Gospel Overview  The new community of believers in Thessolonica were plagued with doubt from within due to entertaining the possibility that the end time resurrection already occuered while at the same time enduring hardships from the outside for embracing the gospel. The tone in Paul's letters seems to imply that the Thessalonian believers may have questioned the relevance of the gospel feeling they possibly had missed "it" (resurrection) making their current endurance of hardship pointless. Paul encourages the community of Thessalonian believers by correcting their misunderstanding and explaining the everlasting consequences of perservering or not persevering in the gospel by grace through faith in the midst of adversity. In responce to the initial report Paul received about the Thessalonian Christians he wrote, "They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead-Jesus who rescues us from the coming wrath" (1 Thess 1:9-10). In the course of reminding the Thessalonians of the hardships Christ Jesus faced during his earthly ministry as it relates to the gospel, Paul affirms "He died for us so that...we may live together with him." (1 Thessalonians 5:10). As heavenly glory was the end of Christ Jesus' peserverence, Paul encourages the Thessalonian believers to press on in this gospel by grace through faith considering their present hardships from a heaven-bound perspective. Paul states, ". . . He called you to this through our gospel that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So, then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter" (2 Thess 2:13-15). In the course of explaining that hardships, persecution, and suffering for righteousness sake is a byproduct of partnering in the gospel, and can only be considered "good news" with a heaven-bound perspective, it is affirmed that those who have physically died will one-day be ressurrected, and those that are alive in Christ Jesus will indeed be taken up at the appointed time prior to the second coming of Christ Jesus. On the other hand, the apostle not only explains the consequences of the persecuters, but also those "not obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus." He writes, "They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power" (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9). Therefore, the primary purpose behind the teaching content in 1-2 Thessalonians is to strenthen/encourage those already embracing the gospel to stand firm and persevere by grace through faith.