1 Thessalonians 5:12-18 (Part B)

The Lord Jesus on the same night in which he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, broke it said taking this is my body which is broken into what was coming every bit of it. No doubt there is. I could meet. I want to be late last meal I was looking for now/spiritual me would be doing what he would be doing, because the Lord would be giving me the strength to do it, but the Carl that one man without God understands.

Jesus is cross reference radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston.

Ricky is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville.

Please join us as we study the book of first Thessalonians verse by verse. Today we are reminded that regardless of difficult circumstances a believer should always rejoice, pray, and be grateful. Relying on her own flash. This is impossible, but when we rely on the Spirit and aware of his power. We become useful in accomplishing his purpose.

Nothing speaks more powerfully. This kind of walk with God. Stay with us after today's message to hear more information about cross reference radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching, but for now please open your Bibles to the book of first Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 14. As we join pastoring. We have the they gathered for prayer in conference room one the offer prayers. You may not see the impact when it happens but you benefit from the results and you find that their prayers are safeguards that bouncers bounce out of the church notions of the devil before he even gets an idea we want him to say I can't get to them.

I can't get in there they've got this wall of prayer up that got these Christians in there who actually love Jesus and everything he has to say and wanted all those kind of people he can't defeat may kill him can't feed them so verse 14 he continues. Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all his worldly Christ with such language like this, why they so you Jesus can't come in the school and and you know if my brother sent me a picture from one of the universities in town with a rainbow on it on his doors and the University. This a safe so say from what rainbow I don't get it is getting so that we Christians going to need a safe zone, why do they hate us so much because there deeds are dirty. Their hearts are darkened. I don't care what they call it God has already spoken on these things, thus saith the Lord.

It is take it or leave it. And just because you get away with it, doesn't mean you going to get away with it. In the end so I say again what makes this so repugnant to the world. Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all that we encourage our fellow believers to be strong when life's hardships are pressing on what should we say none. I'll be weak. Go ahead and give then it's okay to blaspheme God when you're hurting like this you first. Of course not encourage them to be strong. Many times we do it from our own experiences we been there to. Are we been there ourselves somebody in our family has been there not idle words. There are times when encouragement is not appropriate silence is what is necessary. There are times you just need to shut your mouth and don't offer encouragement because God's not leading you to the person is not looking for again. I remember when my mom passed away. There was this man, not even a believer but a noble man. Nonetheless, and he just put his hand on my shoulder and says tough loss in this tone of his voice resonated just what I need and I didn't even like that is doing all right till he said that he thinks I want to cry flowable my friends. I didn't do it held together but anyway, warn those who are unruly. In other words, don't make me take my belt off SI you want somebody is unruly right. How else do you do it.

I don't know so of course not. Not met since pastoral correction. They don't let you today when they do something that's really foul in the church delete they don't come back for you can get to them then they go online and they tweeter you and Dave. You know, say mean things about you that's very sad to do that.

So anyway, submit to what the Lord is doing does not emasculate you.

It does not take anything from you.

Quite the opposite. It makes you bolder. Jesus taught us that he was a man of authority because he was a man under authority. I always do those things.

My father and so what do you think he said that he needed me to hear it. We need to hear it.

We listen that we say man when you have been under authority. God gives you authority your conscience is clear. You know that you're not a fraud, you know how the system works is just not honorable to rebel against everything just to be rebelling against everything Jesus was not a rebel and a lot of people try to make him cool is not a rebel to God Almighty in the flesh became you set it straight.

What he did is dealt with that which was wrong is not a rebel offense to my sons could say that up north.

They will but down here you like yeah all right, so Matthew chapter 14 verse 27 then Jesus said to them, all of you will be made to stumble because of me this night, for it is written, I will strike the shepherd and sheep will be scattered that is not only prophetic, it is proverbial is a proverb that he is saying to us, where there is no rule where there is no leader where there is no separate where there is no ordination from God. There is a scattered flock is chaos there is destruction. That's a great lesson we have to know is in our Bibles should be in us so we think about those in Scripture who did not follow that on the lessons you did read the book of Numbers about all the trouble. Moses his own sister, Miriam, you know, Miriam was the woman in Israel. You know when they crossed to the sea reason in the Pharaoh's army was wiped out. You know, Mary picked up the tambourine and began to sing and yeah she's getting into and then the women followed in. And Moses wrote it down, but then again, wife Moses, no, this is the first lady of Israel. If you will know when I first lady enforcement here in the church were all is equal say that some churches doing with, startled my wife.

We talk about anyway. No harm taken by but anyway, back to so and Miriam saw that, I think that was sort of the catalyst that caused her rebellion and then she wins her brother Haran on board and they rebel sin.

And so there's much in their emblematic beneficial to us all when it comes to behavior then of course his teeth and then there's the sons of Eli.

This diopter fees in the New Testament Alexander high many is finally this.

All of these other ones to Hayes I in the Old Testament all over. That's what happens when you rebel and may we not be in that group and so he continues in this verse. He says comfort the fainthearted of this is on the on the other side of the unruly that they're not looking to give you grief and trouble. They are experiencing grief and trouble it may be lifelong.

In many cases those who struggle to trust God that are in the flock. They love the Lord is saved most of the time I feels there may be exceptions here and there but they are often terrorized by life and you know Jesus spoke of those of little faith. Oligo is still us you if you have little faith.

That's what he said to the disciple, this word here. The fainthearted is oligo Sue costs little spirits. They have a little spirit. They're not courageous and brave. They're not like Caleb we take these guys together died on the grasshopper and that was Taylor but you got the fainthearted hiding Caleb's already a spear and and that's an interesting point. No pun intended spear point. Anyway, the point that I just saw on that you know you might be a fainthearted servant, but you can still serve distilled things for you to do.

You can't fire an arrow shoot an arrow. You can make them ready and you can give them to those who can and so these Christians who are in need.

Listen to what the Lord says through Isaiah the prophet when he changes the tone in the book the prophecies of Isaiah goes from dealing with the sin and the shell knots and then a short story of Israel and King Hezekiah and then he says comfort yes comfort my people, says the Lord, Isaiah 40, verse one, and from there on, he begins to present the Messiah and that this is going to be something to comfort the people and he continues. Paul does here in verse 14 is uphold the week for the week.

Those who are strength less not strong, little different from those who are fainthearted, but there they're both in need and no death will force all of us to leave week but then we get really strong. We who are our say and so what is being taught in Scripture is that we do not espouse rewarding laziness that is not what the Scripture teaches does not foster at the same time, it does not foster an environment of weakness does not encourage us to be weak, quite the opposite, and there is a great difference between upholding the week and up holding weakness. We have a government that upholds weakness is present government and I'm messing anything is not, then I say they're not the same thing we want to make strong those who are weak, but we do not want to make them stronger at being weak in the church or out. I think of it, they either get tight in the book of Samuel. He was a man that was of a warrior and when Absalom, the unruly pulled his little move on his dad and David is fleeing the city as is going out Absalom and his warriors aligned up there and Davises is not your fight to stay behind and stay out of it. You don't worry, I really appreciate the you know you love an army like this and listen to what it taxes on some of the most remarkable words in Scripture that we want to say to Jesus Christ tells us in second Samuel, but it's a I answered the king and said, as the Lord lives and as my lord the king live surely in whatever place the Lord my king shall be, whether in death or life. Even they are also your servant will be what is not finished yet.

Stories not finished in the next verse says so David said to you today. I go and cross over and over. Okay, I don't want to say that right. But listen to what the narrative is on this then it had to get tight and all his men and all the little ones who were with him crossed over to they were the weak ones. They were the faint ones that were the ones that need protection. He was not leaving them behind. Wherever he was going. They were going in with him coming into the battlefield, but all the kids in their ankles, but this would work so I think it's of this beautiful picture. The very thing the rich man did not do for Lazarus the beggar was comfort him was help him with no record of that the record is quite the opposite, and so Lazarus is a figure in Scripture that was saved but not surefooted but who was there was he left with scavenger dogs.

We get better treatment from dogs, scavenger dogs than he did from human beings.

What a rebuke. Be patient with all verse 15 he says well. Patient is not the same thing as condoning evil, not at all. Quite the opposite is being patient with us. We can deal with it. It's discipline. That's what it is waiting for the shot discipline his strength over weakness. That's the idea behind the discipline that you may be impatient with those who take the scenic route to make a point. You just tell me the point it to say that you want a cheeseburger and not give me a class on Velveeta or something else or maybe it's somebody who thinks personal hygiene is overrated. You know they can be a problem is hard to have patience with people like that, maybe, is a person that has a favorite subject they going to get to it no matter what conversation or talk about they go to work that conversation to themselves or some there or maybe it's a pastor who takes too many points to make about being impatient, so you've just been given an exercise in patience and by the way also given an exercise in the prove those especially with your visiting here.

You gotta be saying who is this guy what you should be saying that is his doctrine right out of you like it or not, you might hate what I'm saying but in this biblical, tough luck. Get it right. But if I am wrong then you get yourself a foxhole. That's what it comes down to is that sad that so many teachings existing Christina John Wesley is the one that first put into print the words we agree to disagree. George Whitfield's funeral and Wesley was a great man of God had his issues of life. Who doesn't it just said you know there are things that would feel and I didn't agree on what they were little thing they were not the essentials. The essentials we were right on.

Whitfield believed in the doctrine called Calvinism and Wesley did not that I act like I spun that my favorite Calvinism care Wesley anyway and so you know where all susceptible to that, you know, I read a lot of great Christian men's writings and their issues. I disagree with them on my early days. I want to throw their books in the trash file is an occult section and an end but now it's like you know you I know why I believe what I believe I know who this guy is he loves the Lord. He's not trying to be wrong wrong here, as I say he is in my library. I can do that you get your library, you do it and that's it's okay so you get Christians get in a huff over the silliest things you know the powdered milk over some other goofy thing anyway see that no one renders evil for evil or revenge causes more revenge and hero. How many perpetual tribal hatred is there in the world will know about the two little tribes separated by a little stream of something in the just hate each other. The treadmill this kid even thing, but he continues in verse 15, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all to Scripture verses to speak on that Isaiah chapter 1 verse 17 learn to do good, seek justice, rebuke the oppressor defend the fatherless, plead for the widow that was Stuart nation that was so self-righteous and smart because of their religion that they were useless to God, and that's what Isaiah says, these are in fact the same circuit. I want the more you sacrifices. Nobody coming to me, worshiping me older singsong Lord in your traveling on each other and then Luke chapter 6 very simple.

Call it the Golden rule and just as you want men to do to you. You also do to them. Likewise, not complicated.

You don't want somebody picking a pocket to pick his pocket rejoice always, verse 16. This is the shortest verse in the Bible. Now many of you think it's John 1135 Jesus wept in the Greek act is three words there and there's more letters but in the Greek this is the shortest word now there is no such thing as Bible trivia. So the Bible is not true. I just have a lot of fun with that.

There certainly is no who has the most verses and or anyway just get off of this. So just saying that because I like to be right and if you believe it was the other verse down right you're wrong. Don't try to get revenge because we just preached on it. So sorry says rejoice always to a church that was persecuted. Remember always taste out of that your he got there persecuted. He showed up he was persecuted as of anybody said to Paul Julio telling me to rejoice always in the midst of persecution. All he had to say was in my back. You know the serious and persecution he says to rejoice always know when not to rejoice in affliction, but with an affliction.

That's the difference on the thank you God for this black eyes just what I've always wanted for Christmas, with rear wall of Christmas, my two front teeth. What that's not what's being said God is saying okay if you find yourself in the situation I am there. That alone is worthy of rejoicing. I will not waste your pain and this is again one of the lessons from some of those Koreans who are escaping North Korean gulags and their coming and telling the stories about the persecution of Christians there talk about evil being exalted on earth does North Korea know the his own uncle. He threw them literally to starving dogs. Anyway abrasive. Christianity is a contradiction in terms.

So Paul is not saying you know be better always sing, rejoice always, this is what the Lord taught Matthew five Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad great is your reward in heaven. So they persecuted the prophets who were before you will. That's what were doing right now instead of you know, trying to get angry with everybody will supposed to rejoice. All right, they want persecuted Christians. Thank you Lord I'm in line with Daniel.

They try to outlaw his fate. He took it to you in front of them all. Proverbs 1722 a merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones. If you not rejoicing your spirit is breaking and that is a way going throughout your body and the world has its pleasures, but it knows nothing of rejoicing always, it knows nothing of eternal evermore rejoicing in the kingdom of heaven. So were supposed to live like we've already been there, because the one who has been theirs told us about. So we go on. Verse 17 pray without ceasing. This means we strive to maintain constant dialogue with God. Lean not on your own understanding, but in all things acknowledge the Lord. We are told and John's gospel chapter 14 verse three Jesus said, let's not your heart be troubled you believe in God believe also in me. If he were God the son, that would've been a blasphemous statement, worthy of stony imagine me telling you believe in Jesus Christ, we should believe and recast into me that would be insane not even fund essay so this is a powerful New Testament statement for those it comes it will.

Jesus never said he was God wrong.

The fact is declared.

This is, believe also in me. In my father's house there are many mansions were not so, I wouldn't tell you he continues I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be also. So we are supposed to live as though we believe that we are supposed to believe when he says I am with you always. Well we communicate with always abiding in the presence of God in the proximity of the shadow Psalm 90 11 he who dwells in the secret place of the most high shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

He is never far away. That's how we think. Spurgeon said since he was a Christian. He did not remember 15 minutes going by what he was not mindful of Jesus Christ, amen. Verse 18 in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Some of you might need to know to everyone. Give thanks we need to hold the door open give you some some people rule you know you do something with it on his knowledge. You should've done that but anyway that's not the Christian thing in everything give thanks, it does not say, for everything give thanks, but in everything. The Greek word in EN means just what it means. The English in everything. The ultimate example of this. Rejoice always pray always is our Lord Jesus Christ there in first Corinthians, Paul talking about his experience with pricing, the communion of the Lord says this the Lord Jesus on the same night in which he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, broken said taking this is my body which is broken for you.

He knew what was coming every bit of it. No doubt, and yet there is I couldn't eat.

I would merely talk about your last meal I was looking for now. Will the flesh spiritual me would be doing what he would be doing, because the Lord would be giving me the strength to do it but the carnal me that one man without God can understand this and so there is the Lord, giving thanks in the midst of this crucifixion. Then there are the disciples you say what I was the Lord.

We expect such honorable behavior. Acts chapter 5 verses 42, 42, when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus and let them go slow, they departed from the presence of the Council rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name and daily in the temple, and in every house they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus has the crises they wouldn't shut up. They went right back to you all will you only retrace repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand preached it and they preached it everywhere. How should we thus behave in the midst of where the safe zones for the Christians well.

We make our own. We preach it continues in verse 18 for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus saw these commands here rejoice, pray give thanks, are summed up as a unit concerning God's will. These this is what God wants. He wants us to rejoice. He wants us to play wants us to be grateful because we understand what heaven is all about. This has been another edition of cross reference radio with Pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel in Mechanicsville, Virginia. Pastor Rick will continue taking us. Verse by verse through the book of first Thessalonians. The next time you join us that we want to be sure to tell you how you can get a free copy of this teaching. Simply log onto www.dotcrossreferenceradio.com that's cross reference radio.com.

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