Moving Forward Together: Contributing to the Counter-Cultural Family of Faith | Agassiz Campus

The Apostle Paul did the same thing.

Our Bible is very full of, uh, New Testament letters that he wrote to the churches.

And, uh, this letter to the Thessalonian church, there are two of them.

And, uh, so we're gonna focus on 1 Thessalonians 5:9-22 today.

Paul's emphasis is not a whole lot different than mine in with respect to he longs to see the people.

There are themes there.

Uh, he longs to get back to them.

He loves them.

He's deeply concerned for the future of the church.

And so I'm gonna ask you to stand as we read through that.

It's, uh, f- if you can, if you're able, uh, for the reading of God's word and prayer, and then we're gonna move forward.

Uh, it is 1 Thessalonians 5:9-22.

Should be up here somewhere, I think.

"For God has not destined us for wrath-" But to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we might live with him.

Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up just as you are doing.

We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work.

Be at peace among yourselves.

And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the faint-hearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.

See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing.

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Do not quench the Spirit, do not despise prophecies, but test everything.

Hold fast what is good.

Abstain from every form of evil.

Father, we thank you for your Word, for the preciousness of these letters that Paul wrote, that at the time he would have had no idea that sometime down the road it was to be canonized and be a teaching tool and a historical document for us.