1 Thessalonians 5:19-28

1 Thessalonians 5:19-28  Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt.  Test everything.  Hold on to the good.  Avoid every kind of evil.  May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through.  May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.  Brothers, pray for us.  Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss.  I charge you before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers.  The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

As Paul ends this letter to his beloved children IN CHRIST, he challenges them to be on fire for the Lord, to prophesy willingly, and to test all things to see if they are from God.  He beseeches them to avoid evil and to cling to that which is good.  He desires his children IN CHRIST to be blameless before the Lord at his coming.  Paul also wants them to have confidence God will perfect the work He has started in them: The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.  However, most of all because of his love for them, Paul treats them gently and kindly as good biological parents would treat their own children, desiring them to follow his words and example.  For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.  (chapter 2:11-12)  We were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children.  We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.  (Chapter 2:7-8)  Because of his life, he had earned leverage with his children, the leverage of a life of faith lived out in harmony with God's perfect will as a father in the faith.  They knew his words came from a life of integrity, self-sacrifice, and service.  Paul was not one to merely talk about how to keep the Spirit's fire alive: he showed how to keep in step with the Holy Spirit with every step he took.  He wrote this letter confidently in the power of the Spirit, believing he spoke the words of life from God to his beloved church, believing he spoke God's message and not his own, as he told the church in Galatia: I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up.  I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.  (Galatians 1:11-12)   

As we read Paul's concluding words to his children IN CHRIST in Thessalonica, we realize these are words we would want our own children to hear from from us if we were writing a final call to stir their hearts: Dear children, keep serving the Lord with fervor; speak what He has put in your hearts; check everything in and out of the church to see if it is from God; and endure to the end with joyful hearts; so you might be found blameless before the Lord when you meet him in reality.  God loves you and you love him: encourage and support each other as you walk by faith.  A good father knows as Paul knew that Christianity demands being "all in."  Nothing else is acceptable to the Lord.  Every word expressed, every song sung, every step taken, and every thought pondered should be under the Lord's domain; for we are his light in this dark world, his love where hatred reigns.  We shine his light in the darkness as surely as we see the small light on a dark night emitted from a plane flying high in the sky.  Sometimes you cannot even see the profile of the plane, for it is so high in the atmosphere, but you see a light blinking off and on as it traverses the sky.  One night last week Dad was looking at such a light.  He could not see the outline of the plane because of its high altitude, but he knew it was there because of a blinking light.  The Lord spoke to his spirit as he gazed into the darkness, "You are that light, Cliff.  MY CHILDREN ARE THAT LIGHT."  Yes, the blinking light is each one of us.  The light might seem to disappear for a time, it might be faint, but it is still the light of the world.  As we yield to the source of light and life, we glow ever more brightly.  The light indicates the Holy Spirit is onboard.  He has brought Christ's likeness to us and promises never to leave us.  The Bible says, Christ is the light of the world.  We have that light in us.  Paul wanted his spiritual children IN THE LORD to realize their lives should burn brightly for God.  He wanted them to know they must serve the Lord with all their mind, soul, and spirit if they wanted to be blameless before God.  As Paul tenderly touches their hearts with his words, he presents them with a life WORTH LIVING: a life of fruitfulness and joy.  When Paul writes to the church at Rome, he reminds them to rejoice and to glorify the Lord as he reads them the prophecy concerning the Gentiles coming to the Lord.  Then he says, May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.  (Romans 15:13)     

As Christian parents we want our children and grandchildren to understand fully that no other life but a hundred percent commitment to God is worth living.  As we overflow with the hope and joy of the Lord, we find power in the resurrected Lord through the indwelling Holy Spirit to trust in him--the God of hope.  Jesus was all in, Paul was all in, the apostles were all in.  These all heard the Father's desires and worked diligently to fulfill his will, his eternal purposes.  They all went to their deaths with this commitment to God.  We know Jesus said, He who has ears to hear, let him hear.  (Mark 4:9)  As Christians we have that ability to hear God.  Our antenna, the Holy Spirit, abides within each of us.  When Jesus was preparing to leave, He told his disciples he would send the Counselor, the Spirit of truth.  Then Jesus explained: He will guide you into all truth.  He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.  He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.  If that is true, what is God saying to us today?  What does He want us to do?  How does He want us to live?  Are we willing to hear him?  Or, are we holding back part of our lives from his authority and will.  Paul said be on fire for the Lord, burning brightly and completely for him.  Don't look back, don't retreat, don't let go of the good.  The Bible says God finds no pleasure in one who looks back.  

Children of the Lord seated around this breakfast table, each of you has the Spirit of God dwelling in you richly.  He will guide you as you commit all your ways to him.  Do not treat prophecies with contempt.  Otherwise, children, don't ignore the words you hear from the Spirit through the written Word, the preached word, and the words of the Holy Spirit within you.  Don't hold God's message to you at arm's length.  Do what He has asked you to do but always test everything.  Make sure the words that you are mulling inside you are truly from the Lord.  Make sure what you think you heard from God fits within the parameters of the scripture and good teaching.  For sure, dear children, whatever is good, DO IT.  And whatever is evil, outside of the attributes of the Holy Spirit, avoid those thoughts or actions: trash them.  Now, this is the life we want our children and grandchildren to live.  Paul knew if his Thessalonian CHILDREN IN CHRIST implemented the Spirit's call, they would produce much fruit in their lives, creating light and life in a dark and dreary world.  As he prayed, we pray also: May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18  Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 

Paul and his fellow apostles lived demanding lives.  In addressing the somewhat haughty and judgmental Corinthians who were openly criticizing him and the apostles, Paul sets up a contrast between the Corinthians' supposedly spiritual lives and the lives lived by Christ's APOSTLES.  The apostles were experiencing their everyday lives in hunger, thirst, rough treatment, homelessness, and disrespect while toiling hard for the sake of the gospel.  Paul says, it seems to me that God has put apostles on display at the end of the procession, like men condemned to die in the arena.  We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to men.  We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ!  We are weak, but you are strong!  You are honored, we are dishonored!  To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless.  We work hard with our own hands.  When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it;  when we are slandered, we answer kindly.  Up to this moment we have become the scum of the earth, the refuse of the world.  (1 Corinthians 4:9-13)  Paul in his refutation of the Corinthians' attitude reveals clearly what it takes to be a committed believer.  Christians do not allow the calamities of life to spoil their God-given mission in this world.  In fact in the above scripture, Paul says, be joyful always--give thanks IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES, for this is God's will FOR YOU.  We can do this only through the grace and mercy of the Lord. 

Paul knew believers are to be strong IN THE LORD, for He has enriched us in every way.  I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus.  For in him you have been enriched in every way — in all your speaking and in all your knowledge — because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you.  Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.  He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.  God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.  (1 Corinthians 1:4-9)  The apostles knew the meaning of salvation.  They fully understood they had been released from the prison of sin and the judgment of death.  They were no longer enemies of God, destined for eternal punishment.  Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we NOW stand.  (Romans 5:1-2)  They knew they were now free to serve God for his glory and that deprivation and persecution in this life held no power over their eternal destination.  Even though temporary trials might cause them pain or sorrow, they kept their eyes on their Lord, knowing above all else God was their inheritance and his house was their final dwelling place.  Peter wrote: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  (1 Peter 1:3-6)  No wonder Paul could enumerate the difficulties of life that the apostles were experiencing and still say with all confidence: BE JOYFUL ALWAYS.  With Peter and Paul, the apostles understood the priceless nature of their salvation: IN CHRIST we are more than conquerors, and we know who we are because we KNOW WHO HE IS!    

Are we truly as appreciative as the apostles of our inheritance in Christ?  If we let the Holy Spirit bring us to a better understanding of our salvation and God's eternal plans for us, our feet would hardly touch the ground for happiness.  Our complaining about our adverse circumstances would begin to take a backseat to our joy in the Lord.  We would rejoice in our sufferings and disappointments, knowing God holds us in his hands; and all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.  (Romans 8:28)  Paul says we stand in God's grace; therefore, we are in the same position as anyone God has ever chosen and set apart unto himself, just as David or any of the Patriarchs of old, just as the apostles Jesus called to follow him.  God is on our side: He is for us.  Does this mean we are not going to have troubles and trials.  No, Jesus said we would have troubles.  James wrote: My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.   (James 1:2)  But standing in God's grace means we are viable members of God's family with all his resources available to us.  Regardless of our circumstances, our Father hears us when we pray.  As we yield to him, He makes something good from the bad.  We cannot always see it at the time, but we can trust the master potter with the clay.  God's will for us as faith children is that we commit to him AT ALL TIMES.  We gained access by faith to a life of grace; consequently, we rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;  perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.  (Romans 5:3-5)  We know ultimately we are in the hands of a loving Father who gave everything for us.  As we listen to Paul recount the difficulties of the apostles' lives, we hear his underlying implication that they set the example for the Corinthians and all who bear the name of Christ.  Yes, the apostles experienced trials, persecutions, even violent death; but they did not see themselves as defeated warriors trailing behind at the mercy of a victorious army.  No, they stood tall by faith in a circle of grace as God's chosen ones: weak according to the world, but mighty soldiers in the army of the Lord, chosen to lead many to the cross of the precious Lamb of God.  Who will we lead to the cross today?  Be Joyful Always!  

1 Thessalonians 5:12-15

1 Thessalonians 5:12-15  Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you.  Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work.  Live in peace with each other.  And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.  Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. 

The above scripture reveals clearly how we should LIVE in the Spirit.  We should respect our leaders in the church and HOLD THEM IN HIGHEST REGARD IN LOVE.  We should seek to live in peace with each other.  We should encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone and warn the idle in church that they should work for the Lord.  And of course, never pay back evil for evil, and try to be kind to everyone.  Sounds simple doesn't it, but in our day of electronic messaging, we see many messages on Facebook, Twitter, and e-mail breaking those simple guidelines to Christian living.  We have to stop and ask ourselves if we Christians really believe we are going to stand before our Lord someday to give an account of our words.  Do we sometimes find fault when we should be complimenting; do we tear down when we should be building up our pastors, our worship leaders, our friends, and our neighbors?  If we can't love them, how will we love the unlovely?  Jesus said,"You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:43-45)  He goes on and says that anyone can love those who love us, even the pagans do that.  He says if you love your enemies you will be called sons and daughters of the MOST HIGH for God who made man in his own image sends his rain (blessings) on the righteous and unrighteous.  Unfortunately, some of what Christians say through the electronic media best illustrates the scripture in Isaiah that tells us that we are like sheep who have gone their own way, who have no shepherd to guide their ways.  Of course, this kind of self-willed life is repugnant to God, for HE desires us to reflect him to a dark and sinful world.  We are to be his ambassadors, showing forth the peaceable fruits of righteousness and love. 

As ambassadors we should possess God's wisdom, yet we sometimes stand on our soapboxes, loudly, even angrily, professing our words of wisdom for all to hear, thinking we know the mind of God.  We read in James 3:17, But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.  Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.  Anger, bitterness, hate, and discord are not part of the true wisdom of God that changes the hearts of men and women in a lost generation.  They are the characteristics of the fallen world.  Negative words and emotions don't illuminate the lost with God's light or penetrate hearts with his love.  Rather, those negative words and volatile emotions shroud the world even more in Satan's darkness and hatred.  All of us are susceptible to worldly, fleshly words and actions, for we are but flesh.  When we allow doubt, fear, and unbelief to enter our Christian beliefs and to permeate our thinking, we tend to strike out at the world in anger; and we soon find ourselves mired in the terrestrial, forgetting our purpose in life is to serve God, glorify his name, and bring others to him.  We forget who we are in Christ and who He is in us.  Today's passage orients us toward who we truly are in the family of God:  We are of the celestial, not the terrestrial.  We possess eternal life within us that will never fade away, a fountain of hope overflowing to share with every person we meet.  But our hope for the world is not to make it a better place where we can live at ease, but to offer freedom from sin and a certain hope of eternal life.  The martyrs understood these realities: they knew the world and everything IN IT would pass away someday, so their hope was in Christ the Eternal One.  As John wrote: Do not love the world or anything in the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world.  The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.  (1 John 2:15-17)     

Our world presents so many distractions we have to remind ourselves who we are in the Lord.  How easy it is to become upset and bitter about events in the world.  We hate the sinfulness and waywardness, the way people treat our values and the things we cherish; but when we stop to pray for those same people, God's Word comes to our remembrance: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  (John 3:16-17)  We realize we must love the people of the world, even if they hate our message, our God and Savior, and us.  God sent his Son, his precious only begotten Son to save mankind.  He did not send him as the great condemner but as the Great Shepherd of the Sheep, Savior of all.  As his children, we are not free to sow criticism, discord, and hatred, no matter how right we think we are.  We must discipline our mouths and our actions to allow the Holy Spirit's attributes to control our lives.  As we have been writing in the last couple of breakfasts, the Spirit's characteristics should be our characteristics.  Do love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control overflow from our lives?   Stephen spoke harshly to the Jews at his stoning.  He told them that God was displeased with them because of their disobedience, their resistance to God changing their lives.  You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears!  You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!  Yet having said this, his last words before death showed the love of God for them flowing from his heart: Lord, do not hold this sin against them.  (Acts 7:51 & 60)  Let us not resist the Holy Spirit's wooing.  As much as is possible by the power of the Holy Spirit within us, may we live in peace with each other.   He asks each of us to come under his authority: to check our mouths, to control our actions, to be his children in a dark and sinful world.  Love your leaders in the church and out, pray for those who persecute you, comfort those who have no one to share their pain and sorrow.  This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.  If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.  (1 John 1:5-7)  

1 Thessalonians 5:8-11

1 Thessalonians 5:8-11  Since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.  For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.  He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.  Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 

Ephesians 1:3-6  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.  In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

God's plan from the beginning was not to have us suffer wrath because of our disobedience and sin but to deliver us from our fallen state through faith in Jesus Christ and his saving works.  For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.  We who are part of the body of Christ are cleansed by the blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God.  In John 1:29 we read, The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!  Christ alone makes us holy and blameless before God's eyes and presents us to the Father as his spotless bride.  Others might view our imperfections, our lack of holiness in certain areas, but their assessment of our lives does not count, only God's assessment counts in eternity.  He alone has the right to judge our lives, and He judges us through the lens of his Son, Jesus Christ.  We, who are IN CHRIST by faith, have been cleansed by the precious blood of the Lamb and clothed in Jesus' righteousness.  We come boldly before the Father's throne as sons and daughters of the Most High.  We do not come fearfully, expecting the judgment we deserve, for we know Christ himself said, Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.  For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  (John 3:14-16)  God did not create us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation though our Lord Jesus Christ.  Therefore, by the powerful unction of the Holy Spirit, Paul states his confident hope: whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.  

Someday the resurrection will happen for all believers who await the coming of the Lord.  Either at the time of our deaths or at his second coming, we will understand fully that our lives since our rebirth have existed in reality totally IN CHRIST.  And because He is eternal, we who are IN HIM are eternal.  He cannot deny eternal life to his own body.  Pumping through the newborn life is the life-giving Holy Spirit.  He is the earnest of our inheritance.  His presence in us means we are alive forever.  Death has been defeated, the grave has no hold on us. The Holy Spirit's eternal power will draw us to heaven.  We will know at that time that we have never really been separated from Jesus.  When He said I must go away so that I might send the Holy Spirit to you, this was a pronouncement He intended to dwell in each of us through the Holy Spirit.  And the basic truth of the gospel is that we are alive eternally because when Jesus rose from the dead, we rose with him.  We have access to heaven's domain because He lives there.  The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in every Christian.  That Spirit makes us alive in Christ and teaches us all things by revealing the truth to us.  He guides us, comforts us, and brings us the perfect peace and inexpressible joy of the Lord.  Paul expresses our position in the Spirit well by saying, But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.  (Romans 8:11 NKJV)  We are in the family of God because Jesus is in us and we are in him through the power of the Holy Spirit.  No other gospel is the true gospel of salvation.  We do not earn our place in heaven; Jesus earned it for us by redeeming us and setting us free from the power of sin.  We are truly HOLY AND BLAMELESS BEFORE GOD'S EYES.  We should rejoice, shout, sing praise to our Lord and King! 

Therefore, since we have such a great salvation, how should WE LIVE?   Many times Christians seem discouraged and downhearted as if they just came from a dark dungeon, or their lives were taken captive by Satan and his demons.  They seem to focus on their many trials and disappointments--seeing only the darkness around them.  Should we spend our lives shouting at the darkness or rejoicing in the light?   Should we bemoan the strongholds of the enemy or share the Good News that Christ has come to set the captives free and to lift us up into heavenly places?  Believers should have an up-to-date testimony that Christ is alive in their hearts.  People around them should hear them praising God for the light that has shined in the darkness of their lives.  This will not happen if our families and friends see hatred, bitterness, and anger permeating our interactions.  It is not our words but our actions that will show the world we have been SET FREE to serve a wonderful Savior and to display his image to the unsaved.  Rather than retaliating with criticism, bitterness, and rage, when we yield to Christ, He allows us to fulfill his commands to love our enemies, to do good to those who hate us, and to pray for them always.  When we walk in the Spirit, we fulfill the will of our Father who loved us while we were yet sinners.  The Bible says we are NOW TEMPLES OF THE LIVING GOD.  How should we walk then?   What should emit from God's temple?  The Bible is not vague or quiet ABOUT THE NATURE OF THE TEMPLE, FOR THE TEMPLE IS THE ABIDING PLACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.  In our last breakfast we listed the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.  These attributes are more than a harvest, they are the essence of the Holy Spirit.  The Spirit's nature is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  Against such things there is no law.  Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.  Since we live BY the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.  Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.  (Galatians 5:22-26)  When Christians become arrogant, conceited, critical, provoking, when the world sees Christian as red-faced, shouting damnation to the world and its leaders, we have lost sight of the plan of God:  Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”  (Luke 2:13-14) Look to Jesus, little children.  

1 Thessalonians 5:1-8

1 Thessalonians 5:1-8  Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.  While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.   But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.  You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.  So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.  For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night.  But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.  

Believers should discern the times, but sometimes because we dissipate our spiritual strength in the wrong places on the wrong things, we Christians are much like the virgins without oil in their lamps on the day of the bridegroom's return.  Christians tend to get excited and believe the last days are upon us when they see a political figure they don't like come to power or when troubles are happening in their country or in their personal lives, but they don't seem to understand that the times will be as they were in Noah's time.  Jesus said, No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.  For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away.  That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.  (Matthew 24:36-39)   While Noah was preparing for the flood, the rest were living as we live: eating, drinking, celebrating, cheering on their favorite sports team, congratulating their kids for good grades, commuting to their jobs, ordering pizza from Pizza Hut, buying McDonald's hamburgers, playing computer games, and the like.  The people in Noah's time were ignorant of God's clock.  Their hedonistic lives determined the time of destruction for them because they lived for themselves, not for God.  Sometimes in our modern world, some Christians have clothed themselves in the same lifestyle as the people in Noah's time.  Instead of living lives dedicated to loving God and serving in his righteous kingdom, producing a harvest of the Spirit for the world to see; with their self-serving, pleasure seeking attitudes, they say, "I am going to get all I can out of life for I only go around once, and I deserve the best."  However, as the people in Noah's time found out after their demise in the flood, there is an afterlife.  As Paul reminded the Roman church.  It is written: “As surely as I live," says the Lord, "every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God."  So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.  (Romans 14:11-12) 

Since Jesus' ascension, we are living in the last days.  When He arose, He promised to send the Holy Spirit. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”  (Luke 24:49)   The disciples stayed in Jerusalem, and this promise was fulfilled:  In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.  Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.  Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.  I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke.  The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.  And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.  (Acts 2:17-21)  We have been living in the last days for a long time.  Many of the signs of the last days that Jesus related in Luke 21 have taken place on this Earth.  Christians who angrily and bitterly advocate additional political panaceas for these days would be surprised if God's judgment were to finally fall on this world.  If they were at ease because they finally got what they wanted IN THIS WORLD so they could cry peace and safety, what would they think when destruction comes on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman?  The Bible says the Lord will return as a thief in the night, when we are performing our perfunctory duties, concerned only about our daily activities, our pursuits to fulfill our natural appetites.  The drunk will keep on drinking, the workaholic will keep on working, the electronic addict will keep on viewing the screen, and so on.  All things will be as they have been from the beginning: self-centered, hedonistic, against the perfect will of the Father who poured out his mercy and grace.  These are the daily choices and activities that can consume our time.  But Paul encourages us not to live in the darkness of the heathen, but to live as children of the light, discerning the times we live in.  He says, Since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.  As children of the light, we live lives oriented towards God with faith, love, and endurance.  Children of the light will not faint in doing good; they do not retreat from loving their enemies.  They fix their eyes on the author and finisher of their faith rather than the interests and the pleasures of this world.  Complaining, unforgiveness, bitterness, and rage will not be in their mouths.  In Christ we choose to die daily, enduring to the end as servants of the Most High.  

We might ask, How is this possible?  I am not consistently that person: I fail so often.  Know who you are in Christ and who He is in you.  The Bible says, Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  (Colossians 3:2-3)   We are no longer citizens of this world.  We are looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.  (Hebrews 11:10)  If we live as if we belong in this early domain, we will become contaminated by its many distractions, and we will fail to discern the times properly.  If we put our trust in the Lord and yield to him, He perfects what concerns us.  For generations Christians have believed in the Lord's return and rightly discerned the times and seasons.  They sought his glorious appearing while working for him till He comes or takes them home.  They knew the world is oriented towards the terrestrial, the temporary.  We know as they did we have an eternal home found IN CHRIST: we will reign with him forever.  Because He lives, we live also.  Therefore, our tent pegs are not buried too deeply in the terrestrial: we are always ready to move on to the celestial.  If we focus only on eating, drinking, and being merry as did the people in Noah's time, we will find only death within our lives and within the lives of those around us.  Our primary mission as born again people is to serve the Lord joyfully for his glory.  Therefore our lives should be ones full of the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness and self-control.  (Galatians 5:22-23)  Noah's day was hedonistic: seeking pleasure for today; but our lives are defined by servanthood: the joy of total commitment to our Lord.   When we hear the trumpet sound or when our bodies lie down for the last time, we will be as the diligent virgins with oil in their lamps; for we will carry within us the precious oil of the Holy Spirit: the harvest of keeping in step with the Holy Spirit as we share the peaceable fruits of righteousness with those we meet every day.  And the Lord will say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant.  Come and share your master’s happiness!"  

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18  Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.  We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.  According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.  For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.  And so we will be with the Lord forever.  Therefore encourage each other with these words. 

"I will come again" should resound continuously in the spiritual ears of every believer.  For sure, Christ is coming again for all the world to see; but for Christians, He is coming to receive us into his household, for we through the Spirit are one with him and the Father, part of the family of God.  Jesus said, “My prayer is not for them alone.  I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.  May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.  I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me.  May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.  (John 17:20-23)  His scarred hands will reveal to us the price He paid for our admittance into the eternal presence of God.  No man or woman after he or she sees the resurrected Jesus and fully comprehends the price He paid for our salvation will ever again dispute God's love for mankind.  We know we have a Savior who went to the cross to pay a debt He did not owe to gain admittance into heaven for his chosen ones on a path that previously was eternally blocked to us because of our sin and shame.  Jesus shed his precious blood, washing us whiter than snow as a complete fulfillment of the words of the prophet Isaiah: “Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool."  (Isaiah 1:18)  Therefore, when we face the death of a loved one or our own demise we do not grieve without hope.  Christians who are left behind continue the Lord's work until He comes or takes us home, knowing the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.  It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope — the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.  (Titus 2:11-14) 

Either at death or at his second coming, we will understand Christ's meaning when He said a seed must die before it can bring forth fruit.  Just as an earthly seed dies before it brings forth new life, the terrestrial must die before it can become celestial.  How many of us could imagine an acorn developing into a mature 400 year old red oak with ponderous limbs weighing over a thousand pounds if we had no knowledge of what a tree is?   I am sure none of us could describe adequately such a marvelous process and product from such a small seed.  In spiritual terms, we cannot imagine or appreciate what we will become in heaven beyond the vail of tears at death.  When Paul wrote about life in the flesh compared to when we see Christ he wrote these words: Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.  For we know in part and we prophesy in part.  But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.  For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face.  Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.  (1 Corinthians 13:8-12 NKJV)   On the other side we will be magnificent, beautiful, glorious, lovely entities IN CHRIST.  Our beauty will be beyond description.  We should encourage each other with these words, with this divine knowledge.  A seed must die before it can become a magnificent plant.  A human body, a fleshly seed, must die before it can develop into God's intended glorious celestial being.  At that time in our new bodies, all our tears will be wiped away, all our anxieties will cease.  We will understand all things for we will be home with our Abba Father God.  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them.  They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”  (Revelation 21:3-4)

 

Dear breakfast companions, Christ will come the second time in all of his glory to the world and to those who await his glorious appearing, but in reality his abiding Spirit comes constantly to us who are LIVING IN HIM with our spiritual ears tuned to hear his voice.  Jesus abides richly in us, and regardless of our circumstances we are never outside of his presence or beyond his comfort and his guidance.  He has taken up abode in us: He walks with us and talks with us.  When anxieties press in on us to the point of exasperation, He is there.  His voice tells us to believe, to take another step in faith.  He tells us we are God's chosen children, dear to our Father, no longer lost in the insignificance of this world.  He reminds us Christ won the victory for us at the cross, and HE who is in us is greater than anything in the world.  He speaks the Word to us, telling us we are more than conquerors through Christ our Lord and our Redeemer.  Therefore, we can go forward each day confidently facing whatever the day brings, knowing we are strong in the Lord and the power of his might.  Our lives are no longer our own.  We have yielded control to our Lord.  Consequently, He encourages us to take no thought for tomorrow; instead, to rest today IN Jesus for He is our Day of Rest.  We are no longer full of doubt and fear about the future because we know who holds the future.  As Paul said, To live is Christ and to die is gain.  (Philippians 1:21)  So brothers and sisters in the Lord, know that Christ is in you and you are in him.  "I will come again" is your faith promise from Jesus: your minute by minute experience.  He comes: again and again.  He will never leave you nor forsake you.  Praise him today!  Let praises continually be upon your lips.  I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.  My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad.  Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together.  I sought the LORD, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.  (Psalm 34:1-4 NKJV)  

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12  Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. 

2 Thessalonians 3:10-13  If a man will not work, he shall not eat.  We hear that some among you are idle.  They are not busy; they are busybodies.  Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.  And as for you, brothers, never tire of doing what is right.

Paul addresses idleness in both letters to the Thessalonians.  He exhorts believers to work for a living rather than relying upon the church's continued benevolence.  Probably some Thessalonians were taking advantage of the close communal relationship in this nascent church.  Earlier in his first letter, Paul praised the Thessalonians as a model of Christian love and dedication to believers in Macedonia and Achaia, but now Paul warns some of the Thessalonians are taking advantage of the generosity of their fellow Christians by not working with their hands.  Paul as James believed real faith is always illustrated by deeds.  James concludes, As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.  (James 2:26)  Those who carried the gospel message to the known world after the resurrection of our Lord found no time for idleness.  Paul showed his faith by his actions as he walked thousands of miles, spreading the gospel and writing encouraging letters from prison to build up believers' faith.  Both men believed authentic, saving faith demands effort, an all out commitment.  Following Christ's example, Paul did not pray people from the godless cities would come to him; instead, he went to those cities, praying God would allow him to reach the lost sheep.  Jesus, Paul, and others who preached the Good News expended their energy walking from place to place, sharing God's mercy and grace.  Most often they faced persecution, beatings, and the like.  Attempting to counter some boasting in the Corinthian church, Paul alluded to his life, saying he had been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again.  Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.  Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move.  I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers.  I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.  Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.  Who is weak, and I do not feel weak?  Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?  (2 Corinthians 11:23-29)  Too often we sit at home, perhaps even praying for people's needs, yet wanting God to bring the ungodly to us, unwilling to go forth to meet the needs of others or to reach out to the unsaved.  

Sometimes Christians struggle with idleness.  Rather than stay actively involved in the game of living for Christ, we sit back, relying upon church attendance, prayer, and the expectation God will send work our way.  Prayer alone would never have brought Paul to Thessalonica or Cornith.  His faith, determination, and feet brought him there.  Jesus walked through the land of Judea, meeting people who needed him.  All the while, He put forth his best for his Father, believing He did exactly what God intended for him to do.  Although Paul tried to stir the Corinthian church by sharing some of his trials, he also told them he was a servant under orders.  Although a free man, he had aligned himself totally with his Lord.  He said he could not even boast in what he did: Yet when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, for I am compelled to preach.  Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!  (1 Corinthians 9:16)  God demands our best effort, our all.  Jesus shared the path to eternal life:  “Teacher,” he [the man] asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”  “What is written in the Law?” he [Jesus] replied.  “How do you read it?”  He answered: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  (Luke 10:25-27)  Sometimes our prayers focus completely upon ourselves and our wants: Lord, please give us a new car or a better house.  Or we pray for money, hoping against hope that we might find a thousand dollars in the cupboard if we pray hard enough.  We are disheartened when these prayers are not answered.  Yes, miracles happen, but read what James said, Where do wars and fights come from among you?  Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?  You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain.  You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.  You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.  (James 4:1-3)  God wants us to pray in the Spirit, seeking his perfect will.  On the Fourth of July, a man told me about how he and his wife believed God wanted them to adopt a child from war-torn Sudan.  Initially, the cost was estimated at about fifteen thousand dollars, but soon expenses climbed to above fifty thousand dollars.  He is a person with limited means, not a rich man.  His dilemma: God had directed them to adopt this little girl, yet the expenses were now beyond his means.  What should he do?  God provided.  At his mill, extra work opened up for him.  He was given the opportunity to work more than seventy hours a week for an extended time.  He praised God for this miraculous answer to his prayer!  God had given them a way to adopt their daughter.  But he had to put feet to his prayers of faith by working hard to fulfill God's answer.  This is an excellent example of faith alive through works.  James would say, "Faith without works is dead."  

Many people get discouraged if God doesn't come across when they pray for something.  Perhaps we do not see some of his answers because they require some effort from us.  Some Christians pray to be healthier in their bodies, but fail to put in the effort to be healthier even though doctors have given them specifics to help achieve that goal.  God provides them with an answer, but they fail to implement the answer in their lives because it will cost them something.   Sometimes Christians sit in poison patches of addiction, corruption, and deception.  Their self-esteem, self-worth, and image of who they are in Christ has been battered and marred by the negatives in their lives.  Yet, knowing they are perishing, they will not take the steps necessary to get out of these poison patches.  Instead, they remain IDLE, inert, resolute to do nothing.  Many times in their inertia they question God: Why haven't you answered my prayers, Lord?  They complain to other Christians about God's lack of provision for them.  In the above passage, we see Paul warning the Thessalonians about not working.  He is telling them that nothing good can come from prolonged idleness.  In the beginning of time, God told us to occupy the land.  The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.  (Genesis 2:15)  We are to live life, not watch it from an armchair or from a pit of despair, ignoring the purposes and plans of our precious Savior.  Papa always tells the grandkids how proud he is of them that they are living life and not watching it after we have seen them in a play, or at a concert, or on a sports field.  They will never regret living life with all their effort; but when they are old, they will regret wasting their lives just sitting and watching others participate in activities.  God made us for life: activity not idleness.  Our spiritual and our physical beings are made to explore the world, to participate, to serve, and to work for the Lord as new creatures in Christ Jesus.  And as for you, brothers, never tire of doing what is right; never tire of working for the Lord.  Remember what Jesus said after healing a blind man: As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me.  Night is coming, when no one can work.  While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.  (John 9:4-5)  May each of us shine as long as it is day and joyfully do the work of the Lord for his glory! 

1 Thessalonians 4:9-10

1 Thessalonians 4:9-10  Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.  And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia.  Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more.

2 Corinthians 8:1-5  And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches.  Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.  For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability.  Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.  And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will.

The Lord's generosity to us goes far beyond our abilities to understand.  While we were yet sinners, undone, uncompromisingly wicked, He came to us with a heart of love and rescued us from eternal damnation through the giving of himself on the cross for our redemption.  Now, we, the once eternally contaminated ones, have found grace, mercy, and salvation in the eyes of the Lord .  "Love lifted me," and love lifted you.  We who are now in the household of God rest there securely forever because of God's unfailing love for the unloveable.  In the Thessalonian passage above, we see that same love functioning in a young church under persecution.  Paul says, we do not need to write to you about brotherly love, for you yourselves have been taught by GOD to love each other.  The same love that exists in God's heart for us should be in each of us for others because the heavenly gift of the Holy Spirit resides in each of us richly.  If we are IN CHRIST, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us; therefore, his attributes of love, compassion, and generosity change our attitudes and motivate our actions.   Our friends and family will see a change in our behavior and readily see Christ in us.  You, however, (who are in Christ Jesus) are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you.  And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.  But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.  And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.  (Romans 8:9-11)  The more we walk in the Spirit, obeying the Spirit's leading, the easier it becomes to turn from our selfish pursuits so that we might love others as Christ has loved us and to do so more and more. 

The steadfast love of God, the love that caused Christ to humble himself and go to the cross is manifested in our lives in countless ways.  We learn this love as we walk with our Lord, meditate on his Word, pray earnestly, and yield to the Spirit.  Paul wrote: Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.  (Philippians 2:5)  Throughout his earthly ministry, we see Christ functioning as a love servant to all who put their trust in him.  Love's best manifestation comes through seeking first the kingdom of God, preferring others over ourselves.  When we are willing to serve others, we display God's transforming love to them through who we are.  When the love of God is fully released, his love turns the world upside down.  Those who seek to rule in this world want their own little kingdoms where others bow to their wishes and desires.  Those who surrender to the Lord ask Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit to control their lives.  Believers seek humility rather than arrogance.  We travel the second mile rather than the one required.  The world cannot understand and rejects a life immersed in God, for such a life contrasts sharply with the selfishness and decadence of those who reject God's love.  People walking according to their carnal flesh believe they go around only once, so why should they give sacrificially to others.  Jesus said that a servant who comes into the household at the end of day after working hard in the dusty fields does not go to his room to rest and freshen up before he approaches the master; instead, he seeks out the master first to ask if there is anything else he should do.  This is what a true servant does.  No quick shower and then to the master; no ten minute rest on the bed and then go to serve.  No, a good and faithful servant goes first to the master and asks if there is anything else he can do.  Love exhausts itself by serving.  When Peter talked about service, he said, be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray.  Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.  Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.  Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.  If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God.  If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.  To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever.  (1 Peter 4:7-11)  This is the love that Paul described--the brotherly love the Thessalonians already embraced and shared with each other and all the brothers throughout Macedonia .  

An illustration of the Thessalonian's love is that we see them sending gifts to the poor even though they were experiencing grinding poverty and persecution themselves.  God had implanted the reality of Christ's love towards them through sound teaching by the Holy Spirit that they received with open hearts and minds. They knew by the Holy Spirit's revelation that God had been inexplicably generous to them by allowing Jesus Christ's to die on the cross for their sinful, implacable souls.  Eternal salvation was theirs because of the finished work of Jesus Christ, and they were growing in his mercy and grace.  His wonderful generosity impelled them to be instruments of Christ's love to the world.  If we are not continually alert, we will fail to appreciate the love of God in the same way as the Thessalonians and others in the early church who loved God so completely and so deeply.  We have so many responsibilities and distractions in our overly busy lives we can easily lose track of the magnificent price God paid for our salvation, our freedom from sin.  Because of Christ, we have been placed on a firm foundation, free from eternal damnation.  Paul reminded the church at Galatia: It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.  Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.  (Galatians 5:1)  What a glorious transformation to be freed from the chains of sin and allowed to serve our risen Lord.  Because of Christ, we are treasured children of God--joint heirs with Jesus, our elder brother who paved the way for our entrance to eternal life.  We are no longer lost in a sea of meaninglessness: we are now children of the Creator of All Things.  What heavenly peace that knowledge brings to our hearts!  Out of our innermost being love and generosity spills out to the world.  However, if we our deficient in our love towards others, if there is not a harvest of the fruit of the Spirit in us, if servanthood is a difficult concept for us, we need to kneel again at the cross where the Lamb was slain and remember the words: You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.  Not so with you.  Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.  For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.  (Mark 10:42-45)  Serve the Lord and others with a glad heart today!  

1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 & 4:1-8

1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 & 4:1-8  Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you.  May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.  May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.  Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living.  Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.  For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.  It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn  and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him.  The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you.  For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.  Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.  

The Thessalonians as well as the rest of the citizens of the Roman Empire were engulfed in the sexual impurity that permeated the society.  Prostitution was legal and practiced by many even in the temples to the heathen gods.  Pagan practices were so prevalent in this world that the city of Corinth was particularly know for its decadence.  The Temple of Aphrodite was said to have 1,000 prostitutes and greatly influenced the culture and morals of the city and the surrounding countryside.  Mistresses and adulterous affairs were common place, and sexual concubines were purchased by those who possessed sufficient money.  The Thessalonian church existed in this culture of sexual debauchery and filth.  When Paul encourages his Christian converts to lead sanctified lives and to avoid sexual immorality, he understands the culture of the day, and he knew exactly what he was asking of them.  He was saying they must grow up in Christ and separate themselves from the temptations of the world in which they lived.  They must stand by the power of the risen Lord, apart from the contamination of the majority culture.  He implores each of them to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God.  Paul knew sexual purity on the part of the Christians would impact this cistern of darkness greatly.  The true love of the Father expressed through the Son would reveal the lust and degradation and bring the light of God to a very dark world.  Paul fully understood the words of Jesus when He said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”  Jesus went on to explain, “No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl.  Instead he puts it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light.  Your eye is the lamp of your body.  When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body also is full of darkness.  See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness.  Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be completely lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you.”  (Luke 11:27 & 33-36)  Those who find the Light of Christ walk in that light.  

Paul wanted the New Testament church to walk in the light of the never failing, never ending love of God.  Jesus is the only true light who came to show us the love of the Father.  We have all read the many verses concerning love.  We know Corinthians 13.  We know love does not take advantage of others and love never fails.  Jesus said, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.  If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also.  If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic.  Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.  Do to others as you would have them do to you.  (Luke 6:27-31)  Paul instructed believers: Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.  (Romans 13:8 NKJV)  Unconditional divine love satisfies every commandment, and if we could all love with that love at all times in all situations, every law would become obsolete.  Our justice system would no longer need to function; our jails would become unnecessary.  The cardinal commandments of loving God with all your soul, spirit, and might and loving your neighbor as yourself will obliterate the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.  (1 John 2:16)  God's love is a servant's love, a love that extends beyond selfish reasons and self-satisfaction, a love that works for the betterment of others.  Divine love brings the cleansing, healing light of God into every human condition.  As God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son for us, so should we love the world in the same manner.  The Bible says, Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.  (Philippians 2:5)  Without the mind of Christ, we fall back into old patterns of selfishness where we manipulate and control people for our own purposes.   In the worst situations we even harm the innocent for our own sexual pleasure.   All over the world, young girls and boys are sold into slavery for sexual purposes.  What God planned as a beautiful gift to his sons and daughters wicked men have turned into nightmarish experiences of exploitation for countless young women and men.  Christians need to rise up in anger against this growing abuse with a cry to deliver those who are captive to the sexual immorality of our day.  When people can book "vacations" to countries that specialize in these practices, and everyone knows what is going on, something is very wrong with our world.   

Paul wrote, It is God’s will that you should be sanctified.  We must live lives that reflect God's holiness.  As we live such lives, we will not take advantage of others or stand by idly when we see others taking advantage of the helpless and the needy.  Even in our simplest daily interactions, we will watch out for the people in our lives and those God brings to our attention.  We want them to receive fair treatment and justice from us and others.  Our demeanor should show the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control).  Even when we think people take advantage of us, we should react as those who know Christ, as his servants and not with harsh words, bitterness, malice, or rage.  James says, this servant life costs us.  He tells us plainly, What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?  Can faith save him?  If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?  Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.  But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.”  Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.  You believe that there is one God.  You do well.  Even the demons believe—and tremble!  But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?  (James 2:14-20)  Words in erudite books, sermons, and sage advice are easy to write or say, but actions require constant effort.  When we fail to put our faith into action, we expose our unregenerate flesh, rather than Christ in us, our hope of glory.  The culture surrounding the Thessalonian church was full of many sins including people seeking sexual gratification for selfish purposes.  Such actions go against God's very nature.  There are many selfish sins that can lead us away from the perfect will of God.  Does God tolerate us purchasing an heirloom from an old lady who does not know the value of her possession?  Shouldn't a sanctified Christian offer her a more fair price for the object she is selling?   Do we see the wickedness of a sinner buying a girl or boy for sexual gratification yet fail to see our own lack of love for our neighbors?  God is holy and just.  Yes, by faith He has allowed us to swim in the pool of his grace, but faith without works is DEAD.  Our intentions and our actions delineate how much we appreciate, value, and understand God's unmerited love towards us.  Even the devil knows there is a God, but we who are alive in Christ serve God and do his will.  God is love and light.  This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.  If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.  (1 John 1:5-6)  As children of the truth rejoice in him today!  

1 Thessalonians 3:6-10

1 Thessalonians 3:6-10  But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love.  He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.  Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith.  For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord.  How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?  Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith. 

Often in our little church we have visitors who come to us with some sort of request.  Usually these people are asking for financial help in some way.  Most of them have similar stories to tell: They need money to get back home or to pay their rent or to put food on the table.  A minority of them have somewhere in their lives made a commitment to the Lord in some nominal way, but the majority of them have not ever made a sustaining commitment to God or even a religion.  Their primary reason for coming to us is not for spiritual help but for money.  Most of the time they want to wait outside to speak to the pastor rather than coming into the service. Therefore, when the money or the help they desire does not keep coming, they disappear over the horizon, never to be seen again.  Their pretensions about changing their destructive behaviors or dedicating their lives to God never materialize for their basic intentions were to use God's people for their selfish purposes, not to serve God.  I am sure as with every church, the Thessalonian congregation had people like the above initially attached to it for their own fleshly reasons, but they soon departed when persecution exploded upon the fledgling church.  Paul was able to say to this church that he was thankful for the good news about their faith and love.  Paul was not looking to see them again to give them material gifts or money but to increase their faith in Christ, for he says he prays most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.  When Paul was prevented from seeing the Christians in Rome, he wrote to them, I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith.  He fully understood the importance of growing in faith and in casting aside worldly encumbrances.  He told the Romans: I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.  For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”  (Romans 1:11-12 & 16-17)  

We have also seen, Christians moving from church to church based on their own whims, using the church of God to satisfy their emotional, psychological, and physical needs.  These people are not like the people in the early church under persecution and struggling to survive.  They have been firmly attached to a body of believers, given responsibilities as an integral part of a body.  But as their minds stray to thinking about themselves, they develop an uneasy feeling that their lives are not being satisfied by the local body of believers, so they either jump to another church or do not attend at all.  We wonder how these Christians would function if they faced real persecution such as rejection from their families and friends because they follow Christ, something more potent and serious than not being satisfied with the way a church is functioning or not meeting their needs.  If Thessalonica was the only place they could serve God, would they be there serving God boldly despite the trials and tribulations, growing in their faith in Christ and leading others to the Lord?  The obvious answer for dedicated, sold-out Christians is we don't serve God where WE want to serve, but where He sends us to serve.  Earlier, we spoke of those who come to church for selfish purposes: to get a meal, housing, transportation or just to get money for their destructive habits.  Of course their commitment to God is nominal at best, but there is hope for them to find Christ.  The church helps as seems appropriate and prays for them, sharing the gospel message with them.  But for those who name Christ as their personal Savior who are identified with a body of believers and know they are to love their fellow Christians as they love themselves, which is the second cardinal rule, to walk away from a community of believers is detrimental and dangerous.  Paul said, I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.  The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.  (Galatians 2:20)  As children of God, we are no longer our own.  We are not free to pick and choose.  We bloom where God plants us and serve gladly where He calls us.  Church is not about us.  We are there to minister, not to be ministered to.  Every time someone leaves our little church, it leaves a huge hole, especially when that person was a mentor, a leader, a doer.  People ask us, "Where did he/she go?  I looked up to him/her so much.  He/she was such an encouragement to me."  We do not know what to say because the answers we have seem so insufficient as we look at the faces of the hurting and the needy.  Paul told the Galatians, Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.  (Galatians 6:2)  This command stands true today.

In our scripture from 1 Thessalonians, we see Paul rejoicing over Timothy's report about the good fruit coming from this body of believers.  These Thessalonians were in the midst of a fiery furnance of persecution and harassment, yet they were staying true to the faith and their work for the Lord.  They were not retreating nor abandoning ship.  They were all in for Jesus, new creatures IN CHRIST.  What a joy it was for Paul to hear Timothy's good news of the firm stand and dedication of the Christians in Thessalonica.  Now he knew his beloved Thessalonians children were authentic and trustworthy fellow servants of the Lord.  They had staked their faith steadfastly upon Christ, portraying the love of Christ to a heathen community regardless of the difficulties they were experiencing.   He knew now he could truly call himself their spiritual father, for they would not turn back and would faithfully exist eternally IN CHRIST.  How wonderful it is for any pastor who shepherds a congregation to know that his body of believers will survive regardless of the trials or failures the sheep face.  He knows the sheep are in the sheepfold of the Great Shepherd Christ Jesus, and nothing will separate them from God, for they have chosen to go all the way to the grave in faith.  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?  As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  (Romans 8:35-39)  As children of the Most High God we are called to serve, called to love, called to bring the Good News to hungry people.  We have the Bread of Life!  Lord, show us where you want us to go today and every day.