Skip to main content

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24: Fourth Piece of Holiness Pi (Don't Quench the Spirit 4/7)

Paul knows that Jesus may come back at any moment and so he comes up with this way for us to remember how to be blameless, how to be holy in preparation for this event. He gives us the 7 P's (Greek 'Pi') of holiness. Today we will have our fourth piece of pi.

Pi 4 = Do not quench the Spirit

Now, apparently when Paul was writing this letter, there were some ‘wakkos’ predicting the time and the day of the end of the world (cf. Mark 13:32-33) and there were ‘weirdos’ who would perform fake healings, false prophecies, etc. There were these snake-oil salesmen of sorts.[7] And some of these folks were leading people astray and some of these people with their false predictions just looked plain silly and they did so for no easily discernible heavenly purpose. Some things never change! There is a difference between being a fool for the gospel and just plain being a fool.[8] Now Paul knew this and Paul knew that in reaction to these people, some people could go too far in the other direction.

I went to a church service of some denomination or other once and I remember someone who was visiting asking if it had charismatic style worship at all; the response was, “The Holy Spirit showed up just the other night in an evening service but - don’t worry – the pastor asked Him to leave.” I have certainly been in more than one service like this (in churches of different denominations) that indeed when the Spirit does show up, people don’t know what to do – and this is what Paul is telling us about with the fourth P. He is saying don’t quench the Spirit.

Pi 4 = Do not quench the Spirit


 More daily blogs at

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Psalm 147:7-11: Does God Prohibit the Kilt?

  7 Sing to the Lord with grateful praise;     make music to our God on the harp.   8 He covers the sky with clouds;     he supplies the earth with rain     and makes grass grow on the hills. 9 He provides food for the cattle     and for the young ravens when they call.   10 His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse,     nor his delight in the legs of a man [or ‘the warrior’]; 11 the Lord delights in those who fear him,     who put their hope in his unfailing love.   Psalm 147:10 : “His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man.” I thought this was an appropriate passage to look at on Robbie Burns Day. For Christmas one year Susan bought me some Bible Commentaries on Psalms. In one of these books the author, Peter C. Craigie, from Scotland, writes:   …. It was the custom in Scotland for boys to ...

Poor No More! Count me in! (Mt 26:11, Mk 14:7, Jn 12:8, Dt 15:11)

Matthew 26:11 (Mark 14:7, John 12:8) Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 15:11 in saying, “the poor will always be with you”   As this is the case, Ignacio Ellacuria says, in essence, the great salvific task is to evangelize the poor so that out of their poverty they may attain the spirit necessary first to escape their indulgence and oppression, second to put an end to oppressive structures, and third to be used to inaugurate a new heaven and a new earth, where sharing trumps accumulating and where there is time to hear and enjoy God’s voice in the heart of the material world and in the heart of human history. [3]   I think that is very important. We need to evangelize the poor. We know what the word evangelize means, right? It comes from the Greek word ‘euangelion’, which means ‘good message’ or ‘good news’. [4]  We need to share the good news with the poor. Jesus, as recorded in Luke 4:18, in his very early sermon in the synagogue in his very own hometown quoted the prophet Isaia...

Resurrection and Frankenstein's Creation (2 Corinthians 5:17 and Revelation 21 3b-4)

 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!  We went to see Frankenstein the Ballet last night. If anyone knows that story. The beginning is like the book. Dr. Frankenstein makes a creation out of the parts of corpses who had had terrible things happen in their lives - and then he brings life to the new creation and it becomes whole - with a whole new lease on life. A new chance to live. No matter all the awful stuff that had happened before. Now - the book actually ends poorly after that but the ballet does not. The ballet includes a story of Giselle. This bride, who herself suffered a horrible fate, learned forgiveness and is resurrected. She meets Frankenstein's creation; they fall in love - and start off again, this time living a transformed life. Revelation 21:3b-4: God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or ...