8/10 Acts 17:1-3
1 Now Paul and Silas traveled through the towns of Amphipolis and Apollonia and came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 As was Paul’s custom, he went to the synagogue service, and for three Sabbaths in a row he interpreted the Scriptures to the people. 3 He was explaining and proving the prophecies about the sufferings of the Messiah and his rising from the dead. He said, “This Jesus I’m telling you about is the Messiah.”
JESUS
Jesus is the Son of God. We start with Jesus, we grow in Jesus and we stay with Jesus forever. We never have to go outside Jesus for spiritual growth. Jesus is the only way to the Father. He is God’s everything.
Author - Clay Corvin
8/09 1 Thessalonians 5:24-28
24 God, who calls you, is faithful; he will do this. 25 Dear brothers and sisters, pray for us. 26 Greet all the brothers and sisters in Christian love. 27 I command you in the name of the Lord to read this letter to all the brothers and sisters. 28 And may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you.
FAITHFUL
The Lord is interested in your life. Nothing gets by Him. Spend time with Jesus and He will equip you to face the day. When you day gets out of kilter simply go back to Jesus and ask Him to see you through. He will.
8/08 1 Thessalonians 5:23
23 Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until that day when our Lord Jesus Christ comes again.
PEACE
God gives us His peace. This is a promise we can claim as His child. When our life spins out of control in chaos we need to stop and check our spiritual focus. Are we focused on Jesus or are we focused on the world?
8/07 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22
19 Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. 20 Do not scoff at prophecies, 21 but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. 22 Keep away from every kind of evil.
EVIL
We are to keep away from every kind of evil. The Lord knows our ability and He knows that we can discipline ourselves with His strength. If we attempt to deal with the spiritual realm in our own strength we will fail miserably. Focus your heart and minds upon the Lord. He will not fail you.
8/06 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18
14 Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. 15 See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to everyone else. 16 Always be joyful. 17 Keep on praying. 18 No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
JESUS
We belong to Jesus therefore we are to live in victory. We can have joy and peace in the face of really bad situations. Jesus is the key. Is He in control of my life or will I seek to control it and only turn to Jesus when life gets out of hand. Humility and dependence are elements of a surrendered Christian walk.
8/05 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13
12 Dear brothers and sisters, honor those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you and warn you against all that is wrong. 13 Think highly of them and give them your wholehearted love because of their work. And remember to live peaceably with each other.
HONOR
Today, cynicism is rampant in our society. We do not want to be cynic. We must not let the world shape us. We should honor our leaders. This means that I am to be understanding, forgiving, in pray for, and helpful to our Christian leaders. Sometimes people dishonor our leaders in the Lord’s work out of jealousy. Lord give me the correct attitude towards our Christian leaders.
8/04 1 Thessalonians 5:10-11
10 He died for us so that we can live with him forever, whether we are dead or alive at the time of his return. 11 So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.
BLOOD
His death is a grace gift to us. He shed His blood to pay for my sin. He is Lord, Lord of me, Lord of you and Lord of life. Jesus gives us life, life like His now and forever. We are helped and we must become helpers. Encourage one another and help each other.
8/03 1 Thessalonians 5:7-9
7 Night is the time for sleep and the time when people get drunk. 8 But let us who live in the light think clearly, protected by the body armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation. 9 For God decided to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us.
CONFIDENCE
We can live in confidence of the Lord’s protection. We will not be caught short by something we forgot. There is no gotcha in our relationship with Jesus. We pray. We listen. We plea. We know that the Lord is with us. Our response is joy. We live in His peace and can express our joy. What a wonderful Savior.
8/02 1 Thessalonians 5:4-6
4 But you aren’t in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won’t be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief. 5 For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. 6 So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be sober.
READY
Is this the day the Lord returns? It could be. It will be one day. Be ready for His return whenever He chooses to come. The world rages but you know that one day the Lord will return and He is coming to take us home and in judgment of those that refused to acknowledge Him as Lord and Savior.
8/01 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3
I really don’t need to write to you about how and when all this will happen, dear brothers and sisters. 2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. 3 When people are saying, “All is well; everything is peaceful and secure,” then disaster will fall upon them as suddenly as a woman’s birth pains begin when her child is about to be born. And there will be no escape.
TRAGEDY
The great tragedy is that no one that is lost will have an excuse. How more explicit could the Lord be? Prophecy upon prophecy, and the world continues to ignore God. Seek the Lord while He may be found. Seek the Lord today for tomorrow never comes. Great is the Lord. He is our Creator and we are called to believe and follow Him.