I Thessalonians Ch. 3

All,

I changed my mind. You'll recall in my post last week I mentioned chapter 3 was relatively light in terms of study material. I had intended to read it but quickly move on to the meatier subjects covered in chapter 4. However, in re-reading it today I decided to spend more time on it. Specifically, two topics in the chapter caught my eye, (1) Timothy, and (2) Paul's reference t0 the 'tempter' in vs. 5.

I. Introduction - Two Different Topics

A. Timothy
B. The 'tempter'

II. Timothy

A. Who was Timothy?

1. Timothy was the son of a Jewish woman named Eunice (II Timothy 1:5)
2. We know his father was Greek but don't know his name. (Acts 16:1)
3. His maternal grandmother was named Lois (II Timothy 1:5)
4. Both his mother and grandmother were believers.
5. Timothy was young when he met Paul

B. Where was Timothy from?

1. Timothy was from a town called Lystra.
2. Lystra was located in what is now south-central Turkey.
3. It was located between Iconium (north) and Derbe (south)
4. It is thought Paul visited Lystra on all 3 of his missionary journeys. However, Lystra isn't sprecifically mentioned as having been visited on Paul's 3rd journey.
5. Paul was nearly stoned to death in Lystra during his 1st journey.

C. When did Paul meet Timothy?

1. Paul met Timothy during his second missionary journey
2. Early in the journey after starting from Antioch and traveling through Syria and Cilicia (Acts 15:41)
3. Probably around 49-50 AD
4. Paul had Timothy circumcised and Timothy then continued on the journey with Paul and Silas.
5. Timothy became one of Paul's most ardent, and faithful supporters.

D. Timothy's Work with Paul

1. Was frequently an emissary sent by Paul to various churches
a. sent into Macedonia (Acts 19:22)
b. sent to the Corinthians (I Corinthians 4:17)
c. sent to the Phillipians (Phillipians 2:19,23)
d. sent to the Thessalonians (I Thessalonians 3:2,6)

2. Was imprisoned with Paul in Rome (Phillipians 2:19-23, Philemon 1:1, Hebrews 13:23)

E. How did he die?

1. Unknown
2. However, historically said that he was stoned by pagans

III. The 'tempter' - could spend many hours discussing theology and what the Bible says about Satan. Today, want to focus on how you feel Satan works in the world today.

A. Ch. 2:18 - Paul says "but Satan blocked our way"

B. Ch. 3:5 - Paul says "I was afraid that somehow the tempter had tempted you..."