<p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[92]</SPAN></span></p>
<h2>LESSON XVII</h2>
<h3>ENCOURAGEMENT FOR RECENT CONVERTS</h3>
<p>The Pauline Epistles fall naturally into four groups: (1) the
epistles of the second missionary journey (First and Second Thessalonians);
(2) the epistles of the third missionary journey (Galatians,
First and Second Corinthians and Romans); (3) the epistles of the
first imprisonment (Colossians and Philemon, Ephesians and
Philippians); (4) the epistles written after the period covered by
The Acts (First Timothy, Titus and Second Timothy).</p>
<p>Each of these groups has its own characteristics. The first group
is characterized by simplicity of subject matter, and by a special
interest in the second coming of Christ. The second group is
concerned especially with the doctrines of sin and grace. The
third group displays a special interest in the person of Christ and
in the Church. The fourth group deals with organization, and with
the maintenance of sound instruction.</p>
<h4>1. SIMPLICITY OF THE THESSALONIAN EPISTLES</h4>
<p>The reason for the peculiarities of First and Second Thessalonians
has often been sought in the early date of these epistles. On the
second missionary journey, it is said, Paul had not yet developed
the great doctrines which appear at later periods of his life. This
explanation may perhaps contain an element of truth. Undoubtedly
there was some progress in Paul's thinking. Not everything was
revealed to him at once. The chief cause, however, for the simplicity
of the Thessalonian epistles is not the early date but the
peculiar occasion of these epistles. Paul is here imparting his first
written instruction to an infant church. Naturally he must feed
these recent converts with milk. The simplicity of the letters
is due not to immaturity in Paul but to immaturity in the Thessalonian
church. After all, at the time when the Thessalonian
epistles were written, the major part of Paul's Christian life—including
the decisive conflict with the Judaizers at Antioch and
Jerusalem—lay already in the past.</p>
<p>At any rate the simplicity of the Thessalonian epistles must
not be exaggerated. In these letters the great Pauline doctrines,<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[93]</SPAN></span>
though not discussed at length, are everywhere presupposed.
There is the same lofty conception of Christ as in the other
epistles, the same emphasis upon his resurrection, the same
doctrine of salvation through his death. I Thess. 1:10; 5:9,10.</p>
<h4>2. THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST</h4>
<p>Undoubtedly the second advent, with the events which are immediately
to precede it, occupies a central position in the Thessalonian
epistles. A few words of explanation, therefore, may here
be in order.</p>
<p>Evidently the expectation of Christ's coming was a fundamental
part of Paul's belief, and had a fundamental place in his preaching.
"Ye turned unto God from idols, to serve a living and true God,
and to wait for his Son from heaven"—these words show clearly
how the hope of Christ's appearing was instilled in the converts
from the very beginning. I Thess. 1:9,10. To serve the living
God and to wait for his Son—that is the sum and substance of the
Christian life. All through the epistles the thought of the Parousia—the
"presence" or "coming"—of Christ appears as a master
motive. I Thess. 2:19; 3:13; 4:13 to 5:11,23,24; II Thess.
1:5 to 2:12.</p>
<p>This emphasis upon the second coming of Christ is explained if
Paul expected Christ to come in the near future. The imminence
of the Parousia for Paul appears to be indicated by I Thess. 4:15:
"For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we that
are alive, that are left unto the coming of the Lord, shall in no wise
precede them that are fallen asleep." This verse is often thought
to indicate that Paul confidently expected before his death to
witness the coming of the Lord. Apparently he classes himself
with those who "are left unto the coming of the Lord" as over
against those who will suffer death. In the later epistles, it is
further said, Paul held a very different view. From Second
Corinthians on, he faced ever more definitely the thought of death.
II Cor. 5:1,8; Phil. 1:20-26. A comparison of I Cor. 15:51
with II Cor. 5:1,8 is thought to indicate that the deadly peril
which Paul incurred between the writing of the two Corinthian
epistles, II Cor. 1:8,9, had weakened his expectation of living
until Christ should come. After he had once despaired of life,
he could hardly expect with such perfect confidence to escape the
experience of death. The possibility of death was too strong to be
left completely out of sight.</p>
<p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[94]</SPAN></span></p>
<p>Plausible as such a view is, it can be held only with certain
reservations.</p>
<p>In the first place, we must not exaggerate the nearness of the
Parousia according to Paul, even in the earliest period; for in II
Thess. 2:1-12 the Thessalonians are reminded of certain events
that must occur before Christ would come. The expression of the
former epistle, I Thess. 5:2, that the day of the Lord would come
as a thief in the night, was to be taken as a warning to unbelievers
to repent while there was yet time, not as a ground for neglecting
ordinary provision for the future. In Second Thessalonians Paul
finds it necessary to calm the overstrained expectations of the
Thessalonian Christians.</p>
<p>Furthermore, it is not only in the earlier epistles that expressions
occur which seem to suggest that the Parousia is near. Rom. 13:11;
Phil. 4:5. And then it is evident from II Cor. 11:23-29 and
from I Cor. 15:30-32 that Paul had undergone dangers before
the one mentioned in II Cor. 1:8,9, so that there is no reason
to suppose that that one event caused any sudden change in his
expectations.</p>
<p>Lastly, in I Cor. 6:14 Paul says that "God both raised the Lord,
and will raise up us through his power." If that refers to the
literal resurrection, then here Paul classes himself among those who
are to die; for if he lived to the Parousia, then there would be no
need for him to be raised up.</p>
<p>It is therefore very doubtful whether we can put any very definite
change in the apostle's expectations as to his living or dying between
First Corinthians and Second Corinthians. A gradual development
in his feeling about the matter there no doubt was. During
the early part of his life his mind dwelt less upon the prospect of
death than it did after perils of all kinds had made that prospect
more and more imminent. But at no time did the apostle regard
the privilege of living until the Parousia as a certainty to be
put at all in the same category with the Christian hope itself.
Especially the passage in First Thessalonians can be rightly interpreted
only in the light of the historical occasion for it. Until
certain members of the church had died, the Thessalonian Christians
had never faced the possibility of dying before the second coming
of Christ. Hence they were troubled. Would the brethren who
had fallen asleep miss the benefits of Christ's kingdom? Paul
writes to reassure them. He does not contradict their hope of
living till the coming of Christ, for God had not revealed to him that<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[95]</SPAN></span>
that hope would not be realized. But he tells them that, supposing
that hope to be justified, even then they will have no advantage
over their dead brethren. He classes himself with those who were
still alive and might therefore live till Christ should come, as over
against those who were already dead and could not therefore live
till Christ should come.</p>
<p>Certain passages in the epistles of Paul, which are not confined
to any one period of his life, seem to show that at any rate he did
not exclude the very real possibility that Christ might come in
the near future. At any rate, however, such an expectation of the
early coming of Christ was just as far removed as possible from
the expectations of fanatical chiliasts. It did not lead Paul to
forget that the times and the seasons are entirely in the hand of
God. It had no appreciable effect upon his ethics, except to make
it more intense, more fully governed by the thought of the judgment
seat of Christ. It did not prevent him from laying far-reaching
plans, it did not prevent his developing a great philosophy of
future history in Rom., chs. 9 to 11. How far he was from falling
into the error he combated in Second Thessalonians! Despite his
view of the temporary character of the things that are seen, how
sane and healthy was his way of dealing with practical problems!
He did his duty, and left the details of the future to God. Hence
it is hard to discover what Paul thought as to how soon Christ
would come—naturally so, for Paul did not try to discover it himself.</p>
<h4>3. THE PERSONS ASSOCIATED IN THE ADDRESS</h4>
<p>Almost always other persons are associated with Paul in the
addresses of the epistles. With regard to the meaning of this custom,
extreme views should be avoided. On the one hand, these persons—usually,
at any rate—had no share in the actual composition of the
epistles. The epistles bear the imprint of one striking personality.
On the other hand, association in the address means something
more than that the persons so named sent greetings; for mere
greetings are placed at the end. The truth lies between the two
extremes. Probably the persons associated with Paul in the address
were made acquainted at least in general with the contents of the
epistles, and desired to express their agreement with what was said.
In the Thessalonian epistles Silas and Timothy, who had had a
part in the founding of the Thessalonian church, appear very
appropriately in the address.</p>
<p>A question related to that of the persons associated in the<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[96]</SPAN></span>
addresses is the question of the so-called "epistolary plural."
The epistolary plural was analogous to our "editorial we" it was
a usage by which the writer of a letter could substitute "we" for
"I" in referring to himself alone. In many passages in the letters
of Paul it is exceedingly difficult to tell whether a plural is merely
epistolary, or whether it has some special significance. For
example, whom, if anyone, is Paul including with himself in the
"we" of I Thess. 3:1? In particular, the question often is
whether, when Paul says "we," he is thinking of the persons who
were associated with him in the address of the epistle. On the
whole it seems impossible to deny that Paul sometimes uses the
epistolary plural, though his use of it is probably not so extensive
as has often been supposed.</p>
<hr class="tb" />
<p><span class="smcap">In the Library.</span>—Purves, "Christianity in the Apostolic Age,"
pp. 197-203. Davis, "Dictionary of the Bible": Purves (supplemented),
article on "Thessalonians, Epistles to the." Hastings, "Dictionary of
the Bible": Lock, articles on "Thessalonians, First Epistle to the" and
"Thessalonians, Second Epistle to the." M'Clymont, "The New
Testament and Its Writers," pp. 47-57. Ramsay, "Pictures of the
Apostolic Church," pp. 240-246. Stalker, "The Life of St. Paul,"
pp. 85-107. Ellicott, "A New Testament Commentary for English
Readers," vol. iii, pp. 125-170: Mason, "The Epistles of Paul the
Apostle to the Thessalonians." "The Cambridge Bible for Schools and
Colleges": Findlay, "The Epistles to the Thessalonians." Zahn, "Introduction
to the New Testament," vol. i, pp. 152-164, 203-255.
Milligan, "St. Paul's Epistles to the Thessalonians." The two last-named
works are intended primarily for those who have some knowledge
of Greek, but can also be used by others.</p>
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