1 Thessalonians 1:1 – Where Is the Ecclesia?

1 Paul and Silvanus and Timothy to the ecclesia of the Thessalonians, in God, the Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace…

Paul writes to “the ecclesia of the Thessalonians.” This tells us where these believers were on earth. They lived in Thessalonica and were part of that city’s population. But Paul immediately adds a highly significant specification of place: “in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ.” That defines its true position.

God is immediately designated here as “the Father.” The ecclesia has its existence in Him and likewise in “the Lord Jesus Christ.” Father and Son are closely connected, yet at the same time clearly distinguished. There is one God, the Father, while Jesus Christ is the One whom He appointed Lord by raising Him from the dead (1 Cor. 8:6; Acts 2:36).

The opening concludes with “grace” and “peace.” In these words, something of two worlds can be heard. “Grace” (charis) echoes the customary Greek epistolary greeting (chairein), while “peace” recalls the Hebrew shalom. A fitting greeting for an ecclesia in which Jew and Greek came together. But Paul’s words are more than a greeting. Grace and peace characterize the atmosphere in which this ecclesia had found its place: in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ.

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