Unquenchable

                      “Do not quench the Spirit.” 1 Thessalonians 5:19 [NASB]

Throughout the Bible we read descriptors of God. Some passages speak of His omniscience. No one is more knowledgeable and can know all things happening at one time. God is omnipotent. No one and nothing can defeat Him. God is omnipresent. He is everywhere at one time. God is indescribable. No one word or many words can thoroughly describe God. God is uncontainable. Nothing can hold Him down or defeat Him. God is unquenchable. Nothing and no one can crush or suppress Him.

When reading 1 Thessalonians 5:12-22, Paul imperatively taught the Thessalonians what to do or not do. Upon reading this list, you might think, “I can do this.” But when you stop to consider it closer, you realize two things: the list is long, and you are only human and won’t always do good. Paul, however, did not say or expect any person to do good from his or her own moral strength. Among the tasks in this list, he told the believers in Thessalonica how they were to do good, or rather, in whose strength they could live unquenchably.  Paul recognized people are incapable of doing good on their own. He knew and taught the believers of Thessalonica that doing good all the time is impossible in a person’s own moral strength, but is choose-able and made possible through the Spirit’s insuppressible strength.

In the verses of this passage, as Paul neared the end of his letter to the church at Thessalonica, he taught how believers are to live. He gave a list of how to interact with people. Next, Paul gave a list of how to relate to and respond to God. He concluded this list with a general teaching that summed up each of these commands.

In the list of how to interact with people in verses twelve through fifteen, Paul told the believers to appreciate and esteem with great love God’s workers who have charge over them. Live peacefully with each other. Admonish the unruly. Encourage the fainthearted. Help the weak. Be patient with everyone. Don’t repay evil for evil, but always seek good for one another and all people. Verse fifteen’s command sums up the first seven commands.

In the next section of Paul’s imperative commands, given in verses sixteen through twenty-two, he told them how to relate to God. He said rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in everything. Don’t quench the Spirit. Don’t despise prophetic utterances. Though these five commands specifically pertain to a person’s relationship to God, the first seven commands from verses twelve through fifteen reflect a person’s relationship with God, too. A person cannot be related rightly to people all the time until he or she is related rightly to God all the time. It’s impossible within a person’s own moral strength to do these things. Only with God’s strength can a person be good all the time.

Because of the impossibility of a person relating rightly to people one hundred percent of the time, Paul made sure the people understood how they could “seek after that which is good for one another and for all people.” (vs. 15) His command of verse nineteen tells us how. Paul said, “Do not quench the Spirit.” This statement does not mean we can defeat and destroy the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is part of the triune Godhead and is omnipotent, remember. This statement also does not mean we can make Him smaller in stature or power. What Paul meant with this command is do not hear and disobey the Spirit as He seeks to lead you and keep you safe and helps you walk God’s “straight paths.” Don’t keep neglecting the relationship you have with God by ignoring His guidance and teaching. By doing these things, you quench the Spirit in your life. He will still exist and be near you, but you will have hardened your heart and won’t hear Him as He speaks in whispers to your spirit. Until you call upon God again, and seek Him with your whole being, the Spirit’s guidance in your life will be unheard by you. The Bible speaks of this in 2 Chronicles 6:37 and 7:14 and in James 4:10 and other passages.

If My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14 [NASB])

Each Christian must choose for him or herself to listen to and obey God through His Holy Spirit. Paul taught how we can make sure we stay tuned to the Holy Spirit in our lives with verses sixteen through twenty-two. He told them to rejoice at all times, pray without ceasing, give thanks in every circumstance, treat prophecies with regard, hold fast to what is good, and abstain from every kind of evil. Having this mind, this determination, we choose God over all else. This means we make sure He sits as our primary guide - the enthroned King of our life - and our reason for living. Hold fast to what is good. Only One person is good, God from whose character  the word good receives its definition. Abstain from all evil. Evil is the opposite of God.

To live as a Christian requires an active choice every day not to quench the Spirit. Though He is indestructible by nature, we can choose to snuff Him out of our lives. When we do that, we don’t hold fast to what is good. God leaves this choice to every person every moment of every day.

Will you quench the unquenchable Spirit in your life?

Doing so doesn’t make Him smaller than you. It makes you vulnerable to evil. You are unable to withstand evil in your strength. Only by humbling yourself and choosing the Spirit to be active in your life can you do good all the time.

Lord God, I am so weak and fallible. Sometimes I demand to do what I want and close the door to You guiding me. I act like a two-yea- old when I am not and should know better by now. Lord, please forgive me for my stubbornness. Forgive me for ignoring and abandoning You. My refusal to listen to You does not change who You are, but it changes who I am. It removes the shine of Your glory from me and makes it unbearably possible for me to do evil. When I choose to refuse You, I am choosing evil, not good. Lord, shake me when I choose to go my own way and refuse to follow You. Get my attention until I must listen to You. Forgive me my stubbornness and willfulness. Forgive me my sins. Remind me of Your great love for me and extend Your mercy and grace to me again. Make me strong to stand against the temptation to do what I want. Instead, make my heart’s desire be to do Your will so I live to bring You glory by doing good and not evil. In Your name I pray. Amen.

1 Thessalonians 2:2, 13-16 A Devotion

2 “We [Paul and Timothy] had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you His gospel in spite of strong opposition.”

13 “We also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in your who believe.

14 “For you, brothers, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which as in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own countrymen the same things those churches suffered from the Jews, 15 who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to all men 16 in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way, they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last.”

Paul told the people of Thessalonica several things. He and Timothy as servants of Christ, suffered persecution. Yet that did not thwart his efforts to tell more people about Jesus Christ, including the Thessalonians.

Paul thanked God for the strength of conviction the Thessalonians had in the Gospel of God they brought to them. Their conviction was not to the words of man – him and Timothy – but to the words of God, which have the power to teach, rebuke, correct, and train in righteousness. [2 Timothy 3:16-17]

Because the Thessalonians listened to and were convicted and convinced by the word of God, not man, they were able to stand up to persecution. Paul said he knew the Thessalonians suffered from their own countrymen. This is the other point of this passage. Even people who are like you and from your same country and city may persecute you. Consider what is happening now in the Middle East. One branch of Islam is killing another branch. This type of thing happened in Burundi and Rwanda with the ethnic genocide.

The final point Paul made in this passage is that God is the one who will judge the Thessalonian Christians’ persecutors. “The wrath of God came upon them at last,” Paul said.

From this, what can we take away and apply to ourselves.

1. ·         First, are you willing to endure persecution for taking the Gospel to hostile people, or at the very least to unwilling listeners?
2. ·         Second, ensure you speak the words of God, not of yourself, so that the listeners are convicted of the Gospel and have a firm foundation for when they go tell other people about Jesus.
3. ·         Third, realize that many times the opposition and persecution you experience while speaking the Gospel of God comes from people closest to you – family, neighbors, and countrymen. These are the people who knew you before your salvation and try to keep you in the old mold. They do not understand the new you and may persecute you for making such a strong stand on the opposite end of the spectrum.
4. ·         Finally, Paul noted the persecutors would experience the wrath of God. Remember it is better to receive the persecution by humans than the wrath of God.

When you receive the Word of God and are convinced and convicted by it to turn to God and receive the salvation He offers, He does not give you just a little bit of salvation, but all of it. You are not just partly Christian, but 100% Christian. When God calls you His child and sends you out to testify about Him and the grace He offers through Jesus Christ, He wants you to testify effectively and loudly – with boldness. Be bold and not fear. Don’t just tell a little bit because you don’t want to offend and then be persecuted. Go without fear because you are God’s child. It is better to receive God’s praise and His protection than be accepted by the people to whom you witness.

Today, what are you going to do – speak boldly so the Word of God is heard or speak comfortable words so you are not shunned and persecuted? You have God’s power and promises in you. Stand up for what you believe.

1 Thessalonians - Sanctification: the "still more" of Paul. A Plan from the Beginning of the World

Paul wrote 1 Thessalonians while in Corinth on his second missionary journey. This letter is considered one of the earliest New Testament writings. We should understand a few things about the Thessalonians and Thessalonica. Thessalonica was a port city and was the biggest city in Macedonia. There were a few Romans who lived there, but the Romans did not rule its government; hence, it was Greek. When Paul arrived in the city, some scholars say there were enough Jews to need a synagogue and others say there was not. Whether there was or was not, Paul did not let this deter him. He adapted his presentation of the Gospel for whatever hearers were listening. From historical documents and from the Bible, we know that many people became Christians in Thessalonica. It seems Paul stayed there at least three weeks, but then had to flee to Berea. 

Chapter 1 has Paul’s standard opening to a letter, but it also introduces us to who the Thessalonians were to Paul. Paul felt like a father to the Thessalonians believers. He heard from others of the Thessalonians love, endurance, and faith, which was guiding their actions. 

In chapter 2, Paul reminded the Thessalonian believers of how he lived among them. He recalled for them his integrity and pure motives that came from not seeking to please men, but God. Paul did not speak to them with flattery to trick them to believe a false doctrine. He was gentle with them like a mother and loved them so much that he lived out the Gospel to them. He modeled for them what a Christian does and is. He stated that He lived holy, righteous, and blameless. Holy, righteous, and blameless are words used to define the “consecration” /“sanctification,” words that are used in chapter 4. This will become important. Paul brought to their attention how his being and actions modeled what he will later teach them to be – sanctified/consecrated. [Note: consecration and sanctification mean the same thing. I will use the word sanctification in this writing since it is used in the New American Standard Translation of the Bible to which I am referring.] 

Paul mentioned Timothy in chapter 3 because he sent Timothy to check on and encourage the Thessalonians. What Paul heard from Timothy was a credit to the Thessalonian believers. They were loving and encouraging each other in the faith. Paul desired to be back among them to supply what was lacking in their faith (vs. 10) and encourage their love to overflow to the brethren and others [actions] “so that He (Jesus) may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints” [being] (vv. 12-13). See this last part. He wanted them to be established as blameless and holy. Paul used these words of himself in chapter 2. Sanctification is being made pure, blameless, holy, and set apart for God.  

Chapter 4 is the point where Paul began to explain their next step of growth in their Christian faith. Paul told them to be sanctified, which is the will of God (vs. 3). He explained that sanctification means doing and being. Paul wrote that being sanctified means doing or not doing things: abstaining from sexual immorality [action - possess their body in sanctification and honor, vs. 4], not lusting [mental], not harming the body of another or defrauding a brother (a fellow Christian), being pure, loving one another (other Christians, vs. 9) as they are doing. Paul also told them to excel still more. What is this “more”? He is referring to what he said in 3:12, “to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all people.” How can you increase in love? Macedonia knew the Thessalonians for having a faith as great as the churches in Judea. What more is it they needed to learn to fill up what they were lacking? The answer lies in 3:13 and 4:3. Their love for the brethren, others, and God must increase to the level of Paul’s whose example is Jesus. This comes only through sanctification. Read 3:13. Their lives needed to exhibit the love Jesus commanded the disciples, which only comes when Jesus establishes their hearts - “so that He may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before our God and Father.” Jesus wants them to be blameless and holy, which is sanctified. This comes from Him; sanctification becomes a new part of their being, but it must be worked out [action]. 

                    Paul was very explicit about being sanctified as Jesus is sanctified. He recognized it as a gift from Jesus, but he also modeled it for the Thessalonians. What does being sanctified mean though? For some people, this seems to be a “churchified” word. People see it as a grandiose religious word that other people pull out of their hat to show they are better than others are. That was not the intention of the word when God instituted it. Sanctified is not a new term, mentioned first in the New Testament. Yahweh God established the term and its meaning from the beginning, in Genesis 2:3, when the writer of Genesis said, “God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it.” What is this word “sanctified” which is used in Genesis? It is qadash. In Hebrew, it means to dedicate, separate, consecrate, be holy, or to set apart. The seventh day is to be set apart to be holy for God, to dedicate it solely for God. Sanctification means the separation of oneself from things that are unclean, especially anything that contaminates one’s relationship with the perfect God. Qadash is used 152 times in the Old Testament. Qadash is used most in Exodus and Leviticus when God told the Israelites what and who to set apart for Him and His service. God spoke of setting apart utensils, firstborn children and animals, the priests, and the temple, synagogue, and the tent of gathering. He also called Himself the sanctifier, qadash, in Exodus 31:13. God told the Israelites, “I am the Lord who sanctifies you.” In Leviticus 6:18 & 27, God told them that whoever of the priests touched the meat set apart for the Lord would be sanctified. Second Chronicles has the third largest number usages of qadash. These instances also talk about the priests sanctifying the temple and the utensils for the purposes of God and of God sanctifying the temple/house of God. Jeremiah and Ezekiel use qadash the fourth and fifth highest number of times. Jeremiah 51:27-28 shows that God will even sanctify a foreign nation for His service, like when He used them to discipline Israel. To sum up, humans sanctify things, themselves, and others for God’s service and God sanctifies people, places, things, and days to Himself. God established qadash, setting apart someone or thing as holy for God’s service. 

The idea of sanctification stays the same in the New Testament, but is given the supreme example of its meaning in the life and death of Jesus Christ. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 6:17, "Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you." In both the Old and New Testaments, then, sanctification means the same thing. What is different is the means of being sanctified. In the Old Testament, sanctification came by following God’s commands, precepts, and statutes. In the New Testament, sanctification comes when a person becomes a believer in Jesus Christ and follows Him. Jesus is the example/model of true sanctification for humans. It is a part of His being and He lived it out in His interactions by word and deed while on earth.  

Let us read Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians again. What was the word he used when he spoke of sanctification to the Thessalonians in 4:3? It is the Greek word hagiasmos, which means to sanctify or purify. It comes from the word hagiazo (to separate from profane things and dedicate to God) which comes from the root word hagios, a most holy thing or saint. In 1 Thessalonians, Paul used hagios four of the five times referring to holy God or the Holy Spirit. We can see that the word used in Greek, hagiasmos, which means to sanctify and set apart for God, has the same meaning for which the Hebrews used the word qadash. God’s intention from one covenant to another, Old Testament to New Testament, did not change. He still calls us to set aside the Sabbath day and ourselves as believers of Jesus Christ. He calls us to be sanctified.  

                    God gave us sanctification in the beginning and continues to give it now. In 1 Thessalonians 4:7, Paul told them that God called them for the state of sanctification, not impurity. Sanctification is hagiosmos,  purification of heart and life. It is something that resides in you which God gives and which you live out. It is being and acting your chosen-ness by God - your purification by God - in the world. Jesus’ acted/embodied this sanctification of God, which is given to His children upon their salvation. A person does not have sanctification apart from God because of the fall of Adam and Eve when human sin marred the perfection of God’s creation in humanity. Jesus provides and gives this to believers when they repent and follow Him as their Lord and Savior. First Peter 1:15 says, “Like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior.” Holy in this verse is hagios, a most holy thing, a saint. Hagios is the root word of hagiasmos. It is something we receive and do. We receive from God and act it out for God’s glory while we are here so that others can see and experience whom God is and what He can do for them. Being sanctified is not only being purified by God for His purposes, but is an enacting of what He put in/did within our lives so others can see and come to know Him. Paul gave specifics of what this acting out is with examples from his life in 1 Thessalonians 2 and with his charge in chapter 4:3-12. 

                     In becoming a believer of Jesus Christ, we are renewed so that the perfection of Christ changes the “old man” living in us to the “new man,” the perfect human God intended when He created the world. We become the person God created humanity to be and we can then fulfill humanity’s purpose, to give glory to God. Jesus gives us this perfected image when we believe in Him as our Lord and Savior. He makes us holy, sanctified, and set apart for His original purpose. Jesus is the embodiment of this perfection and gives it. He showed it while He lived on earth. We are to do as Jesus did on earth and as He does now in heaven, give glory to God with our being, actions, and words. This is the working out of our salvation of which Paul spoke in Philippians 2:12-13, “…Work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” [NASB]. Living out sanctification shows the world the believer’s love of God, other believers, and other people. It shows the ultimate love, which is displayed in our sanctification, our choosing to be set apart for God’s purpose, to bring Him glory, and to obey His statutes, precepts, and commands. What were the three commandments Christ left His disciples? From Matthew 22:36-39, love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself. The other commandment Christ gave His disciples when He said, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:35 [NASB]). What in the Old Testament did God say would show the Israelites chose to be His chosen people? When they walk in His statutes and keep His commandments (Leviticus 26:3) He will walk among them and be their God and they will be His people (Leviticus 26:12 [NASB]).  

                    The Israelites were God’s chosen people. God set them apart for Himself. He sanctified/consecrated them and made a covenant with them. The Israelites could never live up to the standard of being holy no matter what they did. They acted in ways to deny their chosen-ness and had to purify/consecrate themselves repeatedly. The Israelites could not keep their side of the covenant. Holiness is a characteristic of God, an attribute. Humankind lost the ability to be set apart as wholly clean for God at the fall of humanity by Adam and Eve. God provided the means for humankind to be sanctified/holy through of Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection, which restores people to the original image God created on the 6^th day of creation. God provided this salvation because of His love.  

                    God, through Jesus, gave us the ability to be made new and set apart for Him. When we believe Jesus is the Son of God and accept His forgiveness, we give ourselves to God and He saves and sanctifies us. As we live each day, we can choose whether to continue to be set apart for God, His service and His glory, or not. If we choose to walk in God’s ways, our sanctification is displayed in our actions and words, which comes from the changed person into whom Jesus makes us. This changed person is a new being and brings with it new attitudes with which to face each day, person, and encounter. This is how we receive and act out sanctification. Sanctification is something we receive and be. If we are truly followers of Christ, our being in Him will result in actions that show our love for God, other Christians, and other people. We work out our salvation, as Paul says in Philippians 2:12-13 “for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose” [NASB]. Receiving and being consecrated/sanctified must be worked out in this world. Our living in Christ in this world means we work as He worked in this world, as servants. We become His disciples to whom He said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20, [NASB]). We do the examples He showed us, caring, loving, touching, helping, healing, preaching, teaching, and being the shining light of God to all people.  

                         Paul closed the first letter to the Thessalonians with admonitions that reflected this understanding of sanctification. He told them to appreciate their leaders (brethren) and love them; live in peace; admonish the unruly; encourage the faint-hearted; help the weak; be patient with all; do only that which is good to all. These are actions or conduct. Next he spoke of their spiritual attitude/behavior - rejoice always; pray without ceasing; give thanks in all things; do not quench the Spirit. Additionally, Paul addressed their mental capacities/judgment by telling them to examine everything and determine what is good and to abstain from evil. Finally, Paul said a prayer over them, as he outlined what their whole selves were: “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23 [NASB]). 

                    Sanctification is not new to Christians. It is being holy and set apart for God and acting as He guides. Yahweh God established sanctification from the seventh day of creation. What is new for those who follow Christ is that we do not have to keep purifying ourselves, as the Old Testament Israelites did, hoping that we are clean enough to be in God’s presence. Jesus provided the purification that each of us needs. When we accept His forgiveness and His salvation, we become His children (His chosen ones) and are purified and made holy to be in God’s presence. With the acceptance of Jesus’ love gift of salvation and the resultant sanctification, our response is love (to God, believers, and other people), which shows our sanctification, being set apart for God’s purposes, glorifying Him. Our being is made new and we act from the perfectness that Christ has made us through His purity and perfectness. This is what Paul tells the Thessalonians, to excel still more, show the sanctification that Jesus put in you through your acts, words, and being. 

                    We come to our final thought. Are we acting out of the sanctification (the calling out of us by God) to show His love? Have accepted Jesus’ free gift of salvation and resultant sanctification? If not, take the time now to ask for His gift of love to you, His forgiveness and salvation. Ask Him to show you Himself and help you to believe. Upon your belief and acceptance of His forgiveness, you will have this new life. You will be set apart for God. You will be sanctified for Him. He will be your God and you will be His child as He promised in Leviticus 26:12.

Pleasing and Acceptable

2 Corinthians 5:9  “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.”

How can we be pleasing and acceptable to God?

I.                    Romans 14:17-18  “For the kingdom of God is… righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  For he who in this way serves Christ and is acceptable to God  and approved by men.”

1.    How are we to be righteous in the Holy Spirit? 

a.      Righteousness is the way in which a man may attain a state approved by God. 

b.      It is integrity, virtue, purity of life, rightness, correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting. 

c.       How do we have integrity, virtue, purity of life, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and action?

2.    What is peace in the Holy Spirit? 

        Peace is – (of Christianity), the tranquil state of…

          i.      a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and

          ii.      content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is.

3.    What is Joy? 

       Joy refers to the extreme happiness with which the believer contemplates salvation and the
       bliss of the afterlife.

II.                  Colossians 1:9-10  “we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and,…so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

1.      How do we walk in a manner worthy of the Lord?  Be filled with the knowledge of His will.

2.   How are we to be filled with the knowledge of His will, spiritual wisdom and understand?  Pray without ceasing, listen to Him and act upon what He says to you through  preaching and teaching, and in studying His Word.

3. What pleases God?  Fruit bearing good work and increasing in the knowledge of Him.  Fruit bearing only occurs if we stay in the Word of God, studying and hearing it and acting upon it in faith as God leads us.

       III.        1 Thessalonians 4:1  “Finally then brethren, we request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, 

                    that as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God

                    (just as you actually do walk), that you excel still more."  Vs. 7 - "For God has not called

                    us for the purpose of impurity, but sanctification."

              How are we to be pleasing and acceptable to God?  To be in His Word and to

              walk in His way. 

How do we excel still more?  In verse 7, God has called us for sanctification.  He has called us to be consecrated and purified for Himself so that not only can we read, hear, and act upon the Word He has given us, but so that we can enter into His presence, so that we can be in His presence in heaven for eternity.  He has provided for us a way to purification for all eternity through Jesus His only begotten Son.

This is the joy we have in the Holy Spirit.   

What was our original question? 

How can we be pleasing and acceptable to the Lord? 

This is the way to be Pleasing and Acceptable to God -

 to read and study His Word,

growing in knowledge and a closer relationship to Him,  

so that we love Him more and become more like Him, and

walking in His way. 

This is righteousness as prepared by God.  From this comes peace and joy.

Saved and Sanctified

1 Thessalonians 5 (NASB)

9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

 23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

            In verse 9, not only does Paul say that we believers in Jesus are saved, but we are saved from wrath, God’s judgment. Paul is showing the opposite of God’s salvation, His wrath on humanity for their sin, their turning away from Him. We see God destined and planned for us not to experience His anger at our sin. Sin makes us unholy and separates us from Him and the relationship He created us to be in with Him. We see from verse 9 what God’s plan was from the beginning of the world, to give us deliverance from the sin into which our free will placed us. This deliverance comes by the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. Salvation is not something we can get for ourselves, salvation is something God has in mind for us from the beginning of the world; our life with Him was destined, but our sin stole it away. Salvation is deliverance to safety of our souls. The gift of Jesus is from God. The gift of salvation is from God. The gift of relationship is from God. There is nothing we can do to make any of this happen; salvation is from God.   

The 23^rd verse compels us to offer our whole self to God, not just a part. Often when we come to Christ, we accept with joy the gift of forgiveness of sin and eternal life, but we hold back pieces of our life. Sometimes we do this by separating our life into parts, for example school, work, church, and friends. God did not send His Son to be this sacrifice for salvation just to save part of us. Jesus did not partly die; He died completely in His human form. This is what Paul is telling the Thessalonians in this letter when he says, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely.” God wants you to give Him all your life, your soul and body, your work and play, your religious times and your profane times. God wants to sanctify you completely.   

Sanctify means to be holy or set apart from profane things. How can God make us entirely holy if we do not give Him all our life? You cannot be somewhat holy. Remember what Jesus said about the cup? If the inside of the cup is clean, the wine is clean. What is on the outside does not determine cleanliness, but what is on the inside, in your spirit. God wants you to give Him every part of you, your thoughts, actions and relationships. What does this mean then? We must offer ourselves as a sacrifice, as Paul told Timothy at the end of 2 Timothy, as an offering to God. Paul said he offered himself as a drink offering to God. You have to understand, God does not ask every one of us to serve Him to the point we are arrested and killed. What He is asking us to do is give ourselves completely to God so we are willing to do just that, should the need arise, so we are willing to die for our belief in Him if the need arose. To offer ourselves completely, we must pray through each facet of our lives, give each part to God one at a time, and keep giving ourselves to Him each day and each minute.   

In these two verses, we see a progression from the moment of salvation from our sins to the journey of giving our whole selves daily to God for His purpose, being set apart for His service, being sanctified for Him. Salvation is a journey; being a Christian is a journey. Jesus did not tell His disciples just to go and make disciples. He told them to go and keep on going. Jesus told them to disciple and keep on discipling. We are to keep learning, keep, going, keep teaching, and keep growing in Christ likeness. Paul is saying offer and keep on offering, sacrifice and keep on sacrificing yourself to God so He can sanctify you entirely, your soul and body. We must each day sacrifice our desires for the purposes of God, to work wholly committed and dedicated to Him. God wants us to dedicate ourselves to Him so He can consecrate us wholly to His work and for eternity in His kingdom. This is sanctification, the giving to God all of ourselves, soul and body, so He can make us Holy, purify and consecrate us fully, for eternity. God wants us to be preserved complete, to be offered up to Him completely.   

The questions remain, have you asked God for forgiveness of your sins, all those times when you chose what you wanted and disregarded what God wanted? Have you accepted His gift of salvation from your sins? Do you offer to God daily a sacrifice of your whole self, body and soul, work, church, school, and play? Finally, if you do, accept His sanctifying power to dedicate you exclusively to Himself and His service and to preserve you to live in His kingdom and to be in His presence forever. Be set aside and consecrated, be devoted and dedicated, solely for God and for your God-given fulfillment.

Definitions: 

Salvation – a preservation of self; a deliverance from our sinful self; that which concludes to the soul’s safety or salvation; complete deliverance of the spirit, soul and body.

Sanctify - to render or acknowledge, or to be venerable or hallow, to separate from profane things and dedicate to God; consecrate things to God; dedicate people to God; to purify; to cleanse externally; to purify by expiation: free from the guilt of sin; to purify internally by renewing of the soul.

Entirely – perfectly and completely.

Preserved - to attend to carefully, take care of; to guard; metaphor  to keep, one in the state in which he is; to observe; to reserve: to undergo something.