(Read 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24)
Note: This blog post is split up into sections for ease of reading.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-22
In rapid fire no less than eight imperatives follow one after the other. With eight commands Paul reviews for us what “God’s will” for us is “in Christ Jesus.” These are not man-made guidelines. They are from God himself. The world may scoff at many of these guidelines as being nonsense, or as being impossible, or as restricting one’s freedom too much. For those who are “in Christ Jesus,” they are vital and the way of true freedom and happiness.
It might seem impossible to live a life in which one is “joyful always.” It is easy to be joyful in good times, but what about all the trials and tribulations that cause us sorrow?
For the person who belongs to Christ by faith there is joy even in sorrow. Why? Because believers know that Christ rules heaven and earth, so the sorrow that enters our lives is not a matter of blind fate. Anything that causes us sorrow is something our Savior permitted to come only to serve our good. Sorrows draw us closer to him (Romans 5:3-5); they purify our faith like gold is refined in fire (1 Peter 1:7); they provide us with opportunities to confess before others the hope that is in us (1 Peter 3:13-15). There is, however, one thing sorrow cannot do. It can never, never separate us from God’s love (Romans 8:39). God’s Spirit helps us and prays for us in our weaknesses. And we know God will keep his promises to watch over us and care for us in our sorrows.
So we can “consider it pure joy . . . whenever [we] face trials” (James 1:2). There was little in the early Christian church in which most people today would find much joy. The believers were persecuted. Most of them were poor. Still those early Christians had a joy in Christ that nothing and no one could take away.
It might also seem impossible, and even nonsensical, to most people that one should “pray continually.” How can a person pray nonstop without taking time out at least to eat and to sleep?
When Paul urges constant prayer, he is not suggesting that we sit at all times with hands folded and heads bowed in conscious prayer. The Christian either consciously or unconsciously commits all things at all times to him who cares for us. When this is the inward spirit of a person by faith, he will also express it outwardly in words of petition, praise, and thanks.
Often we are quick to ask God for things we need but then forget to thank him when he answers our request. Ten lepers came to Jesus asking to be healed. Only one returned to give thanks! May Jesus’ sad question “Where are the nine?” (Luke 17:17) remind us how pleased he is to receive our thanks. Let us never forget to thank him for all his blessings.
Nor is our thankfulness limited to words. We can also express it “in all circumstances” by our actions. “Whatever you do,” Paul writes in Colossians 3:17, “whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” The Christian mother who cares for her children, cleans the house, cooks meals, and mends clothes is expressing her thanks to God in all these actions. Since she does them as a child of God who rejoices in her Savior, her simplest task is an act of faith, which God looks on as an expression of true gratitude. That’s how it is with the simplest actions of every Christian, whether a laborer, farmer, businessperson, clerk, police officer, or secretary. Whether we eat or drink—whatever we do—God wants us to do it all to his glory. That is how we “give thanks in all circumstances.”
Next Paul instructs, “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire.” The fire the Spirit starts in us is the fire of faith. Our coming to faith is a miracle in which we have no part. But once we believe, we have a new man in us who enables us to fight “the good fight” of faith (2 Timothy 4:7) and to “work out [our] salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12) in cooperation with God’s Holy Spirit.
God wants us to “crucify” the sinful nature with its passions and desires and “keep in step with the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25). To this end God gives us the means of grace: the Bible and the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Through these means the Holy Spirit strengthens our faith and renews our zeal to live according to the new man. Failure to make use of the Word and sacraments, then, would by default give the old Adam the upper hand and thus put out the Spirit’s fire.
This Paul underscores by the next admonition. The term prophecies refers to God’s revealed Word. A prophet is simply one who speaks a message from God to man. The Bible is made up of numerous prophecies, which God gave “at many times and in various ways” (Hebrews 1:1).
The word translated “to treat with contempt” also means “to empty of all authority.” Used with the word prophecies it points to a refusal to recognize the words of Scripture as the inspired words of God. Many today consider the doctrine of verbal inspiration impossible and nonsensical. They treat much of the Bible with contempt by putting it on a par with man’s word. They disregard verses, chapters, and whole books as they choose. Paul urges us never to do what they do, lest God’s punishment spoken of in Revelation 22:18,19 fall upon us: “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.”
The Christian life is a life of constant testing, the apostle adds. The word test is the Greek word used for testing the genuineness of such things as gold and silver. If there were any impurities in these precious metals, they failed the test. The standard God wants us to use is his pure Word. The Christian is to test “everything” in this way. “Everything” includes all that is taught as the will of God (law) and all that is proclaimed about God’s goodness and mercy (gospel). We are to be on constant lookout for any human impurities that might be brought into the precious truths God has revealed. Everything we meet in our daily lives is to be examined in the light of God’s Word.
Once we have tested for genuineness, we are to act upon what we have found. If we have found that what we are testing is “good” according to the standard of God’s Word, then we are to “hold on to” it. The final judgment we make is not to be based on whether something works or whether it may bring about some seemingly good results but only on whether or not it is in full accord with Scripture. On good things we are to get such a firm hold that no one can pry us loose.
On the other hand, if we find that something is “evil” by its nature, we are to “avoid” it. The word avoid literally means “to hold oneself far away.” Consciously and constantly God wants us to put a lot of distance between ourselves and whatever conflicts, even in a small way, with his pure Word. Why? Because “a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough” (Galatians 5:9). A little bit of impurity mixed with God’s truth will eventually destroy the truth and lead to one error after another.
Note that Paul stresses the avoiding of “every kind” of evil. We are to shun not just one kind of evil but every form of impurity that Satan can come up with.
It is a formidable list of commands that Paul has penned here by inspiration of the Spirit. One writer has called them the jewels that crown a Christian’s life. They are guidelines that God urges upon us for our good both now and eternally. Read them once more—slowly—and let them be impressed on your mind so that you remember them. Then with the Lord’s help go out and live them!
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
Earlier in the letter Paul had reminded the Thessalonians that their pastors would encourage them to live according to God’s will. He also urged the Thessalonians to help one another in sanctified living. Now he prays that “God himself” would sanctify them. The prayer that closes this letter doesn’t imply that their pastors and fellow members were ineffectual in their efforts. It simply asks God, from whom all blessings flow, to bless every effort to help them grow in holy living.
Paul prays that God might sanctify them “through and through.” In Ephesians 4:13 the goal of Christian growth is described in words expressing the same thought: “attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” That is a level of sanctification we can never reach in this life. But “Christ’s love compels us” (2 Corinthians 5:14) to be satisfied with nothing less. Paul had given them many instructions in this letter about living God-pleasing lives. Paul prays that God, who established that glorious peace between all people and himself, would continually help the Thessalonians grow in sanctification toward that goal.
Second, Paul prays that God would keep them in faith without falling backward in any way so that they would be blameless at the Lord’s coming. Only the believer who by faith is clothed in Jesus’ blood and righteousness will be found blameless when Christ comes to judge the living and the dead. By adding up the terms “spirit, soul, and body” and putting the adjective “whole” before these three, Paul emphasizes how earnestly he prays that God will keep them faithful to the end. We remember how concerned Paul was that the persecution might have led them to abandon Christ. We know that one of the chief purposes of this letter was to encourage and strengthen them even more, now that he knew they were standing firm. This prayer, then, is a fitting conclusion to everything he has written.
And Paul is sure the Lord will hear his prayers. After all, God is faithful. God often promises in his Word that he will send his Holy Spirit to strengthen his dear children in their faith and in their desire to live lives of thanks to him. Because God is faithful, he never fails to do what he promises. That’s why Paul could assure the Thessalonians, “He will do it.”
This blog post is an excerpt from The People’s Bible: Thessalonians. You can check out the whole book here. The People’s Bible series is a Bible commentary for everyone. The authors of the series have served as pastors, college teachers, or seminary professors. Each author began with the original Hebrew or Greek text and then worked to bring the message of God’s Word to Christians who are looking to dive deeper into their study of the Bible. Two important truths guide all the commentaries: First, the Bible is God’s inspired Word and is therefore true and reliable. Second, the central message of the entire Bible is Jesus Christ.