June 13, 2004

UNDER NEW OWNERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Text: 1 Thessalonians 5: 12 - 24

One Sunday night after the evening service some layman in the church suggested that we join them at a nearby restaurant for what they called “food and fellowship.” I responded: “That sounds like a good idea to me; we’ll follow you in our car, and wherever you want to go will be fine.” So we followed them down to the main street in that town and parked in the lot at the restaurant of their choice.

As I recall, I was the first one in the entrance. We were greeted by a cheery hostess who asked, “How many in your party?” She picked up an ample supply of glossy, plastic-covered menus and said, “Please follow me.”
We scooted on the vinyl-upholstered seats around the table in a corner booth. After the hostess dealt out the menus, we discussed what we would order. Some wanted patty melts with fries. Others wanted pie alamode; still others wanted hot fudge sundaes. I was trying to eat lightly that night. I heard the place was famous for white New England clam chowder.

While we discussed what we would order, a peculiar sound interrupted our conversation. It was a loud, noticeable hiss. I questioned those at the table, “Did you hear that?”

They responded, “Yes”.

“What is it?” No one knew.

The waitress came to take our order. She left, but the noise didn’t. Here it came again: hissssss. Pretty soon the waitress returned and distributed the food around the table. I was the only preacher at the table, and I guess it says somewhere in the Bible that if there’s a preacher at the table, he’s ‘it’ to say the prayer. As I bowed my head to say an appropriate table grace, simultaneous to my prayer was my realization of what was going on. You see, on the wall behind the booth, up against the ceiling was a plastic, wood-grain box. It was a timed dispenser. I don’t know if it was room deodorizer or bug spray, but what I do know is while I bowed my head to say the prayer I felt a mist hit the back of my balding head before it drifted into my clam chowder! I immediately lost my appetite, and silently decided, “I’m never coming here again.”

Well, a few years later I was driving on the interstate through that same town. It was about noon and I was tired of driving and getting hungry. So I exited the freeway and drove down that same street by that same restaurant. I noticed a big poster taped to the window announcing “Under New Ownership and Management.” I thought I’d give it a try. When I walked in I was really impressed. There was heavily padded, cushy, opulent carpeting, color-coordinated wallpaper and booth upholstering, and very attractive diagonal redwood paneling.

There was a brand new menu, and a relocated bug spray!

It seemed that the new owner and manager walked in with total unquestioned authority and, having surveyed the situation, he saw some opportunities for improvement. Evidently he said, “Let’s move that, and paint this, and replace the other.” And the net result was a significant improvement. Every change he made was for the better, none for the worse. He had the authority to do it because he was both the owner and manager.

A major question for all of us to consider is are we living under the Lord’s ownership and management? Has there come a time in your life when you submitted completely to God and His will for your life? Are you currently living under His ownership and management?

I’m convinced that’s what Paul is getting at in I Thessalonians 5: 12 - 24. He opens the sensitive subject of lay and pastoral relationships in verses 12 and 13. Respect, hold in highest regard in love, and live in peace are the instructions we are given. Here Paul gives us the acceptable, biblical norm for our attitude and behavior towards ministerial leaders.

You would be shocked if you saw the gross violations of these verses I’ve observed in my years of travel in itinerant evangelism.

It reminds me of the description of John the Baptist: “There came a man who was sent from God.” He was human (not absolutely perfect), but God sent him. We have a responsibility to comply with the scripture regarding our behavior and attitudes toward ministerial leaders.

Paul gives us four instructions in verse 14: “Warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.” Sometimes people are not productively involved in God’s work because they are lazy, apathetic, mediocre and nominal in their relationship with God. Paul says, “Warn those who are idle.” Other times people aren’t productively involved in God’s work because they are shy, timid and handicapped with inferiority feelings. Here Paul says encourage the timid. The shy and timid person needs to be affirmed and trained in their ministry.

Next, we’re taught to help the weak. As new believers are brought into the church, many will have weaknesses. They do not need criticism, they need help. When we were first saved, we were not zapped into instant perfection. And the truth is, we all still have room to grow!

The fourth instruction from verse 14 is “ . . . be patient with everyone.” When Paul gives a list of the attributes of a Spirit-filled life in Galatians 5:22, we learn that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience. As we live under His ownership and management the spiritual fruit produced by the Holy Spirit grows and flourishes.

Further, the Spirit-filled Christian living under new ownership and management will not pay back wrong for wrong (verse 15), but rather show kindness. You might be thinking . . . “you don’t know what they did, or you don’t know what they said, or you don’t know how bad it hurts.” We must remember Jesus taught us to forgive seventy times seven and to turn the other cheek. “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay’ says the Lord” (Romans 12: 19).

Peering further in this passage we find “Be joyful always” (verse 16). I’ve heard folks argue, “Well, I’m not going to act happy and joyful if I don’t feel happy and joyful!” It doesn’t have anything to do with the unpredictable human emotion called happiness. The fruit of the Spirit is joy! Have you ever known that kind of person where the whole room seemed to brighten up, when they left? Paul encourages us, as we live under new ownership and management, to be joyful.

Next he says, “pray continually” (verse 17). That does not mean stay on your knees twenty-four hours per day. It does mean stay tuned-in to the Holy Spirit. And after you talk to God, let Him talk back to you. God talks to us as we study His Word. What priority do you give to reading His Word daily? Some folks rationalize that they don’t have time. But we all choose how we use our hours each day.

God also talks to us through our times of public worship. He talks to us through good Christian literature and music, and through the counsel of caring Spirit-filled friends.

Verse 18 instructs us to “give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” We often are tempted to complain. Sometimes we feel sorry for ourselves when we’re in uncomfortable circumstances. But as we live under His ownership and management we trust Him, knowing “that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). And because that promise is true, we can give thanks.

Next Paul cautions us, “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire.” The King James Bible translates this “quench not the Spirit”. The “word picture” here is: don’t snuff out the candle, or don’t douse the fire, or don’t pour cold water on the flame of God in your heart.

How do we “put out the Spirit’s fire?” We do it when we do what we know we ought not to do. Can you remember when the Spirit said, “Don’t do that,” but you did it, or “Don’t say that”, but you said it, or “Don’t go there”, but you went? We quench the Spirit when we do, by impulsive disobedience, what we know we ought not do.

We can also “put out the Spirit’s fire” by not doing what we ought to do. Remember when the Spirit said, “Go there,” but you stayed, or “Do something”, but you refused, or “Say something”, but you were silent, or “Give something”, but you held back? We can quench the Spirit by omitting doing what we ought to do.

Looking further, we learn “do not treat prophecies (forth-telling proclamations of God’s Word) with contempt. Test everything, hold on to the good” (verses 20 - 21). These are days when we cannot buy everything we hear from public pulpit, printed page, audiocassette, videotape, radio or television. Among Christian teaching in America today there’s a lot of “prime rib and filet” available. But there’s also a whole lot of bologna. Paul advises us to test everything. How do we do that? You and the Holy Spirit and your Bible can sort out everything relevant to your personal relationship with God.

“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5). The Lord will lead us regarding “Hold on to the good” and “Avoid every kind of evil” (verse 22).

As we live under His ownership and management there will be specific evils we will avoid. There will be places we won’t go, and things we won’t do, and things we won’t drink, and programs we won’t watch. And it will not be the result of some preacher hassling us into conformity, but it will be the result of what the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit does in our own yielded, dedicated and submissive hearts!

Paul steers this instruction to a conclusion at verse 23. “May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The term “sanctify” here means clean, purify, to separate, or set apart for God’s exclusive ownership and possession, and to make holy. It’s living under new ownership and management, where our top priority is to please Him and do His will.

That’s something that we can’t accomplish by ourselves. That’s why we have verse 24 to follow: “The one who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.” God’s patient, loving activity in our hearts produces both cleansing from original sin and the in-filling of the Holy Spirit, who guides us into continual development in holiness.