The First Epistle To The Thessalonians - Executable Outlines

. Search the Scriptures daily, looking at God’s word in its entirety - Psa 119:160
c. Accepting that which is in harmony with the apostles’ teaching, and rejecting that which
is not - cf. 1 Jn 4:6; Ac 2:42
[“Our Duty To Truth” does not end with simply believing the truth and rejecting that which is false,
we must also “hold fast what is good” (1 Th 5:21). I take this to mean we must...]
III.APPLY THE TRUTH IN OUR LIVES
A. WITH PROPER ATTITUDES...
1. A prayerful attitude, like David possessed - e.g., Psa 86:11
2. A meek spirit, allowing God’s word to be implanted - Ja 1:21
B. WITH RIGHT ACTIONS...
1. In deed, not just in word; e.g., our love - 1 Jn 3:18-19
2. We must be doers of the Word (truth), not hearers only - Ja 1:22-25
3. Thereby walking in the truth, which delights those who see you - 3 Jn 3-4
[Our duty is to hold fast what we find to be true, to practice what we believe to be true. At the same
time, we must also...]
IV. ABSTAIN FROM WHAT THE TRUTH DEFINES AS EVIL
A. THE TRUTH DECLARES THAT EVIL EXISTS...
1. There is that which is false, that which is wicked - e.g., Exo 23:7
2. Those who do evil, do not want to hear that which is true - Jn 3:19-21
Mark A. Copeland
B. THE TRUTH DEMANDS THAT WE ABSTAIN FROM EVIL...
1. When we are not valiant for truth, we will become progressively worse - Jer 9:3
2. Therefore we must “abstain from every form of evil” - 1 Th 5:22
a. KJV has “appearance” instead of “form”
1) Leading many commentators to conclude that we must always abstain from that
which may “seem” to be wrong (e.g., Barnes, Clarke)
2) Yet Jesus did things that “appeared” to be wrong; e.g., eating with sinners which
appeared to be toleration of their evil deeds - Mt 9:11
b. The Greek word is eidous - “As commonly explained, abstain from everything that
even ‘looks like’ evil. But the word signifies ‘form or kind.’ Compare Luke 3:22; John
5:37, and see nearly the same phrase in Joseph. ‘Ant. x. 3, 1.’ It never has the sense of
‘semblance.’ Moreover, it is impossible to abstain from everything that looks like evil.”
(Vincent’s Word Studies)
c. “‘Abstain from every form of evil,’ i. e., every sort or kind of evil (not ‘appearance,’
KJV). This meaning was common in the papyri, the Greek writings of the closing
centuries, B. C., and the New Testament era.” (Vine's Expository Dictionary of
Biblical Words)
3. This we do by taking heed to both our thoughts and our actions
a. Thinking on things that are true - Ph 4:8
Sermons From First Thessalonians 66