Christ as Seen in 1 Thessalonians:
With the coming of the Lord mentioned in every chapter, Christ is presented as the believer’s hope of salvation both now and at His coming. When He comes, He will deliver us from wrath (undoubtedly a reference to the Tribulation) (1:10; 5:4-11), give rewards (2:19), perfect us (3:13), resurrect us (4:13-18), and sanctify (set apart) all those who have trusted in Him (5:23).

Outline:
I. The Past: The Work of Faith (1:1-3:13)

A. The Commendation of the Thessalonians (1:1-10)

1. The Evaluation of Paul (1:1-4)

2. The Evidence of Life (1:5-7)

3. The Explanation of the Evidence (1:8-10)

B. The Conduct of the Apostle and His Fellow Workers (2:1-12)

1. Their Witness (2:1-2)

2. Their Word (2:3-7a)

3. Their Walk (2:7b-12)

C. The Conduct of the Thessalonians (2:13-16)

1. Their Reception of the Word (2:13)

2. Their Response to the Word (2:14)

3. The Rejection of the Word (2:15-16)

D. The Concern of the Apostle (2:17-20)

1. His Heart for the Thessalonians (2:17)

2. His Hindrance by Satan (2:18)

3. His Hope in the Thessalonians (2:19-20)

E. The Confirmation of the Thessalonians (3:1-10)

1. The Sending of Timothy (3:1-5)

2. The Report of Timothy (3:6-10)

F. The Concluding Prayer (3:11-13)

1. The Prayer That He Might Return to the Thessalonians (3:11)

2. The Prayer That the Thessalonians Might Grow in Love (3:12)

3. The Prayer That Their Hearts Might Be Established in Holiness (3:13)

II. The Present: The Labor of Love (4:1-12)

A. Their Love for God Expressed in Sanctified Living (4:1-8)

B. Their Love for the Brethren, an Expression of Being God Taught (4:9-10)

C. Their Love for the Lost Expressed in Godly Living (4:11-12)

III. The Prospective: The Endurance of Hope (4:13-5:28)

A. Concerning the Day of Christ: The Comfort of His Coming (4:13-18)

1. The Resurrection of Sleeping Saints (4:13-16)

2. The Rapture of Living Saints (4:17-18)

B. Concerning the Day of the Lord (5:1-11)

1. The Coming of the Day of the Lord (5:1-5)

2. The Conduct of Christians (5:6-10)

3. The Conclusion (5:11)

C. Concerning Deportment in the Congregation (5:12-28)

1. The Concluding Prescription (5:12-22)

2. The Concluding Petition (5:23-24)

3. The Concluding Postscript (5:25-28)