Living in a Way that Pleases God Andy Nagahara
A. Spousal love (1-8)
1) Setting up a guard rail to keep from straying off the road (1-5)
1 Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.
2 For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.
3 It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality;
4 that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable,
5 not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God;
2) Refusing a life of trampling on others and rejecting God (6-8)
6 and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you.
7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.
8 Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.
B. Brotherly love (9-13)
1) Pursuing brotherly love (9, 10)
9 Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.
10 And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more.
2) A calm, settled life (11, 12)
11 Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you,
12 so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.
Summary
A husband and wife make up the smallest social unit in society. Because of our human nature, we can damage this relationship unless we seek God's help and work to preserve it. In order to live a life that pleases God, we need to live in such a way that we bring joy to our spouses and the people around us. As we worship him, God gives us the love and wisdom we need in order to love others well.
For Discussion
1) What does it mean to be sanctified?
2) What kind of life pleases God?