Encourage One Another
“And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Hebrews 10:24-25
One of the most important responsibilities of the believer in Jesus Christ is to build each other up in love and with service to one another. The world is not going to encourage believers. The unbelieving world would rather just see us all disappear. (We will one day. It seems bad now but wait until all the Christians are gone, and there’s no one left except the lawless and the evildoers.) The only encouragement that believers receive is from the Lord and from each other. The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 2:3 that believers are to think less of themselves and more of others. In verse 4, he went on to say that believers were to not just care about their own interests, but to regard the interests of others as just as important as their own. The writer of the book of Hebrews urged his readers to “provoke unto love”, meaning that believers should cause others to emulate them as they joyfully show their love and care for others.
One of the ways to exemplify one’s life as a Christian is to regularly attend worship services. The writer was adamant in his exhortation to “not forsake the assembling of ourselves together”. However, some folks, who claim to be Christians, are rather careless in their corporate worship habits. I am speaking of folks who are healthy and have no reason to neglect worship services, not those who, as one of my former pastors used to say, are “providentially hindered” which would include those who are ill, injured, caring for others who are ill, or who are required to work. Of course, since the COVID-19 pandemic arrived, corporate worship was postponed, but services of many churches was held on line for several weeks to enable folks to participate in worship services while social distancing at home. Just think if we didn’t have the internet. While there are things on line to avoid, the internet has been a great help in spreading the gospel to the world. Now, more than ever, worship is vital to the strength and maturity of one’s faith, considering that each day that passes brings us closer to the time of Christ’s return. Regular worship and gathering with like-minded folks is necessary to keep our “hearts from failing for fear” (Luke 21:26) of what the future holds. We gain strength from one another as we worship our Lord and Savior.
The original recipients of the letter to the Hebrews were likely being persecuted for their faith, and some of them had begun to neglect their regular worship times out of fear. Thus far, here in America, we have not experienced the kind of persecution that the early Jewish believers and some in other parts of the world in this present day have endured or are enduring, but, I fear, we Christians in the U.S. will be persecuted for our faith. We have already seen the beginnings of persecution when the Ten Commandments are no longer allowed to be placed in public, God’s word is banned in various places, and Christians are mocked and ridiculed. The pandemic has given ungodly leaders an excuse for closing churches, but allowing protests and mobs of people to gather for unlawful purposes. Paul urged believers in Ephesians 6:11 to “put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil”. That armor consists of “truth…righteousness…the gospel of peace…the shield of faith…the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God”(Ephesians 6:14-17).
We are also to “pray” and “watch with all perseverance and supplication (humbly asking for God’s help) for all the saints” (Ephesians 6:18). God issues these commands to us, but the greater defense comes from the Lord Himself for II Chronicles 20:15 tells us to “Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s”. How grateful we should be that we are under the command of the King of kings and Lord of lords! While it seems that the pandemic, the rioting and looting, and the cries for ending the freedom that Americans have enjoyed for many, many years and replacing it with a godless, oppressive, and socialist form of rule, God is still in control. Let’s keep encouraging one another with that fact.