1 Thessalonians 5:11-25. This week we are looking at what I’ve numbered the15th (out of 22) commandment/guideline Paul lists on how to live our lives worthy of the gospel.
(15) Do not quench the Spirit.
I have pondered these five words for hours and many thoughts have rolled through my head. If we define quench and Spirit and then reread these five words it does so much to deepen our understanding. Let me throw out a few variations for you:
Do not extinguish the Fountain of Life (Psalm 36:9, 87:7), Do not suppress the Consuming Fire (Deut. 4:24), Do not extinguish the Thirst Quencher (John 4:13-14), and Do not suppress the Spring of Living Water (Jer. 2:13).
These concepts work against human nature because when we have climbed to the tip-top of a mountain (with a REALLY heavy backpack) to enjoy the view, we are thirsty and drink all we can to quench that thirst along the way.