Pursuing Holiness

Pursuing Holiness

1 Thessalonians 5: 12-24 - We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.  Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

Reading this passage, you see that Paul is writing the Thessalonians and is encouraging them to keep going in spite of all persecution and tribulations they have been going though. He gave them a final instruction and benediction. In this instruction, he lays out a whole outline of things that Christians should apply to their lives. I think that this should be relevant to our lives today. So we are going to break them down just a little. The Holy Spirit has asked us to respect others, but importantly those who are giving authority over you. We must also help those in need. Why? Because God gave us much, so that we could give much. We are called to be patient though it all. Patients key when we need to wait upon the Lord for his direction. Always seek to do good rather than evil. God is a pure and just God, we are to pursue holiness not destruction. Rejoice Always! Not only in just certain situations but in every season. Pray without ceasing. Prayer is powerful, and by prayer we get in touch with the Holy Spirit who then enables us to overcome trials, temptations, and tribulations. But prayer is also just a way to praise God. We are to give thanks. We know that in whatever season we are in, it’s for God’s perfect plan. Do not quench the Spirit. We need to be continually coming to the well of Living Water to be refilled and refreshed spiritually. He asks us to test everything. To make sure that everything we are filling our hearts with, that being the teachings we hear and the stuff we put before us, all lines up to what the words of God. We are to abstain from evil. God says “Be holy, for I am holy.”  We need to strive to keep our minds and hearts pure before the Lord. It’s important to know that since God has asked us to do all of these things He is going to enable us to uphold these standards.

It’s really hard to do all of these things. I’m not going to lie, I struggle with it daily. Something I came to find more and more is that it’s all a daily choice.  God has already given me all the tools I need to be a devoted follower but yet I still find a ways to procrastinate.  All of these things must start with the right heart attitude. And lately, God has been revealing to me that I haven’t been completely doing that. I have allowed myself to stop denying myself. I will take one of these things for example, always seek to do good rather than evil, for instance. My flesh-filled self wants to stay bitter, and metaphorically upper chuck them to the face (lol), rather than to forgive them for saying some things that are pretty offensive to me. That’s not seeking goodness within me to forgive them, but its allowing Satan to have that hold over my bitterness. Henceforth letting my pride stand in my way, instead of just saying none of these things move me like Paul. You know? It’s hard! That’s just one example! But since God has called me, the faithful, I know that with His help, I can be better. God enables those who He calls. My words of wisdom to you, is remember to always ask God to examine your heart and to continue to die to self-daily. I pray that God would sanctify you completely in your journey to holiness.


Application: I am going to ask for forgiveness from person.

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