Paul used the opportunity this epistle afforded him to give his readers basic instruction concerning Christian living. He did this to promote their maturation in Christ and to guard them from error (cf. 3:10).
In this last major section of the epistle, introduced by "Finally,"Paul urged his readers to continue walking (behaving day by day) as the missionaries had instructed them (cf. Gal. 5:25). They needed to "excel still more."The highest motive is to "please God"by a life of obedience to His "commandments."These express His will and chart a safe course for the Christian by leading him or her safely to the goal of spiritual maturity. "To walk and please God"means "to walk so as to please God"(cf. 2:4, 15).
This section opens and closes with explicit references to the will of God.
4:3-5 The will of God for the Christian is clear. Positively it is sanctification, namely a life set apart from sin unto God. Negatively it involves abstinence (self-denial) from all kinds of sexual behavior that is outside the prescribed will of God including adultery, premarital sex, homosexuality, etc. Rather than participating in these acts the believer should learn how to control his or her body and its passions in sanctification and with honor. We should not behave lustfully as Gentiles who do not have special revelation of God and His will. The Greeks practiced sexual immorality commonly and even incorporated it into their religious practices.
"Chastity is not the whole of sanctification, but it is an important element in it . . ."66
Another less probable interpretation of "possess his own vessel"(v. 4) sees the vessel as the wife of the addressee.67This view takes ktasthai("possess") as "acquire,"its normal meaning, and skeuos("vessel") as "wife."68Loosely interpreted Paul then meant that men were to live with their wives in a way that would not strain their marital relationship (cf. 1 Pet. 3:7). However, Paul used skeuosof one's own body elsewhere (Rom. 9:22-23; 2 Cor. 4:7; cf. 1 Sam. 21:5), and ktasthaican refer to one's treatment of himself or herself as well as one's wife.
4:6 Sexual immorality is wrong not only because it transgresses the will of God, but because it injures the partner in sex. It brings God's judgment down on two people, not just one, and it defrauds the partner of God's blessing. Paul probably had the Lord's future judgement of believers in view rather than His present discipline (cf. 2:19; 3:13; 1 Cor. 3:10-17).
4:7 The general principle the Thessalonians were to keep in mind was that God's purpose for all Christians is not impurity but purity. It is a life set apart from sin unto holiness.
4:8 To reject these exhortations amounted to rejecting God, not just the Apostle Paul. Lest someone think that this standard is impossibly high, Paul reminded his readers that God has given His Holy Spirit to all believers to enable us to do God's will (cf. Gal. 5:22-23).
"While Paul deals with sexual immorality in other letters, most notably 1 Cor. 6:12-20, nowhere does he employ such coercive language to enforce proper Christian conduct. The serious and even threatening tone of vv. 6-8 suggests very strongly that Paul was dealing with a problem that had actually emerged in the community at Thessalonica and that he viewed with considerable concern."69
4:9 Whereas the previous exhortation to avoid sexual immorality is a negative prohibition, this one is a positive encouragement. The Thessalonians needed instruction from Paul concerning their sexual behavior. However, God Himself had taught them by His Spirit to love one another (cf. Gal. 5:22).
4:10 Paul's words were only encouragements to maintain the loving behavior that they had learned and had manifested already.70His readers demonstrated brotherly love by reaching out to other needy Christians who lived in their province. They did respond to this charge and reached out still farther. This is clear from 2 Corinthians 8:1-5.
4:11 Three aspects of behavior demonstrate love for others. First, a person who leads a restful rather than a frantic life avoids disturbing the lives of others. He or she also enjoys life more himself or herself. Second, one who tends to his own affairs does not meddle in the business of others. Third, the person who works to provide for his or her own needs and the needs of his family does not put a burden on others to support him or her. Greek culture degraded manual labor, but Christianity together with Judaism viewed it as an honorable pursuit.71
". . . it was not Paul's intent that the church disrupt society or overthrow governments. Rather, he encouraged Christians to be good citizens and exemplary members of their families and of their society but to do so in a manner consistent with the teachings of Christ. Only in this sense was the Pauline gospel intended to change society. It set out to change the individuals who made up society while awaiting that climactic event when the power of God would truly change the world forever."72
4:12 Such behavior not only results in the Christian meeting his or her own needs, but it meets with the approval and admiration of non-believers who observe him or her.
