‘Living As GOD’s People While We Watch and Wait for Jesus’ Return’

“You’re doing well. Press on!!” That was Paul’s message to the believers in Thessalonica. Twice in our text this morning Paul commends the believers, first for living to please God, and secondly for their love for one another, and then adds, “do so more and more” … “do this more and more.” Some could easily get the idea that no matter what they do it’s never enough! In fact, some today look at the Christian life as keeping a bunch of rules, and they arrive at the place where it’s just too much “work!” But while God calls all who believe in Jesus Christ to press on toward spiritual maturity, He makes it clear that sanctification, “growing in holiness,” is GOD’s work IN us through the means HE has provided: His Word and His Spirit. Knowing God’s will requires knowing what God says in His Word, and doing God’s will requires knowing we are not alone in our fight against sin … that the very Spirit of Christ empowers us to be what God tells us to be and to do what God tells us to do. “Pressing on” does not simply mean “trying harder,” it means seeking to know what God desires and drawing near to Him in faith, asking Him to empower you to think and to act in a way that is pleasing to Him. Many people today know the difference between right and wrong, but they choose to do what is evil in God’s sight because the Spirit is not in them. These words can only bear fruit in the lives of believers, for it is “in Jesus” and “through Jesus” that we have the desire and the ability to grow in our sanctification … in our pursuit of holiness. Pleasing GOD becomes more important than pleasing SELF or others. May God use His Word today to make His goal for your life clear, encouraging you to “press on toward the goal” for His glory and for your good!