Paul's Exhortations to the Thessalonian Church Volume 36

Paul Exhorts them to Rejoice and Pray

1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. KJV

After warning these believers in Thessalonica to refrain from paying back wicked men and women the evil which they have committed against them/us, Paul now turns to more pleasant exhortations for theses believers and we believers today, first being to, "Rejoice evermore." (KJV). Immediately when we are forgiven eternally of our sin when we are 'born again' we are filled with the awesome, amazing, and awe-inspiring love/agape of God poured (as it were a pitcher of water poured into a container) into our souls or our inner man and inner woman by God the Holy Spirit as declared by this same Apostle with these words to the Roman believers, "Such hope never disappoints {or} deludes {or} shames us, for God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us." (Romans 5:5) (Amplified Bible). Likewise immediately upon receiving this love/agape of God into our souls, we then respond with joy that cannot and will not be contained within us just as the Apostle Peter declared with these words, "Without having seen Him, you love Him; though you do not [even] now see Him, you believe in Him and exult {and} thrill with inexpressible and glorious (triumphant, heavenly) joy." (1 Peter 1:8) (Amplified Bible).

The English word 'Rejoice' is translated by the Greek word chairo which is a primary verb meaning to be full of cheer, that is, calmly happy or well off. In other words, it is our privilege and our exclusive right and ours alone on the earth  to be cheerful and at all times calmly happy (no matter our outward conditions or circumstances) because we know and are assured that our sins (past, present, and future sins) are washed away by the Mighty Stream of the Blood of the Lamb just as the Apostle Peter said with these words, "You must know (recognize) that you were redeemed (ransomed) from the useless (fruitless) way of living inherited by tradition from [your] forefathers, not with corruptible things [such as] silver and gold, But [you were purchased] with the precious Blood of Christ (the Messiah), like that of a [sacrificial] lamb without blemish or spot." (1 Peter 1:18-19) (Amplified Bible) and also as prescribed by the Apostle John with these words, "Then, addressing me, one of the elders [of the heavenly Sanhedrin] said, Who are these [people] clothed in the long white robes? And from where have they come? I replied, Sir, you know. And he said to me, These are they who have come out of the great tribulation (persecution), and have washed their robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb." (Revelation 7:13-14) (Amplified Bible).

The Apostle now exhorts the believers in Thessalonica to prayer as he says it with these words, "Pray without ceasing." (1 Thessalonians 5:17) (KJV). Pray simply means to talk to God the Father confessing sin, supplicating, that is, asking for forgiveness of sins and for provisions for this life and for protection from the evil one and evil men and women and for the same for your loved ones humbly, but at the same time earnestly and sincerely with strong feeling and desire. The little English phrase 'without ceasing' is translated by one Greek word adialeiptos meaning uninterruptedly, that is, without omission (on an appropriate occasion): - without ceasing. In other words, prayer is our lifeline to our Father in Heaven and just as the human body (on the earth) requires breathing oxygen to live, then we require communication, connection, and correspondence with God the Father in order that we function (spiritually) as we should during our sojourn and pilgrimage here on the earth away from our Heavenly home.

We should pray everywhere (1 Timothy 2:8), praying with the spirit and with the understanding (1 Corinthians 14:14-15) and with the help or aid of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:26), and praying in confidence believing our petitions are heard and will be answered by our Father in Heaven (Mark 11:24) just as King David did always such as he declares with these words, "As for me, I will call upon God, and the Lord will save me. Evening and morning and at noon will I utter my prayer and moan {and} sigh, and He will hear my voice. He has redeemed my life in peace from the battle that was against me [so that none came near me], for they were many who strove with me. God will hear and humble them, even He Who abides of old--Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!--because in them there has been no change [of heart], and they do not fear, revere, {and} worship God." (Psalm 55:16-19) (Amplified Bible).

"Ye are dependent on God for every good; without Him ye can do nothing; feel that dependence at all times, and ye will always be in the spirit of prayer; and those who feel this spirit will, as frequently as possible, be found in the exercise of prayer." Adam Clarke

"Joy (that comes from our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ) is not dependent on our earthly things accumulated in this life or our bank account quantity or our praise from other human beings or our social status in the community and world at large or even from our family and friends, but it comes from that rock solid assurance that our sins are forgiven forever and that we have a place reserved and prepared for us by Christ Jesus our Lord Himself and that He will return and receive us unto Himself forever to be with our Lord Jesus Christ and nothing the enemy of our souls does here on the earth to harass, hurt, or harm us will change these facts. (John 10:28) Amen!" Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

"But have we ever realised what this commandment necessarily reveals to us, as to what real prayer is? For if we are told to do a thing uninterruptedly, it must be something that can run unbroken through all the varieties of our legitimate duties and necessary occupations and absorptions with the things seen and temporal. Is that your notion of prayer? Or do you fancy that it simply means dropping down on your knees, and asking God to give you some things that you very much want? Petition is an element in prayer, and that it shall be crystallised into words is necessary sometimes; but there are prayers that never get themselves uttered, and I suppose that the deepest and truest communion with God is voiceless and wordless. 'Things which it was not possible for a man to utter,' was Paul’s description of what he saw and felt, when he was most completely absorbed in, and saturated with, the Divine Glory. The more we understand what prayer is, the less we shall feel that it depends upon utterance. For the essence of it is to have heart and mind filled with the consciousness of God's presence, and to have the habit of referring everything to Him, in the moment when we are doing it, or when it meets us. That, as I take it, is prayer." Alexander MacLaren

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...

Sincerely in Christ,

Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…