EXCEL STILL MORE (1 Thessalonians 4:1-2)
INTRODUCTION:
I had a professor in Bible School whose name was John Mitchell, this man had an unquenchable thirst for God. I once heard that he had a standing order for the same Bible each year because he wore out a Bible in a year. When he would teach class, he would quote verse after verse to back up his points, he knew the Scriptures that well. If we could not answer a question that he would ask, he would say to us, “Don’t you folks ever read your Bibles?” and then he would give us the answer. Dr. Mitchell taught a class called Spiritual Life that every freshman at the college had to take and the class was really about living the Christian life and excelling in it more and more.
I was reminded of Dr. Mitchell’s example and class as I studied this week. His love of the Savior and of knowing Him more each day is much like what Paul was trying to teach the Christians in Thessalonica in the opening verses of chapter 4. Just as Dr. Mitchell was an example of spending a lifetime to better know the Savior and to teach us and urge us to not be content where we were in our faith, but to get to know the Savior better, so in our passage this morning Paul is urging his readers and all Christians to excel in their Christian living more and more, but unless believers nurture their new nature with its seemingly insatiable longing for God they will not reach the kind of spiritual growth and progress that Paul was urging them to attain.
There is a danger that must be avoided and that is reaching a point in your life where you think that you have no further need to progress in sanctification; but aside from eternity when our sanctification will be complete, no believer has even come close to what God desires for him spiritually. Even a church as strong as the one in Thessalonica that had been instructed in the truth and had a solid foundation for their faith laid down for them by Paul and his companions and built on during Timothy’s recent visit, even a church like this might be tempted to settle for the spiritual status quo. Thanks to the teaching they had received when Paul was with them these Christians were living exemplary lives and we saw how Paul commended them for their spiritual progress in the first three chapters. Because of this they may have thought they were fine, that they were doing great with no need for improvement. Paul had prayed that he could complete what was lacking in their faith and he knew they could do better and encouraged them to do just that, to excel still more. In our Scripture reading this morning Paul was expressing in Philippians 3 that he was not satisfied with his own progress in his spiritual walk.
Paul, as a faithful teacher and shepherd, was diligent to not only teach the truth to his people, but also to apply that truth to his own life and to encourage and motivate his readers to also apply it in an ever-increasing way. From this point on to the end of this letter Paul’s main goal is to urge the church to reach for spiritual excellence. In these first two verses of chapter 4 Paul introduces the foundational elements of pursuing spiritual excellence. Let’s pray and then read these two verses.
--PRAY--
SCRIPTURE:
Turn in your Bibles this morning to 1st Thessalonians 4 and if you are able, please stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word.
1st Thessalonians 4:1-2,
“Finally then, brethren, we request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God (just as you actually do walk), that you excel still more. For you know what commandments we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 4:1–2, NASB95)[1]
WHY WE MUST EXCEL STILL MORE (1st Thessalonians 4:1)
Paul begins this chapter with “finally then” and uses it to begin a discussion of the goal of spiritual excellence. Paul had just finished praying for the Thessalonian believers that they would have a complete faith, not lacking anything; that God would cause them to increase and abound in love for one another and for all people, and that God would establish their hearts without blame in holiness before or in the presence of God at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ with all the saints, in other words that God would give them a purifying hope for the coming and rewarding of our Savior. Now as Paul launches into this new chapter, he is going to encourage the Thessalonians in these areas that he prayed about and expand on them more as he urges them to excel still more in their pursuit of sanctification.
Paul again addresses his readers as brethren, a term of love and affection, a term that levels the playing field, making everyone equal as children of our God and Father. Paul then says that himself, Silas and Timothy request something of the Thessalonians. This word translated “request” refers to a gentle, humble suggestion offered among equals. This is not a command like a soldier would receive from an officer, nor is it an order like a slave might receive from a master, instead Paul is lovingly, gently, and humbly requesting that the Thessalonian believers as his brothers and sisters in Christ continue to persevere in sanctification. The verse begins that they request and exhort, and the word translated “exhort” is not that strong in Greek but means “to come alongside and encourage.” Paul is expressing to the Thessalonian believers his desire to help them to excel in their spiritual growth.
Paul did not have to command and order these believers because they already were living in a way that was pleasing to God. So instead of being overbearing, Paul showed humility and an affection in urging them to keep moving forward in their spiritual growth. Paul used just enough urgency to what he requested so that the believers would accept his request and exhortation and not be content with where they were spiritually but would seek to excel still more.
This word “excel” is a word that means “to abound, to be abundantly supplied, to overflow, to exist in full quantity.” Paul’s desire in requesting that that excel still more was that they would abound in their walk as they sought to please the Savior. Paul’s goal for these believers was spiritual growth motivated by a desire to know God, a desire like we read about in Psalm 42:1, where the writer expresses, “As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God.” (Psalm 42:1, NASB95)[2] This should be the goal of all spiritual growth, the pursuit of knowing God. This desire to know God should even surpass our desire to know His word; that desire is simply the means to knowing the God of the Word. Gaining more Bible knowledge and engaging in many spiritual activities whatever they may be, if these are not linked to your desire to know God better, they will not bring spiritual growth in your life. In 1st John 2:12-14, the apostle John writes, “I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.” (1 John 2:12–14, NASB95)[3] In these few verses John shows us three steps in a Christian’s spiritual growth. (1) “Little children” who know their sins are forgiven. (2) “Young men” who know doctrine and are strong against Satan’s lies (unlike children). And (3) “fathers” who know not just doctrine, but they know the eternal God. That is the final goal of every believer. Why must we excel still more in our spiritual growth? So that we know the eternal God.
HOW WE MUST EXCEL STILL MORE (1 Thessalonians 4:1)
In verse one Paul calls the believers in Thessalonica his brethren and he addresses them as those who are in the Lord Jesus referring to those who had put their faith in the Lord Jesus for salvation, those who were justified before God, those who had been made spiritually alive in Christ. Paul had written to the Corinthian Christians in 1st Corinthians 2:14, “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” (1 Corinthians 2:14, NASB95)[4] Paul is simply saying that the unsaved person cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God because it requires a spiritually alive person who is in the Lord Jesus to examine these things through spiritual eyes to understand and accept them and experience spiritual growth. Only one who is in the Lord Jesus possesses the spiritual power and insight to understand and accept the things of the Spirit of God. We saw the reality of this in Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians at the end of chapter three. He prayed, “…and may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all people, just as we also do for you;” (1 Thessalonians 3:12, NASB95)[5] Paul understood that the only way that love or any other Christian virtue can increase is when the Lord causes it to happen and he expressed it this way in his prayer. The power to excel still more comes from the power of Christ living in us. The apostle John put it this way in 1st John 5:20, “And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.” (1 John 5:20, NASB95)[6] Paul requested and exhorted the Thessalonian believers to pursue spiritual excellence, which they could accomplish because they were in the Lord Jesus.
This power to excel still more that we have in Christ does not just happen, it works according to principles laid out for us in God’s Word. Paul refers to these principles, to the spiritual truths, to the doctrines as instructions that they had taught the Thessalonians when they were with them. These instructions that they had received from Paul, Silas, and Timothy taught them how they ought to walk and please God. Paul often uses the term walk to refer to our journey of faith, it simply means the way in which we conduct our daily lives. The fundamentals of Christian living had already been given to the Thessalonian believers, so they knew what they needed to do to please God. The fundamentals in Christian living taught the Thessalonians how they ought to walk and please God and glorify Him in everything. These fundamentals certainly included the need to confess sins regularly, they were certainly taught to pray continually and to trust God to hear and answer their prayers. Paul had modeled for them humility and the need to humble ourselves before God. They had been taught to accept and be content in God’s will as it was revealed in His Word. They had learned from Paul that they needed to be willing to suffer for God’s name and they had and persevered through it. Paul taught them the importance of evangelizing the lost and gave them the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper to proclaim Christ’s death until He returns. Paul certainly instructed them to care for one another and to honor the Lord in their marriages and families and to be diligent in whatever way they served the Lord so that it would produce fruit. When they had been with them, before they were forced to leave, Paul, Silas, and Timothy had taught the Thessalonians believers how they ought to live as Christians and as Paul states in verse one they were already obeying what they had been instructed to do.
IN WHAT WAY DO WE EXCEL STILL MORE (1st Thessalonians 4:1-2)
Spiritual growth does not just happen, it is not a process that happens overnight and suddenly you are a mature Christian. Spiritual growth and the pursuit of spiritual excellence is a lifelong commitment. For example, Karla bought an orchid back in September or October, when she purchased it, it was blooming. The blooms lasted a long time but eventually they died. After several months Karla noticed that it was putting out another stem, we watched this stem for over a month as it has grown, put forth buds and finally those buds have begun to open. This was not something that happened overnight, instead we saw little changes over the course of days, then weeks until finally it began to bloom. This is true of spiritual growth as well, it is gradual as the believer walks in daily obedience, slowly but surely he becomes more and more like the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul’s request and exhortation to the Thessalonian believers was a confirmation of that fact and a request to keep progressing, to keep growing, keep walking and pleasing God, just as you actually do walk. They were on the pathway to progressive sanctification as the Lord worked in them by His indwelling Holy Spirit and they co-operated with the Holy Spirit in obedience to His will. Paul’s request and exhortation was that they stay on that pathway and to do so with the patient, disciplined mind-set of an athlete or anyone determined to accomplish a goal set before them. Paul described the patient, determined mindset that he had as he pursued spiritual excellence in his first letter to the Corinthians. He wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.” (1 Corinthians 9:24–27, NASB95)[7] Our Scripture reading this morning from Philippians 3 speaks of Paul’s pursuit as well, listen again to his words in Philippians 3:12-14, “Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:12–14, NASB95)[8]
What was it that kept the Thessalonian Christians on the path of righteousness, that kept them walking and pleasing God and pushed them to excel still more in this pursuit of spiritual excellence? Their walk with Christ began and was based upon the commandments Paul had given them by the authority of the Lord Jesus. In other words, what Paul had taught them, the commandments that he had given them as to how they were to walk and please God were not Paul’s own commandments, these were not from some other source, these commandments were authorized by the Lord Jesus, they came with His authority, they were His commandments. This word translated “commandments” refers to strong, authoritative directives delivered by a commanding officer to those under his authority. This means that the Thessalonian believers could not take Paul’s instruction lightly. He reminded them that they knew what commandments they had given to them, but at the same time he reminded them that there were given by the authority of the Lord Jesus. Because they came by the authority of the Lord Jesus, obedience to them was mandatory. This is echoed by the apostle John in 1st John 2:3-6, “By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.” (1 John 2:3–6, NASB95)[9]
CONCLUSION:
Paul did not want the Christians in Thessalonica to become content with where they were spiritually. He wanted them to continue to grow in their faith, he wanted them to continue to please God in their pursuit of Him. Christians who want to know God better, who want to love Him more, and desire to obey Him more fully, must live their lives according to the commands of Scripture. Those who live this way will experience spiritual growth moving them toward spiritual excellence, through the power of the Spirit of God who indwells them and their co-operation with Him by being obedient to the truth of the Word of God. This is the process of sanctification that is carried out in our lives by the Holy Spirit as He is conforming us to the image of Christ. Paul described this progress in 2nd Corinthians 3 as “beholding in a mirror the glory of the Lord” and “being transformed into the same image from glory to glory…” by the Holy Spirt. In other words, within the pages of Scripture the glory of the Lord is revealed and when that revelation is comprehended by the spiritually alive mind, this progressively changes and raises Christians to increasing Christlikeness. This takes place when the child of God looks into the wonderful mirror of Scripture, which reflects the glory of the Lord.
My request and exhortation to you is do not be content where you are spiritually, do not fall into the trap of thinking you have no further need to progress in sanctification. Instead continue to grow spiritually, continue to get to know our God and Father through the pages of this love letter that He has written to us where He reveals Himself to us and where we can know the eternal God and His great love for us.
[1]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[2]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[3]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[4]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[5]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[6]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[7]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[8]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
[9]New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.