1 Thessalonians 5:15-18 "Pursue What Is Good"

[Music] all right we're going to be looking today at first Thessalonians chapter 5 we're looking at verses 15 through 18 and as you know those of you who've been with us for a while I like to give a prolonged introduction so that you have a sense of the passage where it's going I'll give it I'll give to you a few reminders so that those of you who are joining us today and haven't been part of this study might be up to speed as we get into the verses we'll be looking at but we're going to be looking at verses 15 through 18 in chapter 5 as we're moving towards concluding our study here in 1st Thessalonians so let's begin reading in 1st Thessalonians chapter 5 at verse 15 I'll read to verse 18 and we'll get into our study Paul writes see that no one renders evil for evil to anyone but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all rejoice always pray without ceasing in everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you and so as we're going through this particular portion of Scripture and as we've been going through 1st Thessalonians Paul has just spoken to the church and given an order he had given commands related to being at peace in the church remember here in verse 13 as he concludes it in chapter 5 he had commanded be at peace among yourselves and so he ordered them to be at peace now up until this chapter in this book Paul has been basically commending the health of the church from chapter 1 you can see his commendations the good things he's saying about these Thessalonians believers he he began in chapter 1 by speaking of their faith in their lobby he spoke of their patience of hope he gave reference to their that the spirit-filled power that the evidence their faithfulness he went on to commend their steadfastness under affliction and persecution their evangelistic efforts how they rejected idolatry and became a testimony to the lands around them and he also commended them because they were patiently awaiting the return of Jesus Christ as he went through this book he got to the point where he began to express to them his fatherly concern and he responded in writing to the fact that they loved him and he spoke as if he was one who loved them very much also he exhorted them to live in a way that pleases God he exhorted them to live sexually pure lives he also said that they were to lead a quiet and productive life and he and he said you're also to encourage one another to live for Jesus Christ now as all of this is taking place he makes reference to the leadership in the church and we saw this last time that we were together in verse 12 he had said we urge you brethren to recognize those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you and so when he had said in verse 12 to recognize those who labor among you and are over you the word recognized speaks of valuing or esteeming highly so he is saying in all of this I want to remind you that your leadership was placed there for a reason and you should value them you should esteem them highly for the work that they're doing for the Lord amongst you they should be honored for this you see the the the elders were not only just there as people in the church but they were also there involved in and the members of the churches lives and and that that's what elders do they actually get involved in the lives of the people who are going to fellowship and so sometimes when they get involved in the lives of people in the fellowship they have to bring Corrections and and that's what he was saying in verse 14 when he had spoken really directly to the elders and he had said we exhort you brethren warn those who are in really comfort they faint-hearted it uphold the weak and be patient with all that was a word to the elders because he had just said be at peace amongst and those who are going to be involved in helping the peace to remain was going to be the leadership of the church so the spiritual overseers taught them cared for them visited them protected them and they should be honored for their labor as well as their love and and instead of being resented as people who were intruders in their personal lives Nick should be valued for the things that they do you see the leaders that he's speaking about love the sheep and because they did they should be loved by the Sheep in return the Sheep needed to understand something they needed to understand that the church is an organized organism and under the organisation God has placed leadership in that church and the leadership there is actually a gift to the Sheep the leaders of the church are actually a gift to the body of Christ we know that because Ephesians 4:11 and 12 says that it says he himself gave some to be apostles some prophets some evangelists and some pastors and teachers for the equipping of the Saints for the work of ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ God himself gifted the church with leadership is what he's saying there the word gave there speaks of a gift that was given to the church that reminds me of jeremiah 3:15 where God says I will give you Shepherds according to my heart who will feed you with knowledge and understanding I will give you Shepherds according to my heart and that's what the Lord has done and so by because of this they should be esteemed highly for the works sake again we saw in 1st Timothy 5:17 how Paul had said let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor especially those who labor in the word and doctrine and so my submitting submitting to the Lord and proper biblical leadership there's going to be peace in the body of Christ and that's why he speaks concerning concerning the unruly and the faint-hearted the weak members they should be exhorted and they should be encouraged and that ensures peace will exist in the church in the midst of the pressure that the church is finding itself under and so as we're looking at these other verses verse 15 through 18 the following instructions are again given to the whole church and they follow Lodge Clee after his command to be at peace amongst themselves so in the face of discord within the church be careful not to seek to retaliate this desire for vengeance this desire to to get back at somebody is to be avoided at all costs you see few things undermine the gospel of peace more than a church that's always fighting there's few things that undermine the message of the gospel more than church members who don't get along people who are always on each other's case always in each other's face church wars and factions are carnal they're worldly and they're destructive to the mission of the body of Christ and and that's one reason Paul commanded Christians to pursue peace in the book of Ephesians again in Chapter eight a rather chapter 4 verse 3 he said endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace think about this for a minute even as he has just said in verse 13 be at peace among yourself there are a lot of letters that Paul wrote where he would actually give an exhortation for the church to be at peace and it's something I wanted to share with you for for a few moments because Paul had to deal with disunity many times in various churches and you'll see that in a lot of churches the Corinthians come to mind but there are other churches that he would speak concerning the church need needing to have a unity of spirit but one that stands out is in the book of Philippians when you read the book of Philippians you need to remember some basic things concerning the letters that would be sent out you see what would happen is Paul would write a letter and the letter ultimately would be taken and delivered by somebody and so we'll pretend for a moment we'll say that I'm like the will say I'm the Apostle Paul and and I'm writing my letter and so I write to the Philippians and as I write this I have somebody who's going to take that letter because you may wonder how did they get these letters I know you need to remember that the church was receiving letters in the beginning that all ultimately were collected and made the New Testament and so Paul would be writing many of these letters in when he wrote the letter he would give it to a messenger the messenger would take that letter and would take it to the church that it was addressed to so Paul writes a letter to the Philippians and as he writes he's giving him commendation he's speaking to them and all and it was for the whole church to hear and so we'll say Paul writes the letter it's sent by the messenger the messenger goes to the pastor of the church and says to the pastor I have a letter that Paul has sent to be read to the church that's how it would be word would go out to the whole church we have a letter from Paul and we're gonna collect on Sunday together and we're going to hear the letter read to us so picture yourself like like that was us right now so the word has gone out there's a letter we've received you've all come to hear the letter and you're seated there and that's what happened with the church in Philippi they're all seated there and the pastor comes up and he says this is the letter of the Apostle Paul to the Church of Philippi and he begins to read everybody is listening it's only going to take 15 minutes or so to read the letter and then he gets to a certain point in the letter and he comes to what we call chapter four now everybody's listening to what's being said and then this is read and imagine how it sounded when he read this letter and he came to this part because in Philippians chapter 4 verses 1 and 2 it reads therefore my beloved and long for brethren my joy and Crown so as you hear him saying that your heads kind of swelling a bit you know yeah that's what I am I'm beloved I'm along for brother I'm a joy I'm a crown alright well stand fast in the Lord beloved and then it gets kind of quiet for a moment and then he continues reading I implore you Odia and I implore sent a key to be of the same mind in the Lord he rebuke to women in the church in the letter a moment before your the long for one a joy in a crown and now you're being pointed out how would you feel how would you feel it's in their like yeah who and and that's how that's how important unity was that that it wasn't hidden that there was a problem see these two leaders in the church were known to be having a quarrel they were fighting and Paul had been notified and he took the notification as credible and responded to it by saying knock it off he said you guys need you need to remember who you are you need to remember your leaders in the church and there's hardly anything in society that stinks more in the nostrils of unbelievers than a church that is unloving very few things smell that bad a church that's at war within itself unity is of utmost importance and that's what he was doing here saying the church needs to be united over the things that matter and if there's a problem going on well verse 15 if there's a problem see that no one renders evil for evil to anyone but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all so he's saying listen there were some that are unruly there are some that are faint-hearted there are some who are weak well you need to be patient with them and you need to make sure that no one rendered evil for evil to anyone don't be retaliating don't be after one another don't be fighting with one another don't retell you get retaliate against those whom you think have harmed you now again we're addressing life in the church and we're dealing with situations that believers will encounter I want to say this quickly but I will say it when it says see that no one renders evil for evil to anyone always pursue what is good there are those who use this scripture as well as others to say that you should never ever seek to retaliate in any form in the sense of of using force that's where some present their case for what is called pacifism so the question has to be asked at this point because there are those who use a scripture in that fashion is this addressing the use of reasonable force in protecting yourself or someone else is the same we should never use reasonable force and that is not the context of this passage you see there are those who would say that a Christian should never seek to use reasonable force they you they will use it in opposition to military service they'll use it in opposition to to serving in law enforcement they'll say well we're Christians and and we should never use any kind of force at all we should we should be pacifists and they call them Christian pacifists when I was drafted to go into the military I actually had a crisis of conscience the first crisis of conscience that I can remember having related to whether I should go into the military not because as a Christian I don't want to be taking someone's life and and if I'm trained in military services in place in a position of a combat situation what am I going to do and and I really did have a crisis of that could I take someone else's life would I take someone else's life now a lot of us have been in that position those who go into the military that's basically what you have to be aware of because you don't know you're being trained you may be sent into frontlines the Vietnam War was going at that time they were sending in a lot of military troops into Vietnam and I didn't know whether or not I was going to have to see combat and and so I'm now you know going into the military but I'm thinking can I and and and all of that night and I had to wrestle through this does a Bible teach Christian pacifism you render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's and unto God the things that are gods and there is a place for service in the military for the Christian but I had to come to that conclusion on my own and I did and so I got out of the service ultimately what happens is I'm listening to a pacifist on a radio program and he's being asked about using force to protect others is that right or is that wrong and he says it is always wrong to use force and so the questioner asks him well what if you were to come home and your wife was being attacked to be raped by a man what would you do would you use force to protect her and he says I would pray for her and for him that's what he said and right away I knew I'm no pacifist I'll give him a good funeral yeah no pacifist no ya know how we got some guys oh yeah him there are times when it is the most moral choice to stand up and help the oppressed to stand up and defend the victim that's the right thing to do not the wrong thing and so we ought to be those who are involved to the best of our ability with reasonableness and all I mean I think of the case with Jesus himself when Jesus came into the the temple and and there were these money changers and they were they were making a profit off of the pilgrims and and the Bible tells us that the Lord Jesus formed a whip and he drove them out overturning their tables there's a time that you respond to evil with the controlled force just like Jesus did when he cleared that temple but getting back to it this is not referring to those moments that are necessary sometimes this is referring to things going on in the church and in the church peace is to be sought for and worked for it is something to be not only desired it's something to be preserved so it's obvious that pursuing peace in the church is to be done but pursuing peace is not to be restricted to simply church life I want you to notice that Paul wrote pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all so suing peace with people in general should be the rule of life in Romans 12:17 Paul said repaying no one evil for evil have regard for good things in the sight of all men in Hebrews chapter 12 verse 14 pursue peace with all people and holiness without which no one will see the Lord so refusing to hold a grudge and seeking vengeance well we know that's not something that comes naturally it isn't something that we just naturally do that you know that we want the best not only for ourselves but for other people that's not something natural it what is natural for us is to want something good for ourselves and maybe we'll want something good for somebody else and it starts early it's part of our nature my grandson who is 3 years and 9 months old my baby David couple days ago he was at my house with me and he was playing and he picked up some Legos and he formed them into a gun he's like he's less than 4 he picks up the gun and he points it at me and he says because like that he shot me and he goes you're dead papa and I said oh no no no you don't want me dead oh I don't know you don't you don't want to be dead why your grandmother doesn't know you don't want me dead because if if I'm dead then I won't be with you anymore he looks at me and he says you won't be with me anymore I said no I said if I'm dead I'll be gone and he looks at me and he thinks for a moment and he says can I have your house [Applause] to get that from so this desire this desire for good for others you have to learn that because within us it's always this in it number one aren't we supposed to be pursuing what we want for ourselves above anybody else and that's what he's saying here no he's saying see that no one renders evil for evil to anyone but always pursue what is good both for yourself and for all so rather than seeking to retaliate taking vengeance and being angry instead of repaying evil for evil desire to do good to others now part of the way that you're able to desire good for others is if someone has harmed you if you've been able to release them through forgiveness forgiveness actually means it speaks of releasing a debt the word forgiveness is releasing of a debt that's why Jesus said as we forgive our debtors because the debtor owes you something and so when you forgive you're actually releasing that person from the debt and so there are two people who are freed in forgiveness the the debtor and the one who's owed the debt in other words two people are forgiven in the sense two people are set free we'll put it that way the person who has been forgiven and the one who did the forgiveness because when you release them you're released also and so if I have been forgiven then I am to forgive others in in Luke chapter 17 verses 3 & 4 we read take heed to yourselves if your brother sins against you rebuke him if he repents forgive him if he sins against you seven times in a day and seven times in a day returns to you saying I repent you shall forgive him you see we can forgive because we realize how we've been forgiven if you've been forgiven then you can forgive efficients 4:32 says be kind to one another tender-hearted forgiving one another just as God in Christ forgave you and so I have been forgiven much and I ought to be ready and willing to extend forgiveness to others forgiveness is especially important in relationships quite obviously but the relationship of marriage forgiveness is very important because it's because we fail to forgive one another very often that it leads us to the place of divorce not always but we can harden our heart to reconciliation and it can lead us to a place where we dissolve that relationship so forgiveness is a very important thing to do and we need to learn that amongst ourselves in the church so what should my attitude be towards a believer who is difficult because indeed we do have some difficult believers sometimes we're married to them we have difficult ones so what should we do what's our attitude what is our attitude to be like towards a believer who's difficult Colossians 3:13 and 14 bearing with one another forgiving one another if anyone has a complaint against another even as Christ forgave you so you also must do but above all these things put on love which is the bond of perfection and so we pursue we we don't render evil for evil but we pursue what is good and it's good both for us and for all so we pursue the word pursue means to reach out to or strive for we reach out we strive we pursue what is good we pursue that that which is kind that which is beneficial or just that which is generous and not only for us but as Christians but also for others in other words our way of life is to be the kind that blesses all people in including non-christians and when you think about it Christians are amongst the most kind and they should be the most kind to let me people on the face of the earth why is that because our God is love because our Savior incarnated and demonstrated his love toward us and that while we were sinners he died for us God demonstrated his love to us and Jesus said by this shall all men know you're my disciples if you have love one for another the fruit of the Spirit the very first thing that has said is love and then you see all these descriptors of the one word love it's not only love but it's good and kind in various other things it's made up of a variety of expressions but what it is is it's love and so as a believer what I've been called to do is to pursue those things that are good to care for people and to demonstrate my love to all people and that includes those who aren't saved and that's one of the reasons why Christians are the most generous people in the face of the earth because we give now there are those who would argue and say Christians aren't any different than no non-christians that's not true there was a book written a few years ago that I purchased that was written by a guy who was not even pro Christian he just was a guy who did a book on generosity and what he did is he he took two cities one was San Francisco and the second city I forget the name of the city at the moment but it was a a city in the Midwest and I'll try to remember it even as I'm sharing this but it was a city in the Midwest and it was known for having a large Christian population and its population is the same general size of San Francisco and so he wanted to they wanted to do a comparison to see which city was most generous now we all know here in in the state of California that San Francisco is presented as the city of love I mean there's been songs written about it and all of that it's supposed to be a great city and and all of that we also know it's extremely liberal and and and so what he did is he took that city and he used it as a comparison with another city that was known for a large Christian population and during the Christmas season they had charitable organizations out there receiving contrib Lucian's and so all he did is he looked at the charitable organizations like the Salvation Army and others and he looked for the totals that came in through the people passing by as they gave in the bucket or whatever then he compared it with the conservative Christian City and discovered that the conservative Christian City by far was more generous than San Francisco and so he did more research as to find out why and in doing so discovered that the people who lived in San Francisco believed that they were already doing good when they paid their taxes so for them they paid taxes taxes went to helping the poor and and and those in need and so I can keep my money because enough has been taken out of my check to help them whereas the Christians in the other city were saying not only have taxes come out to help them but out of my own wallet I'm going to give and that's how it works and so when he says this here he says pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all that has been Christianity all along we always have done that in Galatians 6:10 whenever we have the opportunity we should do good to everyone especially to those in the family of faith and so moving on he gives three commands verse 16 rejoice always pray without ceasing in everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you so he gives three commands rejoice pray and be thankful instead of living in anger rejoice rejoice because God is in control instead of being concerned rejoice because God is he has all power somebody has asked me recently somebody asked me this one question that I'll share with you right now the question was if you've learned anything in the years that you've walked with the Lord what is the number one thing you've learned and I've been walking with the Lord for forty seven forty eight years in December that's a long time what if learned in 47 years of walk with the Lord and I'll tell you it like I gave this answer I said it all works out in the end when you're young and you're going through pressure you think it'll never change you think you're always gonna be right here I'll always feel what I'm feeling right now and if something doesn't change instantly I'll be miserable the rest of my life and that's just not true because even as you're going through that you need to remember that you're going through that you're not staying there you're moving it may feel like you're not because right now that's the only thing that I've got this is what I'm dealing with and will I be here forever well I've learned over time nope it feels like forever because sometimes it takes a long time sometimes it takes a long time it doesn't go away next week it doesn't go away next month it doesn't go away sometimes next year it may not go away for five 10 15 even 20 years I hope somebody has hope right now you're gonna go through 20 years of what you know I'm teasing you what I'm saying is but it in God works out I have had and I'll show you the subscription in a moment but I have had so many prayers or god I please do this in my life and the way he's gone about doing it isn't the way I would have planned it it wasn't the way I would have planned it I did not if I had known I was gonna go through that desert if I had known I was going to be in that wilderness if I'd have known I was going to suffer that pain I probably wouldn't have asked that if I knew the way that the Lord is going to work it so that he got me in the deepest portion of my life there are things I'm more than likely would have said you know what I'll pass on that I'll pass on that you know I've been asking you to help me to love people you know I've got what know how about I just want to like them put up with them you know because there are things and you know what I'm talking about especially you seasoned Saints you know what I'm talking about because you as a young person where your brain isn't even fully formed till you're 25 years old I mean you're still learning things they're still things you're processing still things are you're learning and so I've learned and they've asked me what have you learned god is good God is in control god works in my life he will be God I've learned that and I'm learning that right now in Romans 8:28 we know that all things work together for good to those who love God to those who are the called according to his purpose all things work together now he puts one thing here and one thing over here and they don't seem to match whatsoever but the way he works it has a tendency of eventually combining and and then I'm able to look and say so that's what you had planned for me so that's what you had planned for me in this path that I was taking that I felt there was no hope and and there was no way of rescue in this path that I was going where I was so down and out I was so hurt and so concerned all along you had something moving into my life like Jonah thrown over the boat and sinking to the bottom and all of this garbage that's going on and there's a whale over here someplace else that's making his way slowly to a site where Jonah is thrown out and he picks them up works God's work in him and teaches him lessons about the Lord and then deposits him on a shore and says now you go out and you talk about my grace to people that's how the Lord works guys God works you see the knowledge that God is in control gives me the ability to rejoice and that's what he's saying in verse 16 rejoice always it motivates us as believers psalm 13 verse 5 i have trusted in your mercy my heart shall rejoice in your salvation psalm 40 verse 16 let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you let's such as love your salvation say continually the Lord be magnified Philippians 4 verse 4 rejoice in the Lord always again I say rejoice you see the unique quality of Christian joy is it doesn't depend on our circumstances our joy does not depend on the things that we're dealing with at the time our joy comes from the Holy Spirit who produces the fruit of joy in our life it results from knowing that the Lord is in control and trusting his power and his presence and that's what happens the Lord is in control now as I'm rejoicing in him saying I know my God is able I am praying 4:17 without ceasing taking my petitions before the Lord asking God to move you see prayer is the outcome of a fellowship with the Lord and when I pray it's simply revealing my dependence on him my intimacy with him I know that God hears when I bring my my needs to him and and I know he provides comfort and joy as I cry to him we go through things that discourage us we go through things that concern us but we can know that he hears us and the fact that we know that he hears us can encourage us call unto me and I will answer thee and show thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not as an invitation God gives to us in Jeremiah 33:3 the Lord began teaching me of answered prayer very early in my walk with him I got saved I was 23 months later I went into the military and it's gone through basic training stationed at Fort Ord we got a weekend pass friend of mine had an old Buick seller several of us piled into the Buick we were all from Southern California I was in Fort Ord up in Northern California we piled into this Buick and as we piled into the Buick and started making our way down on a Friday afternoon as it was growing towards evening on the side of the road just outside of Santa Maria about ten miles north of Santa Maria and you need to remember some of you will remember but some of you don't know this but the road that would take you down from where we were going wasn't a highway the way it is today it was a two-lane er and so as we were coming down on this two-lane are going out to Santa Maria and there was nothing out there there were no homes or anything out there at that time the car broke down so we just coasted to the side of the road and it's filled with us there were several of us in this car and and now it's Friday afternoon getting towards night and there's no traffic at that time what are we gonna do we're gonna have to walk to Santa Maria that's ten miles then we're gonna have to grab a bus if they have one ticket to LA find a bus from LA to where we lived in Norwalk we're not gonna get home until sometime tomorrow and so we're bummed I'm a new Christian my friend bill and I are together I've got several friends two of them stay there behind stay behind with the car to try and fix it see if they could get it running and Bill and I and a couple of other guys start to walk and as we're walking we're maybe 50 feet away from the car and I stopped at the at the the road and I see a car starting to come towards us and I put my thumb out to try and hitch a ride and my friend bill says wait a minute what are you doing I said well trying to get a ride he says we haven't even asked God I said for what we haven't asked God to provide a ride can't hurt so we pray God we want to go home would you please provide a ride for us now that wasn't the most faith-filled prayer I have ever prayed I thought you got to be kidding I'm gonna be walking as God is my witness we just started to walk and I hear the sound of a car behind me pulling over we turn it's a Volkswagen and a young girl and her brother and they roll over in next to us now there were four of us walking I think four of us at least four of us were walking bill me and two others and the young boy rolls down his window he's in the passenger side and the young girl says I don't usually do this but I'm a Christian and God just told me to pull over and give you a ride and I go wow wow and so bill gets generous and he says you guys can get in the car let's see what God wants to do for us that's a good nun don't don't no no no put me in that car we'll see what he wants to do with them they're not his children does that run believe they're pagans leave him here no we throw our friends in the backseat of this Volkswagen and the girl says world we're gonna drop these guys off at cuz we said we're Christians too we just prayed that God would give us a ride if you pulled over Matt all this is amazing she says good that makes me feel more at peace and we said these guys are pagans but they're okay and we did so give them a ride and show them how good god is and then come back if you like and so we begin to walk again and now I mean our footsteps are light like what God has done what's it going to do for us now within 20 30 feet of walking a van Volkswagen van pulls over and the guy rolls the window down from the driver's side he rolls it down and he says you guys need help you need to understand the context it was during the Vietnam War we were military guys this guy was a hippie hippies didn't like military guys they didn't like military guys he just said have soon driven over us as to help us they didn't like us he and were obviously military guys and so he says you guys need help and we said we do in he says hop on in so my friend Mike climbs in the front and Bill and I climb in the back they have no seats they're just some some bean bag kinds of three items and the guy driving is not a Christian my friend Mike Feeny and he began to talk Mike was not a Christian but the guy in the back was a believer and so the guy in the back begins to visit with Maria from Murray with Bill and me and says hey Yama believer in Christ and we shared the Lord they drove us we were going to Norwalk they drove us all the way to Norwalk from 10 miles outside of Santa Maria dropped us off in Norwalk then drove my friend Mike Feeny to Huntington Beach where they lived and dropped him off at his house and so that's when I started seeing my God is able my God is able my God can provide you have not because you ask not are you ask amiss hoping to consume it upon your lust you pray according to the will of God and trust your father he will provide understand that in and that's why we pray without ceasing God teaches us this in Psalm 39 12 hear my prayer O Lord give ear to my cry do not be silent to my tears and the Lord will work in that way in 1st John 5 14 and 15 this is the confidence that we have in him that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us we know that he hears us whatever we ask we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of him and then in verse 18 in everything give thanks in everything so you rejoice you pray and you give thanks notice in everything he says not for everything because there are things that you go through that are so difficult that obviously we're not God's plan the enemy was involved and human beings were involved but you can in everything learn to give thanks because you know that God is with you as it says in Romans 8:31 what then shall we say to these things if God is for us who can be against us you see the knowledge that God is for us gives us the ability to be thankful someone said to the Christian who really trusts his father's Providence and believes that his prayers are heard every moment's occurrence will be just that which he has prayed for the fulfillment of our father's will so we give thanks thankfulness isn't an obligation or a duty it's the possibility in every joy even in every sorrow it's the thing that keeps us going and the thing that keeps us going the most is the knowledge that God's in control the thing that keeps us going is trusting our Lord it's a knowledge that he's working in and through everything that we're going through we learn to give thanks when we have a strong faith that God is in control he's on the throne and though we may find ourselves confused or struggling we will trust him in everything you know one of the stories that all of us are familiar with that I can refer to is the story of Job when you see chapters 1 and 2 you see that that that God had called a meeting if you will the Angels had shown up as well as Satan and God in seeing Satan there in this meeting he says what have you been up to and Satan says well I've been going to and fro throughout the earth when you look at that and you study the passage what in in it what's actually taking place as God is calling him to to give an account what have you been up to is an order from the sovereign Lord you give an account of what you've been up to and so it's a friendly conversation at all he's saying you need to give an account what have you been up to and he says going to and fro well we know as a roaring lion he seeks whom he may devour so I'm going he's saying I've been up to no good well have you considered my servant job God continues the word considered in the original language have you observed him and looked for a weakness have you spent time trying him testing or trying to find something in him that you could exploit me says oh yeah yeah except you put a hedge around him you put a hedge around him and so that's where the battle begins God says he's a righteous man Satan says only because you bless him and we know the story of job that job lost everything he lost his animals he lost crops he he lost children and then he lost his health and the picture of job in Chapter two sitting on a heap of dust and ashes and he has a broken piece of pottery that he's scraping scabs and removing pus from his skin he's so infected he's become the song of children of a byword amongst the people he who at one time it had so much respect where people would stand when he walked in the room and give him respect and now making up songs about him because look at this guy there's something wrong with him he's nobody that we should honor now he's in that position there and his wife sees this man this one this man who was so dignified this man who was so righteous he was such a righteous man that he would give offerings for his children if perhaps they had even in their heart sinned against the Lord and now he's there in this condition we know the story of Joe and his wife couldn't take it anymore and she's looking at this man and she speaks to him job 2 verse 9 his wife said to him do you still hold fast to your integrity curse God die I can't take it anymore I can't take it anymore die she wasn't angry because he remained with integrity she wasn't angry because he held on to his faith and it appears that she was upset because his faith didn't get him relief from pain curse God and die seek God to take your life job you have no hope but what did job say in job 2 verse 10 he said to her you speak is one of the foolish women speaks shall we indeed accept good from God and shall we not accept adversity you know this job did not sin with his lips shall I only get blessings from God and shouldn't I go through life with pain - what makes you think my faith is supposed to cause me not to have sorrow of heart or loss my faith doesn't guarantee that I don't go through the same kinds of pains everybody else does we all go through pain we all suffer we all lose in one form or another we all cry or sleep ourselves to sleep at night one time in your life at least every believer will one day find themselves in a position where they may go outside into the backyard nobody's around it's just you the stars in God and you cry to him and say God I don't understand what's going on I lost my job god I don't understand I tried to be a good good man and my wife's gun out on me god I don't understand we raised their kids the best that we can and Lord the rebellion against okay I don't get it what's going on if you haven't been there you will in one form or another it's just life that's life who here has been guaranteed for nothing but good every day but all things do work together for the good to those who love God to those who are the called according to his purpose and God takes what is sweet and God can take what is sour and he can mix it together and it becomes a life that is blessed by him and in everything we give thanks that's how it works that's how it works because my god is able he didn't understand what was going on but later he did James in chapter 5 verse 11 said it like this indeed we count them blessed to endure you have heard of the perseverance of Job and seeing the end intended by the Lord that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful job's words stand out in my mind when he was saying if I only had the opportunity to play my cause and finally God says well you've been asking me questions he said now you be a man and answer mine one of the most dramatic portions of the book is when God starts saying you know everything that some may answer some of these basic questions and after he asks some just a few questions the response of job is the response all of us you really have I've sinned my lips I repent in sackcloth and ashes I put my hand over my mouth I shouldn't speak I have heard of you with a hearing of my ear but now I see you with the scene of my eye I knew and I walked I walked by faith and not by sight but now you've revealed yourself to me and I see what I am compared to who you are that's what you've been praying for all along God helped me to see you and be aware of who I am and so we learn we learn to rejoice we learn to pray and we learn to give thanks Philippians 4:6 and 7 be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus our lives are like a book you have the introduction you have the chapters that follow but remember this the last page of the book is already concluded and it says and they went to be with Jesus spend eternity worshiping him and it was all worth it it was all worth it last page of the book don't forget you

Channel: Calvary Chapel Chino Valley

Views: 2,756

Rating: 4.5238094 out of 5

Keywords: Calvary Chapel, Calvary Chapel Chino Valley, CCCV, Pastor David Rosales, A Sure Foundation, Bible, cccv, Church, Teaching, Worship, God, Christians, Bible Study, Jesus, A Jesus People Community, Truth, Gods Word, David Rosales, Pastor David, Ministries, Bible Studies, Gospel, Holy Spirit, End Times

Id: TOdlHWi7Lv8

Length: 50min 53sec (3053 seconds)

Published: Wed Aug 22 2018