Session 5 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12

DAILY (1 THESS. 4:9-12)

listen for specific ways to influence others daily.

9 About brotherly love:
You don’t need me to write you because you yourselves are taught by God to love one another.

10 In fact, you are doing this toward all the brothers and sisters in the entire region of Macedonia.
But we encourage you, brothers and sisters, to do this even more,

11 to seek to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business,
and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you,
12 so that you may behave properly in the presence of outsiders
and not be dependent on anyone.

IDENTIFY:

identify instructions Paul gave the Thessalonians in verses 9-12.

• Brotherly love. Taught by God, already loving. Keep on doing it.
• Quiet life. Mind own business, work diligently.
• Proper behavior. Independent.

Guide the group to evaluate the extent to which their lives reflect these characteristics daily
and to identify one area in which they will prayerfully seek improvement.

FOCUS:

Refer to verse 12

explain that an outsider should be able to look at the life of a Christian
and see a marked difference.

Christians are to be different in how we love one another and live out our daily lives.

Believers are not dependent on anyone outside of Christ, which applies to every aspect of life,
including paying bills and living within our means.

Ask:

• How does a person’s work ethic and the way he or she conducts business serve as testimony for Christ? (p. 47)

SUMMARIZE AND CHALLENGE

REVIEW:

Call attention to the bulleted summary statements under Apply the Text (p. 48)
and lead the group in a discussion of each point,
focusing on indications of how the Thessalonian believers
demonstrated Christ in their daily lives.

CHALLENGE:

Encourage the group to select one of the question sets under Apply the Text (p. 48)
to use in their personal time with God.
Challenge the group to record and apply what God reveals to them.
Remind them to complete the Daily Explorations.

PRAY:

Invite volunteers to offer prayers,
praising God for the difference He makes in our lives.
Conclude the prayer time,
asking that God help the group to live lives that increasingly please Him.

AFTER THE SESSION

Reinforce group outreach by gathering the group to discuss plans for Easter. Evaluate your meeting space from a guest’s perspective. Encourage the group to invite guests to join them. Discuss ways to follow up with guests after Easter.