Be Encouragers! Hebrews 10:24-25, Encouragement vs The Great Kiwi Knocking Machine!
Play the Song ‘You Ugly’, I just thought we could do with a little entertainment this morning prior to the sermon as you see this song came out of the United States of America, only in the U.S eh what a discouraging piece of music. I guess at some stage we have all heard those words, or have we can you relate to it?
As a nation Kiwi’s are brilliant at encouragement I looked it up on Google and found I419000 references to it in 0.12 seconds, but what came up was The Great Kiwi Knocking machine, now that’s not about encouragement.
For non New Zealanders the term, “The Great Kiwi Knocking Machine” might come as a surprise, but as New Zealanders or Kiwi’s we all know what it is, it’s not something that is used for processing fruit or plucking feathers off endangered wild life.
The Great Kiwi Knocking Machine is something that is called into play whenever a fellow New Zealander is either doing well, actually achieving something in life and needs to be put back in their place, their place being level with everyone else or a bit below where they started out before they did well, or if someone is not doing well, The Great Kiwi Knocking Machine comes into play because they have failed and require a few extra blows to let them know just how badly they have done, and not to think about doing any better.
The Great Kiwi knocking machine is vicious, direct and deadly. Interestingly it is not made of ball bearing shooting steel sprung loaded catapults, or any other form of energy released machinery, it comprises of the product of the tongue and mind, a quick wit and a smarmy sense of humor. The Great Kiwi knocking Machine uses words to rob, kill and destroy.
The Great Kiwi Knocking Machine is alive and well! Attacking the bloke who works hard to achieve; who is told “he has ideas above his station”; the mum who wants the best for her kids who is told she does to much for them or why bother they will find their own way in life; the kids who get bullied because they are different or liked more than the one who is doing the bullying, and at this time just prior to the elections the politicians who resort to character assignation of their competition, not to mention the media making fodder out of politicians.
The path to the Great Kiwi Knocking Machine is littered with the wilted storks and petals, the dried stigmas and what could have been life giving pollinating stamens of crushed tall poppies that were cut down with a lightening quick razor sharp tongue.
Have you ever been on the receiving end of the Machine, have you ever driven it?
In the church we are not to go there! We are required to be different, while disputes may arise, while we may have our own view, while differences are seen, we are called on to encourage one another. In the church there is no place for causing casualties of friendly fire. There is no place for the Great Kiwi Knocking Machine, for the scythe shaped tongue that destroys buds of brilliance that dare to grow taller than the norm or over perform, that dare to show grace, or love as Christ loved them, there is also no place to knock the person who is seeking, who is different in the way they dress or look or act, we are called to encourage one another!
For while the world would say break them down, God tells us to build them up!
The writer of Hebrews tells us this: “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:24-25) That day being the Day of the Lord’s return.
This may all sound a little odd in the culture where we exist, a little countercultural.
Let’s have a wee look at what we have here, what this is all about in regards to how we are encouraged to build one another up and help one another on in life.
1) Well back in the day some had given up meeting together, maybe they had found the meetings weren’t meeting their needs, perhaps they had it all together and didn’t need to attend, perhaps “God” told them that they should stay home, or that they just didn’t feel up to attending meetings with other Christians, maybe the message was just plain boring, it could have been the message challenged them, the offering challenged them, the Romans threatened them, the religious people glared at them on the way to the meeting, that someone growled at them, told them their child was a handful, someone was over welcoming, looked at them strange, that no one at the meeting talked to them, that the dog had eaten their bible, or that the camel train kept running late, whatever it was they gave up attending, they gave up, just plain gave up.
Maybe they only went to meetings that fitted their routine, as long as something better wasn’t on, like the chariot race, religious festival, sunny day, garden that required urgent attention, fishing that required even more urgent attention, donkey that had fallen into the well that required lifting out, they could have been recovering from the previous nights trip to the Gladiator and Lion Tavern.
Whatever it was they had given up attending!
This might be a huge assumption, by why would the writer of Hebrews say some have given up attending and then say “let us encourage one another”, I think they gave up attending because they became discouraged – therefore “let us encourage one another.”
What was it that the writer of Hebrews had said just prior to the one about not giving up meeting together? He said this; “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.”
2) The truth is that we all need one another to spur each other on, each of us can spur the other on and each od us can do with a bit of spurring. If you don’t believe this is true, think about this in all honesty, do you ever feel pain, do you have hopes, Are there parts of your Christian journey you need help with, scriptures that you find hard to understand, questions about your prayer life, things that God is doing in your life that might require help in understanding, do you have great news that is worth sharing or a problem that is to much for you to carry alone, do you have room in your life in your heart to carry someone else’s pain, someone else’s joy.
If we come here, we come; we come as family sharing, our ups and our downs, life’s successes and life’s disasters. The joy we feel over a new experience, scriptural revelation, child, job, or qualification, the pain we feel over a lost life, relationship, opportunity, soul, or career.
One of the reasons we are here is to spur one another on towards love and good deeds! Some require more spurring, more encouraging than others remember we all come from different pasts. Spur, now there’s an interesting word, used to encourage a horse to move faster or in the right direction. Let’ encourage one another on towards love and good deeds.
There are times of celebration and times of commiseration in each and every life, the church community is the place for this to occur. I personally think that the celebration basket idea is a good one but imagine if we had an opportunity where we could share our down points, also, boldly, so that all could support and pray, encourage and lament have a good cry together. Then spur one another on to love and good deeds.
Let’s not pretend that we have it all together, well some of you may have but I’m putting my hand up to say, I’m not perfect! Yes I know that’s come as a surprise to many of you, Yeah right!
“There’s a grave mistake that robs of us of rich community and this is captured in the words of Bruce Larson, minister at Crystal Cathedral and author of multiple books. He tells us that he discovered what’s wrong with the church in our time. He says, “You put on your best clothes … but you don’t bring your life! You leave behind all your pain … your hopes, even your joys.” (Thanks to Dale Pilgrim)
This place is a place where we can come and be honest, honest with God in worship and honest with one another. And if someone opens up to you and is honest, it does not need to be repeated, encouraging someone is a two way process, no more than two, gossip holds no place in the loving heart of an encorager.
As far as the need for encouragement goes, can I please have a show of hands from people who never want any encouragement, people who could not do with a confidence boost?
What follows are a few more scriptures on encouragement,
3) The early church needed plenty of encouragement this was due to persecution, due to wrong doctrines being taught that challenged the churches very survival, “Judas (not Iscariot) and Silas, who themselves were prophets said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers.” (Acts 15:32)
4) We can all be encouraging but also encouraging is a spiritual gift, meaning that the Holy Spirit gives this gift in an amazing way to some, thats not to say we can’t all encourage but some are spiritually gifted encouragers, In Romans we read “we have different gifts according to the grace given us” (Romans 12:6) then if it is encouraging, let him encourage.(vs. 8). Don’t however think that because some are gifted at encouraging that I don’t need to.
A word of encouragement to say the person who sits beside you, shares a scripture with you, greets you at the door, makes you a coffee, prays with you, does the dishes, hands you a sausage off the BBQ or seems to be going through a rough spot can make a huge difference in a persons day, week or year. Remember encouragement is a bit of a rare commodity, and we can always do with another nugget of encouragement.
5) Paul sent various men along with his letters to encourage the groups they were sent to, for instance to the Thessalonians Paul says, “We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God’s fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith.”(1 Thessalonians 3:2)
We can all do with encouragement in our faith, to hear someone else’s testimony, for instance the testimonial sentence answers that the new soldiers who spoke last week gave were a huge encouragement to me, to hear what God is doing in another persons life is a wonderful thing. By the way if you want to witness for the Lord there is no finer starting point than to tell someone what God has done and is doing in your own life. Let’s encourage one another with our testimonies!
6) We can encourage one another about the eternal relationship that we gave with God through the sacrifice of Jesus, Paul tells us this, “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4: 16-18 )
And this
“He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him, therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:10-11)
This is something that we can hold onto something that is for those who follow the Lord, this is a definite point of encouragement, no matter what your past may look like, no matter how hard it is or has been, the wrong you have done, all is forgotten, and eternity with God is ours when we live in continued obedient faith in Jesus and that as believers it’s our privilege to be blameless. Let’ encourage one another about our salvation!
7) Paul charged Timothy with “Preach(ing) the word; (to) be prepared in season and out of season, (to) correct and rebuke and encourage with great patience and careful instruction.” (2 Timothy 4:2) For many the experience that they have of ‘church’ is one of being corrected and rebuked but not encouraged. We have a place where as parts of the body we are to look out for one another correcting wrong thinking, rebuking sinful action, but also encouraging the individual on in their journey. Let me say that many have been corrected and rebuked in a big stick way when a small twig would have done the job, a simple “no that’s not right” can be more effective than a hell fire and brimstone speech. If correcting and rebuking is done in a way that is full the same grace that God has shown to us, and is presented in love, a person will then be helped on in their journey, as they grow closer to God and in their relationships with others. If correcting is required do it in an encouraging way!
Paul also talks about this in reference to elders in his letter to Titus, saying that an elder is to “hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine…” What is taught in the church should be sound and encourage others in their faith journeys. Let’ encourage one another with a sound knowledge of scripture and doctrine!
Let’s be encouragers, of one another, being encouraged each and everyone of us as we see that God has brought us to a point of belief where by his Holy Spirit he himself is our encourager. So what God has done for us, let us do for one another being built up encouraging one another on toward love and good deeds!
We can also be encouragers of those outside this building, treat this as one of your acts of love and a good deed. This week try this encouraging a person per day, the supermarket check out operator, the bloke at the petrol station, anywhere where someone is serving you, try this, ask to see their supervisor (they will look concerned, perhaps even afraid), then tell the supervisor what a wonderful job they have done serving you, of course if that is true. I grantee they will never forget you and you will be their favorite customer for some time, as people hardly ever do this and usually only complain to supervisors. If you are a bit shy on it just compliment the person on what a great job they are doing it will make their day!
I used that as an illustration that encouragement is indeed a rare commodity, in the church and out but lets be encouragers, lets encourage and make a difference as we build one another up towards love and good deeds!
Sing ‘Brother let me be your servant’.
Benediction
May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word. (2 Thess 2:16-17)
Amen
