Describing the spiritual life of a Christian as, in the apostle's view, it should be, Paul places prayer at its center: continuous prayer, and necessarily with thanksgiving...
Describing the spiritual life of a Christian as, in the apostle's view, it should be, Paul places prayer at its center: continuous prayer, and necessarily with thanksgiving. The whole life of a Christian is built around such prayer. It would seem impossible to pray continuously: there are other things in life that have to be done, so one will in one way or another have to be distracted from prayer. But it only appears so to someone for whom prayer is merely certain words that have to be said to God.
Meanwhile, words are only the outward form of prayer. In some cases one can do without them altogether. In all spiritual traditions, at least those that go back to Abraham, there exists the practice of prayer without words, silent prayer, or prayer in which short prayer formulas are used. They can easily be repeated to oneself in a whisper or even mentally anywhere, under practically any circumstances. It is possible that Paul has something similar in mind. Among believing Jews in his day such prayer was known and popular. The prayer formula usually used was either the prayer "Shema" ("Hear, O Israel...") or simply the invocation of the sacred name, the name of Yahweh, which could not be pronounced aloud but which no one forbade invoking mentally. In church practice, especially in the East, inner prayer later became widespread and is usually called the Jesus Prayer, because in it, and there are several versions of such a prayer, the name of Jesus is present, whom the one praying invokes.
But whatever the prayer formula may be, it still remains only a means to direct the will of the one praying toward the One whom he wants to address, toward God or toward Christ. The goal remains precisely the union of the human will with the will of God or with the will of Jesus. Ideally there should be no gap left between the two wills; they should form a single whole, while each remains itself, as it was with Jesus Himself and His heavenly Father. Such unity of a person with God makes possible everything else that Paul lists in his letter: constant joy, attention to every movement of God's breath, listening to prophetic revelations. But the most important thing is that it creates that space of relationship between God and the person outside of which normal spiritual life is impossible at all. That is why the apostle places prayer at the center of Christians' spiritual life: it makes possible everything else in it, as Paul reminds the Thessalonian Christians.
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5:12 Know them that,
- Labour among you:
- Are over you in the Lord:
- Admonish you.
Know - See, mark, take knowledge of them and their work. Sometimes the same person may both labour, that is, preach; be over, or govern; and admonish the flock by particular application to each: sometimes two or more different persons, according as God variously dispenses his gifts. But O, what a misery is it when a man undertakes this whole work without either gifts or graces for any part of it! Why, then, will he undertake it? for pay?What! will he sell both his own soul and all the souls of the flock? What words can describe such a wretch as this? And yet even this may be "an honourable man!"5:13 Esteem them very highly - Literally, more than abundantly, in love - The inexpressible sympathy that is between true pastors and their flock is intimated, not only here, but also in divers other places of this epistle.See Th1 2:7-8.For their work's sake - The principal ground of their vast regard for them. But how are we to esteem them who do not work at all?
5:14 Warn the disorderly - Them that stand, as it were, out of their rank in the spiritual warfare. Some such were even in that church. The feeble - minded - Literally, them of little soul; such as have no spiritual courage.
5:15 See that none - Watch over both yourselves and each other.Follow that which is good - Do it resolutely and perseveringly.
5:16 Rejoice evermore - In uninterrupted happiness in God.Pray without ceasing - Which is the fruit of always rejoicing in the Lord. In everything give thanks - Which is the fruit of both the former. This is Christian perfection. Farther than this we cannot go; and we need not stop short of it. Our Lord has purchased joy, as well as righteousness, for us. It is the very design of the gospel that, being saved from guilt, we should be happy in the love of Christ. Prayer may be said to be the breath of our spiritual life. He that lives cannot possibly cease breathing. So much as we really enjoy of the presence of God, so much prayer and praise do we offer up without ceasing; else our rejoicing is but delusion. Thanksgiving is inseparable from true prayer: it is almost essentially connected with it.He that always prays is ever giving praise, whether in ease or pain, both for prosperity and for the greatest adversity. He blesses God for all things, looks on them as coming from him, and receives them only for his sake; not choosing nor refusing, liking nor disliking, anything, but only as it is agreeable or disagreeable to his perfect will.
5:18 For this - That you should thus rejoice, pray, give thanks. Is the will of God - Always good, always pointing at our salvation.
5:19 Quench not the Spirit - Wherever it is, it burns; it flames in holy love, in joy, prayer, thanksgiving. O quench it not, damp it not in yourself or others, either by neglecting to do good, or by doing evil!
5:20 Despise not prophesyings - That is, preaching; for the apostle is not here speaking of extraordinary gifts. It seems, one means of grace is put for all; and whoever despises any of these, under whatever pretence, will surely (though perhaps gradually and almost insensibly) quench the Spirit.
5:21 Meantime, prove all things - Which any preacher recommends. (He speaks of practice, not of doctrines.) Try every advice by the touchstone of scripture, and hold fast that which is good - Zealously, resolutely, diligently practise it, in spite of all opposition.
5:22 And be equally zealous and careful to abstain from all appearance of evil - Observe, those who "heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears," under pretence of proving all things, have no countenance or excuse from this scripture.
5:23 And may the God of peace sanctify you - By the peace he works in you, which is a great means of sanctification.Wholly - The word signifies wholly and perfectly; every part and all that concerns you; all that is of or about you. And may the whole of you, the spirit and the soul and the body - Just before he said you; now he denominates them from their spiritual state.The spirit - Gal 6:8;wishing that it may be preserved whole and entire: then from their natural state, the soul and the body; (for these two make up the whole nature of man, Mat 10:28;) wishing it may be preserved blameless till the coming of Christ.To explain this a little further: of the three here mentioned, only the two last are the natural constituent parts of man. The first is adventitious, and the supernatural gift of God, to be found in Christians only. That man cannot possibly consist of three parts, appears hence: The soul is either matter or not matter: there is no medium. But if it is matter, it is part of the body: if not matter, it coincides with the Spirit.
5:24 Who also will do it - Unless you quench the Spirit.
5:27 I charge you by the Lord - Christ, to whom proper divine worship is here paid. That this epistle - The first he wrote. Be read to all the brethren - That is, in all the churches. They might have concealed it out of modesty, had not this been so solemnly enjoined: but what Paul commands under so strong an adjuration, Rome forbids under pain of excommunication.