1 Thessalonians Study: 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12 (Be Holy!)

This section is difficult to teach, especially if children are in the study! But, a good Bible teacher cannot avoid such subjects as pornography, fornication, adultery, infidelity, homosexuality, LGBT, same-sex marriage, etc. especially in the present days with the moral collapse in this country and the rest of the "Christian" world. Paul wants the Thessalonians (and us) to live God-pleasing, pure, holy (sanctified) lives, free from sexual sin, in view of the second coming of Jesus Christ - the subject of the next section.

One of the problems these new Christians had was their previous involvement with pagan temple worship which included the practice of fornication with temple women and, probably, with men also. Having become Christians, they had to change their lives. In contrast to the Jews who had the Law, these Gentiles had come out of gross idolatry which had little restraint on their morality. It was extremely hard for these new believers to fight the temptations around them - as it is today, especially for young people who are so subject to peer pressure. Adults, especially Christian parents, need to be an example to their children. The fact that “anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17) doesn’t mean there is an immediate change - notice the word BEGUN in the verse. Sanctification is a growing process in which the Holy Spirit makes us aware of areas of our lives that are sinful and not surrendered to Him.

Leon Morris, in The Tyndale Commentary on this epistle, writes: “The environment of the Thessalonian Christians was one in which most men thought little of the sin involved in fornication. They accepted it simply as part of normal life, so much so that ritual fornication played a part in the worship of more than one deity, and men in general found it difficult to feel deeply on the subject.”

Barclay: "Long ago Demosthenes had written: 'We keep prostitutes for pleasure; we keep mistresses for the day to day needs of the body; we keep wives for the begetting of children and for the faithful guardianship of our homes.' So long as a man supported his wife and family there was no shame whatsoever in extra-marital relationships."

Today, we live in a sex obsessed society - movies, music, TV, internet, billboard signs, etc. all make a god of sex outside of marriage. According to the most recent research, 60 percent of all men who are online are involved with pornography. Pornographic sites abound. Sometimes you happen upon them when you are innocently “surfing.” Many look to it for fulfillment and meaning and eventually find it unfulfilling, instead of looking to God who is the only one who can give us peace. So, they give free rein to lust, with only the barest of restrictions, like "just don’t hurt others". But, Christians are held to a higher standard. As Barclay says, "The new morality is only the old morality brought up to date."

What does morality have to do with primary message of Christ's second coming in these letters to the Thessalonians? If we are not living our lives like we believe Jesus could come at any moment, we need to question where we are with in our relationship with Him or whether we are even really saved!

(1) Finally, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you in the name of the Lord Jesus to live in a way that pleases God, as we have taught you. You live this way already, and we encourage you to do so even more.

Live in a way that pleases God:
- The believer should constantly in his daily life ask himself this question, "Am I living a life that pleases God?".
- Six Characteristics of a Worthy Walk (a study of Colossians 1:10-12 by Dr. Paul M. Elliott) (www.teachingtheword.org/apps/articles/web/articleid/71589/columnid/6432/default.asp):
- Romans 8:6-8: So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.
- Ephesians 4:1: Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God.
- Colossians 1:9-10: So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.
Taught you:

Ron Daniel: "For the three weeks Paul was there, he had covered quite a bit of area in his teaching. We can be sure that he started with the gospel. When Paul preached the gospel, this is what he presented: Christ's death, His burial, His resurrection, and the validation of the resurrection with witnesses. Not only had he covered the basics of the gospel of Jesus Christ, but we find from his letter that during that time, he also had taught them about repentance, serving God, the rapture of the church, the second coming, about suffering persecution, about eternal rewards, about predestination, and about how to walk this Christian walk. And this is what he's reminding them about: walking the walk, pleasing God."

Even more:

The Greek word for "even more" was used to describe a flower going from a bud to full bloom - very descriptive of a Christian's growth to full maturity which should be our goal.

(2) For you remember what we taught you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.

By the authority of the Lord Jesus:

Since the instructions come from the Lord Jesus, rejecting these instructions is rejecting God himself (verse 8). Rejecting God's command invites judgment and punishment (verse 6). The implication of a knowing and persistent defiance is that the person is not a true child of God.

(3) God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin.

KJV: For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication
God's will:
- Ron Daniel: "You want to know God's will? You don't have to wonder. Here it is: "It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality" (1 Thessalonians 4:3). There is no sense seeking God's will in other areas when you are choosing to live in sexual impurity in your mind or body. Then it goes on to explain, "Don't get drunk, always give thanks, wives should behave this way in a marriage, and men should behave this way, children obey your parents," and it continues on like that. So the fact is, you already know what God's will for your life is: excel in your Christian walk and live to be pleasing to God! The problems we have knowing God's will is when we're walking in the world's ways. We feel insecure about every decision, because, frankly, no matter what decision you make, you're out of the will of God! That's why Romans 12:2 says, 'And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.' If you want to know if the direction you're taking, whether it's a job change, a fiancé, a location move, etc., is in the will of God, don't keep praying, "Hey God, left or right? Up or down? This or that?" Pray, "Lord, is my life in your will? Am I giving thanks in every situation? Am I fulfilling my role in my marriage? Am I living in a way that is pleasing to you? Am I walking a straight walk?" If your life is in the will of God, your direction will also be in the will of God."
- Scripture tells us here and in these verses what His will for us is:
Be holy:

"Holy" or “sanctified” is the Greek hagiasmos, from hagiazo, “to set apart, consecrate, dedicate, sanctify.”
It is His command that you should be holy (sanctified, set apart). It means here purity of life, and particularly sexual purity.
In a world of sin, Christians are to be different. That’s what the word “sanctification” means. A sanctified person is a Christian whose life is “distinctively different” because it is set apart for God. Franky Schaeffer (son of Francis Schaeffer) put it this way: “In America today, the most radical thing a person can do is to be the husband of one wife or the wife of one husband.”
Adam Clark's Commentary observes: “God has called you to holiness; he requires that you should be holy; for without holiness none can see the Lord. This is the general calling, but in it many particulars are included. Some of these he proceeds to mention; and it is very likely that these had been points on which he gave them particular instructions while among them.”
1 Peter 1:13-16: So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

Sexual sin: Greek - porneia from which is derived from pernaō, "to sell off") – properly, a selling off (surrendering) of sexual purity; promiscuity of any (every) type. We get our word pornography from porneia. Porneia is a broad word, referring to any sexual relationship outside of the marriage covenant. All sexual behavior outside of the marriage covenant is sin.
- My Jewish room-mate in college practiced fornication without understanding it was a sin. He felt that adultery was wrong but what he was doing was fine because he and the woman, a widow, were not married. So, what's the difference between fornication and adultery? The modern dictionary definition of fornication is voluntary sexual intercourse between persons not married to each other (which would include adultery) and adultery is voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and a partner other than the lawful spouse.
- Paul calls us to think and live differently - we should be different from the unbelievers, who have no relationship with God. Failing to be aware of God's unchanging standard and the Spirit's conviction, some have lost sensitivity to the gross immorality among them and around them.
- As Bruce has pointed out, in Greek religion, prostitution was considered a priestly prerogative, and extramarital sex was sometimes an act of worship. But to a Christian the will of God is clear: holiness and sexual immorality are mutually exclusive. No appeal to Christian liberty can justify fornication. Christians are to avoid and abstain from any and every form of sexual practice that lies outside the circle of God’s revealed will; Christians are to avoid adultery, premarital and extramarital intercourse, homosexuality and other perversions.
- Bruce writes "While porneia means primarily traffic with harlots (pornai), … it may denote any form of illicit sexual relationship. But “immorality” is too vague a rendering. In some New Testament passages porneia appears to have a more general sense. Christianity from the outset has sanctified sexual union within marriage (as in Judaism); outside marriage it was forbidden. This was a strange notion in the pagan society to which the gospel was first brought; there various forms of extramarital sexual union were tolerated and some were even encouraged. A man might have a mistress (hetaira) who could provide him also with intellectual companionship; the institution of slavery made it easy for him to have a concubine (pollake), while casual gratification was readily available from a harlot (porne). … There was no body of public opinion to discourage porneia, … Certain forms of public religion, indeed, involved ritual porneia. In Thessalonica it was sanctioned by the cult of Cabiri of Samothrace, …"
- Randy Alcorn (http://www.new-testament-christian.com/purity.html): "Sexual purity is not an option for an obedient Christian, it's a requirement. God's will is centered on our character and moral purity much more than on our circumstances, such as job, housing and schooling. Sex and marriage go together. Sexual union is intended as an expression of a commitment, a symbol of the spiritual union that exists only within the unconditional commitment of marriage. Apart from marriage, the lasting commitment is absent and the sex act becomes a false expression, a lie. Every act of sex outside of marriage cheapens both sex and marriage. Sex is a privilege inseparable from the responsibilities of marriage. To exercise the privilege apart from the responsibility perverts God's intention both for sex and for marriage. Sex is designed to be the joining of two persons, of two spirits, not just two bodies. Sex should be giving to someone to whom I'm 100% committed (as measured by the state of legal marriage), not taking from someone to whom I'm uncommitted or partially committed. "But we really love each other" has no bearing on the ethics of sexual intimacy - sex does not become permissible through subjective feelings, but through the objective lifelong commitment of marriage."

Job 31:1: “I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust at a young woman.
Proverbs 5:3-4,20-21: For the lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil. But in the end she is as bitter as poison, as dangerous as a double-edged sword.
Proverbs 6:23-29: For their command is a lamp and their instruction a light; their corrective discipline is the way to life. It will keep you from the immoral woman, from the smooth tongue of a promiscuous woman. Don’t lust for her beauty. Don’t let her coy glances seduce you. For a prostitute will bring you to poverty, but sleeping with another man’s wife will cost you your life. Can a man scoop a flame into his lap and not have his clothes catch on fire? Can he walk on hot coals and not blister his feet? So it is with the man who sleeps with another man’s wife. He who embraces her will not go unpunished. ... Why be captivated, my son, by an immoral woman, or fondle the breasts of a promiscuous woman? For the Lord sees clearly what a man does examining, every path he takes.
Proverbs 7:21-27: So she seduced him with her pretty speech and enticed him with her flattery. He followed her at once, like an ox going to the slaughter. He was like a stag caught in a trap, awaiting the arrow that would pierce its heart. He was like a bird flying into a snare, little knowing it would cost him his life. So listen to me, my sons, and pay attention to my words. Don’t let your hearts stray away toward her. Don’t wander down her wayward path. For she has been the ruin of many; many men have been her victims. Her house is the road to the grave. Her bedroom is the den of death.
Matthew 5:28: But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Matthew 15:19: For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality [porneia], theft, lying, and slander.
John 8:41 King James Version (KJV): Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication [porneia]; we have one Father, even God.
Romans 1:25-28: They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved. Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done.

Romans 13:13-14: Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.
Galatians 5:19: When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures,
1 Corinthians 5:1: I can hardly believe the report about the sexual immorality going on among you - something that even pagans don’t do. I am told that a man in your church is living in sin with his stepmother.
1 Corinthians 5:9-11: When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10,13,18: Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people - none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God. ... You say, “Food was made for the stomach, and the stomach for food.” (This is true, though someday God will do away with both of them.) But you can’t say that our bodies were made for sexual immorality. They were made for the Lord, and the Lord cares about our bodies. ... Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body.
1 Corinthians 7:2: But because there is so much sexual immorality [porneia], each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband.
1 Corinthians 10:8: And we must not engage in sexual immorality as some of them did, causing 23,000 of them to die in one day.
2 Corinthians 12:21: Yes, I am afraid that when I come again, God will humble me in your presence. And I will be grieved because many of you have not given up your old sins. You have not repented of your impurity, sexual immorality [porneia], and eagerness for lustful pleasure.
Ephesians 4:19: With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.
Ephesians 5:3: Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people.
Philippians 4:8: And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
Colossians 3:5: So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality [porneia], impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.
2 Timothy 2:22: Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts.
Hebrews 13:4: Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery.
1 Peter 4:3: You have had enough in the past of the evil things that godless people enjoy - their immorality and lust, their feasting and drunkenness and wild parties, and their terrible worship of idols.
Jude 7: And don’t forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God’s judgment.
Revelation 2:14-16: “But I have a few complaints against you. You tolerate some among you whose teaching is like that of Balaam, who showed Balak how to trip up the people of Israel. He taught them to sin by eating food offered to idols and by committing sexual sin. In a similar way, you have some Nicolaitans among you who follow the same teaching. Repent of your sin, or I will come to you suddenly and fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
Revelation 2:20-23: “But I have this complaint against you. You are permitting that woman - that Jezebel who calls herself a prophet - to lead my servants astray. She teaches them to commit sexual sin and to eat food offered to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she does not want to turn away from her immorality [porneia]. “Therefore, I will throw her on a bed of suffering, and those who commit adultery with her will suffer greatly unless they repent and turn away from her evil deeds. I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am the one who searches out the thoughts and intentions of every person. And I will give to each of you whatever you deserve.
Revelation 9:21: And they did not repent of their murders or their witchcraft or their sexual immorality [porneia] or their thefts.

Stay away from all sexual sin:
- When a person comes to know God by faith in Jesus Christ, not only should his attitudes toward sex and marriage drastically change, as he gains a knowledge of the Word, but he also discovers that God gives him the ability to handle sexual temptation as he couldn’t before.
- For former pagans, the lure of sexual sins was strong. Paul feared they might fall back into their old pagan ways.
- Paul understands what an intense arena of battle this was then and is now. Our sanctification is constantly under attack in this particular area of our lives, and he wants these people to pay attention to it.
- Sexual temptation has been a great tool of the devil. Even King David experienced sexual temptation and yielded to this deadly sin:
  - 2 Samuel 11:2-5,14-17,26-27; 12:7-10,13-14: Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. He sent someone to find out who she was, and he was told, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” Then David sent messengers to get her; and when she came to the palace, he slept with her. She had just completed the purification rites after having her menstrual period. Then she returned home. Later, when Bathsheba discovered that she was pregnant, she sent David a message, saying, “I’m pregnant.” ... So the next morning David wrote a letter to Joab and gave it to Uriah to deliver. The letter instructed Joab, “Station Uriah on the front lines where the battle is fiercest. Then pull back so that he will be killed.” So Joab assigned Uriah to a spot close to the city wall where he knew the enemy’s strongest men were fighting. And when the enemy soldiers came out of the city to fight, Uriah the Hittite was killed along with several other Israelite soldiers. ... When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. When the period of mourning was over, David sent for her and brought her to the palace, and she became one of his wives. Then she gave birth to a son. But the Lord was displeased with what David had done. ... Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! The Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king of Israel and saved you from the power of Saul. I gave you your master’s house and his wives and the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. And if that had not been enough, I would have given you much, much more. Why, then, have you despised the word of the Lord and done this horrible deed? For you have murdered Uriah the Hittite with the sword of the Ammonites and stolen his wife. From this time on, your family will live by the sword because you have despised me by taking Uriah’s wife to be your own. ... Then David confessed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan replied, “Yes, but the Lord has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this sin. Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the word of the Lord by doing this, your child will die.”
- In contrast, Joseph was victorious over sexual temptation (but it cost him at first):
  - Genesis 39:6-20: So Potiphar gave Joseph complete administrative responsibility over everything he owned. With Joseph there, he didn’t worry about a thing - except what kind of food to eat! Joseph was a very handsome and well-built young man, and Potiphar’s wife soon began to look at him lustfully. “Come and sleep with me,” she demanded. But Joseph refused. “Look,” he told her, “my master trusts me with everything in his entire household. No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God.” She kept putting pressure on Joseph day after day, but he refused to sleep with her, and he kept out of her way as much as possible. One day, however, no one else was around when he went in to do his work. She came and grabbed him by his cloak, demanding, “Come on, sleep with me!” Joseph tore himself away, but he left his cloak in her hand as he ran from the house.

(4) Then each of you will control his own body and live in holiness and honor -

Control his own body:
- Randy Alcorn: "Your body will go where your mind allows it to. When it comes to your sexual purity, the ultimate battle is in your mind. Don't give your mind junk food. Be sure you're getting spiritual nutrition."
- Ray Stedman: "No believer can give the excuse that he could not do what God told him to do. If he offers that excuse, he is but kidding himself; or else, he is forgetting that he has been provided with an extra resource. He may need to exercise his will to "just say 'No,'" but then he must immediately cast himself upon the Spirit of God within him, the Lord Jesus made available by the Spirit. Then, resting upon that presence, he must turn and walk away. And he can do it. He has the power to do it. There are millions that can testify that what they could not do by their will they were able to do by relying on the power of God."
- 1 Corinthians 6:20: for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.
Honor:
- Immorality is the opposite of honor because it degrades and debases. Those who do not restrain their sexual desires act more like animals than humans, following every impulse without restraint.

(5) not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways

Lustful passion:
- Sex only becomes wrong when it controls one’s life and goes beyond the limits of the marriage relationship.
- Lust is the opposite of love. Lust says, “I want,” while love asks, “What can I do for you?”
The pagans:
- This plainly means that the sexual conduct of the Christian should be different than the prevailing permissiveness of the day. Hiebert: "The Gentiles knew gods who were the personification of their own ambitions and lusts but they did not know the true God, the God who is Himself holy and wills the sanctification of His followers."
- Ephesians 4:17-24: With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him. They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity. But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God - truly righteous and holy.

(6) Never harm or cheat a fellow believer in this matter by violating his wife, for the Lord avenges all such sins, as we have solemnly warned you before.

Violating his wife:

Exodus 20:17: “You must not covet your neighbor’s house. You must not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.”
Leviticus 18:20: “Do not defile yourself by having sexual intercourse with your neighbor’s wife.
Leviticus 20:10: “If a man commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, both the man and the woman who have committed adultery must be put to death.
Deuteronomy 22:22-24: “If a man is discovered committing adultery, both he and the woman must die. In this way, you will purge Israel of such evil. “Suppose a man meets a young woman, a virgin who is engaged to be married, and he has sexual intercourse with her. If this happens within a town, you must take both of them to the gates of that town and stone them to death. The woman is guilty because she did not scream for help. The man must die because he violated another man’s wife. In this way, you will purge this evil from among you.
Matthew 5:27-28: “You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
John 8:4-11: “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?” They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!" Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust. When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?” “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”
1 Corinthians 7:2: But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband.
Avenges all such sins:
- Ray Stedman: "God so loves this race of ours and so longs to see beautiful, whole people emerging from it that he will take drastic action when men and women violate his will. Silently, invisibly, his judgment falls. Believer and unbeliever alike cannot escape the painful results of sinful choices. That is the law of inevitable consequences. If we choose to sin, there will be evil results. We cannot avoid it. We can be forgiven, but that does not change the evil results. Forgiveness restores the broken relationship and gives us strength to walk on in freedom in the future, but it does not change or eliminate the hurt of the past." "God's standards cannot be violated. He has ways of bringing to pass his judgments and nobody can evade it."
- That is what has happened here in the United States, where one half of all children today live with single parents. Families have been broken and children parceled out to strangers. And, to make matters even worse, that same pattern so often repeats itself in the next generations, much to the delight of Satan.
- There is a future aspect of loss of rewards for those believers who ignore God’s truth and persist in sin even when warned.
- God takes these sexual issues very seriously. God sees everything you do and sexual sin will be judged by God:
- 2 Corinthians 5:9-10: So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him. For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.

(7) God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives.

Live holy lives:
- The noun used here is hagiasmos (“sanctification”), which occurs here for the fourth time in this epistle and the verb hagiazo [“to sanctify”] is used in 5:23.
Not impure lives:
- “Impure” is the Greek akatharsia, “uncleanness, filthiness, impurity.” It literally means “refuse” and was used of the contents of graves. From this, it came to be used of sexual sins. This gives us some idea of God’s attitude toward such sin.
- Walvoord and Zuck: “Sexual immorality frustrates the purpose of God’s call. Certain pagan cults promoted unclean ceremonies, but Christ’s plans for a Christian are to clean him up. A holy life demonstrates God’s supernatural power at work overcoming what is natural, and it glorifies God."

(8) Therefore, anyone who refuses to live by these rules is not disobeying human teaching but is rejecting God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Rejecting God:
- These are not “moral guidelines” but God’s command. It’s an issue of personal obedience. If you reject God's command to sexual purity, you reject God.
- To reject means to treat with utter contempt. This is what Nathan meant when he asked David, “Why, then, have you despised the word of the Lord and done this horrible deed?” (2 Samuel 12:9) By committing adultery and then ordering Uriah murdered to cover it up, he had treated God’s holy commands with utter contempt. He knew it was wrong and yet he did it anyway. You can’t have it both ways. Either be pure … or stop calling yourself a Christian!
Gives his Holy Spirit to you:
- The word “gives” is present tense. In this case, it means that God gives and keeps on giving the Spirit to you. You have the Holy Spirit always within you. Therefore, when God commands you to abstain, He also gives you the power to obey. God has provided the Holy Spirit as our enabler.
- Walvoord and Zuck: "Lest anyone feel that God is asking more than is reasonable of weak mortals, Paul concluded this exhortation with a reminder that God has also given believers His indwelling Spirit. This Person of the Trinity is so characterized by holiness that He is called the Holy Spirit. The indwelling Holy Spirit has power enough to enable any Christian to learn how to control his own body, even in a pagan, immoral climate. The exhortation is to avoid sexual immorality; the enablement comes from the Holy Spirit."

(9) But we don’t need to write to you about the importance of loving each other, for God himself has taught you to love one another.

Loving each other:

In verses 9 and 10, Christian love is introduced in contrast to lust.
The Tyndale Commentary writes: “Outside the New Testament, the word philadelphia almost invariably denotes the love binding together the children of one father; in the New Testament it is without exception used for the love uniting Christians to one another.”

God himself has taught you:
- How does Paul know God, not just himself, has taught them? They are doing it. Verse 10: “you already show your love for all the believers throughout Macedonia”
Love one another:
- Love here is agape - we are to love one another with God's love.
- John 13:34: So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.
- Romans 5:5: And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
- 1 John 3:14: If we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead.

(10) Indeed, you already show your love for all the believers throughout Macedonia. Even so, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you to love them even more.

Love them even more:
- Philippians 1:9: I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding.
- 1 Thessalonians 3:12: And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows.

(11) Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before.

Minding your own business:
- 1 Peter 4:15: If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs.
Working with your hands:
- The Wycliffe Bible Commentary states that: “Greeks shunned manual labor, and Paul had taught the Thessalonians by word (the Lord was a carpenter) and by example (the apostle was a tent-maker) that the Christian doctrine of creation implies the Christian doctrine of vocation: God made everything good; therefore, man can perform the most menial tasks knowing that he is in touch with the Creator's handiwork; further, he can do them to God’s glory.” The Thessalonians may have resembled the Athenians of whom Luke wrote: “All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.” (Acts 17:21)
- Although the Greek generally looked down on manual labor as the work of slaves and others, the Jews did not have this attitude.
- Ephesians 4:28: If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need.
- 1 Thessalonians 2:9: Don’t you remember, dear brothers and sisters, how hard we worked among you? Night and day we toiled to earn a living so that we would not be a burden to any of you as we preached God’s Good News to you.
- They don't seem to have paid attention to Paul's admonition, so he wrote again in his next letter: 2 Thessalonians 3:11-12: Yet we hear that some of you are living idle lives, refusing to work and meddling in other people’s business. We command such people and urge them in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and work to earn their own living
- 1 Timothy 5:13: And if they are on the list, they will learn to be lazy and will spend their time gossiping from house to house, meddling in other people’s business and talking about things they shouldn’t.

(12) Then people who are not believers will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others.

Respect the way you live:
- Someone is watching you and asking, "Is he or she for real? Is he or she going to slip up and remove the religious mask and show who they really are? Does Christ really change lives?" The unbelieving world is watching and we should always be concerned about how our lives look to those outside the body of Christ. What they want to see is authenticity - lives that back up our profession with works and a walk consistent with our talk.
Not need to depend on others:
- The phrase “so that you will not depend on others” refers, of course, to financial independence. Our lifestyle is more convincing than our words. Paul and Jesus would not have supported our present welfare system that encourages people not to work and to pass that attitude on to succeeding generations. Government loves that system because it makes people dependent on the government. Of course, to implement that policy, the government must then take from those who are working and give it to those who won't work.
- One very good reason we are to behave in this way is simply this: The world needs to be shown Christians who are not seen as pious beggars, but as hard working, quiet citizens, ready to give in time of need.
- Their expectation of the immediate coming of Christ led some enthusiasts among them to neglect their daily work and be dependent on the largesse of others. This became worse as reproved in 2 Thessalonians 3:6-12:
  - And now, dear brothers and sisters, we give you this command in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ: Stay away from all believers who live idle lives and don’t follow the tradition they received from us. For you know that you ought to imitate us. We were not idle when we were with you. We never accepted food from anyone without paying for it. We worked hard day and night so we would not be a burden to any of you. We certainly had the right to ask you to feed us, but we wanted to give you an example to follow. Even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “Those unwilling to work will not get to eat.” Yet we hear that some of you are living idle lives, refusing to work and meddling in other people’s business. We command such people and urge them in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and work to earn their own living.

NOTE: Chapter 4 verses 13-18 belong much better with chapter 5. Chapter breaks are man-made.

APPLICATION:

Remember who you are in Christ. You are a child of God, a totally new creation, you are saved, redeemed, justified, forgiven, regenerated, and seated with Christ in heavenly places. All the promises of God now belong to you. You bear the name of your Heavenly Father. You are called to live to His glory. You were made for better things! You were not made to live in sin.
How can you please God? What is his will for your life? Thankfully, we don’t have to wonder about answer to those questions God’s Word makes it clear. Abstain from sexual immorality. That is his will for your life. Do that and you will please him.
Jesus proclaims to every broken sinner. “Go and sin no more.” You can’t do a thing to change the past and it’s a waste of time to try. However, you can do something about the future. Thank the Lord for 1 John 1:9: But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

NEXT STUDY:

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Thessalonians 5: And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words. Now concerning how and when all this will happen, dear brothers and sisters, we don’t really need to write you. For you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. When people are saying, “Everything is peaceful and secure,” then disaster will fall on them as suddenly as a pregnant woman’s labor pains begin. And there will be no escape. But you aren’t in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won’t be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief. For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. Night is the time when people sleep and drinkers get drunk. But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation. For God chose to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us. Christ died for us so that, whether we are dead or alive when he returns, we can live with him forever. So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. Dear brothers and sisters, honor those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you and give you spiritual guidance. Show them great respect and wholehearted love because of their work. And live peacefully with each other. Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people. Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil. Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. God will make this happen, for he who calls you is faithful. Dear brothers and sisters, pray for us. Greet all the brothers and sisters with a sacred kiss. I command you in the name of the Lord to read this letter to all the brothers and sisters. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

NOTES:

Unless otherwise noted, the scripture version used is the New Living Translation, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois.
Disclaimer: Source material for this study has been gleaned from many different sources. If you want further study, I have attempted to acknowledge these sources at http://1thessaloniansstudy.blogspot.com/2015/08/1-thessalonians-references.html
Index to all our studies are at http://oakview-bible-fellowship.blogspot.com/

1 Thessalonians Study

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

1 Thessalonians 4:1-12 (Be Holy!)

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