1 Thessalonians 4:1

Plea for Purity

1 Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus ^athat you should abound more and more, ^bjust as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God;

2 for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

3 For this is ^athe will of God, ^byour sanctification: ^cthat you should abstain from sexual immorality;

4 ^athat each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor,

5 ^anot in passion of lust, ^blike the Gentiles ^cwho do not know God;

6 that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord ^ais the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified.

7 For God did not call us to uncleanness, ^abut in holiness.

8 ^aTherefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, ^bwho has also given us His Holy Spirit.

A Brotherly and Orderly Life

9 But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for ^ayou yourselves are taught by God ^bto love one another;

10 and indeed you do so toward all the brethren who are in all Macedonia. But we urge you, brethren, ^athat you increase more and more;

11 that you also aspire to lead a quiet life, ^ato mind your own business, and ^bto work with your own hands, as we commanded you,

12 ^athat you may walk properly toward those who are outside, and that you may lack nothing.

The Comfort of Christ’s Coming

13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen¹ asleep, lest you sorrow ^aas others ^bwho have no hope.

14 For ^aif we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him ^bthose who sleep in Jesus.

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
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What Does 1 Thessalonians 4:1 Mean?

1 Thessalonians 4:1

When we really mature in our spiritual life, we see more, we know more, we feel more, we do more, and we repent more. It is all in proportion to our closeness to God! We are, in short, growing in grace (as Peter said in II Peter 3:18).

No one who neglects the spiritual big four—Bible study, prayer, meditation, and occasional fasting—can expect to make much progress in sanctification because these are the channels through which spiritual strength flows from God. This is why having access to God through Jesus Christ is so important. These efforts produce faith and then obedience, and fresh supplies of His grace flows.

There are no spiritual gains without pains. Would we expect a crop from a farmer who never even looked at his fields until harvest time? That is ridiculous! The farmer has to get out in his fields and sow the seeds. Does not God say in James 3:18 that "the fruit of righteousness are sown in peace by those who make peace"? The fruits of righteousness have to be sown! That is work.

What are the fruits of righteousness? They are love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, meekness, kindness, faith, self-control—but they have to be sown, fertilized, cultivated, and pruned. We see a process. As those fruits begin to be produced, sanctification cannot be hidden any more than the fruit on a tree can be hidden. We will never attain to holiness without Bible study, prayer, fasting, meditation, and obedience because through them is how spiritual life is sown, cultivated, fertilized, and tended so that fruit is produced.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part Nine)

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Plea for Purity

A Brotherly and Orderly Life

The Comfort of Christ’s Coming

What Does 1 Thessalonians 4:1 Mean?

A Verse and a Thought,Every Morning

A Verse and a Thought,
Every Morning