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What should mark our lives as Christians as we look to this summer in London or further afield? What should our Christian lives look like? Or today we could well ask: what should mark the lives of those Christians in northern Nigeria as they endure opposition and trials, even losing their homes?
We come this afternoon to the last instalment of our series in this letter of 1 Thessalonians. Those with us will remember how, not long before this letter was written, Paul brought the good news about Jesus to the city of Thessalonica in Greece. Some there had believed and formed a gathering — a church of believers.
But there had been a hostile response. There was rioting and unrest. Paul had to flee at night, leaving those young Thessalonian Christians behind, and that is why he wrote this letter to help them. He knows he is writing to suffering and afflicted Christians. So how then does he close this letter?
First, Paul instructs his readers to rejoice, to pray, and to give thanks.
Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in all circumstances. For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (verses 16–18)
I wonder how you respond to hearing verse 16. I guess we know we're not going to disagree with it. But perhaps part of us thinks, "That is all very well for Paul to say, but he just doesn't know what I'm going through — the difficult things I'm facing, the people I have to deal with."
Yet Paul is not writing from some luxurious ivory tower. He is experiencing great trials himself, and he knows exactly what those he is writing to are facing. We saw a bit of that last week in his final instructions:
These are striking words for our Nigerian brothers and sisters to hear. Life for the Thessalonians was hard, far from straightforward. And yet Paul says, "Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in all circumstances."
Notice the emphasis: always, without ceasing, in all circumstances.
Let's not crassly misunderstand Paul. He doesn't expect us to be forever mindlessly and inanely cheerful, bounding around like an eager puppy wagging its tail. Not at all.
True rejoicing is not that superficial kind of happiness, but rather a deeper joy that can be sustained even through trials. Paul has spoken about how the loss of a much-loved believer in death will hurt — and yet there can be joy. Even one who sees their home burnt to the ground, facing the shock of not knowing what the future holds, still there can be joy.
And "pray without ceasing" doesn't mean praying every second of the day. It means turning to pray regularly, consistently, often throughout the day. Don't we say, "Oh, I'm so busy, there wasn't time to pray," or, "Life's just going okay, so I don't think to pray." Paul instructs us: pray without ceasing.
Then "give thanks in all circumstances." So often our default is: life's not very good, so we don't feel like giving thanks. Bad things do happen — really bad things. But notice Paul doesn't say give thanks for all circumstances. He says give thanks in all circumstances.
We might see these things as nice-to-haves — it would be good if I did them a little more. But Paul wants us to realise they are must-haves. Did you hear how he upped the stakes at the end of verse 18? "For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
How often do we ask, "What is God's will for my life?" Thessalonians answers that question twice:
How can we be characterised more and more by these qualities? Notice how in verses 12 and 14 Paul addresses the Thessalonians as brothers — reminding them they are now in a family. They know the one true creator God as their Father. This is the kind of Father who sent his Son from heaven to deliver us from the wrath to come.
If those things are true — and they are — then it makes sense to say:
But how can we be people marked consistently by these qualities? We might think it should just happen naturally. Here is my one and only World Cup football illustration.
The Argentina captain, Lionel Messi, is a mesmerising player, gliding untouched past defenders. His free kicks are amazing — the ball seems to go exactly where he wills it. He is such a natural, we think. Except he wasn't.
Thierry Henry, interviewed this week, said that early in Messi's career he saw him after training practising his free kicks — and he was hopeless. He kept missing. Once in a while it went where he wanted, but again and again it didn't. Yet Messi practised and practised and practised. What looks effortless today came through hard work.
Eric Liddell, the Scottish Olympic sprinter of Chariots of Fire fame, once wrote a book called The Disciplines of the Christian Life. He said:
Anyone who neglects the fixed hour of prayer saying he can pray at all times will probably in the end pray at no time.
If we are not doing verses 16 to 18 spontaneously, it will be a long time before it just happens. We've got to choose to obey these commands and get into good habits:
Plan and act like this, and it may well become more spontaneous and natural.
These instructions are addressed to the Thessalonians corporately — to all of them together. So these are things we need to do with one another.
We express our joy together as we sing, but also in conversation. Prayer meetings are a fantastic way to help us pray without ceasing. And our thanksgiving should be expressed to one another — let's not just say, "Oh, I'm thankful in my heart." Speak it together. Proactively, together: rejoice, pray, give thanks.
Second, listen to what God is saying to us through others.
Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything. Hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. (verses 19–22)
The Spirit here is the Spirit of God, amazingly at work amongst us, his people. So we shouldn't quench or stifle or resist when God is at work in us. Back in chapter one, Paul spoke of "the joy of the Holy Spirit." So the rejoicing we've been thinking about is actually the work of the Spirit in us — which is why the world around us cannot know this joy. To refuse to rejoice with a worldly coolness or grumpiness is actually to quench the Spirit.
But when Paul says "do not quench the Spirit," he's more likely looking forward to what he says next about prophecy.
There's plenty of confusion around today about prophecy, and it's not a straightforward question to answer. The term is used in different ways in different parts of the Bible, so we have to do the hard work of reading the Bible in context. Our main aim is to see what "prophecies" means in Thessalonians.
Foundationally, prophecy is about God speaking to us. It doesn't have to be a prediction about the future — whatever God wants to communicate to us can be a prophecy.
The next thing to realise is that not every prophecy comes with the same level of authority.
Some prophecy comes with the kind of authority that means it needs to be put into the written Scriptures — binding authority over all Christians everywhere for all time. That's Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and the others. Those who looked at Revelation this year will remember how John ended: he wrote a book of prophecy to which no words were to be added or taken away. Prophecy in that sense, whether in the Old or New Testaments, is simply to be accepted and obeyed.
The writings of the Apostle Paul in the Scriptures have this sort of authority. Look back to chapter 2:13:
We also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God.
And in today's passage, verse 27: "I put you under oath before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers." That is the kind of authority we've been thinking about — the prophets in Scripture and the Apostle Paul.
But Paul speaks about prophecies in verse 19 in a different way. Straight away he says they are to be tested (verse 21) — something he would never say about his own writings or the Old Testament, which are simply to be accepted.
Remember last week's instructions in verses 12 to 15 — the burden was really about how we speak to one another: to admonish the idle, encourage the faint-hearted, help the weak. Paul was showing us how what he had written was to be taken and used to help one another remember and put it into practice.
This chimes with 1 Corinthians 14, written around a similar time:
The one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation.
The way we as believers speak to one another in the light of what we've heard from God's revealed word is very important. It has a vital place in the way God is at work today. The Old Testament long ago promised a day was coming when all of God's people would have God's Spirit in a new way and would prophesy. At Pentecost, Peter declared that day was here.
Think of after our meeting today, over the road. As we talk with one another, it really matters. We're not just having a chat, catching up, or sharing our verdict on the preacher. As God's people discuss God's word — thinking, how can I encourage somebody else with what I heard, in the particular situation they've mentioned to me? — that is God at work. In the language of Thessalonians, we are prophesying to one another.
So how we listen and respond really matters. This isn't the same as authoritative scriptural revelation, so we don't accept unthinkingly everything everyone says. But the tone here is positive: God wants to speak to us to help us live for him.
Undergirding all of this is the assurance that the faithful God of peace will do his work in us until Jesus returns.
Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (verse 23)
What does Paul want to leave in their minds? First, complete sanctification. Sanctification means to be holy, set apart for God in Christ. God has already set us apart for him — but now we are to live that out and work it through, not in a half-hearted way, but completely, in all of life, in every way, with all that we are.
Paul underlines this by speaking of "spirit and soul and body." I don't think he wants us to tie ourselves in knots over what each refers to. His point is simply: pursue holiness in everything, with all that you are, every part of yourself. It's similar to Jesus' words — love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength.
Second, at the end of verse 23: "and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." We've heard about this all through the letter. Jesus rose again from the dead. He is alive today. He is going to return. Live in the light of that reality — set apart from those who are unaware of, or ignoring, that glorious future.
Paul wants us to have confidence — not confidence that comes from ourselves, but from realising who will actually do all of this. Look how verse 23 begins: "Now may the God of peace himself…"
So much of our struggle to be holy is living at peace with one another as God's people. But it is possible because God is the God of peace. He has made peace between him and us, and he will enable us to live at peace with one another. Then look at verse 24:
He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.
So we finish this letter, with all its challenges and encouragements. But remember this: who is it that will faithfully get us through the challenges of life until the day we see the Lord Jesus face to face and are taken to be with him forever? Our faithful God. He will surely do it.
Let me pray.
Father, we praise you for all that you have done in Christ to rescue us and to make us your people who know you as our Father. Would we respond by increasingly and consistently rejoicing, praying, and giving thanks? Would we speak to one another to help each other live out all that you tell us? Thank you that you will keep us until the day we see our Lord Jesus face to face. Amen.
