12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. 14 And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15 See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil. .
Notice the theme of this paragraph is: "How to conduct yourselves in the Body of Christ." Give honor to one another, especially those God has put in places of authority. Get along with each other so you don't disturb the peace of Christ. Use your words and actions to challenge and encourage each other. Don't seek revenge, but restore. Help maintain a joyful atmosphere. Then, here it is: pray without ceasing. It has often been said that those who do not come apart to pray will have their lives come apart. But the context here is not about our individual walk with God as much as it is our living out the Christian life together. When we as God's people do not continually pray together, we fall apart. Giving thanks together also helps maintain this unified atmosphere. As we do these things we will be much more sensitive to the Holy Spirit; we will be much more responsive to the Word of God, and we will be much more aware of false teaching- which Paul reminds us in Ephesians 4 will tear the church apart. When we stick together, praying together, doing all we can to maintain this atmosphere of unity, we will be much less likely to fall into evil practices.
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