Daily Devotion, March 7, 2023

 

Devotion:

Read Hebrews 10:22-25.

Paul, the probable writer of this letter to the Hebrews first encourages us to draw close to God with confidence in our faith. And secondly he tells us to hold on to the hope we get from God. Those are personal actions we take as believers in Christ. But Paul doesn’t stop with our inward actions. Next he tells us to consider how to spur one another on. The original meaning of “spur” was to "stir up, arouse, to excite, to call into action," God is calling us to stir up others in the faith to act for good.

Have you ever stirred up a hornet’s nest? You hit the nest and they are quickly stirred up and excited (and usually you are too!) Those hornets leave the nest and quickly! Fortunately, we are not called to inflict painful stings upon one another (like the hornets are fond of doing), but we are called to stir each other up, spur one another on, and encourage each other “to love and good deeds.” 

This stirring up other Christians to love and good works primarily occurs through the local church. We read that we should “not neglect to meet together, as is the habit of some.” Evidently, the members of the Early Church had been neglecting the habit of meeting together. He encourages them and us to be intentional about meeting together in order to support and encourage each other.

We live in a culture where many voices and choices compete for our attention. On any given Sunday, we are faced with the choice to attend church or spend our time elsewhere. Paul is reminding us that Christians should regard it as a sacred duty to meet together for the worship of God. Let’s remember that one way God meets us is through God’s people.

Personal Worship Option:

Commit today to be intentional about meeting together for worship. Connect with others so that you can encourage them toward love and good deeds.