Delighting in the Days....

Feb. 24, 2008 - "Always" Christians - In Conclusion

Posted in Bible Study Notes

"Rejoice always;

pray without ceasing;

in everything give thanks;

for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Just three little verses. They say a lot don’t they?

As we said in the beginning of this study, they may not be a mouthful, but they certainly are a life full!

Paul concludes these three commands with the motivation, "...for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." Many people talk about figuring out God’s will. Well, this is God’s will, that we attain to these three qualities in our lives and become "always" Christians.

We are to be a joyful people, a prayerful people, and a grateful people.

These qualities require effort on our part - but they can be developed with consistent practice and reliance upon the Lord.

This will be the last post in this series. I have really enjoyed going through the text and hope it has been helpful to you. My husband did all the work - I just "blogified" it.

May God bless you as you strive to know truth and to be an "always" Christian.

If you missed any of the series, you can find all the entries by scrolling down the page or clicking on the following links:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

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Feb. 23, 2008 - "Always" Christians - Part 5

Posted in Bible Study Notes

Today we will look at the last verse in this study, 1 Thessalonions 5:18:

In Everything Give Thanks

We are to be a people of thanksgiving.

In our previous study we looked at 1 Thess 16 -17 which taught us to "rejoice always" and "pray without ceasing"; our constant joy and prayer should point us to the giving of thanks, and vice versa—they are all connected and intertwined.

According to the Bible, ingratitude is very displeasing to God, and it makes sense; how do you feel about someone you are always doing things for, or who always asks you for things, but never thanks you?

In Rom. 1:21, not giving thanks is one of the characteristics of those who knew God, but whose "foolish heart was darkened."

In 2 Tim. 3:2, it is included among other sins that would be prevalent in the "difficult times" of the last days.

There are many verses like this one in 1 Thess. 5:18:

In Ephesians 5:20, after speaking to them about singing and making melody with their hearts to the Lord, Paul said, "always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father."

In Philippians 4:6, he said, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God."

In Colossians 1:6-7, we are told, "Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude."

And in Colossians 4:2, he said, "Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving."

And again, we find a similar instruction—in everything. It’s easy to be thankful when everything is going well, but what about when it’s difficult? Even though you may be going "through the ringer," there are still things you can be thankful for.

Daniel (along with the other Israelites) was in exile in Babylon, and yet look at what is said of his prayers in Dan. 6:10 (that we read earlier), "...he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God..."

As in the old 1960 Hayley Mills movie Pollyanna, I think we need to play the "glad game." In case you haven’t seen the move (which you should go and do), it was a game taught to her by her father; it consists of finding something to be glad about in every situation. For instance, one Christmas, instead of a doll in the missionary barrel (as she wanted), there were crutches. In that case, they decided they were glad that they didn’t need them.

Complaining just dampens spirits; people full of gloom and despair are not very fun to be around. Are you a pessimist? It’s probably because you don’t play the "glad game."

In Philippians chapter one, Paul was in prison and you would expect him to be complaining up a storm, but we find him playing the "glad game." Philippians 1:12-14 states, "Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else, and that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear."

I remember hearing a preacher recalling one of his friends prayers as they both stood there watching his friend’s business burn to the ground. The man prayed, "Thank you God that no one was hurt in the fire, and thank you for all the years we were taking care of financially because of the success of this business that you allowed us to have."

I was at a lectureship where Willard Tate was talking about a college class he taught really early in the morning. The students came in, and first thing he told them to do was to take out a piece of paper and write down twelve good things that happened to them that day. They started to complain, "What do you mean? I’ve only been awake for 30 minutes." He said, "OK, you got up this morning and you were alive. Is that a good thing? Write that down. You opened your eyes and you could see. Is that a good thing? You got out of bed and you could walk. You didn’t have to go down to the river; you turned the tap and you had instant hot water." You see, it’s not that hard to find twelve good things.

As William Barclay said, "There is always something for which to give thanks; even on the darkest day there are blessings to count. We must remember that if we face the sun, the shadows will fall behind us, but if we turn our backs on the sun all the shadows will be in front." It has been said that this is the secret of a happy life—It’s not the happy people who are thankful, it’s the thankful people who are happy. "

And so, as the song we sing tells us, count your blessings, name them one by one.

I agree with Walter Adeney: "We fix our thoughts on our trouble to the neglect of a thousand blessings."

I like the saying: "Never allow what you don’t have, keep you from being thankful for what you do have."

It has been said, "It is backwards to have only one day a year for Thanksgiving and three hundred sixty-four for grumbling."

For the Christian, the blessings always outnumber and outweigh the troubles. If nothing else, in every situation we can thank God for His salvation in Jesus Christ.

May we never be like the nine lepers in Luke 17 who didn’t return to thank Jesus. Let’s try to make thanksgiving a part of our lives and use it in every prayer.

You can give thanks in everything!

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Feb. 21, 2008 - "Always" Christians - Part 4

Posted in Bible Study Notes

Today we will be looking at 1 Thessalonians 5:17: "Pray Without Ceasing"

We are to be a people of prayer.

In 1 Thess. 5:16 we learned that we are to “rejoice always.” Our constant joy should often find expression in prayer, and our praying will help us to remain joyful.

The word Paul used here is a general word for prayer. It is not specifying any particular type of prayer—praise, petition, confession, and thanksgiving would all be included.

So how do we pray without ceasing?

We can’t always be saying words in prayer, can we?

Well no, obviously he doesn’t mean for this to be taken literally; he’s talking again about a lifestyle—not uninterrupted, but constantly recurring. It means that we are to make prayer a great part of our lives; it’s about maintaining a good habit of frequent prayers.

We have a great example in the Old Testament with Daniel. A statute was signed by the king that made it illegal to pray to God, but Dan. 6:10 says, “Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house . . . and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously.”

Jesus also set an example for us; we have many verses like Mark 1:35, “And in the early morning, while it was still dark, He arose and went out and departed to a lonely place, and was praying there.”

In Luke’s gospel, I believe we find Jesus praying fourteen times. And Jesus would also give teachings and tell parables about prayer; for instance, Luke 18:1 says, “Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart.”

When reading through the New Testament, you will find that Paul frequently mentioned his own prayers and at times would even burst into prayer while writing; prayer was a fundamental activity in his life, and he often encouraged prayer in others.

For instance, in Romans 12, among a list of things Christians are to be doing, Paul said in verse 12, “...rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer...”

After talking about putting on the full armor of God in Eph. 6, he said, “With all prayer and petition, pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel...” (Eph. 6:18-19). After you put on the armor, you need to continue to communicate with headquarters in this spiritual battle.

Are we just sporadic in our prayer life, or do we “pray without ceasing”?

Most people these days have a computer and an internet connection. I think a good example of this “pray without ceasing” is dial-up connection compared to a cable or DSL connection. With dial up, you have to wait for it to go through its process and it takes a while to get on. DSL, on the other hand, is always connected and you can use the internet at any time in a split second. We are always to be fit and ready to approach God in prayer.

Windell Winkler gave a suggestion: “Pray upon arising. Pray before every meal. Pray at set times. Pray at odd times whenever you feel the desire. Pray with your family. Pray before retiring. Pray when you feel discouraged. Pray when you are happy. Pray whenever you must suffer. Pray until prayer becomes a spiritual habit.”

It’s a wonderful thing, this avenue of prayer we have—why would you not use it? Well, maybe you are asking, “Why—what’s so important about prayer anyway?” I’m glad you asked....

Prayer can keep us from sin. In Luke 22:46, Jesus said to His disciples, “Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

Prayer can bring great inner peace. Paul told the Philippians in Phil. 4:6-7, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Prayer can change things. James said, “The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain; and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the sky poured rain, and the earth produced fruit” (James 5:16-18).

And we simply cannot have a relationship with God without prayer (communication is necessary for any relationship). When you realize your dependence on God for all that you have and are, and that He is always ready to listen to you, that will make a difference in your prayer life.

As Albert Barnes said about this verse, “We are not to allow this duty to be interrupted or intermitted by any trifling cause. We are so to act that it may be said we pray regularly in the closet [in private], in the family, and at the usual seasons when the church prays to which we belong.”

You can pray without ceasing!

If you have missed any of the previous discussions on 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 and would like to read them, please use the following links:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

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Feb. 20, 2008 - "Always" Christians - Part 3

Posted in Bible Study Notes

Today we continue our look at I Thessalonians 5:16: "Rejoice always"

If you missed the previous installments scroll down the page or click on the following links:
Intro
Rejoice Always - Part 1

Yesterday we talked about the fact the joy is not tied to our earthly circumstances.

This can be a difficult concept to grasp. We live on a cursed earth (Gen. 3) and bad things are going to happen—you need to expect that. But as Christians, we can be joyful in whatever earthly circumstances we find ourselves ( I most certainly have not arrived at this point yet - but am working on it)

One of our old Bible school teachers used to say:

“It’s not what happens to you in life that matters, it’s what happens in you; because if what happens in you is right, then what happens to you doesn’t matter.”

The Christian can lose his car, house, and even his family and still have this joy. I read about a minister who went to visit a family that had just suffered the loss of everything they owned in a fire:

The minister said to the woman, “I give you joy, Madam.”

Surprised and ready to be offended, she exclaimed, “What!? Joy that all my property is consumed?”

“Oh, no,” he answered, “but joy that you have so much property that fire cannot touch.”

He was talking about our treasures in heaven (as Jesus called them).

The Thessalonian Christians had already demonstrated this joy. In 1 Thess. 1:6, we read, “You also became imitators of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit...”

From an outward point of view, early Christians had difficult lives and little that could cause rejoicing (from an outward point of view); yet they still had it.

I love the example of the apostles as seen in Acts 5. The apostles had been arrested and those in authority were trying to figure out what to do with them. A Pharisee named Gamaliel gave some advice and then we come to verses 40-42, “And they took his advice; and after calling the apostles in, they flogged them and ordered them to speak no more in the name of Jesus, and then released them. So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they kept right on teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”

How is it that we read in Acts 16:25 about Paul and Silas singing in prison?

How could Paul tell the Colossian church, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake...” (Col. 1:24)?

How could the Hebrew writer say Jesus “for the joy set before Him endured the cross” (Heb. 12:2)?

And how could James tell us to “consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials” (James 1:2)?

The apostle Paul went through some amazingly terrible things, but as he said in 2 Cor. 6:10 of himself and his companions, “...as sorrowful yet always rejoicing...”

Peter, in his writings, said, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exultation” (1 Pet. 4:12-13). In that letter, Peter talked a lot about persecution and seems to be saying, “You can kill a Christian, but you can’t hurt him. As a Christian, stuff is going to happen to your flesh, but it can’t touch your spirit.”

I like the way Raymond Kelcy put it, “The true Christian can always find reason for rejoicing. He rejoices in the newness of life he has found in Christ and in the hope which he shares with other Christians. Even though he is experiencing sorrows and tears and is burdened with life’s cares, he can rejoice beneath all these weights. His joy is not that which is born of outward conditions and circumstances. It is a joy existing in the depth of his heart because of his spiritual riches.”

We possess the forgiveness of sins, the hope of eternal life, and the peace of mind from realizing the truth of Rom. 8:28: “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

In his commentary on this verse, R. C. H. Lenski comes to this conclusion:

“Earthly joys fade after a brief moment; our joy of salvation never fades. Yet we need to be told ever to rejoice, for we let so many little adversities lessen and even darken our joyfulness. The Christian life is the only truly joyful and happy life even as it merges into eternal joy.”

You can rejoice always!

Join me tomorrow as we look at how to "pray without ceasing."

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Feb. 19, 2008 - "Always" Christians - Part 2

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For the second installment of “Always” Christians, we will be looking at 1 Thessalonians 5:16:

"Rejoice always."

If you missed the introduction click here

God calls Christians be people of joy. In fact, the word for "joy" or "rejoice" is found over 120 times in the New Testament (in it’s various forms).

As Leon Morris said, “Few things about the New Testament are more remarkable than this continual stress on joy.” There must be a reason why it is used so much—that little word must have great meaning and importance for the Christian life.

Christianity is in fact a joyful religion.

Jesus didn’t come to make us miserable; the gospel is good news, not bad.

The angel told the shepherds in Luke 2:10, “I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people.” In John 17:13, Jesus said, “...these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy made full in themselves.”

Christians have more to be joyful about than anyone else on the earth.

As William Barclay said, “True Christianity is an exhilarating and not a depressing thing.”

Paul said to rejoice “always”—in comfort as well as tribulation? How can one rejoice in sickness, and pain, and disappointments, and bereavement, and so forth?

Well, this doesn’t mean we are simply callous to difficulties and sorrows. “You’ve lost your job, your family, your home, and your health.” “Yeah, well, no skin off my back.” No, it’s not that—on more than one occasion we read about Jesus weeping.

It’s the fact that we have a deep inward joy, based on things that are eternal; they do not change and they cannot be taken away from us by the world.

Let’s look at this further:

1. You will notice that we are commanded to rejoice. We find passages like this and Phil. 4:4, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.” The second aspect of the “fruit of the Spirit” in Gal. 5 is “joy.”

Joy is commanded and thus, it’s not just an emotion that comes from earthly circumstances that change from hour to hour. It is an attitude (a mind set) more than a feeling.

2. “Joy” for those in the world, is usually only thought of as related to their immediate circumstances. It’s a beautiful day; my business is doing well; I just won the lottery. You can’t command the world to have joy because their joy is based on things that are subject to vicissitude (unstable and prone to change).

3. As it has been said, “Chasing happiness [from a worldly perspective] is like chasing rainbows—it’s always just beyond reach.”

4. A Christian’s joy is not connected to popularity, prosperity, power, possessions, or pleasure—or any other “P”s connected to the world.

5. If I am not a joyful person, it’s probably because I have tied my joy to earthly circumstances and Christ is not leading my life. Like I said, our joy is a deep inward joy, based on things that are eternal; they do not change and they cannot be taken away from us by the world.

..We will continue looking at how we can "Rejoice always" tomorrow.....

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Feb. 18, 2008 - "Always" Christians

Posted in Bible Study Notes

My husband recently preached a lesson from 1 Thessalonians 5 which I found extremely motivating. Over the next few days I would like to share some of it here in the hope that it will encourage you too.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says:

"Rejoice always;

pray without ceasing;

in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

While these verses may not be a mouthful - they are certainly a life-full.

They are in league with "...however you want people to treat you, so treat them" (Matt. 7:12), and "Let all that you do be done in love" (1 Cor. 16:14). These verses have few words, but require a lifetime of work and practice.

In this passage, we can see from the original text (in Greek) that Paul placed the adverb forward for the sake of emphasis; it literally reads: "always" rejoice, "ceaselessly" pray, "in everything" give thanks.

This shows us that the trio belong together.

It also impresses upon us that Christianity is a lifestyle, a walk. Many could say that they do these things from time to time, but according to the apostle Paul, a true Christian is characterized by these—they are done "always" "without ceasing" and "in everything."

That is why my husband titled the sermon, "Always" Christians.

We do not want to be "Sometimes" Christians; only Christians when it is convenient.

James called Sometimes Christians "double-minded" in his letter (James 1:8; 4:8), and in Rev. 3, Jesus called it being "lukewarm" (Rev. 3:16), and we know how God feels about that. It’s easy to say you are a Christian and act like it from time to time, but you can’t fool God—He knows whether it’s real or not.

As Paul said earlier in this epistle, we are to "walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory" (1 Thess. 2:12).

As one of our Bible school teachers said, "Sitting in a church building doesn’t make you a Christian, any more than sitting in a chicken coop makes you a chicken."

God desires "always" Christians. Over the next few days we are going to look at these three areas in which our lives are to be "always," "without ceasing," and "in everything."

Please feel free to leave any thoughts regarding these verses in the comments section below.

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About Me

I am an Australian married to an American, currently living in the U.S.A. Join me as I strive to delight in the moments that make up our days and aim to have a happy family that loves God and serves others.