Search Results

A note about our terminology: What do we mean when we refer to a “part of a paragraph”? Previous Next Jubilee Year 2025: Embrace God’s Hope and Extend It to All A Note About Our Terminology What do we mean when we refer to a “part of a paragraph”? Link to S pes Non Confundit Photo by Tom Faletti, bridge near Neuschwanstein Castle, Hohenschwangau, Germany, June 27, 2024. Tom Faletti November 16, 2024 Church documents are often broken up into numbered paragraphs to aid in finding particular passages. This document follows that norm in having numbered paragraphs. However, in many places in Spes Non Confundit , one numbered “paragraph” extends over several paragraphs as we normally understand the meaning of that term. When this study guide says, “paragraph X,” it is referring to the paragraph that has the number X in front of it – for example , “paragraph 3” refers to the paragraph that has the number 3 in front of it . When a “paragraph” (as church documents count them) has more than one standard paragraph (as we normally understand a paragraph to be), this guide refers to those additional paragraphs as additional “parts” of that numbered “paragraph.” For example, the “second part of paragraph 3” refers to the second paragraph in the portion of the document that follows the number 3 and comes before the paragraph numbered paragraph 4 . Similarly, the “fourth part of paragraph 6” is the fourth regular paragraph that comes after the number 6 (and before the number 7). Bibliography See Jubilee Year 2025 - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/jubilee-2025/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Jubilee 2025 Contents Next

God wants to renew our hope and help us put our faith and hope into action. Previous Next Jubilee Year 2025: Embrace God’s Hope and Extend It to All Introduction: Respond to the Invitation to Embrace God’s Hope God wants to renew our hope and help us put our faith and hope into action. Link to S pes Non Confundit Photo by Tom Faletti, Washington, DC, August 28, 2024. Tom Faletti November 16, 2024 You Are Invited to a Jubilee Year Experience! Suppose you received an invitation to a celebration – a celebration where potentially up to a billion people might participate. You might want to know more. The truth is: the invitation has been sent, and you can respond at any time. On behalf of the entire Church, Pope Francis is inviting you to join in the celebration of 2025 as a Jubilee Year of the Church. You don’t have to RSVP; you can just show up, and you can participate in many different ways. Where is my invitation: In May 2024, Pope Francis released the document Spes Non Confundit (Hope Does Not Disappoint), in which he invites us to join in the Roman Catholic Church’s celebration of Jubilee Year 2025 and to focus particularly on the hope we have in Christ. What is a Jubilee Year: The Roman Catholic Church has been celebrating Jubilee Years almost every 25 years since the year 1300, and additional Jubilee Years have occasionally been added. Drawing on Old Testament tradition, the Jubilee Year is meant to be a time to celebrate the grace, forgiveness, and mercy of God – a time of pardon, release, and remission of sins. Each Jubilee Year, the Church invites us to open our hearts in a special way to the grace of God, to receive forgiveness and freedom from sin. As a tangible manifestation of the invitation, the Church opens special holy doors in Rome during the Jubilee Year and invites us to go on a pilgrimage to one or more of those holy doors. We are invited to embrace the spirit of conversion and open the doors of our hearts to facilitate God’s work of renewal in our lives. However, a physical pilgrimage is not required. We can embrace the Jubilee Year in many different ways. We can go on a spiritual pilgrimage of the mind and heart. What all pilgrimages have in common, whether physical or spiritual, is that we take the time to consider where we are spiritually and where God is calling us to be, and then embrace the steps toward growth that the Holy Spirit is inspiring us to take. We want to extend to you Pope Francis’s invitation to join the journey! Through this study guide, we offer one approach that might strengthen your faith and renew your hope in God. Who is invited: Anyone seeking to grow closer to God is welcome. When: Officially, this Jubilee Year runs from approximately Christmas 2024 through Christmas 2025. But the door is never closed to experiencing the grace of God. You are welcome to take this journey with us any time, in whatever ways work best to support your faith. Where: Through this study, you can journey with us in an exploration of God’s hope and grace, guided by Pope Francis and the Sacred Scriptures. You can do this online, at home, or in your parish. You can do it on your own or with a small group. We also encourage those who are able to take a pilgrimage to Rome or join in your local diocese’s official celebrations and rituals. Theme: In Spes Non Confundit , Pope Francis invites us to explore the theme of hope – the reasons for hope, how we can embrace God’s hope and allow it to fill our hearts, and how we can extend God’s hope to all people, in every part of our society and every corner of the world. If you would like to respond to this invitation to hope, keep reading! First read the Overview, and then start your study. The Overview has separate suggestions for individuals studying on their own, small group members, and small group leaders. For More Information or Help If you have questions about anything in this study guide, please feel free to email Tom Faletti at tomfaletti@faithexplored.com or use the contact form at the bottom of FaithExplored.com . May you grow in hope and find new ways to put your hope into action, as you study Spes Non Confundit and celebrate the Jubilee Year. It is wonderful that we can say yes to God’s invitation to live in hope and to extend God’s hope to others by sharing the good news we have found in Jesus Christ and working to bring His justice and peace to the world around us! Your fellow pilgrim on the path to God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, Tom Faletti Dedication This study was developed at the suggestion of Father John Mudd, who has served the Archdiocese of Washington for more than 50 years with joy and an open heart for all God’s people. Thank you, Father Mudd, for your dedication and support. May God continue to bless your ministry! Bibliography See Jubilee Year 2025 - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/jubilee-2025/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Jubilee 2025 Contents Next

The temptation of Jesus shows how to respond to our own temptations. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 4:1-11 The temptation of Jesus shows how to respond to our own temptations. Image provided by Wix. Tom Faletti March 22, 2024 Matthew 4:1-11 Jesus is tempted by the devil In Matthew 4:1, the Holy Spirit leads Jesus into the desert. Jesus needs some alone time to prepare for his ministry. The 40 days parallels the 40 years the Israelites were in the desert. In v. 1, where some translations say the Spirit led Jesus out to be “tempted,” the word can also be translated “tested.” “Tested” is the better translation because God does not tempt people. God does not lure people toward sin, nor does he dangle the thought of sin in front of people to see if they will succumb. James is very clear about this: “No one, when tempted, should say, ‘I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil and he himself tempts no one” (James 1:13, NRSV). However, while God does not tempt people, he does allow people to be tested by temptation. He does not preserve us from temptation, but instead gives us ways to resist (see 1 Cor. 10:13). The word “tested” conveys better the reality of what is going on: the temptation may come from the devil or from our own weaknesses, and God allows it to happen; but God does not cause temptation and he always stands beside us, urging us to resist sin and offering us the strength to overcome the temptation. What happens in this passage? What is the value of being tested? Explain. Why does this take place in the wilderness/desert? On a human level, in the desert people have no support system and no distractions. On a figurative level, Jesus’s testing parallels the testing of the Israelites in the desert after they were delivered out of Egypt. Jesus is identifying with humanity in being tempted. What are some similarities between the testing of Jesus in the desert here and the testing of the Israelites in the desert before they entered the Promised Land? In what ways are they different, including in how well they handled the temptations they faced? No disciples of Jesus were present for Jesus’s temptation. They could have known about it only if Jesus told them about it. Why do you think Jesus would have told his disciples about what happened to him in the desert? Throughout Christian history, theologians and commentators have seen the three temptations of Jesus as representing the three types of sins that all humans face : sins of the flesh , sins of the world , and sins of the devil . (You can easily find more about this, from a variety of denominational perspectives; for example: Fr. Dwight Longenecker, “Fighting the Un-Holy Trinity: The World, the Flesh and the Devil,” Catholic Online , 14 Feb. 2010, https://www.catholic.org/news/national/story.php?id=35421 ; “The World, the Flesh, and the Devil,” Ligonier Ministries (founded by Dr. R. C. Sproul), 23 May 2011, https://www.ligonier.org/learn/devotionals/world-flesh-and-devil ; and nicely summarized by Wikipedia with examples from scholars who wrote centuries ago here: “The world, the flesh, and the devil,” 31 March 2024, Wikipedia , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_world,_the_flesh,_and_the_devil .) Temptation #1 : Bread, sins of the flesh, putting our own wants ahead of what God wants for us. On the surface, there would not seem to be anything immoral about Jesus turning stones into bread. What is the root of the potential sin in doing so? How might this have been a misuse of his powers? Some of the reasons why this is a temptation to sin include the following: He would be using his power for his own sake rather than using it for its intended purpose: to serve others. He would be failing to identify with the human race he came to identify with. There many also be a battle going on here regarding how Jesus would carry out his mission. Should he entice people to follow him by giving them food to eat? What would have been wrong with that as his primary method of spreading the Gospel? How does this temptation apply to us? How might we be at risk of the temptation to put our own wants ahead of what God might have for us? Throughout the life of the church, going back many centuries, this temptation has been described as involving sins of the flesh, including gluttony, drunkenness, and sexual immorality, but also laziness, covetousness, etc. A personal question, not necessarily for sharing if you are discussing this passage in a small group: Which sins of the flesh do you tend to struggle with and why? What Scripture passage does Jesus quote in response to this temptation? How does this Scripture passage provide guidance for us for how to think about and resist this kind of sin? Temptation #2 : Spectacle, attention, sins of the world, telling God what to do. Jesus could have jumped from the top io the Temple and survived, if he chose to. What would have been wrong with that? What is the potential sin in this temptation? There are several issues here: Some see it as a matter of tactics: Should I use spectacle and razzle-dazzle to try to draw people to God by attracting them to me? Others see it as a matter of authority: Will I assert leadership over God by putting him in a position where he has to do what I want him to do? Others see it as a matter of abdicating our responsibility to do God’s work, leaving things to God that he expects us to be doing as part of our calling.) Jesus could have used spectacle as a way of attracting the attention of people. What would have been wrong with that? Note that Jesus did perform miracles, but they were miracles of service, to help others – not for show. The devil is implying that Jesus could force God to do things his way by doing things that would only work out if God steps in. But Jesus was God, so what would have been wrong with that? An alternate view is that the temptation here was to abdicate responsibility for how to do the work of God and just leave it to God and his angels to make it work. Are there times when “God will take care of things” is not an act of faith but instead an act of laziness? How does this temptation apply to us? How might we be tempted to draw attention to ourselves or wow others rather than doing God’s work humbly? How might we be tempted to force God’s hand by doing things that will only work out if God steps in? (“If God doesn’t want me to do that, he’ll stop me.”) What’s wrong with that approach to life? How might we be tempted to leave everything to God and not do the work he calls us to do? What Scripture passage does Jesus quote in response to this temptation? How does this Scripture passage provide guidance for us for how to think about and resist these kinds of “sins of the world”? Temptation #3 : Allegiance, power, sins of the devil, compromising our commitment to God. What is the nature of the third temptation? It involves a temptation to submit to the devil in order to gain power. What is wrong with the devil’s offer? The devil is asking for a compromise. What are some ways Jesus might have faced this temptation throughout his ministry on Earth? How does this temptation apply to us? How might we be at risk of the temptation to seek power or control of our circumstances even at the price of a bit of spiritual compromise? What Scripture passage does Jesus quote in response to this temptation? How does this Scripture passage provide guidance for us for how to think about and resist this kind of sin? In what ways did the devil misuse Scripture? In your life, how valuable is it to know Scripture? Is it an aid to avoiding or resisting temptation? To what extent do you turn to Scripture for specific guidance in difficult moments or times of temptation? How might the Bible be a greater help to you in dealing with temptation, if you knew the Bible better? Is there anything you could be doing to strengthen your ability to rely on the Word of God? The devil leaves Jesus at this point. What kinds of opportunities do you think the devil will be looking for, to return and tempt Jesus again? When are you at risk of temptation? Silently, unless you are comfortable sharing, which temptation is the greatest risk for you: Inappropriately fulfilling your own wants? Seeking recognition or attention in inappropriate ways? Trying to get God to do things your way in order to make your efforts successful? Making inappropriate compromises to gain more power or control over your circumstances? What can you do to avoid or respond successfully to these temptations? What are your best strategies? Here are some strategies to consider: First we need to step back and not dash headlong into the temptation. Then we have many things we can do: Pray. Think about what is really going on, both inside of you and in the situation around you. Try to see the situation from God’s perspective. Get help from Scripture. Open your heart to the Holy Spirit’s influence. Get counsel from wise and godly people around you. Take a step back and consider this: The first temptation is a temptation to put our own wants ahead of the ways God wants us to deal with our lives. The second temptation is a temptation to draw attention to ourselves or to get God to do things our way. The third temptation is a temptation to compromise our commitments to God in order to gain some power or control. All three temptations, at root, are temptations to put ourselves ahead of God. When we are facing temptation we often forget that God is not looking down from on high with a frown, just waiting to catch us in a sin. Most of us grow up with that kind of image of God, but it doesn’t match the reality of God as presented in the Gospels. Jesus is always standing right next to you, loving you and urging you to do what you and he know is right. His Spirit lives in you, reminding you of who you are in Christ and empowering you to be what you are called to be. If the root of temptation is our desire to put ourselves – our plans, our ideas, our desires, our wants – ahead of God, and yet we know, when we are not in the middle of the temptation, that our greatest happiness and greatest fulfillment comes in putting God first, then in the time of temptation we need to remember who we really are in Christ. Our most desperate need in those times is to see things from the perspective of the God we have given our lives to, and to receive his power to act on who we are. When you are not in the middle of a temptation, where are your allegiances? Have you decided that your goal is to put God first in everything? Or are there still parts of your life that you have not been ready to give to him? Temptations will never go away, but some temptations fade after that fundamental question has been resolved. Have you really given your life to God? If not, now would be a good time to talk with God about it. There is nothing more important that you can do. Talk to God about where you stand with him right now. Jesus’s example tells us something important: Scripture is the first line of defense in times of temptation. Is there anything you can do to embed the Word of God more deeply into your heart, mind, and deepest self, so that you can call it forth when you need it? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

What are your goals as a small-group Bible Study leader, and what do you need to do to fulfill the role you have taken on? Previous For Leaders Next Important Functions of Leaders What are your goals as a small-group Bible Study leader, and what do you need to do to fulfill the role you have taken on? Image by Priscilla Du Preez, provided by Unsplash via Wix. Tom Faletti March 25, 2024 Bible Study groups seek to accomplish at least three important goals: (1) increase people’s understanding of the Bible, (2) foster spiritual growth through the application of God’s Word, and (3) provide a place to experience Christian community. Although leaders have different styles, leaders of every style need to try to fulfill several important functions as they guide their groups. 1. Ask all 3 types of questions. In order to facilitate both the understanding and application of God’s Word, a leader must ask all 3 major types of questions: Questions of fact : What does the passage say? Questions of interpretation : What does it mean? Questions for application : How can we apply it to our lives? Some leaders focus on the 2nd and 3rd types of questions but leave out the “What does it say?” questions. This leads to misunderstandings, as people jump to conclusions about what the Bible says and get it wrong. Some leaders focus on the 1st and 2nd types of questions but leave out the application questions. This leads to dry studies that seldom change lives. Make sure you ask a specific, challenging application question about every passage. A general question like “Where do you see this in our world?” will not change lives the way a specific question like “Where do you experience this in your own life?” can. Personal application questions are a key to having a thriving group. 2. Manage the time. A leader must stay aware of the time and manage it carefully. Leave plenty of time for application questions. Don’t let the first two type of questions squeeze out the chance to talk about how to apply the truths we have discussed. Don’t be afraid to gently redirect the conversation. Sometimes this is as simple as asking another question or drawing the group’s attention back to a particular verse. Break the passage down into manageable chunks. If you make your chunks too large, you can easily overlook key points. Sometimes it is helpful to say, “Let’s read verses 25 through 36 but focus first on verses 25 to 30.” Then you can ask questions about the first half of the passage before you discuss the second half. 3. Always welcome other people and their ideas. A leader must help set people at ease. People will not be able to be open to what the Scripture says if the group or the leader do not demonstrate an openness to them. Your openness to them sets the stage for their openness to God. Don’t try to refute every idea you think is wrong. It’s OK to leave unchallenged things that you disagree with. Sometimes you will want to point out that church teaching or scholars view the matter differently, but do it in a gentle way that doesn’t prevent future sharing. Otherwise, people will simply keep silent about their views. By allowing room for differing views, we allow room for the Holy Spirit to slowly guide people into a clearer understanding of God’s truths. 4. Encourage faith. A leader must guide the group toward a faith-filled response to God. When people express doubts about a Scripture passage, we need to give them space to share those concerns. At the same time, we want to encourage a faith-filled response to God’s Word. Often, the best way to do this is not by challenging the doubter but simply by expressing our own faith and our confidence that God is with us even in our doubts. We can tell Him how we feel and still try to stay open to Him. Our attitude of faith will rub off on others much more than anything we say. Don’t be afraid to express your faith and encourage and praise the faith-based responses of others. For more leadership training materials, see Leading a Small-Group Bible Study . Copyright © 2024, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous For Leaders Next

Paul brought the gospel of Christ to the people of Thessalonica despite opposition. Previous 1 Thess. List Next Introduction to 1 Thessalonians Paul brought the gospel of Christ to the people of Thessalonica despite opposition. Image by Katie Moum, provided by Unsplash via Wix. Tom Faletti January 26, 2025 Introduction A NOTE BEFORE WE BEGIN This study material can be very enriching either for small-group Bible Study or for personal study and growth. We will occasionally offer instructions that would be useful for a small-group study. Introductions for a Small-Group Bible Study If you are studying as a group, it is important to build community, beginning with ensuring that everyone knows everyone else’s name. If you are either (a) starting a new year, or (b) have several new members, begin with introductions. One way to do this would be to ask everyone in the group to answer these questions: Share with the group: • Your name. • Your connection to the church or parish or this group. • Why you are interested in studying the Bible with other people. Thessalonica Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians is probably the oldest surviving piece of Christian writing (although some scholars think Paul’s Letter to the Galatians came first). Paul wrote 1 Thessalonians to a group of Christians he had converted to Christ in the city known today as Thessaloniki [pronounced with the last two syllables sounding like KNEE-key]. In the English-speaking world, this city has traditionally been called Thessalonica, with the accent usually placed on the fourth syllable: thess-uh-luh-NIGH-kuh (although some people put the accent on the third syllable: thess-uh-LAHN-ih-kuh). Paul preached the gospel of Christ in Thessalonica and made some converts – some were Jews but far more were Gentiles (i.e., not Jews). This stirred up a lot of opposition from the Jews. He wrote this letter around AD 50, which is around 20 years after Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead. Soon after, he wrote a second letter to the Thessalonians that is also in the New Testament. Thessalonica was an important city. It was founded in 316 BC by a political leader who named it after his wife, who was a half-sister of Alexander the Great. When Rome conquered Macedonia in 146 BC, this city was made the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia, and it was still the capital when Paul arrived there nearly 200 years later. Besides being an important political and military center, it was also a major commercial city. It had a harbor on the Aegean/Mediterranean Sea and was on the Via Egnatia or Egnatian Way, the major road the Romans built from the west coast of Greece all the way to Byzantium (Constantinople or Istanbul) to help them conquer and control all the nations that bordered the north coasts of the Mediterranean. That road was a central trade route. Paul’s Backstory Acts of the Apostles gives us some of the backstory of Paul’s visit to Thessalonica. Acts was probably written around 30 years after Paul first preached in Thessalonica (or 12 years if, as a minority of scholars believe, Acts was written immediately after the last event it describes). We are going to look at that backstory to give us some insight into who Paul is and how he became connected to the church in Thessalonica. We will do that in two parts: first , by summarizing the background we have about Paul before the journey that took him to Thessalonica, and second , by reading the portions of Acts of the Apostles that describe Paul’s journey. Paul’s background: Paul was not originally a follower of Jesus. He was born in Tarsus, a port city on a river that had access to the Mediterranean Sea. Tarsus was a major commercial center and the capital of the Roman province of Cilicia. Paul, originally known by his Hebrew name Saul, was a devout Jew. He was partly raised in Jerusalem, where he was taught by the great Jewish rabbi Gamaliel (Acts 22:3) (a grandson of Hillel). He could speak and write Greek as well as Aramaic (George Martin, “Paul: Apostle of the Cities,” God’s Word Today , February 1981 (Vol. 3, No. 2), p.47). After Jesus rose from the dead and the first Christians began to spread the message of Christ, Saul persecuted Christians, whom he thought were spreading heresy. He had a conversion experience, became a Christian, and took the name Paul. He immediately started preaching about Jesus, disrupting things everywhere he went, until the Christians sent him back to his hometown of Tarsus. Paul’s preaching journeys: When Gentiles turned to the Lord in Antioch, a town in ancient Syria that is now part of Turkey (Türkiye), Barnabas went and got Paul from Tarsus and brought him to Antioch to help teach the new Christians. After a year or more there, the church at Antioch commissioned Barnabas and Paul to go on a missionary journey – the first of three missionary journeys that Paul eventually took. In each town they went to, Barnabas and Paul went to the local Jewish synagogue and preached to the Jews about Jesus, who was a Jew. In each town, the Jews rejected them, and each time, they then preached to the Gentiles of the town. Take a look at a map of Barnabas and Paul’s journey (check the table of contents of your Bible for a map section, look for a map in the pages of Acts of the Apostles, or look on online). The map might be called Paul’s first missionary journey or Paul’s first journey. See how Barnabas and Paul traveled from Antioch to the island of Cyprus and then north into Asia Minor. They then went to a different Antioch, which is called Pisidian Antioch to distinguish it from the Antioch in Syria, and then to Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. In some towns, they encountered such violent threats and attacks that they were forced to leave or be killed. Acts of the Apostles tells us that in the town of Lystra, the Jews stoned Paul, and then dragged his body out of town, thinking he was dead. However, after being surrounded by the disciples, he got up and went back into town before moving on (Acts 14:20). Paul and Barnabas then returned to the cities where they had made disciples, appointed elders to lead each church, and returned to Antioch. At this point, a major controversy erupted. Jewish Christians from Judea (the province that included Jerusalem) began to teach that Gentile believers in Jesus had to submit to the Jewish practice of circumcision in order to be saved. Paul and Barnabas totally disagreed, and they decided to bring the question to the apostles and elders in Jerusalem. The gathering there came to be known as the Council of Jerusalem. The church leaders listened to the conflicting views and concluded that the Holy Spirit was leading them to welcome Gentiles as Christians without requiring them to be circumcised (Acts 15:22-30). This ratified Paul and Barnabas’s ministry to the Gentiles. What do you think Paul thought about the opposition he was facing as he preached to the Gentiles? How do you decide when criticism is to be heeded and when you need to stand your ground? What is the role of the Holy Spirit in guiding the Church? How can we be more open to the Holy Spirit’s guidance and not just break into party factions? Paul’s Journey to Thessalonica and Beyond Now we are going to read parts of Acts of the Apostles to explore what happened to Paul on his second missionary journey, which ultimately led him to Thessalonica. Acts 15:36-16:5 Paul and Barnabas separate, and Paul journeys with Silas and Timothy What happens as Paul and Barnabas plan for a second missionary journey? What two companions does Paul now have traveling with him? We will see in 1 Thessalonians that when Paul writes the letter to the Thessalonians, he says the letter is from Paul, Timothy, and Silas. (The letter calls him Silvanus, the Latin form of the Greek name Silas.) Paul has just gained the approval of the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for his view that Gentile Christians don’t have to circumcised. Why do you think he has Timothy circumcised anyway? Jewish teaching at least back to around the time of Paul and possibly to the time of Ezra hundreds of years earlier held that Jewish identity is passed through the mother (matrilineal descent.) However, many Jews may not have been willing to associate with Timothy because he had a non-Jewish father and was not circumcised. Many Jews considered circumcision to be a necessary requirement for being a Jew. Paul never said that Jewish Christians should not be circumcised; he only argued that circumcision should not be required of Gentile Christians as a matter of salvation. Circumcision would not have been a repudiation of Timothy’s Christian faith but merely an affirmation of his status as a Jew. It would open doors for him to interact more easily with Jews, which would give him opportunities to preach about Jesus. (However, some people might have accused Paul of being inconsistent if they did not think the issue through carefully or did not see the distinction Paul saw.) When you are trying to move forward on something you think God wants you to do, how do you decide when to stand on principle and when to acquiesce to what might make other people more open to what you are trying to accomplish? Acts 16:6-10 Paul is called by the Holy Spirit to preach in Macedonia What happens? Look at a map of Paul’s second journey to understand what is going on here. Paul has only preached in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey/Türkiye). Macedonia is in Europe. It is the northern part of what is now known as Greece. Paul is being called to cross into Europe and preach the gospel there. If you were Paul, how would you feel about being called across the sea to a far-off land through a dream? When have you felt a calling from God to do something that took you outside your comfort zone? What happened? Acts 16:11-24 Paul and Silas make converts in Philippi and are flogged for it What good things happen in Philippi? What bad things happen to Paul and Silas in Philippi? What suffering do they endure? How do you think Paul is feeling about his missionary journey at this point, considering that he had a vision of being called to come to Macedonia and now is being beaten badly? Acts 17:1-10 Paul and Silas establish a church in Thessalonica in the face of opposition What do Paul and Silas do in Thessalonica? What trouble do they encounter? Is the persecution directed only at Paul and Silas, or also at the new believers who lived in that city? What can we learn from Paul’s persistence in the face of persecution? Acts 17:10-15 Paul and Silas in Beroea What happens to Paul and Silas in Beroea? Who stirs up trouble for them in Beroea? We have now seen that the Christians in Thessalonica have endured persecution, and the Jews of Thessalonica have been so zealous in their opposition to Gentiles embracing the faith Paul preaches that they have even traveled to other towns to try to stop it. What do you think Paul is thinking at this point? How do you think Paul feels about the suffering of the people he has led to become Christians in these towns? How concerned do you think he is? Do you think he feels responsible for their suffering? We are told in Acts 17:15 that Paul next goes south to Athens. The First Letter to the Thessalonians tells us that Paul is so concerned about the Thessalonians that when Timothy connects with him in Athens, he sends Timothy back to Thessalonica to find out how they are doing (1 Thess. 3:1-2). Paul, meanwhile, moves on to Corinth. When Timothy brings good news about the Thessalonians to Paul in Corinth (1 Thess. 3:6), Paul writes his first letter to them there. In that letter, we will see that he is very concerned about the Thessalonians. Now we are ready to dive into the First Letter to the Thessalonians, which we will do in the next session. Based on what we have read in Acts of the Apostles, what do you think of Paul? What kind of person does Paul seem to be? From what you see here, why do you think God might have chosen Paul to do this missionary work? Why would God have guided Paul to come to Macedonia, knowing that Paul would suffer so much? How do Paul’s experiences resonate with some part of your life? What can you learn from him? Take a step back and consider this: We have finished the entire first session of our study of 1 Thessalonians without looking at a single word of that letter. Why? Because backstories are sometimes very important. Where a person is from matters. The things that have happened to them that led them to where they are now can have a huge effect on what they do now. Paul’s backstory is important to understanding the letters he wrote to the Thessalonians. In a particular way, places matter. We might have a better understanding of Paul if we know that he grew up in a cosmopolitan city; that Thessalonica and his hometown are both capitals of Roman provinces; that even though he appears at first to be a narrow-minded, over-zealous Jew, he has lived in Gentile places and appreciates people who are not Jewish. How have the places where you lived shaped you? How has where you grew up or spent time affected your outlook on the world, your openness to other people who are different from you, your ways of thinking? How has God used the places you have lived and the experiences you have had, as steppingstones to later opportunities to serve him? Bibliography See 1 Thessalonians - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/1-thessalonians/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous 1 Thess. List Next

Bible-based study guide on hope for small groups and individuals, using Pope Francis's Jubilee Year 2025 document Spes Non Confundit as a guide. Hope: Jubilee Year 2025 Embrace God's Hope and Extend It to All A Scripture-Based Study Guide for Exploring Pope Francis’s Jubilee Year 2025 Document Spes Non Confundit Link to S pes Non Confundit Introduction: Respond to the Invitation to Embrace God’s Hope God wants to renew our hope and help us put our faith and hope into action. Overview: How to Use This Study Guide Suggestions for individuals, small group members, and small group leaders. A Note About Our Terminology What do we mean when we refer to a “part of a paragraph”? Session 1: Why we can have hope We find hope because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through Jesus. (Read paragraphs 1-4) Session 2: The Jubilee leads us on a journey of hope The Jubilee Year invites us to encounter Jesus, who is our hope. (Read paragraphs 1, 5, and 6) Session 3: Where signs of hope are needed today, part 1 Peace and war; welcoming children; prisoners. (Read paragraphs 7-10) Session 4: Where signs of hope are needed today, part 2 The sick; the young; migrants and refugees; the elderly. (Read paragraphs 11-14) Session 5: Where signs of hope are needed today, part 3, and broader appeals for hope The poor; the goods of the earth, debt, economic priorities; synodality. (Read paragraphs 15-17) Session 6: A life anchored in hope, part 1 Faith, charity, and hope; life everlasting; death; happiness. (Read paragraphs 18-21) Session 7: A life anchored in hope, part 2 God’s judgment; indulgence and Penance; the Mother of God; hope as an anchor. (Read paragraphs 22-25) Jubilee Year 2025 - Bibliography Sources used in this study of Spes Non Confundit . If you use this study, please give us feedback here: Feedback Form .

Jesus cares about our afflictions. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 8:1-17 Jesus cares about our afflictions. Alexandre Bida (1813-1895). The Leper . 1875. Detail. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jesus_heals_the_leper.png . See also https://archive.org/details/christinartstory00egglrich/page/60/mode/2up . Tom Faletti July 30, 2024 Re-read Matthew 7:28-29 Jesus acts with authority Matthew ends the Sermon on the Mount by saying that Jesus “taught them as one having authority and not as their scribes.” What does it look like when someone teaches with authority? Who has been someone who taught with authority in your life? Matthew has shown Jesus teaching with authority. Now he is going to show Jesus acting with authority. In chapters 8 and 9, we will see 10 miracles in 9 separate incidents, presented in groups of 3, interspersed with brief but pointed dialogues. Matthew 8:1-17 Jesus cures all who come to him Who are the kinds of people Jesus helps here? Who is Jesus for ? The ones Jesus helped here include an outcast leper, a lowly servant, an enemy commander in need, a mother-in-law who probably spent most of her life being overlooked, and then many others who suffered various afflictions. What does this tell you about Jesus and about Matthew’s sense of who Jesus cares about – who God cares about? Who do we care about? Do we care about the same people Jesus cares about? Explain. How are Jesus’s priorities a challenge to our society? Now let’s focus on each of these three stories separately. Matthew 8:1-4 the leper What happens in this passage? Recent translations of the Bible mostly replace “a leper” with “a man with a skin disease,” because the word was used for a variety of skin diseases, not just leprosy. Any persistent skin disease rendered a person unclean, under Old Testament law (Lev. 13-14), both in a hygienic sense (such diseases can be transmitted through touch) and in a religious sense (ritual impurity). Therefore, people with skin diseases were supposed to live in isolation, away from others. What attitudes or character traits does the man with leprosy show? In verse 2, the man said, “You can make me clean.” What is the significance of being made clean? How were lepers treated and what would being made “clean” do for him? What does Jesus do? Why is touching so significant beyond just being an action used in the healing? Jesus’s willingness to touch the man violated Old Testament norms both with regard to health and with regard to religious purity, so it was probably shocking to onlookers. In what way does Jesus’s touching the man communicate not only a willingness to violate social conventions but also a special type of caring? What effect does touching someone have? Why does Jesus tell him to tell no one? Why does Jesus tell him to go to the priests? Note that the purpose of going to the priests is to satisfy the priests; Jesus does not make it his own concern – i.e., he does not say, for example, that going to the priests was necessary in order to receive the healing. Jesus stands above the Law, even as he tells the man to fulfill the Law. What do you discern about Jesus’s/God’s character from this incident? Who are we called to “touch” or care for today in or lives, in order for them to receive God’s healing? How might our choice to “touch” people whom society shuns shock people around us, and should that affect us? What should we do about the fact that if we follow Jesus we will sometimes show care for people that others think we should stay away from? Matthew 8:5-13 the centurion’s slave A centurion was a commander of 100 men in the Roman army. He was a Gentile. The Greek word for the centurion’s “servant” is ambiguous and could mean “son.” John 4:46-54 has a similar but not identical story about a royal official’s son. But if we follow the common understanding that it is the centurion’s servant who is sick, how do you think he felt about this servant cared as a person? The centurion was an officer in a hated army that occupied the land, oppressed the people, and treated with harsh brutality anyone who dared to cross it. Why would Jesus want to help him? Jesus says, “I will come and cure him.” What Jewish cultural expectation would that have been violating? Observant Jews did not enter the homes of Gentiles, because they would becoming ritually unclean from any interaction with any unclean items in the home. Why do you think Jesus makes the offer to “come”? How does the centurion see himself relative to Jesus (verse 8) and relative to other people (verse 9)? What does he ask Jesus to do? Why does the centurion think that a word from Jesus will be enough? Matthew 7 ended with a reference to Jesus’s authority. How does this passage help us understand the authority of Jesus? For what does Jesus praise the centurion? What does he think of the centurion’s faith? How does Jesus turn this event into an indictment of the failure of the people of Israel to believe in Jesus? How can we be more like the centurion? Note: We can’t conjure up faith by our own willpower. Faith is a gift. But we can choose to be open, we can take the time to approach God, and we can welcome God’s presence and lordship in our lives. If we create the conditions for faith by nurturing whatever seed of faith we have, that openness can allow faith to grow. Matthew 8:14-17 Peter’s mother-in-law, and many other people What does Peter’s mother-in-law do when she is healed? How can she be a model for us? What happens that evening? In verse 17, what Old Testament passage does Matthew quote, and what does it mean? What is Matthew trying to suggest to us about Jesus? The quote is from one of the Suffering Servant passages of Isaiah, and the Suffering Servant ultimately makes reparation for the sins of the people, so Matthew sees it as a prophecy about Jesus as the Messiah. Take a step back and consider this: In Matthew 8:2, the leper is confident that Jesus can cure him; he is only unsure if Jesus is willing to cure him (he says, “if you wish”). In Matthew 8:8, the centurion is confident that Jesus can cure his servant, and he has a solution to the question of Jesus’s willingness (“only say the word”). With both of those issues laid to rest, the crowds that follow Jesus come with great expectation. When it comes to asking God for healing for yourself or others, do you get stuck on the question of whether God wishes to heal? Do you get stuck on the question of whether God is able to heal? Or are you able to get past both of those questions? In our time, we know that some people for whom we pray are healed and some are not. How do you approach God when healing is needed? There is power in the passage from Isaiah that Matthew applies to Jesus in verse 17. In what ways do you find it to be true of Jesus that he bears our weaknesses and diseases, and how does that help you to approach him in prayer? The next time you pray, how can you approach the Lord with greater confidence that he bears your afflictions? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

You provide the salt and light of Jesus to the world. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 5:13-16 You provide the salt and light of Jesus to the world. Image provided by Wix. Tom Faletti April 21, 2024 Matthew 5:13-16 You are the salt and light of the world Salt has many useful properties. What is salt good for? In this passage, what good property of salt is Jesus focusing on (verse 13)? The Greek word for “earth” in verse 13 is the same as the word for “earth” in verse 5. It can mean soil, or a particular territory on the Earth, or the physical realm of existence (as in references to “heaven and earth”). In this case, it can’t mean “soil” since salt is not generally a good thing for soil. When Jesus says we are the salt of the “earth,” what do you think he means by “earth”? Metaphorically speaking, in what ways can Christians be the kind of good “salt” that flavors the world around us or improves the taste of life? Jesus says that salt that has lost its flavor is thrown out because it is not good for anything. Since he is talking metaphorically about Christians, what is he saying about such Christians? What do you need to do to keep being good salt in the world around you? What adjustments in your Christian life might help you be the kind of person who is the kind of “salt” the world needs? In verse 14, Jesus shifts to a different metaphor: light. What does he say that we are? In what ways are we meant to be like the light of a city that is built on a hill? In this metaphor about light, what kind of light are we supposed to be shining? According to Jesus in verse 16, what will people see in us when our light is shining properly? What do you think he means when he says that when our light is shining, people will see our “good works”? What do you think he means by “good works”? What are some ways that Christians might put their light under a bushel? What are some ways that we might put our light on a lampstand? According to verse 16, why will people give glory to God when our light is shining properly? Jesus says that when our light is shining properly, they will see our good works. In our world today, many people who do not believe in Jesus do not think Christians are a light and don't see a reason to give glory to God. It would be easy to blame this entirely on them. Turn your focus toward ourselves for a minute. How might Christians be interacting with the world in ways that do not shine a light – that are not seen as good works? What can we do to be better lights in the world? Take a step back and consider this: Sometimes we assume that if non-Christians fail to see the light of Christ, it is because of their own obstinacy. But we know that we are not perfect, so surely there are also times when the fault lies with how we are living out our faith or how we are representing Jesus to the world. There is no light where there is no truth. But sometimes we obscure the truth by pretending that things are simpler than they are. When Christians claim that following Jesus is simple – “all you have to do is have faith” – people think we are saying that if they just believe, all their problems will go away. They know that is not true, since Christians also have problems, so that message obscures the light. Many young people find it hard to see the light of Christ in us because of the inadequate attention many of our churches give to the injustices that weigh heavily on the hearts of young people (and people of every age who hear the cry of oppressed peoples for justice). When Christians uncritically support one political approach even though every political organization focuses on only some of God’s concerns for justice, or fail to address flaws in the churches themselves, people whose hearts cry for justice find it hard to see us as salt or light. Our light can also be obscured by our lack of holiness. If we only honor some of God’s commands, if we look like we mainly care about ourselves and people like us, if we fail to be engaged consistently in good works as our Lord told us to, then we should not be surprised that the world does not see us as salt and light. Think about a time when you were not the kind of salt or light that effectively represented Jesus to the world. What went wrong? Think about a time when you were particularly effective at being the kind of salt or light that Jesus calls us to be. What happened that allowed you to be salt or light? How can you build habits that will allow the salt and light of Jesus to be communicated to the world around you more consistently? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

Responding to difficult questions and dealing with politics. Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 21:23-27 Responding to difficult questions and dealing with politics. Image by Buddha Elemental 3D, provided by Unsplash via Wix. Tom Faletti August 5, 2025 Matthew 21:23-27 The chief priests and elders challenge Jesus’s authority The locus of opposition to Jesus has been shifting from the Pharisees and scribes to the chief priests and scribes and now to the chief priests and elders. The Pharisees were members of might be thought of as a religious society that was mostly trying to live a devoted life to God. The scribes were the lawyers (or theologians of our day) who knew the details of God’s Law and the Scriptures and might be aligned with the Pharisees or the chief priests. But the elders, which included many of the chief priests, were the power brokers of Jerusalem. The chief priests and elders, together, were a potent force: The chief priests ran the Temple, and the elders made the political decisions that affected the whole city of Jerusalem. Recall that Jesus has entered the city in a very disruptive way, kicked people out of the Temple precincts, healed people in the Temple precincts, and now was back, teaching the people right there on the Temple grounds. What do the chief priests and elders ask Jesus? Why do you think they ask him this question? Not everyone who claims to be from God actually is. Is it reasonable to ask where a person’s authority comes from when they are shaking things up? How can we judge whether someone who is shaking things up is coming from God or not? Notice that Jesus does not answer their question. Is there a lesson for us in choosing when to defend ourselves and when to let a challenge pass without an answer? If Jesus had chosen to answer the question, what would his answer have been? Jesus chooses to counter with a question, to either establish their sincerity or spotlight their spiritual bankruptcy. What question does Jesus ask them (verse 25)? Why is this a hard question for them to answer? What would be the right answer to Jesus’s question? Notice that the right answer to Jesus’s question is also the right answer to the question the leaders asked Jesus: John and Jesus were both operating based on authority given to them by God. How does their inability (or unwillingness) to answer Jesus’s question expose how badly they are out of touch with what the people can see that God is doing? What can we learn from this story for ourselves? My Bible Study group saw many things they could learn from this story. For example: Ask questions. Don’t feel the need to defend yourself or answer every question from others. Jesus often doesn’t dictate answers to people; he lets them reach their own conclusions – perhaps we should too. Instead of getting caught up in verbal battles with others, pay attention to what God is doing. Why does Jesus allow people to think things that are wrong rather than trying to prove to them what is right? Jesus is building hearts and minds, not robotic teleprompters or answering machines. He wants to develop people who can think like God thinks and act like Jesus would. If he forces us to think a certain way, we can never develop hearts and minds that follow him by our own free will. Jesus’s approach to other people, even those who oppose him, always honors the importance of free will. How can we use our free will well? God always hopes that we will use the free will he has given to us to respond to what he has revealed give our lives freely in service to him and others. Take a step back and consider this: Some people would see the chief priests and elders as master politicians: They are very aware of the ways that the people don’t agree with them, and very savvy about how to manage that problem so that they don’t get on the bad side of the people. However, in the process, they have lost a bit of themselves and their integrity. They are playing for power, rather than for working for truth, or justice, or goodness. If they were working for truth, they would make their case and try to show the people why they are wrong. That might appear difficult with so much evidence on the other side; but if they genuinely believed they were right then they would be willing to stand up for their beliefs and make their best case, whether others agreed or not. But that is if they were working for truth, not playing for power. If they were working for justice, or goodness, or any other good motive, they similarly would make the case for what they believe in. Only the coward or the person playing politics would back down when asked a question and not even try to offer an answer. Politics is not inherently bad. Some people are called to the difficult work of trying to manage disagreements in a society or community and find solutions or approaches that address a wide range of concerns and hold the community together even though many people can’t have all they want. But that is when they are doing the hard work of politics, not playing politics for their own benefit. How can a politician do the hard work of politics and still act like a Christian? In a democracy, Christians are called to get involved in politics, at least to the extent of voting and perhaps in other ways, in order to exercise their responsibilities as citizens to promote the good of all. Beyond that, almost everyone is involved in politics in other ways – the politics of the office, the give-and-take and negotiating that goes on in families, and even the managing of different groupings in a church. We are called to be like Jesus in all situations, even in those places. How can we do the work of politics well in our everyday lives? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next

Living the Christian life in the church. [1 Thessalonians 5:12-22; 5:23-28] Previous 1 Thess. List Next 1 Thessalonians 5:12-28 Living the Christian life in the church. Image from Wix. Tom Faletti January 31, 2025 1 Thess. 5:12-22 Relationships and behavior within the church Paul now turns to his expectations for how the Thessalonians should live with each other in the church. In verses 12-13, he describes how the leaders of the local church should act and how the “congregation” (the members of the local church) should treat them. In verse 12, what 3 things does he say the leaders do? They “labor” among you, they have a leadership role over you, and they “admonish” you. Different Christian denominations have different terms for these leaders of the church: priests, ministers, pastors, deacons, elders, etc. In the following questions, the term “priests and ministers” will be used, but please translate that into whatever terms you use in your church. In what ways do our local priests and ministers “labor”? What is the “work” they do? In what ways should we defer to them as our leaders? Do your priests/ministers admonish you? If so, how? If they don’t, should they, and if so, how? How important is it to have people in your life who will “admonish” you? And how should they do it so that it is effective and not just off-putting? In verse 13, what 3 things does Paul ask the members of the church to do in support of the leaders? He asks them to show their leaders “esteem,” love them ( agape ), and be at peace. Why is it important to “esteem” our priests and ministers and to show them “love”? Are there ways you could show them more appreciation for the work they do? Are there ways you could show more appreciation or support for the other church employees, who do so much unsung work? Paul adds that the Thessalonians – the members of the congregation – should be at peace with one another. Why is peace important? Why is being at peace with the other members of your church such an important part of loving the leaders of your church? What do you do to help bring about or maintain peace in your church? In verses 14-15, Paul moves into a longer list of things the members of the church should do with each other. What does he tell them to do? Why is he concerned about people who are idle (he also mentioned them in 4:11)? What would it look like to admonish people who are idle? How might you encourage the fainthearted and help the weak? Why is patience so important? How does it help us deal with the idlers, the fainthearted, and the weak? Verse 15 could be a good rule for life in a variety of circumstances. What does Paul tell them to not do and to do in verse 15? Don’t return evil for evil. Always seek the good for each other and for all. The first half of verse 15 says: Don’t return evil for evil. Why is this an important rule? What might this stop us from doing, and what are the kinds of circumstances where we need to remember this? The second part of verse 15 goes further. The first part only tells us what not to do. The second part tells us what to do instead . Why is seeking the good of “each other” important? And how does it counteract our tendency to focus on ourselves? But Paul goes even further. He tells us to seek the good of “all,” meaning everyone else, too. In order to be the kind of person who always does what is good not only for myself , and not only for just me and you, but also for everyone else , how might we need to change how we think about the situations we are in? How does this approach to interpersonal relationships reflect the way God does things? How does this approach to interpersonal relationships challenge you? In verses 16-18, Paul focuses more on what is going on inside of us – in our inner selves. What does he say? How can we rejoice always? (What have we to rejoice about even when things are going wrong?) How can we pray without ceasing? For a simple way to approach the habit of praying constantly, you might explore the very short book The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence, an uneducated 17th century monk who spent most of his time working as a cobbler and in the kitchen of the monastery. It can be bought very inexpensively, but it can also be found online at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library . How can we give thanks in all circumstances? What might we give thanks for when we are experiencing illness, mistreatment, or misfortune? How might this attitude of rejoicing, praying, and giving thanks at all times revolutionize your relationship with God? How might it revolutionize your relationships with the people in your world? In verses 19-22 where Paul talks about prophetic utterances, he is probably talking about the kinds of manifestations of the Spirit that appear to have been common in the early church and are sometimes seen in charismatic communities in our time. What is the balance he is seeking? Paul seeks to allow people to speak freely in response to the movement of the Holy Spirit, but with testing and discernment by others. How might this be a good approach to inspiration in general? 1 Thess. 5:23-28 Paul’s closing prayer and greeting Paul ends with prayer (verses 23-25) and greetings (verses 26-28). In his prayer, what does Paul ask of God? Looking at verse 23, what would it take for you to embrace the goal of being “perfectly” (NABRE) or “entirely” holy? Paul’s hope is that the lives of all God’s people would be entirely without blame or fault, “spirit, soul, and body” – i..e, in all aspects of their being. God is working to perfect us. How do our spirit, soul, and body all play a role in the perfecting process that God wants to work in us? What does Paul add in verse 24, and how is it an encouragement? Do you live as though God is faithful and will accomplish your perfection in Christ? How might that insight transform your life? In verse 25, Paul also asks them to pray for him. Why is that important? What does it tell us about Paul? In verse 26, Paul tells them to greet “all the brothers” with “a holy kiss.” A kiss was a common form of greeting in his time. It was used in Christian communities and very early in the life of the Church it became part of the ritual or liturgy. (The Roman Catholic Church reclaimed it as a formal part of the liturgy after Vatican II.) In light of verse 27, however, there may be more to verse 26 than meets the eye. Paul orders, in unusually strong terms (roughly equivalent to “I charge you under oath”), that the letter be read to “all.” He says this right after he tells them to extend the holy kiss to “all.” We do not know why he felt the need to issue such a stern order to have the letter read to everyone in the Christian community. Scholars speculate that there might have been factions developing and Paul wanted to make sure his words reached everyone. But we don’t need to assume that there were factions in order to make sense of verse 27. Paul wanted to make sure that his letter reached everyone – even the idlers (5:14), even the ones who were not peaceful (5:13) or patient (5:14), even the ones who were not walking as children of the light (5:4-8), even the ones who were not living in sexual holiness (4:3-8). Greet all of them, he says, with a holy kiss, and make sure this letter is read to all of them. Paul wants his letter to reach even those who are not living the holiest of lives. Why is it important that we keep reaching out to all of the people in the church, not just the ones who are consistently living holy lives? How might your church be more welcoming of people who are not (and maybe not anywhere near) perfect? How might you be more welcoming of people who are not living a fully Christian life as you perceive it? Paul ends (5:28) where he began (1:1), with grace: May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. How can you grow in being the kind of person who extends God’s grace to everyone? Take a step back and consider this: We need a Christian community. First, we humans are social creatures and need other people. Second, it is difficult to become like Christ without spending time in a community that is dedicated to living like Christ. Third, we cannot abound in love (3:12), encourage each other and build each other up (5:11), support those who are weak or fainthearted (5:14), or do the many other things Christians are called to do, if we are not living in a Christian community. We need to be around people in order to minister to them. Christian communities also offer opportunities to become more like Christ in another way. Spending time with other people opens us to interactions that may have some friction, which become additional opportunities to grow in holiness (5:23) as we try to serve our Lord together. They also give us a place to ask questions and answer questions (3:10; 4:13). We can explore together who God is, what he is trying to accomplish in our world, and how we can participate in God’s work in the world. It is fair to say that we need to be in a Christian community to be all we are intended by God to be. The fact that Paul ends his letter by urging that the holy kiss be extended to everyone and that his letter be read to all tells us how important he thought it was that everyone be supported and included in the community of believers. What is your church or Christian community? How is your Christian community important to you? How does your church enable you to be all you are meant to be? How could your church do more to enable others to grow in Christ, and what part might you play in that effort? How does your church challenge you to grow in Christ, and what might God want you to do in response? What is one practical piece of advice or insight or attitude that Paul offers in this letter, that you can take to heart and pursue within the context of your Christian community? Bibliography See 1 Thessalonians - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/1-thessalonians/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous 1 Thess. List Next

The return of Christ and how to be ready. [1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 5:1-11] Previous 1 Thess. List Next 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11 The return of Christ and how to be ready. Photo by Matthias Münning on Unsplash . Tom Faletti January 31, 2025 1 Thess. 4:13-18 Christians, dead and living, will join Christ when he returns This passage has been a distraction for many, due to poor theology. Some Christians have woven whole books and movies out of inventive interpretations of Paul’s language and the Book of Revelation. Let’s examine what Paul actually says. Paul uses the term “fallen asleep,” a term the early Christians frequently used by for the dead. In what sense are they only “sleeping”? Looking at verses 13-14, what is the concern that has troubled the Thessalonian community? They are troubled that members of the church have died before Jesus has returned. Why does Paul say they can have hope? In verse 14, what is the connection he makes between Jesus and Christians who die? How does Jesus’s resurrection affect your view of death? When we lose a loved one, grief is natural and to be expected. But how does our faith affect our grief? Paul now turns to a brief discussion of Second Coming of Christ. In verse 15, he says that what he is going to tell us in verses 16-17 is a “word of the Lord.” We do not have this in any of the Gospels. It might have been received as a prophetic utterance in the early church or as a prophetic revelation to Paul himself. What is Paul’s main point in verse 15? Why might it matter to Christians that, when Christ returns, those who have already died will not be left behind? The Nicene Creed, which is accepted by most Christian denominations, professes belief in the Second Coming of Christ when it says, “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end.” Although the Nicene Creed had not yet bee formulated, this is what Paul is talking about in this passage. In verses 16-17, Paul describes the return or Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. In verse 16, what words or sounds signal that the time has come? The Lord gives the command, and then two things happen, or one thing happens that is described in two ways: the voice of an archangel and the trumpet of God. When that signal is given, what happens first (still in verse 16)? Christians who are dead rise. What Paul says here seems to be consistent with what Jesus says in Matthew 24:31. Let’s look at it: Read Matthew 24:29-31 What elements of Jesus’s words are matched in what Paul says? Jesus will return. Jesus will come in the clouds. A trumpet will sound. Jesus will gather his followers. He will gather the dead as well as the living. He says he will gather them from the four winds and from one end of “the heavens” to the other – this is poetic language, but “the heavens” means not just the people living on the Earth. A trumpet sound could be literal, but it could be symbolic. What does the sounding of a trumpet signal? What kinds of people get heralded by the sound of trumpets? What difference does it make to you that Jesus will return with power and glory? What difference does it make to you that those who have died will rise again – that we will have a resurrection? What difference does it make to you that your loved ones who have gone before you will be part of the resurrection? Return to 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 . In verse 16, Paul says that the dead will rise to life. In verse 17, he says that the people who are alive at that time will be “caught up” with the dead who have risen, to meet the Lord in the air. The Greek word for “caught up” is used in other places in the Bible to mean “snatched” or “taken by force” (e.g., Matt. 11:12; 13:19; John 6:15; 10:12, 28, 29; Acts 8:39). When the Scriptures were translated into Latin, this word was translated to a Latin word that begins with the letters rapt . When the Latin was translated into English, it became our word “rapture.” This passage later became one of the primary passages used by people such as Tim LaHaye of the Left Behind series, and Hal Lindsey in The Late Great Planet Earth and other books, to teach a particular theory about the end times in which Christians are “raptured,” or taken to heaven, before the tribulation that everyone else must face. People who subscribe to that theory are described as pre-tribulation pre-millennialists. What Paul teaches does not support the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial view popularized with the modern use of the term “rapture.” That “rapture” teaching is actually not consistent with the Scriptures, which is why it was rejected throughout much of Christian history until the 19th century. Almost all Christians agree on certain truths: Christ will return. The dead will be raised. Christians who are dead and Christians who are still alive will be united with Christ and live with him forever. That’s what Paul says. But Christians don’t get to escape tribulation by being snatched up to God while everyone else is left behind to suffer. The Catholic Church does not accept that claim. The Orthodox Churches do not accept it. The Episcopal, Lutheran, and Methodist Churches to not accept it. Many other Christian churches do not accept it. It goes against established Christian teaching that reaches all the way back to St. Augustine. This new interpretation of the “rapture” did not become a popular belief until isolated groups of Christians proposed it starting in the 19th century. There are at least two key flaws in the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture theory. First, nothing in Scripture supports the idea that Christians will be protected from tribulation. On the contrary, the Bible tells us over and over again to expect serious suffering. Second, the theory is intertwined with the idea that after Christ comes to take Christians to heaven, there will be a 1000-year gap before the final judgment. Jesus and St. Paul are clear that when Christ comes in his Second Coming, three things will happen immediately: the dead will be raised, those who are still alive will be caught up to Christ, and Christ will carry out the final judgment. There is no 1000-year gap in the middle. Revelation 20:2-3 mentions a 1000-year period known as the “millennium” without explanation as to whether it is symbolic or literal. The mainstream understanding of the millennium is that it is a symbolic “1000” years that began when Jesus ascended into heaven and will end when he returns in glory. During this time, God is restraining evil so that the Word of God can be spread throughout the whole Earth. However, as Jesusa and Paul taught, a time of severe persecution (the “tribulation”) will come before the end, and Christians will not be exempt from that persecution and suffering. See The Rapture? It’s Not a Pre-Millennial Escape from Tribulation for a fuller exploration of how the pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture theory contradicts what Jesus and St. Paul clearly teach. Is it a disappointment or a relief to you that Paul, here in 1 Thessalonians, does not teach what has been popularized in books and movies such as the Left Behind series? Why? In verse 17, Paul says that we will be with the Lord forever. What difference does it make to you that we will be with the Lord forever? In verse 18, Paul tells the Thessalonians to use these teachings to “console” (NABRE) or “encourage” (NRSV) each other. How might these teachings about the end times be consoling or encouraging? How are these teachings a source of consolation or encouragement to you? 1 Thess. 5:1-11 Always live in the light, ready for the Lord As Paul continues to discuss the return of Christ, he refers to “the day of the Lord,” which is a term used in Old Testament prophecies in the books of Daniel, Isaiah, Joel, and other prophets. For the Jews of Jesus’s and Paul’s time, that was when God would bring victory for the Jews. Christians re-interpreted it as the day when Christ would return in power and glory. Considering verses 1-3, what can we know about when Christ will return in his Second Coming? What do you think of Paul’s analogy comparing Jesus’s coming to the coming of a “thief in the night”? (FYI- 2 Peter 3:10 uses the same analogy of a thief.) What does it suggest to you as to how you should be prepared? In verses 4-5, what does Paul say about darkness and light? What does it mean to be “children of light”? In verses 6-7, Paul talks again about people “sleeping,” but this time it is not a metaphor for death. What does the metaphor of “sleeping’ mean this time, and what is Paul calling us to do, to avoid “sleeping” like others do? What does it look like to be the kind of Christian who lives in the light? How can you be a child of the light more fully or consistently? In verse 8, Paul tells us to put on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. He is again talking about the three theological virtues: faith, love, and hope (first mentioned in 1 Thess. 1:3). In this metaphor, they are defensive gear, to protect our head and heart. How do faith, love, and hope protect our head and heart? How do you “put on” faith, love, and hope? In verse 10, Paul uses the word sleep again, but now he is using it as he did in 4:13-18 to refer to death, not as he used it in 5:6-7 regarding lax living. What does he call us to do in verse 10? Since Christ died for us, we are called to respond by living with him, in this life and after we die. How can we live with Christ while we are alive? Paul ends this section by again urging us to encourage each other (verse 11). How can we do that? Paul also urges us to build each other up. What does that mean, and how can we do it? Looking back over 1 Thessalonians 4:13 through 5:11: Which of Paul’s teachings in these passages is most comforting or encouraging to you right now, and why? Which of Paul’s teachings here challenges you to take a new step, and what can you do specifically to respond? Take a step back and consider this: Paul talks about faith, love, and hope twice in this letter. In 1:3, he says the Thessalonians are actively exhibiting all three of these virtues. In 5:8, he urges them to put on the protection of faith, love, and hope. In some ways, faith, love, and hope sum up the whole gospel: if we are actively living our lives in accordance with these three virtues, we will be living the kind of life to which we are called in Christ Jesus. Genuine faith puts God first in all things. Genuine love treats others with the same love God has for us. Genuine hope helps us endure suffering and hold fast to the God who loves us. Which of these virtues would be good for you to focus on this week? Why? We are not alone. God is working to help us respond to these virtues, which he has placed in us. What can you do, or stop doing, to allow the virtues of faith, love, and hope to guide every aspect of your life? Bibliography See 1 Thessalonians - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/1-thessalonians/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous 1 Thess. List Next

Can you embrace a king who comes in peace? Previous Matthew List Next Matthew 21:1-11 Can you embrace a king who comes in peace? Aelbert Cuyp (1620–1691) (school of). Christ Riding into Jerusalem. Circa 1640–1700. Glasgow Museums Resource Centre (GMRC), Glasgow Life Museums, Glasgow, Scotland. Image provided by Art UK, CC BY-NC-ND, https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/christ-riding-into-jerusalem-83691 . Tom Faletti August 3, 2025 Matthew 21:1-11 The crowds rejoice as Jesus enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey Jerusalem was the capital of Judea. Bethphage (pronounced Beth'-fuh-dzhee) was a village on the Mount of Olives, just outside the city of Jerusalem, around one mile from the Temple. The “village opposite you” was probably the nearby village of Bethany, where Jesus will go that evening (see Matt. 21:17) – Mark names Bethphage and Bethany in Mark 11:1. Jesus is arriving just as Passover is beginning. Barclay says that 30 years later, a Roman governor said that around a quarter of a million lambs were sacrificed in Jerusalem at the Passover, and the Jews had a regulation that there should be at least 10 people for every lamb. That would suggest that there could have been 2.5 million people crammed into Jerusalem – a huge crowd far beyond its usual population (Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 2 , p. 262). Jesus has chosen to come to Jerusalem at the moment when his arrival may have maximum impact. How does Jesus get a donkey? There is no way to know whether Jesus arranged this in advance or used supernatural power to make it possible; but either way, what does it tell you about how much Jesus has been thinking about how to approach the final week of his life? Jews who were expecting a messiah to come soon had interpreted Zechariah 14:4 in a way that suggested that the messiah would approach Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives on the “day of the Lord.” That is what Jesus does. How does Jesus enter into Jerusalem (verse 7)? Riding on a donkey Matthew 21:5 quotes from Zechariah 9:9-10. Read Zechariah 9:9-10 The daughter Zion or daughter of Zion mentioned here and also in Isaiah 62:11 is Jerusalem and its inhabitants. There is only one donkey in Zechariah, it is referred to twice in the typical Hebrew way for poetic effect. Why would Matthew say that there was a donkey and her colt, and that Jesus sat on “them”? Scholars have a variety of ideas: Perhaps he was interpreting the Zechariah passage overly literally; perhaps the “them” refers to the cloaks he sat on; or perhaps he rode on one and then the other. Why would the disciples have brought two donkeys to Jesus? Perhaps a young donkey – one that hasn’t been ridden on yet – would not be eager to be led away from its mother but follow her if she was led to Jesus. These details don’t really matter. What matters is this: What is the significance of riding into a capital city on a donkey? A conquering king would ride in on a horse. Jesus comes in peace, not as a conquering king. How does the rest of these two verses from Zechariah suggest to us about Jesus? He has not come as a worldly, conquering king. What is the nature of his coming? Now return to Matthew 21:1-11 What do the people do? Spreading cloaks Spreading cloaks on the road was a way to acknowledge the reign of a new king. This had been done for Jehu in 2 Kings 9:13 when he became king of Israel. Matthew says just refers generically to branches from the trees, but John specifically identifies them as palm branches. In around 142 BC, when the Maccabees overthrew the Seleucid (Greek) empire and gained independence, 1 Maccabees 13:51 tells us that in celebration of that great victory, the people waved palm branches as the miliary leader Simon and his troops entered the citadel at Jerusalem. This was the end of the fight for liberation from the Greeks that put an end to the defilement of the Temple, which Antiochus Epiphanous had ordered. 2 Maccabees 10:1-8 describes the steps that were taken to purify the Temple, which included the waving of palm branches. So when the people spread palm branches before Jesus, they are invoking a history of liberation. What do the people say? Hosanna In Matthew 21:9, the people cry out, “Hosanna,” which is literally a cry in Hebrew to “save, I pray/beseech.” We see this word in Psalm 118:25, where the psalmist calls on God to “save us,” followed in the next verse (118:26) by the statement, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” They appear to be clearly invoking Psalm 118:25-26. What is the significance of the people identifying Jesus as one who can save them? The Son of David What is the significance of the people calling Jesus the “son of David”? An interesting footnote is that when David declared that the king who would follow him would be his son Solomon – the first person who was the “son of David” – Solomon rode into Jerusalem on David’s mule (1 Kings 1: 32-40) – again, not the horse of a warrior. People might also have recalled this as they proclaimed Jesus to be the “Son of David.” What is the significance of the people proclaiming that Jesus comes in the name of the Lord? In what ways can we embrace the words of the crowd when they identify Jesus as the Son of David, proclaim him to be the one who comes in the name of the Lord, and ask him to save them? What do you think they people are thinking about Jesus? The Jews at that time had a strong expectation that their Roman oppressors would be thrown off by a descendant of David and that the kingdom of David would be re-established as an earthly kingdom. Calling Jesus the Son of David and spreading cloaks and palm branches were ways of signaling that they thought he was the one who would come and establish a new earthly kingdom. When God does something in our lives, how do we express our joy at what God has done? Can we learn something from the people of Jerusalem? Notice that Jesus does not correct their thinking about what kind of messiah he is. The time will come for people to understand better who Jesus is, but for now he responds to their faith, not their understanding of doctrinal facts. We see this in our day as well. Christians don’t agree about major points of doctrine, which means somebody is wrong. Jesus makes it clear in other parts of the Gospels that it is important to know the truth, but God still works in the lives of believing Christians who have conflicting views, some of which must be wrong. Why do you think God still works in the life of people who don’t have all their doctrinal facts sorted out perfectly, and what does that tell you about God’s relationship with us? Verses 10-11 have an interesting juxtaposition. The “whole city” is in turmoil and asking who is the person people are making such a fuss big deal about, and the “crowd” explains. The “whole city” would be the people who were already there and mostly knew little about Jesus, and the “crowd” would mainly be the people who had come with Jesus all the way from Galilee or had joined him on the way to Jerusalem as he traveled through Judea (see Matt. 19:2 and 20:29). The people in Jerusalem want to know why people are so excited about this person they don’t know about. Where do you see yourself in this story? Would you have been with Jesus from the beginning, accompanying him from all the way back in Galilee? Would you have been so moved by him when he came through your little town in Judea that you left town to follow him? Would you have already been a devout person intending to go to Jerusalem for the feast, and you decided to go with Jesus when you learned that he would be walking to Jerusalem for the Passover too? Would you have been part of that crowd waiving branches and spreading your cloak on the road? Would you have been among the people asking, “Who is this?” Would you have been one of the people answering the question, explaining who Jesus is? Would you have been watching skeptically? Would you have missed it entirely? Where do you see yourself in this story? What does this story of Jesus’s entrance into Jerusalem say to you today? Take a step back and consider this: We have seen a number of instances in Matthew’s Gospel where Matthew shows us a Jesus who cares especially about the people at the bottom of the social spectrum – what we have called God’s downside-up view of the world. Jesus’s entry into Jerusalem shows the contrast again, where Jesus’s approach is the opposite of what the world expects. They expect a king who will establish dominion under the mantle of power; they get a servant who will establish his kingship under a mantle of peace. John Fischer, a Christian friend of mine who was a popular musician in the Christian contemporary music scene in the 1970s and now runs an online ministry to try to extend the grace of God to people who feel left out of traditional churches, wrote an online post in which he says that the “strong, biblically-based evangelical church” he grew up in always seemed to skip over the Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes (Matt. 5-7). That is where we first see clearly Jesus’s downside-up view: Blessed are the poor; turn the other cheek; love your enemy; etc. John wrote: [W]e should stick out like a sore thumb in our culture right now. The acceptable cultural milieu is currently one of separation, isolation, fear, bullying, show no mercy, take no prisoners, no sympathy, no empathy, foster hate, and a rejection of that which is different. It is the culture of the strong man more in keeping with John Wayne than Jesus. In fact, our culture right now is dominated by everything that is the exact opposite of the Beatitudes. So if you want to be different, now is the time to follow Jesus, and steer clear of any movement of Christianity that borrows from the strong man tactics that are prevalent today. That’s not Jesus; it’s John Wayne. (“ John Wayne and the Sermon on the Mount ”) Jesus challenges us to turn the world’s view upside-down – to see differently, to think differently, to act differently. He did not come with horse and chariot to force our submission to him. He came on a donkey of peace. We are called to follow his example. What does Jesus’s refusal to accept the trapping of power say to leaders in our day? How might Christians in our time be overly eager to embrace the exercise of military power? In what ways does Jesus’s refusal to exercise worldly power challenge us? What might we need to do differently to point the leaders of our time to the Jesus who enters Jerusalem on a donkey? How can we join the One on the donkey who comes in the name of the Lord, and follow his way? How can we also point the powerless of our time to the Jesus who rides on a donkey? Bibliography See Matthew - Bibliography at https://www.faithexplored.com/matthew/bibliography . Copyright © 2025, Tom Faletti (Faith Explored, www.faithexplored.com ). This material may be reproduced in whole or in part without alteration, for nonprofit use, provided such reproductions are not sold and include this copyright notice or a similar acknowledgement that includes a reference to Faith Explored and www.faithexplored.com. See www.faithexplored.com for more materials like this. Previous Matthew List Next