22 Abstain from every form of evil.
23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it. (I Thessalonians 5)
In the verses preceeding this, the missionary trio had challenged this church to maintain a growing but pure theology - that they would continue to grow and be stretched in their faith, yet show doctrinal discernment in what they accepted. Here the challenge is that of practical holiness - that we continue to be santified, purified, and cleansed in mind, body and spirit. This process is to continue throughout our lives until Christ comes for us or we go to be with Him, and it will be completed when He returns. How do we know this? Because Christ, the Son, is Faithful just like His Father. We can trust Him to complete what He has begun. His very character assures it. The only question is our willingness in the process. Will we devote ourselves to abstaining from every form of evil in our thinking, speech and actions? Will we be as faithful to our call as God is faithful to us?
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