1 Thessalonians 4:8 – God’s Spirit Among You

8 Surely, in consequence, then, he who is repudiating is not repudiating man, but God, Who is also giving His holy spirit to you.

With “surely, in consequence, then,” Paul draws a powerful conclusion from what he has written before. He spoke about God’s will and the holiness in which we have been called. Whoever sets this teaching aside is rejecting not merely a human opinion, but God Himself. After all, Paul does not speak on his own authority. What he presents to the Thessalonians is God’s word. Earlier, he had already written that they had received his message in precisely that way: not as the word of men, but as the word of God (2:13).

Paul concludes his statement with a reference to God, “Who is also giving His holy spirit to you.” This recalls what he wrote at the beginning of this letter. His evangel had come to them not in word only, but also in power, in holy spirit, and in much assurance (1:5). And they had received that word amid much affliction, yet with joy of holy spirit (1:6).

God’s spirit had therefore been operating among the Thessalonians from the very beginning. The fact that they received and believed the evangel was not the result of human persuasion, but God’s own work! That is precisely why setting His word aside is such a serious matter. For the same God who makes His will known also gives His spirit. He not only causes His word to be heard, but also makes it operative!

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