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Read: 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8
Listen: 1 Thessalonians 4

As for other matters, brothers and sisters, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 4:1-2

The apostle Paul, writing to the new believers in Thessalonica, spends the first part of the letter reminding them of important truths. He reminds them of who they are in Christ and who they are to him. He writes to make sure their new faith stands firm against the pressures of their culture. He reminds them that living to please God means living differently from the world around them. In this part of the letter, Paul gets personal as he describes how following Jesus impacts their sexuality as both individuals and a church community. They are to be distinct from the culture and to call out wrong and destructive things. But they are also to remain hospitable and grace-filled.

Paul’s words are just as important for us today. Many of the ideas about sexuality in our culture aren’t too different from the first century. Both cultures can be described as extremely sexualized. Both need rescuing. The hope the church in Thessalonica offered is the same hope we bring to our world. It’s Jesus’s way of living, and it affects every area of our lives, including sexuality. Jesus’s way of life demonstrates that God has our best interest in mind, both individually and as a church community.

 

TODAY: Pray for openness to what God desires to say to you this week. Pray for him to bring you whatever you need in this part of your life: healing, hope or conviction.

JESUS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT:

Read Ezra 1-2. Highlight anything that points to Jesus. Note God’s faithfulness in fulfilling the prophecy that his people would return to the land. Think about how Jesus fulfills Old Testament prophecies (Matthew 5:17).