Don’t Ignore Your Help!

Seven strong exhortations are to govern our behavior toward God

4. Do not suppress the Spirit—do not quench the Spirit

(5:19) Holy Spirit—Sin: this is one of the four major sins against the Holy Spirit.

1. Quenching the Spirit (1 Th. 5:19). To quench means to stifle, to snuff out, to stop. The Holy Spirit is always working in the life of the believer to lead him to do God’s will.

The Holy Spirit who inspired the Scriptures will expect obedience to the Scriptures, and if we do not give that obedience we will quench him.

A. W. Tozer

The believer quenches the Spirit’s work by (a) ignoring Him, (b) neglecting Him, (c) disobeying Him, or by simply (d) procrastinating.

We must break the evil habit of ignoring the spiritual. We must shift our interest from the seen to the unseen.

A. W. Tozer

The command to “quench not the Spirit” is surrounded by a series of positive commands.

5. Do not despise prophesyings. Prophecy is the gift of proclaiming the gospel and of predicting the future under the influence of the Holy Spirit. Both proclamation and prediction are included in the gift. A person is not to minimize or despise the gift despite the abuse of the gift by some.

“But he that prophesieth speaketh unto me to edification, and exhortation, and comfort” (1 Co. 14:3).

“Despise not prophesyings” (1 Th. 5:20).

6. Prove all things; hold fast to what proves to be good. The word prove means to test and to prove.

Both the gifts and behavior of believers are to be tested.

If a person claims to prophesy—whether proclaiming the gospel or predicting some event to strengthen believers for some coming trial—all should be tested. We are not to blindly accept what people say, even if it is the preacher or servant of God.

Neither are we to blindly accept people themselves. Every person—what he says and does—is to be tested and proven. How? By measuring what he says and does by the Scripture.

But note: the Scriptures must be studied in order to measure what people say and do. The only way to know truth from error is to the know the Scripture.

“Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord” (Ep. 5:10).

“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Th. 5:21).

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 Jn. 4:1).

“I have set thee for a tower and a fortress among my people, that thou mayest know and try their way” (Je. 6:27).

Now, note the exhortation: when a person or a truth is proven, hold it fast. Hold fast to all that is good. Do not let a good person go: learn from him. Do not let a good doctrine or exhortation go: hang on to it, live and practice it, and teach it to others.

“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Th. 5:21).

“But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end” (He. 3:6).

“Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession” (He. 4:14).

“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised)” (He. 10:23).

“Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their gaments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy” (Re. 3:3–4).

7. Abstain from all appearance of evil: note closely what this exhortation says. It does not just say to abstain from evil, but to abstain from the very appearance of evil.

⇒ If something even appears or borders on evil, get away from it.

⇒ If there is any chance whatsoever that it could be wrong, leave it alone.

⇒ If there is even a suggestion that it could be wrong, flee it.

A believer must have nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with evil—not even the appearance of it.

“Let love be without dissimulation [hypocrisy]. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good” (Ro. 12:9).

“Abstain from all appearance of evil” (1 Th. 5:22).

“Let him eschew [turn away from, shun] evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it” (1 Pe. 3:11).

“And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding” (Jb. 28:28).

“Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it” (Ps. 34:14).

“Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked” (Ps. 97:10).

“Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil” (Pr. 4:27).

“A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident” (Pr. 14:16).