Paul sees the Christians to whom he is writing together as an extension of the ancient people of God, who were redeemed in the Exodus and were called out as a pilgrim nation to live for the glory of God in the world. And Greg Beale puts it this way:
In this light, the Thessalonian church was part of the true Israelite congregation of God’s people, who now had been established by the Messiah Jesus in his more recent redemptive work.When you and I read the Old Testament, we are not looking back at some other people. We are looking back on our people. We are looking back on the church of Jesus Christ in a previous stage—gathered together as a nation of Israel.And understanding the church in this way surely highlights the importance of the church of Jesus Christ to the Christian faith and life. To be a Christian is to be part of the church, both locally and universally. Every now and again, you get this movement that says,
Richard D. PhillipsOh, I’ve got my own relationship with Jesus. I don’t need to be part of the church.That thinking is completely alien to the Bible—and especially to the New Testament. We are saved out of the world, and in Christ, we are saved into his body, his assembly, the congregation of the people of Jesus Christ, which is a body in the world for discipleship, for worship, for ministry, and evangelism. The church is the corporate context for the work of the kingdom of God in this world.1
1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.