Thessalonians vs. Bereans
They say that in our modern world we have more information available to us than ever before. We don’t remember things because we have the answers readily available to us. One of the things that I’ve talked to the teens about in Confirmation class is that we need to understand what the Bible actually says. With that in mind, I figured it’d be fun to take a little quiz to see how well you really know your Bible. Answer TRUE or FALSE to each of the following statements:
- The serpent tempted Eve to eat an apple
- God told Noah to take two of every kind of animal onto the ark
- Jonah was swallowed by a whale
- In the story of Jesus’ birth, there were three wise men
The answer to each of these statements is false. The Bible refers to Adam and Eve certainly ate the fruit, but we’re never told specifically what kind of fruit it was. As for the animals on the ark, while in Genesis 6:20 God tells Noah two of every animal, in Genesis 7:2 Noah is told to take seven pairs of each clean animal and one pair of each unclean animal. Jonah was swallowed by a big fish, but the Bible does not specify that it was a whale. In addition, some scientists have argued that no known whale could have swallowed a man due to the structure of their mouths. Finally, in regard to the wise men, no number is ever given. They brought three gifts and so many have speculated that there were three, but no official number has ever been given.
In our journey through Acts this week, we see the importance of studying the scriptures. After leaving the prison in Philippi, Paul and Silas continued their journeys and came to the city of Thessalonica (Acts 17:1-4). The people welcomed Paul’s teaching, and he taught in their synagogues for three weeks. However, he was forced to leave, as was often the case. He and Silas journeyed the approximately fifty miles to Berea. There the people eagerly received the message of the gospel (Acts 17:10-12).
Now, when the scripture states that the Bereans were “noble,” it’s not saying that they were the rich aristocrats of the area. As a strict translation, that’s what it means, but more often it was used to refer to people who were open-minded, generous, and tolerant. They had qualities that were associated with “good breeding.” They were all around good people.
We see this evidenced by their willingness to accept Paul’s teaching. He preached this new gospel to them, and rather than ignoring it and saying, “That’s not the way we’ve always done it, so you must be wrong,” they eagerly accepted it. Where it took three weeks of preaching from Paul to get the Thessalonians to believe his words and accept the truth, the Bereans were willing to consider it from day one. However, they didn’t just blindly accept Paul’s words as truth. They sought to verify what he was saying against the scriptures, the word of God.
Typically this seeming lack of trust would be a bad thing. When we see movies and TV shows, we typically see it’s the bad guys that tell their recruits, “Don’t trust anyone,” while the good guys maybe pass trust around a little too freely.
But it’s not that the Bereans didn’t trust Paul; they simply wanted to verify. They wanted to find out for themselves, and this is a good thing. As Peter writes (1 Peter 3:15), “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” I mean, how good of an answer would it be for you to ask one of the Bereans why they believe in Christ and their answer is, “Well, you see this guy named Paul told us that scripture says Jesus is the messiah, so we believed.” I mean, seriously. If somebody told you that the scripture indicates that Barack Obama is the descendant of Jesus, would you believe them? No! After you finished laughing you’d ask them to show you in the scriptures where that was said. Then you’d read it for yourself, and if it seemed like that was a valid interpretation, you’d probably start asking around, asking me, asking elders in the church, etc.
The Jews in Berea seriously studied that which was taught to them. They didn’t take three weeks like the Thessalonians but studied for days to discern the truth. As a result, many discovered the truth and came to believe in Christ. You see, the doctrine of Christ does not fear inquiry. The true gospel does not fear people studying and testing the scriptures. The true gospel does not fear people knowing the truth, because, as the scriptures say, the truth will set you free (John 8:32). But how are you going to know what it says unless you study it?
Each of us has a responsibility, a duty, to seek out the truth. The topic of God is too important to take any chances. Honestly, I’m glad and honored that you trust me, but please, for your sake and mine, verify that what I’m saying is true. Is it bad or is it wrong to trust your teachers and believe what they say? No. Nobody here is condemning the Thessalonians for their trust in Paul. Instead, I commend those that are so devoted to the truth that they took it upon themselves to study God’s word and verify the claims that Paul was making.
I would encourage you to seek out the truth. Read through your Bible and verify that what you’ve been taught is accurate and that you have understood it correctly. Be like the Bereans and study God’s word, examine God’s word, and know God’s word so that you might not be deceived.