1 THESSALONIANS: "Occupying until Christ Comes" April 17, 2012

Transcription

1 Fellowship Bible Church WOMEN IN THE WORD 1 THESSALONIANS: "Occupying until Christ Comes" HOLY LIVING (Part 2) 1 Thessalonians 5:23-28 April 17, 2012 INTRO (Col. 2:6). 1 Thess 5:23-28 (NKJV) 23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. ANOTHER BENEDICTION 23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. AMP: And may the God of peace Himself sanctify you through and through [separate you from profane things, and make you pure and wholly consecrated to God]; and may your spirit, soul and body be preserved sound and complete [and found] blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (the messiah). Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; God of Peace. This word for peace means (to join); peace (literal or figurative); by implication prosperity :- one, peace, quietness, rest, + set at one again. Strong's Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary Himself sanctify you - completely -complete to the end, i.e. absolutely perfect :- wholly. Strong's Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary and may your whole spirit, soul, and body 1

2 Heb 4:12 (NLT) For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires Eph 2:1-2 "whole"- (spirit, soul and body) from <G3650> (holos) and <G2819> (kleros); complete in every part, i.e. perfectly sound (in body) :- entire, whole. Strong's Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary Dr Zodiates' Lexical Aid: "whole, having all its parts; that which retains all that was allotted to it at the first, wanting nothing for its completeness; bodily, mental and moral entireness. This word expresses the perfection of man BEFORE the fall". James 1:4 Phil 3:20-21 (NLT) But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. 21 He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control. 1 Cor 13:12 (NLT) Now we see things imperfectly as in a cloudy mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. The Weaver My life is but a weaving, between my Lord and me; I cannot choose the colors, He worketh steadily. Oft times He worketh sorrow, And I in foolish pride Forget that He sees the upper And I the underside. Not til the loom is silent, And the shuttles cease to fly, Shall God unroll the canvas, And explain the reason why. The dark threads are as needful, In the Weaver s skillful hand, As the threads of gold and silver, In the pattern He has planned. ~Unknown Romans 8:18-25 (NLT) 18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. 19 For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. 20 Against its will, all creation was subjected to God s curse. But with eager hope, 21 the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. 22 For we 2

3 know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. 24 We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don t need to hope for it. 25 But if we look forward to something we don t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.) be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 8:27-29 (NKJV) 28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 1 John 3:2 (NKJV) Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. WHAT IS OUR RESPONSE TO ALL OF THIS? Romans 4:20-24 (NLT) Abraham never wavered in believing God s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. 21 He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. 22 And because of Abraham s faith, God counted him as righteous. 23 And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn t just for Abraham s benefit. It was recorded 24 for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. FINAL INSTRUCTIONS AND BLESSING 1 Thess 5:25-28 (NLT) 25 Dear brothers and sisters, pray for us. 26 Greet all the brothers and sisters with Christian love. 27 I command you in the name of the Lord to read this letter to all the brothers and sisters. 28 May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. 25 Dear brothers and sisters, pray for us. (1 Cor. 3:9; 6:1). Let's use Paul's example of how to pray for others and yourself: 3

4 1 Thess 3:9-13 (NLT) 9 How we thank God for you! Because of you we have great joy as we enter God s presence. 10 Night and day we pray earnestly for you, asking God to let us see you again to fill the gaps in your faith. 11 May God our Father and our Lord Jesus bring us to you very soon. 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. 13 May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. Amen. 1. Thank God for and rejoice over the believers for which you are praying. 2. Pray that God would enable you encourage the spiritual growth of others and fill in the gaps of their knowledge of truth. 3. Pray for "soon" opportunities to minister to others. 4. Pray that their love for God's people and for the "others" of their lives would grow and increase in practical ways 5. That the Lord would make their hearts strong, blameless and holy. 26 Greet all the brothers and sisters with Christian love (or a holy kiss). 27 I command you in the name of the Lord to read this letter to all the brothers and sisters. 28 May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. May- 4

5 APPLICATIONS "Rest on His faithfulness. Choose to obey and He will give you the power to perform; but He will not give you the power to perform until you make a choice to obey". ~Ray Stedman The power to live the Christian life is indiscernible to us before we step out in faith. So often our failure to experience God's power is the result of a lack of faith that God will be faithful. We act as though He is untrustworthy and that we are justified in our lack of confidence in Him. If this has been your experience stop all playacting and get honest with the Lord. Sometimes our lack of candor with our selves and the Lord is the very thing that keeps us spinning our wheels spiritually. "If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." I John 1:9 When reading your daily scripture be on the look-out for prayer requests to pray for yourself and others. This is a sure way to know that you are praying the will of God for another. Please go the following link (type address in browser) and view video featuring a worship song. It is so beautiful. It has really blessed my heart and has caused me to rejoice while facing troublesome and sorrowful times this past week. THANK YOU Dear Ladies, Thank you so much for your faithfulness to the study of 1 Thessalonians this year. I have learned much and have been strengthened by your prayers and encouragement. I thank God for you and pray that He will draw you close to Himself and impart His joy and peace to you and yours. I've been overwhelmed by your friendliness and kindness toward me and I look forward to getting to know each of you more and more. (Please remind me of your name if we meet outside the study. As I age, people's names don't come easily to me, but I want to know each of you more and more.) See you next week! Love in the Lord, Elaine 5