Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Epistle Lesson just read, from 1 Thessalonians. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- Our text for this morning looks like instructions – a number of bullet points: rejoice, pray, give thanks, etc. Yes, the Apostle Paul is encouraging God’s people. However, these instructions are also descriptive – simply of what Christians do.
- In the Old Testament Lesson, God describes the descendants of His believing people as His “offspring.” John the Baptist’s task was to baptize – so that people might be “born again of water and the Spirit,” as Jesus explained to Nicodemus.
- So it might be said that we also are “offspring” of the Lord, born again by the Spirit of God to a living faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And what might such “BLESSED OFFSPRING” of the Lord look like? Paul describes it in our text.
- In other words, Paul is simply encouraging us to be Christians, blessed children of God! First we see that:
I. Children Of God Are Characterized By Joy
A. They Are Rejoicing Always
Text: “Rejoice always.”
B. They Are Praying Always
Text: “Pray without ceasing.”
C. They Are Continually Giving Thanks To God
Text: “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
Statement: Why do children of God “rejoice always”? Because they are aware of the multitude of bountiful blessings God bestows upon them. They are forgiven. They are reconciled to God. They have peace with God. They have eternal life. They are blessed with inner renewal in love – by the powerful influence of God’s love. They know that everything they have in this life comes from God’s blessed hand; they have optimism for the future, knowing the blessings to come in the next life! This is the reason they pray – God is with them and has promised to hear them and bless them.
Application: This is also why they are “rejoicing, praying, and giving thanks” in all circumstances. God has promised to work all things together for their blessedness! Discomfort is also good for us, it is God’s blessed discipline of His beloved children – and yields even greater blessings to us. So it is that this is an accurate characterization of “THE LORD’S BLESSED OFFSPRING.”
Transition: And there is more blessedness described, for:
II. God’s Children Are Abundantly Blessed
A. They Have God’s Spirit
Text: “Do not quench the Spirit.”
B. They Have God’s Word
Text: “Do not despise prophecies.”
C. They Have Wisdom And Discernment
Text: “Test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.”
D. They Are Sanctified And Kept By God – Who Is Faithful
Text: “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!”
Statement: It is incredible – all of the blessings that God has bestowed upon us! You have the Holy Spirit of God – we just need to heed His influence! We have the Word of God – preached, taught, and celebrated in the Sacraments; we just need to take care not to “despise” God’s Word! We have the ability and wisdom to accurately discern – we just need to use it! And we have assurance that God will sanctify us completely and keep us faithful to the end. We just have to allow Him to do so!
Application: These are the things that make “THE LORD’S OFFSPRING BLESSED.” The Thessalonian Christians had these blessings, and we have them as well. All Christians, all children of God have these blessings bestowed upon them by our loving Heavenly Father! We just need to utilize them and not despise or ignore them!
Conclusion: Yes, it is true that these descriptions also include an imperative – we should be doing these things! Even that imperative is a blessing – for in it we are made aware that it is always God’s blessed will that we be using and enjoying His blessings upon us. We don’t have to ask, or have some proof; we are commanded to be blessed in these ways!
We often forget these blessings from God, or doubt them and so we have them obscured from our consciousness. Hopefully, we can all see clearly the description Paul gives us of “THE LORD’S BLESSED OFFSPRING.” We are these children of God – this is also a description of – US!
So let us be rejoicing, praying, giving thanks, enjoying the Spirit’s consolation, gladly receiving the Word, testing all things, holding to good and rejecting evil – knowing that God is faithful, and is doing all that He has promised us! Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.