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June 29, 2020, Good afternoon, " And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else. Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil. May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. Brothers and sisters, pray for us. Greet all God’s people with a holy kiss. I charge you before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers and sisters. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. " I Thessalonians 5 : 14-28 As I have said before, this short letter is the first of Paul's letters to the early church. This the closest we get to what someone said since Jesus died ( around 33 AD ). That is between 20-25 years. So for those years, the stories of Jesus, and the Gospel were told by word of mouth. They began in Jerusalem, and went out from there. Travel took a long time, and it may have been expensive. The message would have taken lots of time to filter down through society. And, most people could not read. So, I think these words are important to see and hear what the early believers were saying "yes" to in their faith. In Chapter 5, it is the instructions to this faith community, about how to live. Paul has talked earlier in the letter about being in the Lord, and about Jesus being raised from the dead. We live forever with Jesus. But here at the end of the letter it is about living right, while here on earth. In 5:17 , It says, " Rejoice always ", in 5:18, it states, " Pray continually ", in 5:19, " Do not quench the Spirit " in 5:21, " but test them, hold onto what is good." and finally, in 5:22, " reject every kind of evil ". These are short verses about how to act, but the original letter has no chapters or verses in them ( that came from Robert Stephanus in 1551 ). I think it sounds so different when the verse structure is there. It makes you stop and listen. It sounds like an interpretation and not a translation. But, the strength of the words is still there. Can we agree to live like this in our world within and outside the church. I wonder if these kinds of guidelines were new for the believers in Thessaloniki ? Prayer ( from my favourite new poet, Mary Oliver 1935-2019 ) Love yourself. Then forget it. Then, love the world. Salaam and strength for our journey of life and faith, together. Fred Pastor Poole Mennonite Church |
Ponder Anew 