The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Thessalonians — Section 134

III. THE END FOR WHICH THIS DIVINE APPOINTMENT u HADl!l. 1. Thia i, lhal we may live in fellowship with C!hrist. Strictly speaking, the fellowship with Christ is given u.s the object or the suffering of death by Christ. But the earlier part of the passa~e shows 11B the Divine appointment of salvation as secured through Christ. Putting the two together, we see that salvation is worthleu without the life in Ghrist, a.swell as that salvation is only possible to those who are in fellowship with Christ. Salvation i~ in itself a negative term. Bare deliverance is of little use unless some good is to be made of the liberty and immunity. While a fellow-creature is being saved from death by drowning we follow the process with intense interest; but after his deliverance we may not feel much concern with his future career. It may be that he will make but a poor use of his restored lire. If we finished the story we might find the issue to be a pitiable anti-climax. God is guarding his great appointment from a similar catastrophe. They who are saved live in fellowship with Christ. Su~h a life is worth securing at the greatest cost. 2. This fellowship with Christ is independent of the greatest o,utward rhanges. It remains whether we wake or sleep, i.e. whether we livo or die.-W. F. A. Vere. 16-18.-Three univ,rsal exhortation,. The striking feature of these three exhortations is their universality. It is natnral that we should sometimes pray and rejoice and give thanks. But certainly it does not come natnrally to us to be always doing these three things. Nearly all men experience them at some time in their lives. Universality and continuance are to be the distinguishing characteristics of Christians in regitrd to them. It is, says St. Paul," the will of God in Christ Jesus to you-ward" that these remarkable signs of grace should be seen in Christian people. I. PERPETUAL REJOICING. Christiitns are, of course, subject to natural fluctuations of mood and feeling. 'l'hey are also liable to the changes of fortune; and they are not callous to the perception of them. None of us r.an escape sorrow. Some good people have the greatest troubles. The only perfect Man who ever lived was "a Man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief." How, then, can we rejoice always? St. Paul was too real and too sympathetic to mock the sorrowing with the glib words of cheer that shallow comforters administer. If he exhorted, he knew that the exhortation was practicable. 1. Christian rejoicing i, a deep, calm joy. The surface may be ruffled while the depths are still; cross-currents may vary while the undercurrent runs steadily on. Surface pain may conceal sacred joys which it cannot destroy. 2. The aecret of <Jhridian joy is inwardness. These Christians do not depend on external circumstances for thoir happiness. The spiritual sources of rejoicing in the love and presence of God are not disturbed by earthly calamities. Often they give forth sweetest blessedness under the blows of affliction, as the waters flowed out when Moses struck the rock. If we want to rejoice always we must live always near to God. The first exhortation is closely connected with the second. 3. Christians are also helped to rejoice always by living in thefuture (2 Cor. iv.17, 18). II. CEASELESS PRAYING. It is needless to say that this does not mean that we are to be always on our knees. That is not possible; nor would it be right, for the work of life must be done. We are not only worshippers; we are servants. 1. Ceaseless prayiny is a continuous direction qf the heart towards God. The essence of prayer is not the uttering of devout phmse8. God does not hear us for our much speaking. Christ con- demned long prayers, not because we could pray too muoh, but because they became superstitious as though a worth lay in thoir length, and also because they became formal when the spirit fla;rged. Prayer is essentially spiritual communion with God. This must be supported, however, and inspired by definite seasons wholly given to devotion. People ofteu abuse the motto, Laborare est orare. It is only true of the prayerful man. 2. Ceaaeless praying is attainable through the enjoymtlflt uj unbrolcen unir,n with God. Our thought may not be always occupied with God becaus,• the duties of lifo demand our attentiou, and its recr~ations are requisite for our health. But if we live near to God we shall have an abiding sense of God's nearness, a quick uplifting of the heart to him in quiet moments, and m11ny a secret talk witb him eve11 in our busiest hours. III. UNIVERSAL THANKSGIVING. Tho difficulty is to make this honest. For it la au insult to God to utter words of thanksgiving while the heart is ungrateful. How can we thank God for pain, for loss, for things the good of which we cannot discover? 1.  134 THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE THESSALONIAN B. [oH. v. 1-~-