The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Thessalonians — Section 128

Ch~ist Jesus, "o~er _the se.cri~ce of prai11e t.o ~od continue.Uy, ~he fruit of our lips"! Thie has the dlstmct1on of bemg the most delightful of all dut1e&. "For praise and thanksgiving are the most delectable business of hee.ven ; and God grant they may be our greatest delight, our frequent employment upon earth., (Barrow). IX. DuTY TOWARD THE SPIRIT. "Quench not the Spirit." The Spirit is com- pared here, as in othPr places in Scriptu,·e, to fire. There is the beginning of spiritual life in every mRn. There is the depraved nature, but there is also the Spirit with his vital energy to be cherished or quenched. It is especiAlly in connection with the gospel that the Spirit is given to men. In the gospel there is presented a Divine call to accept of Divine mercy, e.nd there is, in connection with it, a Divine warning aJ!:ainst refusing Divine mercy. " He that believeth on the Son bath eternal life; but he that obeyeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him." The Spirit, in the Word read or preached, brings the gospel call to bear upon the conscience and heart. The feeling that we ouf!;ht to accept of salvation and not throw away our existence, the desire to give Christ our confidence and not spurn hie love, is the working of' the Spirit. And, in providence after provideuce, does the Spirit more gently whisper to us, or more loudly rouse us up to the importance of the Divine call and warning. It is suggested by the context, that what those who have felt the power of the Spirit have to fear is the repression of enthusiasm. Let them give free outlet to the working of the Spirit, and not be deterred by the conventionalities even of religious society. If they feel prompted to pray, let them not restrain prayer. lf they feel prompted to study God's Word, let them sit down and pore over it. If they feel prompted to throw themselves into Christian work, let them not hold back. It was by e. strange perversity of will on the part of Saul that he was deserted by the Spirit. David feared that his outbreak of sin would drive away the Holy Spirit from him. What prevents men feeling the power of the Spirit is especially an irregular life. They tum away from good, and give the reins to their passions, and another spirit than God's takes possession of them. But there is not needed outward irregularity to quench the Spirit. The essential thing is the withdrawing of the mind from the range of the Divine revele.tion, the paying no heed to the Divine voice, the smothering good feeling even under the ordinary engagements of life, the neglecting to follow up good impressions by a decisive step for Christ. The result in the following out of trial is a state of mind in which there is an insensibility to the importance of the Divine call and warning. Conviction of sin or uneasiness about it ceases; interest in what is good dies ont. The Spirit or God takes hie departure, and an evil spirit takes full possession. There is this encouraging thought to those who have been resisting and grieving the Spirit, that while there is the slightest thought of good remaining in their hearts, it may be fanned into a fie.me. 'l'he Spirit, long slighted, at last cherished, will come, and with his vital energy fill their whole being. X. DUTY WITH BEG ARD TO PBOPHESYINGS. "Despise not prophesyiDga." These were special manifestations of the Spirit. As in the Corinthian Church, and also in the Galatian Churches, so in the Church of Thessalonice., there was the presence of miracles. There was the gift of healing; there was also the gift of tongues. As striking mani- festations the use they served was especially in impressing and drawing the attention of them that were outside. Prophesyings were intelli~ent and, prouably, impassioned utterances of Divine truth under the inflatus of the Spirit. As such the use they served was especially in promoting the edification of the Church. Let none, then, run the risk of quenching the Spirit by placing a low value on his less striking but far more important manifestations. XI. DUTY OF PROVING ALL THINGS. "Prove all things." The language is taken from the art of the Rssayer. He has special skill in applying tests, with the view of discovering what is real and what is counterfeit in metals, what is good coin and what iij bad coin. So the Christian assayer is to be specially skilled in testing the n,e.l nature of things. There is nothing in the language to restrict the reference to thP prophesyings which have been mentioned. It is not said" all prophesyings," or "all thes, things." And if there is an antithesis, as some authorities ha.ve it, in the e.ssertion o' " but," yet is it preserved by regarding prophesyings as included among all things. '!'he wideness of the reference is confirmed by the consideration that things u prove.! ••re dividod into things to be chosP.11 ,rnd things to be rejected. [n prophesyings, as  128 THE FIRST EPISTLE TO 'l'HE THESSALONIANS. [oil. v. 1-28-