Today's Passage - 1 Thess 4:2-3

1 Thessalonians 4:2-3   For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.  It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality...   God's will is actually very clear and easy to understand, because God desires us to understand His will and He wants us to follow it.  The whole Bible clearly conveys the message that it is God's will for us to be holy.  1 Peter chapter one says that "Be holy, because I am holy."  Because He's a holy God, He demands that all who follow Him to be holy.  Paul said that it is God's will for us to be "sanctified" and that we should "avoid sexual immorality."  In other word, Paul was pointing out that removing adulterous thinking and behavior will make it easier for us to take on the path of holiness.  So what actions can we take?   First, avoid places that may lead you to sin.  When you are out of town for business, you should avoid night clubs or certain types of restaurants that might lead you to sin.  Second, don't come in contact with people that may lead you to sin; if some people lead you to have immoral thoughts, then avoid contacting them.  Third, avoid environments that may lead you to sin, especially the pornographic websites on the internet.  The sexually explicit pictures can stimulate our imagination and lead us to action that are adulterous.  We must avoid and even escape from these things; don't ever think that we are strong, because we are, after all, made of flesh and blood.   May God help us to know that we cannot depend on our flesh.  Once we depend on our flesh, we can easily commit sin.  We must obey God and resist the devil, for the Bible says that the devil will flee.  You must not be passive in resisting the devil.  If you are passive, that the devil Satan will attack you proactively.  You must, instead, proactively resist the devil so that it will flee.  Beyond resisting the devil, you must stay close to God, because resisting the devil will result in a void in our hearts, and the void must be filled by God.  Let God's Spirit and word fill you, and once your thoughts and mind are filled with God's word and His thoughts of goodness it is hard for the devil to enter into your life to work inside you.  Thus, the adulterous thoughts won't be able to enter into your mind.  The Bible clearly says that we must obey God and resist the devil, and the devil will flee from us, and we must "come near to God and he will come near to you."  This is an important secret for becoming holy in our daily life.   Pray with Pastor Tong   Lord, please help us to know how to obey you in our daily life.  Let us resist devil Satan in your victorious name, and let us to be closer to you.  You will make the devil Satan flee as you have promised, and thus manifest your presence in our life.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!   Shekinah Glory - ROLCC Building Expansion Project - Follow the project on Facebook ! Help us to reach our Phase I Target, and witness how God expands His Kingdom on earth!  Click here to donate online.