“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16–19, ESV)

One of the ministries of the Holy Spirit is to teach us. (Jn 14:26) Are we allowing Him to teach us or do we ignore spending time with Him. Do we spend time in prayer and rejoice always in His work in our lives? The Spirit bears witness to the life of Jesus (Jn 15:26) Our lives therefore should be that light on the hill to bear witness to the life of Jesus.

Paul wrote to the Corinthian church the things that are not of the Spirit and the things that are of the Spirit. If we walk in those dark places we are quenching the light of the Spirit in our lives.

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” (Galatians 5:16–26, ESV)

The only really effective way to be able to walk by the Spirit is to quite our flesh, and listen to the Spirit in our lives through prayer and the Word of God.

In Ephesians Paul teaches us that we are to be filled with the Spirit, this really is the opposite of quenching the Spirit, it is allowing him to flow out from our lives…

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:18–21, ESV)

What occupies us when we come together? Do we spend more time talking of all that God is doing in our lives, speaking of what God is revealing to us in His word, rejoicing and making melody in our hearts? What occupies our conversations, is it the Lord, or is it the world? What do we glorify in our lives?

The Apostles passed on instruction to other disciples all the things that they had received and their greatest desire was to be faithful in imparting those instructions to us. So, Paul’s words to the Church of Thessalonica still hold true today…

“Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.” (1 Thessalonians 4:1–8, ESV)

The Spirit wants to work in our lives, but we must listen to the things that have been passed on to us, and seeking His wisdom through Prayer, the word of God, and the People of God. Let’s learn from what Paul imparted to Timothy…

“For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,” (2 Timothy 1:6–10, ESV)

Fan the flame, share the good news of Christ, keep the Temple of God Holy and allow the Spirit to shine brightly through our lives in the unity of the whole body. We are to be the city on the hill that cannot be dimmed. Our lives must be lived so we do not prevent the spirit from working through us to accomplish the works he has prepared beforehand in Christ that we should walk in them.