Phil. 1:9). The absence of any such specific virtue in this place' is in keep ing with the fact that this is the gen eral introduction, and Paul is dealing with the whole of life. Specific in structions are to follow, but here he is concerned with the thought that the Christian- is to grow continually. His life is far from static. Paradoxically it can be said of him that he is the slave of Christ, and that he is the freest of men (John 8:36). The Thessalonians were under the necessity of living to please God, but far from leading them into a narrow and cramped existence, this opened the door for them to live the abundant life (cf. John 10:10). Vincent, “Again Paul looks back to the days of his visit to assure them that he is doing no more than lead them along the way he had then showed them.” “Ye know,” he says, calling them to witness that this was so. The word rendered “charge” is plu ral, and better taken as “charges.” Paul and his companions had given instruc tions on several matters, possibly in the form of rules. The word is an unusual one in a Christian context. It is found elsewhere in the New Testament of commands to believers only in I Tim. 1:5, 18. It is more at home in a military environment, being a usual word for the commands given by the officer of his men (cf. its use in Acts 5:28, 16:24). It is thus a word with a ring of au thority. It is this which makes it suit able for this context where Paul is stressing. the authoritative nature of the injunctions in question. These, though given by Paul, did not originate with him. He makes the point that they were given “through the Lord Jesus.” “Through” is not the preposi tion that we might have expected. It may be a shorthand way of saying that the commandments referred to came from the Father, and that therefore they came with all the authority that was possible. Or it may mean that Paul spoke only on the authority of the Lord Jesus. Either way he is disclaiming personal responsibility and ascribing the highest possible authority to the in junctions to which he refers.
I Thessalonians (continued) entered. Paul is to give them no new rules Or standards of life. They remem ber perfectly well the commands he gave when he was with them, com mands given on the authority of Christ: “For ye know what charge we gave you through the Lord Jesus.” There is nothing new in all this, as Paul is at pains to make clear. He had told them to live in this way at the time of his mission among them (“as ye received of us” ), and he is not now introducing some novelty. He had told them that they “ought” to behave in the fashion outlined, and the word is a strong one. It is usually translated “must,” and it brings before us the compelling necessity under which Christians live. When a man is saved by the work of Christ for him, it does not lie open before him as a matter for his completely free decision wheth er he will serve God or not. He has been brought with a price (I Cor. 6:20). He has become the slave of Christ. Christian service is not an op tional extra for those who like that kind of thing. It is a compelling obli gation which lies upon each one of the redeemed. It is Paul’s habit to blend his ex hortations and reproofs with a judicious mixture of praise where that can in good conscience be done. It does not surprise us accordingly to find him interjecting, “even as ye do walk.” He is not complaining that they had not been living out the Christian life. They had heeded the exhortation when it was originally given. Timothy’s re port showed that they were still put ting it into practice. Paul lets them know that he is not unmindful of their achievement. But the Christian can never rest satisfied. So Paul urges them to further endeavor. The substance of his exhortation is that they should “abound more and more.” Lineberry, “This is an unusual way to employ this verb, for it is much more common to have the quality which is to abound specified. This is the case, for example, in 3:12, where Paul speaks of abounding in love (cf.
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