Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Paul’s command to the community of Christ seems like a tall order. When we understand what he intends to communicate, we find some remarkable treasures for application today. Let’s take each in order:
Rejoice always - the characteristic of the community of Christ was wholly unique.* While other religions of the day focused on negative emotions and responses to life circumstances and the human condition (Stoicism, coming closer to positivity, aimed to have no emotion at all), Christianity called the believer to have joy.* God did not intend this attention-getting command to create fake, in-genuine people who express bubbly emotions of positivity at all times.* No, God invites us to rejoice even in the hard times without denying their difficulty and pain.* How do we do this? We understand that even in the difficulty, God can use that for us too.*
pray without ceasing - prayer was not unique to the Christian faith.* Paganism and Judaism both allocated time for prayer.* The biggest differentiator for Christians was a) prayer was to happen “without ceasing”… meaning, at all times and not limited to certain times of day,* and b) unlike paganism, prayers were not to be offered in an attempt to manipulate God.* Prayers should come from an understanding that we are the children of God, and He already delights in us.*
give thanks in all circumstances - related to point 1, God invites us not to thank Him for pain, but to thank Him that the pain is never in vain.* We live in a broken world, and God uses the brokenness that humanity and sin introduced to bring them closer to Him. It’s the masterful work of the loving Father.
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. - God desires good for us. God desires that we reflect genuine life to others through the lens of understanding that God changes everything.
We don’t need to pretend that everything is okay when it isn’t; we need to live in the reality that God will use all things for good even when all things aren’t good. We don’t need to convince God of this, we just need to bring it to Him. He’s the Good Father, and He cares.
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to rejoice that He is with you and that His presence changes everything. Perhaps today you have tried almost everything, but God wants you to pray. Maybe today God wants you to live in gratitude that the pain isn’t the end.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
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*Holmes, M. (1998). 1 and 2 Thessalonians (p. 181). Zondervan Publishing House.
Shogren, G. S. (2012). 1 & 2 Thessalonians (p. 223). Zondervan.
Green, G. L. (2002). The letters to the Thessalonians (pp. 255–257). W.B. Eerdmans Pub.; Apollos.
Kim, S., & Bruce, F. F. (2023). 1 & 2 Thessalonians (D. B. Capes, Ed.; Second Edition, Vol. 45, pp. 468–471). Zondervan Academic.
Morris, L. (1984). 1 and 2 Thessalonians: An introduction and commentary (Vol. 13, p. 103). InterVarsity Press.
Beale, G. K. (2003). 1–2 Thessalonians (pp. 166–167). InterVarsity Press.
Weima, J. A. D. (2014). Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament: 1–2 Thessalonians (R. W. Yarbrough & R. H. Stein, Eds.; pp. 396–398). Baker Academic.