1 Thess 5:12-18, A Church Filled With Good Dirt.

Wednesday April 26, 2023

Main passage:

1Th 5:12-22

But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction, 13 and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Live in peace with one another. 14 And we urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all men. 15 See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all men. 16 Rejoice always; 17 pray without ceasing; 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not quench the Spirit; 20 do not despise prophetic utterances. 21 But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; 22 abstain from every form of evil.

Theme: An attitude of love and thankfulness in the church will provide an environment for spiritual growth. 

Message outline:
 

1. The congregation must appreciate (know) their leaders (5:12-13a). 
   1. “Appreciate” (NASB) is the Greek word oida - know. 
      1. The congregation should know that their leaders must toil, lead (lead, protect, care for), and instruct (admonish). 
      2. The work of the leadership is difficult, sacrificial, and not always popular. 
   2. The congregation should esteem the leaders very highly (superabundantly) for their work. 
      1. Esteem them for their work, and not their personality or popularity or even their title. 
   3. The purpose of the leaders having a love of their work (and congregation) and the congregation knowing and esteeming them is to provide an environment of learning and growth rather than tension or conflict. 
2. Instruction to the congregation as a whole is to live in peace among yourselves and be patient with everyone (5:13b-14).
   1. Sandwiched in between peace and patience is dealing with people in various conditions. 
      1. Admonish the disobedient. 
      2. Comfort the fainthearted. 
      3. Support the weak. 
   2. By ministering in this way to the needs of the congregation, an environment of learning and spiritual growth is fostered. 
3. The leadership is careful to prevent conflict escalation that may result from sin (5:15). 
   1. “See to it that no one repays evil for evil” (Rom 12:17a). 
   2. In contrast to evil - “always seek after good for one another.”   
4. The attitude of the congregation is one of always being occupied with God and His blessings (5:16-18). 
   1. Rejoice always. 
   2. Pray consistently. 
   3. Give thanks for everything. 
   4. This is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 
      1. Obedience to the sovereignty of God is Christlike (Heb 10:7, 9)
5. Negative commands: Quenching the Spirit and counting prophecies as unimportant. 
   1. Quench literally means to put out a fire. 
      1. The thinking of the believer can either stoke the fire (energy) of the Holy Spirit or put it out (independence from God). 
      2. Prophecy, whether the early church spiritual gift or as yet unfulfilled prophecy from Scripture, is God’s word, and it must be honored as such. 
         1. Prophecy spoken by those in the early church with the gift of prophecy should be examined carefully. 
         2. If it is found to be divine revelation then it must be obeyed.
6. Overall general summary - application: Hold fast to the good and abstain from the evil. 
   1.  The church can be an environment of love and learning and spiritual growth or it can be a place of conflict, competition, jealousy, and strife (1Co 3:1-3). 
   2. To hold fast to good and abstain from evil, the individual believers must be spiritual. 
      1. By faith keep learning God’s word and trust God the Holy Spirit as you obey the commands to treat others in the congregation in the manner above. 

Auxiliary passages:

Rom 12:9-21

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; 11 not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, 13 contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and curse not. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. 17 Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. 19 Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord. 20 "But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head." 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

1Th 4:3-8

For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, 5 not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God; 6 and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you. 7 For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. 8 Consequently, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.

Heb 10:7

"Then I said, 'Behold, I have come

 (In the roll of the book it is written of Me)

To do Thy will, O God.'"