The church as it is supposed to be is:
1) a people of encouragement (1:2–10);
2) a people of self-sacrifice (2:1–12);
3) a people of controversy (2:13–16);
4) a people of joy (2:17–3:13);
5) a people of purity (4:1–8);
6) a people of work (4:9–12);
7) a people of clarity (4:13–5:11);
8) a people of unity (5:12–15);
9) a people of growth (5:16–22).
1 Thessalonians 5:16-22
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies. 21 Test all things; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil. 23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify[g] you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. 25 Brethren, pray for us. 26 Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss. 27 I charge you by the Lord that this [h]epistle be read to all the [i]holy brethren. 28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
We’ve been looking at the epistle to the church at Thessalonica for a number of weeks now. We’ve been considering it as a letter to a church that seemed to be doing many things right. There’s no precise criticism from Paul of the church, and he compliments them for what they are doing right.
Chapter 1: 2 We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, 3 remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father,
6 And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit, 7 so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Achaia who believe. 8 For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out, so that we do not need to say anything.
So, I titled this sermon series; the Church as it is supposed to be. And it’s not that the Thessalonian church had no problems, but for such a young church to receive such a positive letter from the apostle Paul is extraordinary.
We’ve looked at a number of things that the church is supposed to be. (List them)
We’re concluding with the last; A people of growth. One thing is sure about any church, there is always room for growth. We never stop growing, maturing, becoming more like Christ. We won’t be perfect until we see Him face to face.
And that’s what these last verses conveyed to me; We’ve always got room to grow, to improve. Before we get into each specific command in these last verses, I want you to think about the growth potential here. In other words, how far does God want you to go in your spiritual growth?
Goal-setting principles: be specific and measurable, target date, seek support, make a list of steps, and most of all, be realistic. We tell students in school. If you are failing all your classes, except Gym, Don’t set goals like; I’m going to get all “A’s” this year. Be realistic and specific—I want to get a “C” on my next assignment. If I don’t, I will get makeup work, and bring up the grade.
Well look at the goals that Paul concludes this letter to Thessalonica with; 8 very realistic goals;
Vs 16—no matter what happens to you, be joyful
Vs 17—pray at all times
Vs 18---find something to be thankful for in every circumstance
Vs 19---don’t do or say anything that is a grief to God’s Spirit
Vs 20—never ignore or disobey the Word of God
Vs 21—study all teaching to insure that is the pure Word of God
Vs 21—anything that is a good thing to do, do it
Vs 22---anything that is bad, don’t do it
So much for realistic goals. Well, that’s why I called this section; A people of growth. These are targets for the journey of our lives. And, to be truthful, we will never arrive. But church is supposed to be a place where we are always growing toward these goals. We never stop in our Spiritual growth. Nobody has arrived at the place of perfection, or total sanctification. We are a people of growth.
Someone once asked Paul Harvey, the journalist and radio commentator, to reveal the secret of his success. "I get up when I fall down," said Harvey.
Bits & Pieces, March 3, 1994, p. 16.
Well, it’s going to take us a little bit to get through these commands. They are simple, and straight forward. But they are commands that plumb the depth of our spirituality.
First three attitudes, second group actions, third group knowledge
First three are an attitude sandwich. Rejoice, pray, be thankful
I. Rejoice always
16 Rejoice always
A. Rejoice
Of course, the word rejoice comes from the word for joy. It means to be glad, joyful, to be full of joy. A grateful frame of mind, an emotion correspondent to what is pleasing
Matthew 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
The word was often used as a greeting. “Rejoice!”
The New Living Translation renders it- “Always be joyful!”
But here Paul says, “Rejoice always.” That’s a little hard to take.
A. Always indicates in every circumstance. On every occasion that presents itself to you, rejoice. Be glad.
How is that even possible? I mean, we’ve all endured some pretty difficult times. We’ve gone through emotional, physical, relational trials. And, speaking for myself, I wasn’t thrilled about it.
Is this saying that we’re to go about life smiling and happy despite what’s happening around us?
No, I don’t think so. Because then it would be a sin to be sorrowful, wouldn’t it? But even Jesus was sorrowful.
He was called, “A Man of sorrows, full of grief.” Repeatedly Scripture tells us that Jesus was grieved. He wept at the tomb of Lazarus.
I think the key to understanding this command is in another passage that Paul wrote to the church in Philippi.
B. Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
Our rejoicing is in the Lord, not the circumstance. The circumstances of life may grieve us, they may be a bitter pill, but we can always find cause for joy in the Lord. Listen to the verses after Philippians 4:4.
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
What is the source of our rejoicing? It is God, it is His peace that guards our hearts, and it guards them through Christ Jesus. God is the source of our joy.
So, when Paul says to “Rejoice always” it is not some sort of masochistic pleasure derived from our pain. It is the mindful acknowledgement that God is at work, even in our trials.
We are joyful, in the Lord, and we control that joy by what we dwell on.
Think on good things.
Let me point out the next verses in Philippians--
8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
What is Paul saying here? Is he saying, “Hey, you’ve got a flat tire, you should be happy!” “Hey, your job is giving you an ulcer, yippee!” No, he’s saying, when the circumstances of life arise, instead of spending hours meditating on the awfulness of the events, think on the parts that are just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous, and praiseworthy. Those things will bring your heart joy. You say, “what if there’s nothing good in this event I’m dealing with.”
It may seem so. But the Bible says that God is working everything out for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose. Now, I’m not trying to belittle your grief, or the severity of the evil that may have come to you. But just listen to what Jesus said to His disciples.
Think on the reward
Matthew 5:11-13
11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Why did He say that they should rejoice? Not because persecution, slander, and lies against you are pleasant, but because God has a great reward for you who endure it.
Hebrews 12:2 looking unto Jesus, the [a]author and [b]finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.Think on the Spiritual growth
James 1:2-3 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces [a]patience.No matter the circumstance, unless it is your own sin, God will use it for your ultimate good. So, here’s the what you do to obey this command. Everything that happens, grieve over the pain, but think of what is good, and as soon as your able, rejoice about the good.
II. Pray without ceasing
17 pray without ceasing
Once again, this command demonstrates that we should never stop growing spiritually. As Christians, we may think that we have a pretty healthy prayer life. Paul’s response is, “Are you praying unceasingly? Then you haven’t arrived yet.” So, let’s look at the two parts of this command.
A. Pray
Prayer is simply our side of communication with God. He speaks to us by His Word, and preaching, teaching, our conscience, His still small voice. And prayer is our response back to Him. And if we want to successfully rejoice always, then when the dark side of life comes, we have to be prayed up. Remember the story of Jesus casting out a demon that his disciples had failed at?
“This kind goes not out but by prayer and fasting.” You’ve got to be prayed up.
B. without ceasing
we ought to be in a constantly "prayerful" state, and frequently speaking to God in actual, dedicated prayer.
I think a better word here for without ceasing, is constantly. We can’t pray without ceasing, or else we would have to stop all other activity that interfered with praying. We couldn’t sleep, or engage in meaningful conversation with another person.
Jesus was a supreme example.
Jesus is the supreme example of what it means to pray continually. He taught His disciples to pray (Matthew 6:5–13). He prayed before feeding the five thousand (Matthew 14:19–21). He prayed when He blessed the children (Matthew 19:13). He prayed in the morning (Mark 1:35) and in the evening (Mark 6:45–47). He prayed for His disciples and for all subsequent believers (John 17). He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36–42). He prayed from the cross (Luke 23:34).
The apostle Paul, too, prayed continuously. He prayed from prison at midnight (Acts 16:25). He prayed after giving a charge to the elders of the church at Ephesus (Acts 20:36). He prayed at Malta (Acts 28:8). He prayed for Israel (Romans 10:1). He prayed for the churches (Romans 1:9; Ephesians 1:16; Philippians 1:4; Colossians 1:3–12).
Paul used this word in other places.
Romans 1:9 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit in the Good News of his Son, how unceasingly I make mention of you always in my prayers,
1 Thessalonians 1:3 3 remembering without ceasing your work of faith and labor of love and perseverance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, before our God and Father.
2 Thessalonians 2:13 13 For this cause we also thank God without ceasing, that when you received from us the word of the message of God, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also works in you who believe.
What Paul is saying is that he constantly prays for them.
And that what it means to pray constantly. To be ever conscience of the presence of God. To build your relationship with God to the point where He is your constant companion…
III. In everything give thanks
18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
This is very similar to “rejoice always.” Except now it is “be thankful in everything.” And again, it is not that you are grateful that pain is coming your way, but you are grateful for what God is doing through the pain. Thankfulness is expressing your appreciation to the one who is the source for all blessings.
In this verse Paul exhorts his readers to give thanks in
all circumstances. He adds that it is God's will to do so. Regardless how
difficult our circumstances may be, we can find reasons to thank God. We can be
thankful that all things work together for our good if we belong to Him (Romans
8:28). We can be thankful that God's grace is sufficient to sustain us in every
circumstance (2 Corinthians 12:9). We can be thankful that nothing can separate
us from God's love (Romans 8:37–39). We can be thankful that God even supports
us spiritually when trials produce difficulty in our prayer life (Romans 8:26).
Rough circumstances also prove the genuineness of our faith (1 Peter 1:6–7).
Paul previously wrote to "Rejoice
always" (1 Thessalonians 5:16). Joy is not the same thing as happiness. In
a similar way, Scripture notes the difference between giving thanks
"for" our circumstances, as opposed to giving thanks "in"
our circumstances. For example, a car wreck may not find us giving thanks for a
twisted fender and smashed radiator, but we can give thanks that we have
insurance and a God who is always present with us. We may not thank God for an
illness, but we can be thankful for medicines and doctors. Persecution is not
something we would be thankful for, but we can be thankful that God can use
that hardship for our eternal benefit.
For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
That phrase, the will of God.
For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God;
Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
And not only as we had hoped, but they first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God.
Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.
For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—
For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.
Being thankful in everything is part of the will of God.
We are always growing.
When James Garfield (later President of the U.S.) was principal of Hiram College in Ohio, a father asked him if the course of study could be simplified so that his son might be able to go through by a shorter route. "Certainly," Garfield replied. "But it all depends on what you want to make of your boy. When God wants to make an oak tree, He takes a hundred years. When He wants to make a squash he requires only two months."
We are producing too many squashes and not enough oak trees in our day.
Angus J. MacQueen.