Living to Please God
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 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; 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.
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.
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.
My Understanding: The Thessalonian believers were characterized as those whose work in the Lord was produced by faith, whose labor in the Spirit was prompted by love, and whose endurance in Christ was inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, these were faithful believers in Jesus Christ who loved the Lord, and whose service for the Lord Jesus came from hearts committed to obedience to Jesus Christ.
These were not fleshly and worldly Christians. They followed the examples of the apostles, the churches in Judea, and the example of Christ for how to live their daily lives. In spite of severe suffering for the sake of the gospel, they welcomed the message of the gospel with joy. And, so they became a model to all believers, the scriptures say.
They were faithful in sharing the gospel, too, so that the gospel spread throughout the region. In fact, their faith had become known everywhere. It became known how they had turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for Jesus Christ to return one day. They endured opposition to and persecution resulting from their faith, too. And, they remained steadfast in their faith, and continued to stand firm in the Lord Jesus.
It was to these faithful believers in Jesus Christ, who were living to please God, that these instructions were given. Why? Because, as long as we live in these flesh bodies, we are still vulnerable to sin. Although we may have a close walk with the Lord Jesus, we will still face temptation to sin. So, we must be on our guard, if we think we are standing firm, lest we fall. We are never so holy in our relationships with Jesus Christ that we could never be trapped in sin’s deceitfulness again. So, we must watch and pray so we don’t fall into temptation, and thus give the devil a foothold in our lives once again.
Living to Please God
Paul, Silas and Timothy had previously instructed the Thessalonian believers in how to live in order to please God, and they were doing so. Yet, the apostles asked and urged them in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. Why? If they were already living lives pleasing to God, why did they need to do so more and more? Because there is always a danger of thinking we have arrived and that we don’t need to keep growing, and because there is the possibility of becoming content with status quo, and becoming complacent in our walks with the Lord Jesus. If we ever get to the point in our Christian lives where we think we don’t need to grow anymore, then we open ourselves up for Satan’s attacks against us, which God often uses to humble us, and to make us ever aware of how much we need the Lord, and how much we still need to grow in our faith and in our knowledge of Christ Jesus. So, the apostles reminded the believers of the instructions they had received from Christ, and that they were passing along to the followers of Christ.
The Instructions
• It is God’s will that you be sanctified (made holy; freed from sin)
• You should avoid sexual immorality
• You should control your own bodies in a way that is holy and honorable
• No one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him
• God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life
• Love each other, and do so more and more
• Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands – so you may win respect and not be dependent on others
Our Responsibility
The apostles also let the believers know that the Lord Jesus would punish men for all such sins, as listed above, as they had already told them and had warned them. In other words, they were letting them know that God takes sin very seriously. Just because we come under God’s grace does not mean that God looks the other way when we sin. On the contrary! Jesus died on the cross for our sins so that we would be free from the control of sin over our day-to-day lives. He came to set us free! We should never take God’s grace for granted by continuing in willful sin after we have professed him as Lord and Savior. Jesus will discipline those he loves. And, not only that, but when we choose to continue in sin, we risk having been given a false sense of hope and security in Christ and in our salvation, for the scriptures teach us that if we continue in willful sinful lifestyles after we have received the knowledge of the truth, that we don’t really know the God we claim to know. So, we should always realize that God takes sin seriously, and we should never take his grace for granted.
Lastly, the apostles told the believers that anyone who rejects “this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.” In other words, the Lord Jesus uses men (and women) to share the truths of his word, but ultimately the words come from God. So, if anyone rejects what we share, that comes from God’s word, they are really rejecting God, not us, so we should not take it personally.
And, then they added: “who gives you his Holy Spirit.” The Holy Spirit’s job is to indwell the lives of the believers in Jesus Christ, to transform human hearts, to make us holy, to counsel, lead, direct, teach, guide us into all truth, convict of sin, encourage, and comfort, etc. So, when we hear the word of God, the Holy Spirit of God speaks to our hearts in conviction, instruction, correction, encouragement, comfort, etc., in leading and guiding us in the way we should go. So, that is why, if we reject these instructions, that we are truly rejecting God, and not the people used as instruments to pass these along to us. For we, as followers of Jesus Christ, have God’s Spirit living within us to teach us all truth. So, we are responsible for what we hear from God’s word, to apply it to our daily lives, and to live lives pleasing unto God; lives not given over to the flesh and to fleshly or worldly desires.
Jesus, Rescue Me / An Original Work / September 18, 2011
Based off of Romans 7:7-8:39
Jesus, rescue me today.
Listen while I bow and pray.
I need Your help to obey You;
Live for You always.
Meet me in my hour of need, Lord,
As I pray to You.
Help me walk in fellowship, Lord,
Living in Your truth.
Jesus, how I long for You to
Change my heart anew.
Father, God, my heart’s desire
Is to live for You this hour
In Your Holy Spirit’s power
Living in me now.
Teach me to walk in Your love, Lord,
Guiding me each day.
Help me to show love and kindness
To the lost, I pray.
Father, teach me to love others
As You love always.
Holy Spirit come in pow’r.
Revive our hearts in this hour.
Change our hearts to be like You, Lord;
Live for You each day.
Help us to forsake our sins, Lord,
As we humbly pray.
Teach us how to live for You, Lord,
Obey You always.
Holy Spirit come in power,
Revive us today.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSILqpD-WJA
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