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because our gospel[a] came to you not merely in words alone but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with profound conviction. And you are fully aware what sort of people we proved to be when we were among you for your sake.

And you in turn became imitators[b] of us and of the Lord, for despite great suffering you received the word with joy in the Holy Spirit, so that you became a model for all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.[c]

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Thessalonians 1:5 Our gospel: this is the Gospel of God the Father (1 Thes 2:8) who originated it and of Christ (1 Thes 3:2) who brought it forth by his atoning death. Paul, Silas, and Timothy had received it through faith and preached it to others. Power: a power residing in the Gospel itself (see Rom 1:16) and also coming from the Holy Spirit (see Rom 15:13, 18f; 1 Cor 2:4f), which delivered the Thessalonians from spiritual bondage.
  2. 1 Thessalonians 1:6 Imitators: all Christians are to imitate God (see Eph 5:1) and Christ (see 1 Cor 11:1) as well as their spiritual leaders (see 2 Thes 3:7, 9; 1 Tim 4:12; Tit 2:7; 1 Pet 5:3) and their fellow Christians (see 1 Thes 2:14; 1 Cor 4:6; 11:1), for all believers are one in Christ.
  3. 1 Thessalonians 1:7 In Macedonia and Achaia: the two Roman provinces in Greece. The phrase amounts to saying “in all Greece.”