You Should Be Sanctified

Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians is filled with encouragement and instruction. He gives them assurance in the face of persecution and hope as they face death. In other words, hope in this life and the next. We need that, don't we. Sometimes it seems that life closes in and we can forget why we first believed and why we hold onto our faith. Life's curve balls can do that to us.

Paul calls their attention (and ours) to how they were to live in order to please God. In order to please God! He reminds them that their conduct should be based on the instruction they received "by the authority of the Lord Jesus". (ch4, v2) The Christians in Thessalonica were to be sanctified, set apart from the world. They were to live in world, but not be of the world. "It is God’s will that you should be sanctified". (ch4,v3) What does that look like? What does that mean to you and me? Thankfully, Paul doesn't leave this to our imagination; he gives us instruction on how to live "sanctified".

We are not to be "impure, but to live a holy life." (v7) This holy life is demonstrated through how we treat our fellow man and what we do with our bodies. Paul tells us that "each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable". (v4) We are to live sexually pure lives, controlling our lusts. That does not seem to be a popular lifestyle these days and I guess it was the same during Paul's life as well. He makes it clear that the Christian is to live a chaste, holy life that demonstrates the fact that we belong to God and His Spirit lives in us. What we do with our bodies matters! God gave us these vessels to live honorably and bring him glory.

"No one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him." (v6) How we treat other people matters! God calls us to great relationships. The world runs on people taking advantage of one another. Christians, on the other hand are to "look out for the interests of others". Our conduct toward our fellow man is to bring glory to God. When we treat others with dignity and respect, we are a living demonstration of God's love. When we use others for our own benefit, we are living by the world's precepts. The second greatest command is for us to love people and when we love people, we will tell them the wonderful story of Jesus and the salvation that He delivered to us.

"For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit." (v7,8) Our purity of life is a demonstration of the Spirit living in us. Conversely, a life that is lived unholy is a rejection of God. Paul reminds us that we are called to live by a higher standard, the standard set by our Creator. May each of us examine our lives and make the changes needed to live honorably and holy.