If I were to say to you, “What is a fruit that is yellow, about 6 or 8 inches long, curved and grows in bunches?”, would you almost instantly picture a banana in your mind? Would you be able to describe a banana to someone without using terms like “yellow”, “fruit”, “curved”, “bunch” and such words? It would be tough. In the same way, could you describe a “Christian” without using words like “Christlike”, “loving”, “forgiving”, or “patient”? Furthermore, if someone was describing YOU, would you fit that description? Read on for an overview of our Sunday School lesson from August 11, 2013.
This week’s was a continuation of our study of Paul. Paul, as you may recall, was a missionary. He started a number of churches throughout what is modern-day Turkey and Greece. Today’s text comes from a letter he wrote to a church he started in Thessalonica, which is an ancient Greek city. Here is the text from 1 Thessalonians 5:12-24 (NIV):
Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else. Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.
As I was preparing for this lesson, I read through the text first. As I read this, it began to dawn on me that what Paul is doing is describing behaviors that should be common among believers. He said we should show respect and love for our church leadership, we should be living in peace with each other, warning those who are doing wrong and some other things. From this text, you can identify SEVERAL items that should describe every christian.
In class, we talked about the idea that God provides instructions for how we SHOULD live in His word. There are plenty of “thou shalt not” passages as well, but these are some of the “thou shalt” instructions. We discussed a few of these in class, but our focus was on learning how to glean these living instructions from His word. I want to discuss a little of what I learned from this text later in this post, but first, I want to give you the “cliff notes” version of what we covered in class.
The bible is a book. For those of you who are “readers”, you can often read a book very quickly. Personally, I can read a good 3-400 page book in a couple of days or less. We should not pick up the bible with the intent to read it all the way through in a month or two. It isn’t a novel and shouldn’t be treated as such. It is a personal letter written TO each one of us FROM God. Because of this, I will often replace words in bible readings to make them more personal. For example, here is how I read John 3:16-17. First, the original text (NIV): For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Now personalized, it looks like this: For God loved me so much he gave his one and only Son, and if I believe in him, I will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the me, but to save me through him. Now, we must be careful when changing the words in the scripture, but this is how God uses His word to speak to us. It is much more than just a book. It is PERSONAL. That is the first part of Bible study: REALIZE GOD SPEAKS TO YOU THROUGH HIS WORD.
So, when we read His word, we should begin by asking God to speak to us through our reading. A short prayer like, “Lord, as I read my bible, please speak to me and show me the message you have for me.” is a start. Understanding that this is one way God teaches us is important, but asking for a clear understanding is also important. There are a number of denominations within the christian church and this realization alone should give us pause to ask for understanding. After all, many of these denominations exist because there are differences of opinion on the meaning of certain passages. So the second point in hearing from God through His word is: ASK FOR UNDERSTANDING.
Finally, as you read (slowly), look for God’s commands to you. It often helps to write these down. Maybe God’s message is one that shows you a specific area of sin in your life. Maybe he will reveal His will for your life. Perhaps he will burden you for someone else. Whatever message he reveals, we should be ready to receive it and ACT ON IT. When I tell my kids, “go clean your room”, my expectation is that the next time I look in their room it will either be clean or they will be working on it. God is no different in this regard. When he speaks to us, it is his desire that we act on his instruction. Whatever that message is. So, the third point in our class was this: BE PREPARED TO HEAR FROM GOD AND THEN ACT ON WHAT YOU HEAR.
That was our focus for class. I sent the kids home with a litle “homework” this week. They should be practicing these things and follow the sheet from their books, as they study 1 Thess 5:12-24.
Back to what God spoke to ME in this passage. As I said, there are a number of line items that describe what God expects from his children. Here is the list:
- Acknowledge those who work hard among you
- Who care for you in the Lord
- Who admonish you
- Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work
- Live in peace with each other
- Warn those who are idle and disruptive
- Encourage the disheartened
- Help the weak
- Be patient with everyone
- Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong
- Always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else
- Rejoice always
- Pray continually
- Give thanks in all circumstances
- Do not quench the Spirit
- Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all
- Hold on to what is good
- Reject every kind of evil
Each of those items is straight from the text. Taken as a group, they describe attitudes and behaviors that should be common in ALL of God’s children. That includes ME. Yikes! For such a short passage, there are a number of “thou shalts” that I seem to be NOT doing. God showed me that if we were constructing a model of a Christian, these are the attributes it should include. How can we describe a Christian without using words like “praying man”, “rejects evil”, “thankful” and so on? It would be impossible. It is my prayer that when someone describes me that the same would be true. Do I “look like” a Christian? I strive to live my life in such a way that will allow others to see Jesus (and his influence) in me.
As I look at my own life, I realize that I am NOT the perfect model of a Christian man. Truthfully, none of us are. This is where God’s grace is applied. The bible teaches that “God’s grace is sufficient” for ALL of my imperfections. This does not give me license to continue to sin, just because I know he will forgive that sin. Indeed, it is just the opposite. As I realize how much God loves me, and as my love grows for Him, I strive to be ever closer to the man He wants me to be. My sin separates me from Him and is the reason he had to send his son in the first place. I don’t ever want to be separated from him. He loves me and I love him. Because of that, I want to live in a way that pleases him. Maybe I can expand a little on this concept in future articles.