As a continuation of what we’ve been discussing, which is developing and maintaining a heart of thanksgiving, I really want to focus on the next point that begins with verse 19 of 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, “Do not quench the Spirit.” Now why do you think that He put that in there? “Do not quench the Spirit.” Do you know what it means to “quench”? Literally, according to Strong’s, it means, “extinguish.” You and I have the potential, or the ability, to extinguish the Spirit. I reckon that means something akin to pouring water on a fire.
The Holy Spirit, full of life, is seeking to instruct us in truth as Jesus said the Spirit would. And instead of receiving that life and that truth, we want to throw cold water upon what the Spirit comes to bring. How awesome is the born-again experience in which God comes to live in us. I still cannot wrap my human mind around what it means to have God’s Spirit in me. How does He do that with all of us? And of course, we can give the quick “off the cuff” answer of, “Well, there’s enough of God to go around, there’s no limit,” etc., but God chooses to live in us? To dwell in us? To put His Spirit in us? Wow!
And so Paul says, “Do not quench the Spirit.” Now, how do you think it would be possible for you to quench the Spirit? Let’s take this bit-by-bit. A) Is it possible for you or I to quench the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives? B) If possible (which the Word says it is), how would we do it?
Well, let’s read the preceding verses. Verse 16: when we do not maintain an attitude of rejoicing, we extinguish the Spirit. Verse 17: we extinguish the Spirit by not remaining in an attitude of prayer. Again, this does not mean walking around speaking in tongues, praying in the Holy Ghost, and saying “Our Father’s” and “Hail Mary’s,” or whatever you venture to do. It doesn’t mean making a public display of prayer as the Pharisees do, praying on the corner where everybody can see how holy one thinks they might be. It means maintaining a regular communication line with God. Prayer is fellowship, relationship, and communication with God, and it involves speaking as well as listening. Transmitting as well as receiving, and we should always be ready to pray.
How do you respond to bad news? How do you respond to the needs of other people? Do you just get in there in the pity party and wallow around in the mud? I see it in church life all the time. People just wallowing in the mud together like pigs in slop sometimes. I don’t mean to be offensive. Your responsibility is not to join in the pity party; those who are mature are supposed to instruct those who are less mature, not jump into the junk with them! That is a clear sign of immaturity and a lack of spirituality. People don’t need sympathy, maybe some empathy, but sympathy is not going to change their situation. They need compassion. Compassion will seek results and positive change in that circumstance. People don’t just need your emotional input; they need the God in you to be released in their situation!
Oftentimes that comes through prayer. The next time somebody just wants you to jump in the muck with them, take their hand and pray in the name of Jesus! You’ll find out that they’re gonna try to keep pulling your hand in the muck. It’s amazing to me. “Yeah, you can pray, but, but, but,” and they’re just pulling on your arm, yanking you and trying to get you into the muck. And if you don’t maintain a proper attitude, you’ll be yucky, mucky (I don’t think I’ve ever used that term before) in no time at all! It doesn’t take long; you’ll be wallowing around in that stuff. We’re called to bring them out of the muck!
How do we extinguish the Spirit? Look at verse 18: by not giving thanks in all things. By not establishing and maintaining an attitude and a heart of thankfulness. What causes us to not be thankful? Every one of us can identify with that if we just were honest with ourselves here. Sometimes it’s a sense of entitlement. Sometimes it’s our own greed. All the time it’s the work of our flesh. There’s only one thing that keeps us from being thankful and that’s our carnality, or soulfulness, and self-centeredness/selfishness. Like James said, “You want, you want, you want, and you don’t get” (paraphrased). Why? Because you’re seeking to heap something upon yourself, and your motivation is wrong.
I’ve always seen God bless generous people, and I’m not just talking about monetarily. We all know some people who go way beyond their means, yet they do not have a lot of money. But if you ask them, they’ll tell you that they’re blessed. This is not about financial wealth. That’s just one aspect of life. Some of the happiest people that I know don’t have much at all. But my goodness sake, they are so generous, and they’re always happy. No, they’re not just always happy, they’re always rejoicing! What causes us to be dismayed is when we don’t get what we want. So what do you want? Maybe the object of your desire is the problem. What is the object of your desire? Ouch!
We’ll wrap up this series regarding a “Heart of Thanksgiving” with the next blog. Thank you so much for joining me on this journey!
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