Day 779: Pleasing God - 1 Thessalonians 4 vs 1 - 8

1-2 Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification (holiness): 4-8 that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body (vessel) in holiness and honour, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you. 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 English Standard Version

It's not uncommon to hear Christians talking about wanting to know God's will for their life. That's a good thing, but I'd caution against making it too specific. I know I'm personally much too subjective and would likely end up with my own inclination rather than God's clear revelation. But what does Paul say is God's very clear will for for our lives? (vs 3)

God wants us to become holy in how we live, in everything we do. This includes that big part of our life, our sexuality. In vs 4-8 he says that immorality and adultery should have no part in a believer's life. He was writing to gentile people who’d not been brought up with the good teaching which God gave the Jewish people through Moses. Their lifestyle was much like what we see in the world today in people who have no time for God. It's open season for sex whenever, and in whatever way, they want to indulge in it.

When people from the gentile world began to turn to God through faith in Jesus Christ, a meeting was held by the first believers who were from a Jewish background. The issue was to what extent the gentile Christians should be required to observe the laws Moses had given. All the leading apostles were present and their conclusion was that the new Gentile Christians should be told “to abstain from eating food offered to idols, from sexual immorality, from eating the meat of strangled animals, and from consuming blood.” (Acts 15:20) The part about not eating meat with it's blood goes back to when God told Noah and his sons “you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.” (Genesis 9:4) But the other things required of the new Christians were to not participate in idol worship, and to abstain from the immorality that was rife in the gentile world. The sexual union was to be kept within marriage. What reason did Paul give in vs 4-8 why they should not misbehave in this area of life?

He said that God will bring judgement upon people who reject and ignore His will regarding these matters. When writing to Christians at Corinth Paul said: “The unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Don't be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practise homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) A man or woman who professes to be a Christian, but stubbornly persists in doing those things, should be very careful. They're not just disregarding a preacher, they are rebelling against God Himself.

But what was the other reason Paul gave for why the Christians at Thessalonica should strive to be holy, and especially to reject all sexual immorality? (vs 1-2)

So that they could be pleasing to God. That's the motive that should guide us in all the choices we make in life. We may not know God's will in specific matters, such as who to marry or what career to follow. But we do know His overall will for us is to be holy. In the case of Jesus, God's will would lead to a cross. Yet Jesus said to some who were criticizing Him: “When you've lifted up the Son of Man, then you'll know that I am He, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. And He who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.” (John 8:28-29) May that also be our guide in the choices and decisions we make in life.