He will do it
1 Thessalonians 5:24 - “He alone is 100% faithful 100% of the time”
“The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.”
1 Thessalonians 5:24 NIV
As I write this, we’ve just attended a Sunday service at our church, where our pastoral team just happens to be preaching a summer series on 1 Thessalonians. This epistle of Paul’s (considered by Biblical scholars to be the first of his many letters to the early churches) was written about 52 AD, and begins with words of thanks to the church of Thessalonica (Thessaloniki) on behalf of himself and helpers Silas and Timothy for wonderful news they have received about the church’s love and faith.
While much in the five chapters of the epistle deals with thanking the church for their hospitality and progress, in the fourth chapter it veers into a discussion of the resurrection. Paul explains that the dead are to be resurrected prior to those who are still alive at the time of the Second Coming of Jesus, and that both groups will “meet the Lord in the air.” (1 Thessalonians 4:17). The apostle believed as he was writing the epistle that he would still be alive at the Second Coming, although he amends his statement to consider that he might die prior to Jesus’ return.
Today’s verse comes in the last part of the epistle, just before Paul asks for prayers for himself, Timothy, and Silas, and for the letter to be shared with the entire church group. To give some context to the verse (emphasized below), let’s look at 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24:
“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.”
Paul is praying for the Thessalonians, that they may be sanctified and “kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”. And why should they work toward sanctification in their lives? Because God “is faithful, and he will do it”. This verse can be distilled down to one thing: God’s faithfulness toward believers.
In a devotional titled “Perfection and Preservation” (found on Precept Austin), Charles H. Spurgeon dug into the details of the verse:
What will He do? He will sanctify us wholly. See the previous verse. He will carry on the work of purification till we are perfect in every part. He will preserve our "whole spirit, and soul, and body, blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." He will not allow us to fall from grace, nor come under the dominion of sin. What great favors are these! Well may we adore the Giver of such unspeakable gifts.
Who will do this? The Lord Who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light, out of death in sin into eternal life in Christ Jesus. Only He can do this: such perfection and preservation can only come from the God of all grace.
Why will He do it? Because He is "faithful"--faithful to His own promise which is pledged to save the believer; faithful to His Son, whose reward it is that His people shall be presented to Him faultless; faithful to the work which He has commenced in us by our effectual calling. It is not their own faithfulness but the Lord's Own faithfulness on which the saints rely.
You might be asking yourself, “but since I am a sinner — even a repentant one — can I really be sure that God will keep His promise to me?”
Dr. Ray Pritchard of Keep Believing Ministries had a wonderful 1997 sermon that I found on Precept Austin titled “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” that contains this assurance:
How many people do you know who do exactly what they say? Before you answer, let me rephrase the question? How many do you know who do exactly what they say every single time? Now before you answer, let me rephrase it again. How many people do you know who do exactly what they say every single time and do it with such thoroughness and perfection that you never have to worry about anything they say or do? Again, before you answer, let me ask it one more time: How many people do you know who, no matter what the circumstances and no matter how they feel, will always do exactly what they say they will do every single time and do it with the some thoroughness and perfection that you never have to worry about anything they say or do because you know if they say it, they will definitely do it without fail, without change and without excuse?
OK, how many people like that do you know?
The answer to any question depends on how you ask it. Most of us probably think we know some people who do exactly what they say. That is, we all know some reliable people who seem very dependable to us. But in the end, the question is not about reliable or very dependable people. It’s really not about people at all because no person could meet all the qualifications of the last question, which is really about God. The only person you know who can meet every qualification is God himself. He alone is 100% faithful 100% of the time. (Emphasis is mine).
And to that we say AMEN!
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Father in Heaven, I thank You that You are bringing me to sanctification, not through my own strengths, but through the refining work of Your Holy Spirit in my heart and soul. I pray that You will keep me growing into a spiritual maturity that measures up to the perfect standard — Jesus. I praise Your holy name and thank You for your unfailing faith in me, AMEN.
Scripture quotations taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica US, Inc.®. Used by permission.
Precept Austin was accessed on July 20, 2025 for commentary on 1 Thessalonians 5:24
I needed a reminder of God and His Faithfulness to continue the good work He started.