1 Thessalonians 5 [rejoice] - 2006.11.25

"Rejoice evermore." — I Thess. 5:16

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The prevailing approach to "Nuggets" has been to develop thoughts from a verse or short passage from successive chapters in a given book of the Bible week by week. From time to time, however, we have felt led to break the routine, and this is one of those occasions. The passage we addressed in overview last week (I Thess. 5:16-18) is so challenging (to me personally, at least) that I am inclined to meditate a bit further on each of the short, but striking, verses.

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The implication of the charge, "Rejoice evermore," seems to me to be that the believer, ideally, should be perennially joyful, whatever his or her circumstances in life. That is the spiritual posture few of us successfully maintain, and many would deem a practical impossibility. Nevertheless, when God delivers an order for us, He ordinarily furnishes examples and/or instructions for its execution.

Scripture defines two conflicting and competing realms in which life is experienced. The terms are familiar to every believer, but the ramifications are too often overlooked. The first order (from our perspective) is called "the flesh." The second is referred to as "the spirit." The first is essentially self-centered and "worldly." The latter is essentially God-centered and focused on "the world to come."

The true believer, when coming to faith in Christ is, in principle, translated from "this present evil world" to "the kingdom of [God's] dear Son." By God's grace we are "made… meet (fit) to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light… [and have been] delivered… from the power of darkness, and… translated into the kingdom of His dear Son: in Whom we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins (See Col. 1:12-14)." It is the divine intention that this result in shifting our whole emphasis to a new center; from earth to glory, from "flesh" to "Spirit."

Writing to the Philippians, Paul put it this way: "For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh [Phil. 3:3, italics mine)." This is the ideal; the whole person enjoying an entirely new center of reference, which is the person of our gracious, omniscient, incredible God.

Here is the fountainhead of perennial joy: faith in Christ Jesus and the hope of eternal life. "The flesh profiteth nothing [John 6:63];" its successes are of no enduring worth, its troubles, trials and failures, of whatever sort, are of relatively short duration and should not distract us from "rejoicing in Christ Jesus." If we will "rejoice evermore," it is imperative that we adopt this perspective and hold it firm, not just as a theological tenet, but as a fundamental fact of life. The Psalmist said, long before the gospel was fleshed out in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, "… my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation [Psalm 39:5]." It is here that the heart must be centered if joy is to continue uninterrupted in the changing circumstances of life in this present world.

Many years ago, when the phrase "keep looking up" was popular in evangelical circles, a good preacher friend surprised our congregation by exhorting, "keep looking down." His reasoning was, in fact, based upon Ephesians 2:4-6, where we are taught that God has made us alive (spiritually) together with Christ, "And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus." The passage is further reinforced by the exhortation, "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory [Col. 3:1-4]. "

Our verse for today has a parallel in Phil. 4:4— "Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice." Clearly this is God's intention for the believer. To realize it, we must shift our emphasis from earth to glory, from flesh to spirit, from here to eternity. Then we may be able to say, in the face of life's most trying circumstances, "I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us," and rejoice— in the Lord!.
For HIS praise,

"Pastor" Frasier

1 Thessalonians 5 - 2006.11.18

"Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." — I Thess. 5:16-18

"What is God's will for my life?" is a question most serious Christians ask at one time or another, and sometimes often. Most of us, when asking that question, are not looking for the answer here, but here it is, in first order magnitude. "Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks." It is one of the most demanding passages in scripture, and its demand is impossible for the natural man to fulfill. Yet it is set before us as "the will of God" for every believer!

For a moment, reflect upon it this way:
Rejoice — always (never be dismayed)
Pray — always (never be unfocused)
Give thanks — always (never complain)

Now consider that the passage reads the same in a hospital room as it does in a chapel. It lays the same challenge at the feet of the destitute as it does the prosperous. It conveys the same message to the oppressed as to the free. Wherever there Christians, whatever their circumstances, the injunction is the same and expresses "the will of God" for you.

If we are to rejoice always, we must rejoice in times of sorrow as well as in life's sunshine. We must rejoice in times of pain as well as in pleasure. We must rejoice in when in poverty as well as in plenty; in the darkness as in the light. Failure will require the same response as fulfillment, and rejection as well as recognition. Those who attain the will of God in this sense will be characterized by indefatigable, indestructible, inscrutable joy! And no one will understand them!!

Then there is the commandment, "In everything give thanks." It is a demand from which there is no relief, for which there are no exceptions. After all, this is the infallible, unchanging word of God, and "this is the will of God… for you." The scope is the same as for rejoicing. If applied, it would make every day Thanksgiving Day, with or without turkey and the trimmings! Were it realized in my life, no one would ever hear me complain—about anything.

Between these two is the directive, "Pray without ceasing." That is the hinge, if you will, upon which this whole thing pivots. It is a call to an all-comprehensive, consistent and unbroken communion with God. Nothing is left outside the scope of prayer, nothing is overlooked, nothing is deemed irrelevant to it. Since it is evident that one cannot be continually on his knees, this is obviously a different concept of prayer than we usually entertain. What is envisioned here is prayer as the atmosphere of life. It aims at that kind of unbroken communion that makes God our constant, conscious Companion. Every circumstance of life is shared with Him; every temptation is referred to Him, and His power relied upon to address and resist it; every trial is confronted in a continuum of communion and with a conscious cry, "Not my will, but Thine be done." Not just occasionally, but constantly. Prayer will be as regular as breathing.

Confronted with this definition of the will of God, we are driven to one of two conclusions. Either God is playing games with us, imposing impossible demands; or, He is prepared to enable us if we are truly willing to obey. If the former, God is capricious and unfair. If the latter, God has an order of life for us that could utterly transform us, and that few of us have yet experienced.

If we would begin this radical journey there are a few keys to be noted. The first is evident in the phrase, "in Christ Jesus." One must be "born from above" before such a life is ever possible. A paper faith, mere "Christian religion" will not do. Second, we must develop an entirely new and radically different view of life in which not "here and now," but hereafter is the essence of reality. Third, we must operate under the unwavering conviction that God is in control, knows exactly what He is doing all the time, and that what He does is right. "This is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."
For HIS glory,

"Pastor" Frasier

1 Thessalonians 4 - 2006.11.11

"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him." — I Thess. 4:13-14

Just eleven months ago we "lost" our youngest child, a beloved daughter, who lost her battle with cancer. The wound has healed a little, but the heartache lingers still. In the interim some of you have suffered similar losses, and some are facing the prospect. We witness the veracity of the word of God, "It is appointed unto man once to die… " There is nothing in life more certain than that we will die, and few prospects in life more unwelcome.

To wrestle with the problem of death, whether one's own, or that of a loved one, is nothing new. It was obviously a concern for believers in the church at Thessalonica. And there, as in so many places there were varied opinions. The issue was sufficient to solicit the attention of the apostle Paul and the ministry of the Holy Spirit through him, not only for the benefit of the Christians there and then, but those who would follow after, to this present day.

Death for many brings perplexity and despair. For the Christian it may bring sorrow, but it need not plunge us into depression or unmitigated grief. Sorrow is understandable, permissible and where love prevails, inevitable. But the sorrow of the Christian is to be radically different from the sorrow of the unregenerate. We may, indeed, "sorrow," but not "as [those] who have no hope."

To afford comfort and assurance the word of God lays down a simple, but significant condition: "If we believe… " The theological/scriptural term that applies here is Faith. It is faith that can put solid ground beneath our feet when the earthquakes of life occur. The biblical definition of faith Is found in Heb. 11:1 - "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." I like to paraphrase it, 'Faith is that which gives substance to things hoped for, and provides evidence for things not seen.' This, however, is not to be construed as blind faith without a foundation or evidence. That is the kind of "faith" exercised by those who live all their lives without a relationship to God, but who in time of grief cling to a groundless hope that there is more beyond, and their loved one has "gone to a better place." The Christian's faith, in contrast, is founded upon the testimony of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ: "If we believe that Jesus died and rose again…" The distinction is made by the scriptures in I Corinthians 15:14, "And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is vain also." And again, "If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins [I Cor 15:17]." This is the hub around which all our hope revolves. It confirms the validity of the scriptures themselves. It provides illustrative proof of the resurrection of the dead. And it addresses the issue of death itself; why the problem and whence the solution. Here is the great central fact in scripture: Jesus died and rose again.

For the believer, this provides bedrock beneath his feet, and brings with it confidence in two great truths: First, Jesus is coming again; second, so are the "dead in Christ." As certainly as the Savior predicted His own resurrection from the dead, so did He affirm His eventual return to earth. If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, we cannot doubt that one day, in God's own time, He will return, "even as He said." And, with equal assurance we can expect that those who "sleep in Jesus" will accompany Him when He returns.

Finally to be noticed is the qualification: "them also which sleep in Jesus." This is not a blanket promise with respect to all the dead. It is limited to those who have trusted Christ as Savior. His death was designed to make eternal life a positive experience for all who would trust Him. It addressed the problem of sin, which brought the unwelcome specter of death into human experience. His resurrection was proof that His word was true. To appropriate its benefits we must receive Him by faith. And so must those we desire to join us in "the day of His appearing." That should make believers out of us for our own sake. And evangelists for theirs!

For the hope of eternal salvation,

"Pastor" Frasier

1 Thessalonians 3 - 2006.11.04

"And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints." — I Thess. 3:12-13

It is really quite astonishing to notice the emphasis on love in the New Testament, and the character of love mandated. Here is one such reference, and it confronts us, in capsule form, with two great dimensions of love. There is first the command to love one another, that is, within the family of God; what may be called "intramural love." The second is an even larger and more challenging command to love "all men."

The New Testament order to love is rooted in the gospels and brought to full flower in the epistles. The ultimate demonstration of love is, as every believer must know, in the incarnation, and encapsulated in that most familiar, under-appreciated verse, John 3:16. There "unconditional love" is revealed from the heights of heaven, from the cradle to the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Along with this supernal illustration is the instruction of the Savior Himself, in the course of His earthly ministry. At least three times in the gospels we are counseled to love our neighbor and taught that the neighbor we are to love is not someone who has treated us well, but anyone we come across who needs our care (Cf. Mt. 6:19; 22:35-40; Mk. 12:31). These references identify love as the essence of fulfillment of the second table of the law of Moses (the ten commandments) and linked to assurance of a place in the kingdom of God (cf. Mk. 12:28-34).

The Savior's instruction regarding love, however, goes further. In Mt. 5:44 and Luke 6:27, 35 we are commanded to love our enemies, and this is linked to eternal reward and relationship to God. Clearly love is NOT optional.

These exhortations were part of Jesus' general teaching, and directed toward all men. Subsequently He turned to the subject with specific reference to His disciples. The centerpiece of this doctrine is John 13:34-35; "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." It is that intramural love spoken of earlier; love of believer for believers in the church, which Jesus cites as the ultimate evidence of discipleship. He sharpened it further when He declared, "This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you [Jn. 15:12]," and made obedience to His command the key to friendship with Himself [ v.14]. This love of believer for believers (without qualification) is not offered as a suggestion or a recommendation, but as an order. Love within the body of Christ is NOT an option, but a command!

In our text for today the love of believers one for another is linked to holiness, a connection not many of us would make if it were not thus set before us, but here it is! To be sure, not many professing believers of today are passionate about holiness, but for those who are, this is sobering truth. I have not attained (nor approximated) holiness if I have not learned to love not only my friends, but the saints at large and the rest of the community of mankind, including my enemies.

It is this characteristic, after all, which supremely sets New Testament Christianity apart from all other faiths. It is the hallmark of true conversion, and were it more generally in evidence, the church would be strikingly different from the fraternities of this present evil world. Sadly, this kind of love is overshadowed by the grim results of pride, sectarian strife and self centeredness which characterize nominal Christianity today. Someone has wryly suggested that we are not likely to love our enemies, for we have not yet learned to love our friends!

The last word in our text for today is this: Jesus is coming again. Then will come our "final exam" with respect to love. How will your love life fare?
With HIS glory in mind,,

"Pastor" Frasier