In verses 7 and 8, Paul was pretty emphatic about the example that the Thessalonians had become for other Christians. As a direct result of their faithfulness and desire to live out the gospel, they became world renowned and a motivation for new converts to Christianity. In verse 9, Paul continues to praise the Thessalonians, this time by giving the details of the reports he had heard from traveling through the regions of Macedonia & Achaia. If we're prepared to study the Word of God, let's dive in.

1 Thessalonians 1:9 (NASB) - For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God (emphasis added)

This verse ties directly into the previous verses and serves as Paul's proof for stating how quickly the gospel had spread throughout the land because of them. Instead of simply relying on his own proof, he presents the evidence of those he encountered, which is the "they themselves" referred to in this passage; these are Paul's witnesses. Who are they? To be specific, they are the people that Paul encountered in the provinces of Macedonia and Achaia who had heard about the faith of the Thessalonians. Paul would enter a new city and people already knew about Jesus Christ because they had heard about the Thessalonians. For Paul, this was a tremendous joy and blessing because it made his preaching that much easier, as we saw at the end of verse 8.

As we look further at the text of this verse, we see that the Macedonians and Achaians were offering a testimony concerning the reception that Paul and his missionary team when they entered into Thessalonica. These people welcomed Paul with open arms and were quick to respond to the gospel message and put their faith in a risen Savior. We see clear evidence of this in Acts 17, as well as in 1 Thessalonians 2:1, if we take a quick peek forward. We aren't given details, but it's probably safe to assume that the Thessalonians would have been sure to talk about the gospel, the ministry of Paul, as well as the kind of person he was while amongst them. I would even go so far as to say that they likely told whoever they met to be on the lookout for Paul and to treat him well when they encountered him. At the very least, it was becoming a situation where Paul would enter a city and be given a report of what God had done through the believers in Thessalonica, instead of him telling of his own travels and what God had done. If anything, this gave Paul a wide open door for ministry in these cities.

The way that Paul first interacted with the Thessalonians had to have been something amazing for word to spread about their encounter. This isn't all that they had to say; as we will see in the rest of the verse and entering the final verse of this chapter, the Macedonians & Achaians offered a wonderful testimony that gave a clear picture of what the Christian life is supposed to look like. We will take a look at that next time. Until then, keep pressing on!