessage.I.BACKGROUND1.The
4、CityThessalonicawaslocatedabout50mileswestofPhilippiand100milesnorthofAthens.TheancientnameofthecitywasThermabecauseofthemanyhotspringsadjacenttothecity.In315B.C.KingCassanderofMacedoniachangedthenameofthecitytoThessalonicaafterthehalfsisterofAlexandertheGre
5、at,Thessalonike.RomeconqueredMacedoniain168B.C.andmadethecitythecapitaloftheentireprovinceandestablisheditasaRomancolony.ARomangovernmentwassetupandtroopswerestationedinagarrison.GraduallythecityacceptedRomanlawandcultureandbecamewhatonemightcalla"littleRome
6、."Thepopulationofthecitywasabout200,000inPaul'sday,consistingprimarilyofGreeks,butwithastrongJewishminority.ThecitystillexiststodayinmodernGreece,andwithapopulationofabout300,000,secondonlytoAthens.ItservedasanimportantAlliedbaseinWorldWarI.InWorldWarIItheGe
7、rmanarmycapturedit,andtheJewishpopulationofabout60,000weredeportedandexterminated.Thessalonike,asitiscalledtoday,isoneofthefewcitiesofAsiaMinorthathassurvivedsinceApostolictimes.2.TheChurchThestoryofthefoundingofthechurchisfoundinActs17:1-15.PaulwenttoMacedo
8、niainresponsetowhatiscalledthe"MacedonianCall,"whichwasadreamPaulhadofamanwhosaid,"ComeoverintoMacedoniaandhelpus."SoPaul,Silas,Luke,andTimothyarrivedinPhilippiwheretheyledLydiaandherhouseholdto
