The Pauline Epistles (Part 2)

Well, good evening everyone boy. So small class. But that's all right because tonight is the night of nights I've been looking forward to tonight since I started this class. We are in the second part of the Pauline epistles and I Say I've been looking forward to this part because we're actually going to have some in-class discussion tonight.

We're going to have some in-class discussion tonight, which is Hopefully going to inspire at least a little debate even if we all have the same opinion. Which it's likely we will have the same opinion on a couple of these topics.

I still want us to interact with. Things that we have heard. Objections and debates and things like that. So you'll know what I'm talking about when we get there. You'll know what I'm talking about when we get there so and our last lesson we began to examine the works of Paul.

We noted that Paul wrote 13 of the New Testament epistles and we have already surveyed those. We are we've surveyed the first half. We looked last week at Romans 1st and 2nd Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians General Electric Power Company if you're ever teaching that to children.

To try to help them remember Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians. It's General Electric Power Company and they'll always remember how to wear what order they fall in. Well in this session, we're going to complete the Pauline corpus and we're going to look at the remaining books 1st and 2nd Thessalonians 1st and 2nd Timothy Titus and Philemon and I.

Want you to note that while 1st and 2nd Thessalonians is falling in the second half of our study 1st and 2nd Thessalonians were actually written much earlier than the books that we looked at last week.

In fact. The only book that would have predated 1st and 2nd Thessalonians would have been what? Galatians if Galatians was written prior to the Jerusalem Council, which was in around 49 which would have put Galatians around 48 then 1st and 2nd Thessalonians would have been written right around 50.

So early early in their in their dating. So even though they fall later in the Pauline corpus as per how they are ordered in the New Testament. They're actually earlier in regard to their dating. So the way we're going to break tonight down is we're going to break tonight down in three parts.

We're going to look at early Paul. That is 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. We're going to look at the pastoral epistles which is 1st and 2nd Timothy and Titus and. Then we're going to look at what I'm calling personal Paul and that is the one tiny book of Philemon.

So we're going to look at early Paul 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. We're going to look at the pastoral epistles and then we're going to look at the personal letter of Paul to Philemon and. With each of those we're going to do as we do every week.

We're going to look at the authorship dating and purpose of those books. So let's begin with early Paul. Looking at 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. Open up your Bibles to 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. Well, you can only open up the ones open up the 1st Thessalonians.

We're going to look at some passages together. Go ahead and open up to chapter 3 and hold your place at verse 6. Before we read let me read this like this short introduction. Paul visited Thessalonica.

Which was a large commercial city in Macedonia. During his second missionary journey, which would have been around 48 or 49. He caused such a disturbance that he and Silas had to be sent away and a short time later Timothy Returns from Thessalonica with good news about the church there this good news prompted two letters and.

This is what we see in verse 6 of chapter 3. It says in verse 6 but now that Timothy has come to us from you and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and Reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us as we long to see you for this reason brothers and all our distress and affliction.

We have been comforted about you through your faith. So this tells us a little bit about the historical context of the book of 1st Thessalonians. Thessalonians, excuse me. I don't know why I stuttered there, but 1st Thessalonians Paul tells us Timothy has come from you and he's given a good report about you.

Which is encouraging because as I said a moment ago Paul and Silas had to flee because of a disturbance. It would have been easy for one to think that the church would have simply Begun to dissolve in the face of persecution, but what we do know about Church history is this Persecution tends to grow the church not kill the church.

In fact, it has been rightly said that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church and So as the church experienced persecution in Thessalonica the church grew as a result and so Timothy comes and provides a Good report.

Now as far as the authorship is concerned First and second Thessalonians Are given almost universal acceptance as having been written by Paul even skeptics will agree with Paul on authorship. Both books mentioned Silas and Timothy yet Paul is apparently the primary author and Since the books come shortly after Paul's visit we put them around 50 Having been written closely together.

Some have even suggested that 2nd Thessalonians may have been written first. But there is some internal evidence to say otherwise turn to 2nd Thessalonians Chapter 2 and I'll show you what I mean in that regard in 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 15 The Apostle Paul says this so then brothers stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us either by our spoken word or by our letter so it would seem to indicate from that that They've already received at least one letter and since we know that there was two letters that went to Thessalonica that would make us point to 2nd Thessalonians as Properly the second letter, but there are some there are some other arguments to be made that maybe 2nd Thessalonians came first.

I don't think it's a huge deal but I think that's enough to say this is probably the rightly been understood as the second letter and And So what's the purpose of these books? The purpose of these books is first Thessalonians.

It's about strengthening the faith of new converts and 2nd Thessalonians Holds to basically the same purpose encouraging the faith of These new converts. I want you to think about this and really kind of in your mind try to put yourself in the first century and I know that's Impossible, but for a moment think of it like this.

This is a this is a new faith I Mean one could say it's the outgrowth of Judaism, which now is several thousand years old but Christianity as Christianity is is only a couple decades old and the church at Thessalonica is Only a couple years old at this point and it's already facing persecution.

It's already facing backlash and pushback Both from the Jewish population and from the Gentile population the Jews see it as a perversion of their teachings and the Gentiles see it as remember we said the Gentiles saw the Christians as Atheists because they didn't believe in all the gods.

They saw them as possibly Sex addicts because they were having these love feasts. They saw them as possibly Cannibalistic because they were eating body and blood, you know there are all these all these things that grew out of these ideas of what the church was and So Paul writes to this early church, and this is his early letters to Continue on don't give up.

Don't Don't give in to the persecution. Don't give in to The difficulties go back to first Thessalonians again, if you would as I said, we're going to be looking at Little more scripture than we have in the weeks previous.

And I want you to go to chapter 1 of 1st Thessalonians and we're going to read beginning at verse 4 this is after Paul has given his normal introduction and Said he'd give thanks to God for them and remembering them before God now verse 4.

He says for we know brothers Loved by God that he has chosen you because our gospel came to you not only in word But also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know the kind you know What kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake and you became imitators of us and of the Lord for you?

Received the word and much affliction with the joy of the Holy Spirit. So that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia.

But your faith in God has gone forth everywhere. So that we need not say anything for they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you and how you turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God and To wait for his son from heaven whom he raised from the dead Jesus Who delivers us from the wrath to come so this is encouraging word?

Don't forget what you did when I came you welcomed me. You were excited you you this was a this was a good thing. This was a positive thing and the other churches have been encouraged by what you have done the other churches have been have been moved by your faith and Your faith has gone out as a testimony to them and.

So that is a word of encouragement and Paul also provides to them a word of encouragement even in the face of death. And this is where I think most of us think when we think of 1st Thessalonians most of us think of 1st Thessalonians 4.

So turn there quickly. 1st Thessalonians chapter 4 verse 13. But we do not want you to be uninformed brothers about those who are asleep. That's a Christian euphemism for death. That you may not grieve as those who have no hope.

For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again even so through Jesus God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord that we who are alive Who are left until the coming of the Lord will not precede those who have fallen asleep?

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command with a shout of an archangel and with the sound of the trumpet of God the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and who are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the Air and so we will always be with the Lord therefore encourage one another with these words.

What's that? It's promise for what promise Christ is returning. This is not the end. This is the this is the promise whereby he says we we can grieve but not like those who have no hope. People were killed for their faith.

You know, we we we we watch persecution happen around us and it does and It's real. But as it is right now, no one is breaking down the doors of the church. To carry men out and burn them at the stake.

Not saying it couldn't happen. Not saying it won't happen in our lifetime. But it was happening in certain parts of the world and it was happening in the early church and So Paul is saying I don't want you to be uninformed about those who have Died.

I Don't want you to be ignorant of them. As those who have no hope. If we believe Jesus died and rose again We also believe God will bring with him those who are asleep those who have died the great hope of the Christian life.

Is that this life is not all there is. Paul even tells us in 1st Corinthians 15 That if in this life only we have hope in Christ. We are most above men to be pitied. Meaning that if this is all there is then It's really not something to be celebrated and so This particular passage has been held on to by Christians Down through the centuries as the great hope that Christ will not only return but that he will raise us from the dead and He will give us New bodies and we will have new life with him now there is some Debate and interpretive challenge on this when it comes to what's called the rapture.

But I'm not going to go there just yet. So if you're ready to talk about the rapture That's one of our conversations that I want to have but before we do that. I Just want to show that 2nd Thessalonians, I think carries on the same idea.

I Persecution and if you'll turn over to 2nd Thessalonians 2 We see Paul addressing the coming of the Lord again. Says in chapter 2 verse 1 now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and are being gathered together with him.

Which is just what he talked about in chapter 4 of 1st Thessalonians. We ask you brothers not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed either by spirit or spoken word. Or a letter seeming to be from us to the effect that the day of the Lord has come see what I think happened and I think I Share this with several commentators on this.

I Think that there were people within the Thessalonian Church who were spreading false rumors about Christ and some who even believed that he had already returned and so it could be we've missed the rapture.

Or it could be. It's all over and therefore we have no reason to continue fighting the good fight. Everything's done. And we see this in chapter 3 look at chapter 3 verse 6. He says now we command you brothers in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

That you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that it that You receive from us. Why would idleness be a problem? Well I don't miss would be a problem if people believe the day of the Lord had already come.

If people believed everything was already Finished if people believed something that was incorrect particularly about the end and. So we see in these early letters of Paul Paul is trying to correct a bad eschatology.

He's trying to correct a faulty understanding of the return of Christ. And That leads me to the next part which is the the question about interpretive challenges. Because would you agree with me that how someone sees the end?

Would affect how someone lives in the present. Would you agree with that brother? Brother Tim, I'm sorry that that how somebody sees the end times would affect how they live now. And I think I think Paul is addressing that issue.

Because There was an idleness that was happening. There was a problem that was happening within the church and let's talk real quick. How many of you have ever heard the pre-tribulation rapture theory of the end times.

Okay. The pre-tribulation rapture theory basically what it says is this is it says that Prior to Jesus's return he is going to invisibly Take the church away in what's called the rapture the rapture means to to take away or to snatch away something and They base that on 1st Thessalonians chapter 4 the Lord himself would descend from heaven with a shout with a trumpet and the archangel and The dead in Christ will rise first and those who are alive will be caught together with him in the clouds and you've probably all seen or at least heard of the books left behind the which were very popular in the late 90s and The left-behind books told the story from the perspective of the pre-tribulation rapture.

View now when we get to our study of Revelation, which is in two weeks our last class. We're actually going to look at the various views on the rapture but just for tonight since it is something that people point to 1st Thessalonians 4 and say this is where I get this from.

I Want to ask the question. Do you think that that would have an effect? You've all said yes, that would have an effect on how someone lives. But what effect what what do we see? Okay, let me give you an example.

Well, we have to have hope but What I often heard and I heard this in seminary because I went to a seminary that taught pre-tribulation rapture theory. What I often heard was we're hoping for the rapture so that God will snatch away the church and we will avoid the Persecution which is coming in the seven-year tribulation.

Right. And so the goal was to avoid Persecution the goal was to be snatched away before the persecution really begins. Okay, and so When you look around the world do we see the world I want to ask this question.

Do we see the world getting better getting worse or staying the same? Is it really though.

The time is drawing near so is that worse for us. But it's a time drawing near.

Okay, all right. But when we when I say is the world getting better getting worse. What if we ask the question? Are there more Christians now than there were 50 years ago? I would say more. Absolutely, a ton more.

All right, there's massive amounts of Revivals happening in places like China, South America, Africa. So are there more Christians now than there were 50 years ago? Yes, the population has grown so just by sheer numbers, but I'm thinking of maybe a comparative there would still be more.

So is that a better thing or a worse thing? That's a better thing, right? So Somebody who takes a post-millennial position would somebody like Jeff Durbin I know you're familiar with Janice and I think you John would know who that is.

Somebody like him would say things are actually getting better. Because even though we see the persecution happening all around us there are there are places where real and genuine growth are happening and Ultimately God is going to see to it that the earth is going to be Overcome and overwhelmed with the gospel.

Isn't that the promise of the gospel that it'll be like a mustard seed that That when planted it grows into a giant tree and and the birds of the air come and nest in its branches. Isn't it like a little leaven that when it goes in leavens the whole lump and that's the picture of the kingdom of God.

It goes in and leavens the whole lump, right? So so is it is it is is there a sense in which we have to be pessimistic and Pessimistic in the sense that it's it's real bad and we say well right now we've had a bad year.

2020 is a bad. I Saw something really great online the other day. It was a it was it was a thing. It said the worst year was not 2020. The worst year was like 546 when like a third of the population died and people.

They're like all these really bad things were happening and it was like this really isn't the worst year, right, you know comparatively. So oftentimes just like brother Tim said oftentimes. It's a perspective thing.

Right, oftentimes it's an issue of perspective and what I always heard growing up was the world's getting worse and worse and worse and Jesus is gonna snatch us out before it gets really bad and that last seven years is going to be the really the really bad.

But is that really that is that really what the Bible teaches? Is that really what the Bible? Commands of us one does the Bible command of us a hope to avoid persecution or a promise to avoid suffering.

No, and so what's that brother? Yeah, exactly exactly. So when we when we look at Thessalonians we look at first and second Thessalonians again, I've taken a little more time on this than maybe I intended to the people use passages in this book particularly first first Thessalonians 4 13 through 18.

To prove an entire theory about the end times that it doesn't prove. In fact, I don't even think it even hints at it. I don't see here a secret rapture. I certainly don't see here anything about a seven-year tribulation and They said well, you got to add this to Revelation and then you got to divide it by Ezekiel.

And then you got a times at times Jeremiah, you know, he becomes this very this is this almost like. Yeah, it's it's it's a string of pearls eschatology and III honestly don't think that it it really holds together and as I said when we get to the our study of Revelation I'll explain more why I don't believe in a pre-tribulation rapture, but There are some other things in first Thessalonians.

I want to point out if you go to second Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 6. This passage is often used to prove a pre-tribulation rapture. It says in verse 6 it says and you know that what is restraining him now and him there is the Let me see is the deceiver it says and you know the one you know, what is restraining him now.

So that he may be revealed in his time for the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way and then the lawless one will be revealed. Whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming and so.

Maybe you've heard this the argument is the Holy Spirit is currently restraining the Antichrist but one day the Holy Spirit is going to be removed and When the Holy Spirit's removed the church has to go with him because the Holy Spirit is Indwelling the church and so if the Holy Spirit is removed and the church has to be removed too.

And that's the that's the argument for the rapture, right? We're all going to be invisibly snatched away and the pictures from the book. It was like your clothes would fall down. It was like a you know, it was it was huh?

Yeah, exactly the clothes are left but your naked body is, you know invisibly taken away and. The idea is that this this lawless one who is sometimes referred to as Antichrist or Revelation 13 the beast or Man of lawlessness, you know all of these things.

Well. Well, see if you take the Pope you're taking a historicist position. Yeah. See that's not even a futurist position and we'll talk about that when we get to Revelation but the the argument that it is the Pope was actually the argument that the reformers made and.

But that's like I said getting a little ahead of me. No, the point of it is is when you look at these passages and you're dealing with the the question. They're making a lot of assumptions. The first assumption is the restrainer here is referring to the Holy Spirit.

It doesn't say that for certain. They're also assuming that there is the removing of restrainer means the Holy Spirit is taken off the earth. Which is a pretty big. That's a big assumption. And that when the Holy Spirit is removed.

Based on assumption to the third assumption is the church has to go with it. Therefore we all invisibly disappear. You see there's a there's an entire framework that's built on what I would say a house of cards and.

A lot of it comes from 1st and 2nd Thessalonians. That's pre-trib, yeah pre-trib rapture theory and so I Remember when I first started really doubting this and I first started Having these arguments with my professors because it was taught at our seminary if you didn't believe in pre-trib rapture you were.

They said we hope you get to stay because we know it's true and we hope God leaves you here. I mean it was that kind of maybe not that ugly. But it was. That's right and I had that I had that conversation with a New Testament professor at Ruby Tuesday's it was after we had a conference here and I invited him to teach.

It was during the Da Vinci Code thing we did a whole week on the Da Vinci Code and why it was untrue and I had a New Testament professor come in and give a history of The New Testament manuscripts. Afterwards we went to eat at Ruby Tuesday's we're sitting there having our salad bar.

And I and we were talking about it and he when he found out I didn't believe in the pre-tribulation rapture he was very surprised and I said well, I know I I gave up on that. I don't hold that position anymore and I Said but let me ask you this.

I said do you believe people are saved? During the tribulation. And he said of course I Said if the Holy Spirit is removed How are people saved? And he said oh he comes back 30 days later. And I said I was 25 26 years old.

I was new I was green. But I still was bold enough to say you just made that up. I look I looked him right in the eyes. I said you just made that up. There's a no way that's in the Bible 30 days later.

So not only do not only have you created charts that are so precise almost down to the minute of when the rapture is going to happen and when the second coming is going to happen and all the things are going to happen in Between but you've also created a false month.

Where the Spirit comes back that that don't. What's. It's a fault like you added a month. It's just you know you making that up not at all. But but I will say this if you look at go back where we just were saying kind of Thessalonians to look at verse 8.

It there is a reference here to the man of lawlessness it says and Then the lawless one will be revealed when the Lord Jesus will kill. Whom the Lord Jesus will kill the breath of his mouth and brings nothing.

By the appearance of his coming the coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan in all power and fault signs and wonders and With all wicked deception for those who are perishing because they refuse to love the truth and so be safe.

So the question is who is this man? Who is the lawless one? Right and and You said the Pope earlier. First John 2 calls this I believe The Antichrist, but what is first John 2 also say? Many antichrists will come right so in that sense It's not it's not just the antichrist which we normally think of but he says many antichrists will come and so that's why I think When you take the position that maybe it was the Pope well, maybe there have been antichrists in every generation.

There's always those who are antichrist. Yes. Yeah. Yeah, I've heard that I've heard that argument. I think you and I've talked about that argument that that perhaps because the devil doesn't know when the ends coming he's just sort of got a guy in the wings who is the man of lawlessness and.

So so we have three three three uses of language we have man of lawlessness in first or second Thessalonians 2. We have antichrist first John 2 and we have beast in Revelation 13. Now if they are the same.

If they are the same my argument would be that it's referring to something that happened in the lifetime of the recipients of the letter. Because I believe that the book of Revelation When it refers to the beast is actually referring to Nero and I'll make that argument when we get to that study.

Because remember one thing about the New Testament letters. They have an original audience. Who would have understood? This within the context of their lifetime. That's the part. I think people often miss.

Is they assume Paul's talking about something 3 ,000 years in the future. 2 ,000 years in the future. Rather than something that may be 10 years in the future. Yes and that's what we call the already in the not yet the argument that and that's the that's.

When when I teach on Revelation and I teach I take a preterist position. Which means I believe that most of Revelation was fulfilled in 80 70. However, I also believe that there is a potential. Of what would be the already in the not yet that it potentially works itself out also through history and therefore the beast in Revelation could also be referring to the Pope Rome those things, but I think there I think the immediate Fulfillment has to be considered the immediate.

How would the Thessalonians have understood first Thessalonians to who would they have seen as the man of lawlessness? Possibly that's what I say. I don't know for sure, but certainly not 2 ,000 years in the future.

Sure. Sure, absolutely. So that's what that's what I've been like, okay, could it be. Could it be that there was something that that did happen, but it was pointing to something else.

Yeah, and a good example of this would be in the in the book of Daniel where the book of Daniel refers to the abomination of desolation. The abomination of desolation is mentioned in the book of Daniel and many people believe that that was what happened when Antiochus Epiphanes destroyed came in and besieged Jerusalem set up a Statue of Zeus in the temple and it was during the Maccabean rebellion that they came in and destroyed that statue, right?

There was. I don't remember that particular story, but there's a lot of stuff that happened in there. Probably you're right. If you're probably remembering something, I just don't remember. But the point I'm saying is Jesus later said when you see the abomination of desolation in the temple.

Then you'll know the time has come. Which means and he said when you see Jesus said when you see the abomination spoken of in Daniel. Which means that what happened under Antiochus wasn't the ultimate fulfillment.

Because that had already happened and yet Jesus is still talking about something in the future and he's referencing Daniel. This is making sense brother looking a little looking. Okay, I got like I'm saying something wrong.

I'll make sure. There's a lot to think about right. So is there the potential of a of a already and not yet absolutely, and. And so ultimately my my only real reason for bringing this up is I do think.

One of the things that we miss often in reading these letters is how the original audience Would have understood the letter and and that's part of the historical grammatical hermeneutic. How would the original audience have understood this in the context and the language of their day.

Now am I saying that it couldn't have a future fulfillment? No I'm saying that what what do we think Paul meant when he wrote this and what would his recipients have understood. That's the goal right is to really get into the mind of Paul.

The First that's one way to talk about the item. The item is some would say because they because they did proceed the coming of the Lord to be. So they became idle. Yeah that left everything because hey Jesus is going to come back.

Yeah. From that perspective because that was what they were, you know, because they heard that Jesus was going to return.

So he's like, hey, okay. Yeah why I gotta do anything right? He's gonna come back tomorrow. I mean, yeah, so so and and this leads me back to and I guess I didn't make I Feel bad cuz I felt like I didn't make this clear.

This leads me back to how our eschatology affects our behavior because if we think that Jesus is Going to come back after the world has been Christianized the post-millennial position. Then he then there's he's not coming back tomorrow because we got a lot more work to do.

But if we believe That the world's going to get worse and worse and worse and worse and then he's going to return and rapture us out. Then we're going to read every headline with the worst possible understanding.

Which is how a lot of people do they read the Bible in their right hand and they read the New York Times in their Left hand. Oh, did you see that's Russia has invaded this? Oh, that's Gog and Magog and you're going back and forth, right?

That and we understand everything and we have a New York Times version of History we're looking at what's happening now and we're interpreting we're interpreting it based on what's happening in our lifetime.

We're not interpreting it based on what happened in their lifetime. That's that's where I'm saying. The issue is if we're looking at it through our lens. Then I think we've missed The point Paul's writing to a people at a time dealing with a certain Context we want to read it into our time and make it our context.

And if if our eschatology is bad, I think our behavior will be bad. I think that's what Thessalonians we talked about idleness. How many people I know of people who have the attitude? Well, Jesus is going to come back any time so What does it matter?

What you know? That's the attitude. Is it or or should give you example should we go vote in November? But Jesus is coming back you can come back anytime who cares. You understand that what I mean now somebody may take a super Calvinistic approach super Calvinistic makes me.

Super Calvinistic approach to say well, it doesn't matter if I vote because God's gonna put his man on the. And I'm down with that but I'm not down with the idea that well I Know Jesus is going to return in the next two years because of how bad everything is.

You know, they're already rebuilding the temple and they're already talking about putting Sacrifices on the temple and I know when that happens Jesus is going to return because that's all he's waiting on is for those sacrifices to begin again.

You see I'm saying and and therefore it leads to that idleness though. We were just talking it leads to it. It leads to a wrong understanding of our we're supposed to keep our hand to the plow. Until the Lord descends and we do not know the day or the hour.

Men like Harold camping. If you never heard that name before Harold camping was the head of a thing called family radio. It was a Christian radio station and for years. Family radio was was good and then he began to start setting dates.

For Jesus's return and every time he'd set a date based on his Daniel Ezekiel Algebra stuff that he was doing. Every time he'd set a date and Jesus didn't return. He'd set a new date. I got it wrong. I was off by a month and he'd do another day 30 days later didn't come again.

Oh, it was a couple years now. We'll do it at you said it and there were people with vans y 'all vans with with signs. That said he's coming back on this day. It was a book 88 reasons Jesus is coming back in 1988.

He had a reformed background. Yeah, he was yeah, yeah, I would say he's not reformed now. Yeah, brother. All right, I did a sermon on Harold camping called camping on dangerous ground. Yeah, but that was the last time because after his last failed Prediction he stopped doing predictions and then he died shortly thereafter.

And it was really a sad tale of a man who was so confused. Oh. Yeah, like I said the dude with the van it takes a lot to. I mean Teen wolf your van is a Difficult thing to do but that was an 80s reference, but it did turn your van into a Harold camping sign.

It's not cheap. So somebody did that so. Anyhow, I went way too far in Thessalonians. Anyway, the first and second Thessalonians is very important if you if you have not spent time in it, I would encourage you to.

These letters are written to a young church. Experiencing suffering for following Christ in the context of first century Macedonia, please try to read within that context when you're reading that. The second thing is the pastoral epistles and the pastoral epistles.

They haven't always been called the pastoral epistles. But since the 1700s they have basically been referred to as the pastoral epistles and this would be first and second Timothy and Titus. And they're called that basically because they examine the motivations and qualifications of the pastoral office.