In 1995 twin girls Kyrie and Brielle were born prematurely. Weighing only 2 pounds each, they were watched over very carefully each in their respective incubators. Kyrie began putting on weight immediately, but Brielle struggled - she cried and cried leaving her gasping and blue faced. They wrapped her in blankets, mother held her, father held her. Nothing they did seemed to help. Finally, a hospital nurse fought against the rules and placed the babies in one incubator. When they were placed together, the healthier of the two threw an arm over her sister in an endearing embrace. Almost immediately the frantic crying stopped and Brielle’s normal pinkish color returned. Her heart rate stabilized and her temperature rose to normal. This is a true story revealing that encouragement is a matter of life and death.
Not everyone believes encouragement is so important but as we look into the Scripture this morning, we will see that it truly is vital for our life as much as it was for this little baby.
This morning as we look at Hebrews we find a short passage of Scripture that is able to answer a number of our questions about encouragement and lead us to be people who encourage instead of criticize or discourage others.
The first question is this: What is encouragement?
The answer is found in verse 24: “stir one another to love and good works.” Encouragement is “stirring people up.” Now often that’s a negative idiom. We might think of stirring someone up as getting someone worked up so that they get angry and tell someone off. You think of leaders of revolutionary movements that stir up the emotions so that people will revolt. The NIV uses the phrase: “spur one another.” That too is kind of negative – a rider digging his spurs into the side of the horse so that he will run.
The word actually means to sharpen, to stimulate, to motivate someone. It’s not meant to be painful at all but just the opposite – it instills in you desire to get moving ahead.
Therefore, encouragement is stimulating someone, motivating someone who is discouraged to do something. What is that something? “love and good works.” When we are discouraged, we feel we’re in a pit. We feel we have failed or cannot succeed. Doing anything seems useless. This attitude becomes a focus on self and on failure. It’s a black hole with no way out.
Encouragement is the word or the action – some kind of communication - by someone else that helps us get our eyes off of ourselves and onto the Lord. Encouragement gets us out of the pit and back in service.
Question 2: Who should encourage? Every single believer!
Look back at Hebrews 10 verse 19. It says there: “Therefore brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus….” He’s talking about the privilege that every one of us has since we trust in Jesus blood which covers all our sins and gives us access to the throne of God the Father. Since we have that kind of access to God’s power, use that access to (1) “draw near in full assurance of faith” (vs. 22) and let us (2) “hold fast our confession” (vs. 23) and finally let us (3) “consider how to stir one another…”
Do you see what he is saying here? One of the awesome privileges of having access to the throne of God the Father is that we can encourage each other. We have the special power, the resources of God’s Spirit at our disposal. He uses our words and actions with power to lift up those who are downhearted and those who have fallen. We can restore our brothers and sisters to the blessed fellowship with God!
God may put someone on your mind to pray for, to talk to, to help. That’s the supernatural equipping of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit prompts us to encourage in order to help those in need. Many times we simply ignore the prompting of the Holy Spirit with such excuses as: “It’s none of my business. What will they think? I’m better off just keeping quiet.” But then we miss out on blessing someone and being blessed as we see God using us. One little sentence prompted by the Holy Spirit can change someone’s whole day or even week. It can literally save someone’s life!
Encouragement isn’t just something we might want to do from time to time. It’s not just for extra gifted Christians. It’s for every one of us who live for Jesus Christ. We are to be always seeking ways to lift up those around us with our words and actions so that they’re back on track.
Restoring someone who is hurting is not their own responsibility. We might think it’s none of our business. But that is not what this says here. Encouragement is our God given privilege and a vital need for that person that is hurting.
Question 3: When should we encourage?
We should always seek opportunities to encourage each other but the Scripture recognizes special times in which we are to encourage each other: when we gather for worship. (25a) “not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some.”
The words used for meeting are taken from the word for synagogue and communicate to the reader a formal meeting of believers. We would understand it today as worship service of some kind or form. This was to be a great source of stimulation and encouragement.
According to this verse, many had the habit of simply ignoring these meetings. They don’t need it. But here he says that forsaking the worship service can result in believers also forsaking the Lord. We NEED fellowship. We NEED group encouragement. We NEED to find a place where we can be stimulated to love and good deeds.
We can certainly be encouraged and encourage others without going to church. But according to the Scripture, meeting together with other believers is the MAIN PLACE of encouragement. God encourages us of course through the preaching and worship. But church is not just about receiving – it’s about giving out to our brothers and sisters. Every Sunday when we meet we should each make a goal of encouraging at least one person. Ask God – who needs encouragement today? What do you want me to say or do?
Jim Cymbala tells an amazing story of this very thing happening one Sunday in his church: (Fresh Faith pp. 78-82) During the choir anthem, Pastor Jim was touched by the words of one of the young men who was featured as a soloist during the song. As the song concluded, Pastor Jim was strongly prompted by the Spirit of God to suddenly change the church program and he asked the young man if he would share his testimony of how God has set him free from his addiction to crack cocaine. It was a powerful testimony given at the spur of the moment and at the conclusion Pastor Jim felt led to ask for an altar call. Dozens of people came forward and gave their lives to Christ.
Later on in the week a man called the church from Texas asking for the sheet music to that song they sang on Sunday. He told his story – “My family and I were just on a visit to NY for the weekend. We have a nineteen-year-old son who has totally hardened to the things of the Lord. We brought him up to be a Christian, but he has drifted away in the opposite direction. We’ve been so concerned about him.
On this trip we invited him …to enjoy the city with us…but our real plan was to bring him on Sunday to your church…on Sunday we were getting ready for church when we realized that we wouldn’t be able to stay for the whole thing – or else we’d miss our flight home. …my son probably wasn’t going to hear the message…but then early in the service, out of nowhere – [Pastor Jim] walked up on the stage and started to share the Gospel. Suddenly my son was standing up with the others and heading for the altar! He just broke down before the Lord calling out for God for forgiveness. When he came back to the seat, he was a different person.”
God changed the whole meeting that afternoon just for the sake of one nineteen-year-old boy! What is the Lord prompting in YOUR heart today? Listen to Him!
The last question is this: Why the urgency to encourage one another?
Because “the day is drawing near.” (vs. 25b) Situations in the world are not going to get any better but only worse. As time goes by we have more and more need for encouragement.
Look at what Jesus said will happen in the last days: Luke 12:51-53 “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law." Families divided! We need encouragement when those things happen.
We just look at the world today and see the corruption. We see the things going on in the government that are so discouraging. Then you look at the liberalism going on in the church today – the legalization and promotion of sins that are forbidden in Scripture but accepted by many churches today. It’s a very depressing situation!
The natural response is to be angry, critical, bitter. We want to run away and hide. We want to close our church doors and not let anyone in. We hide out in our fortress of security. But friends, that doesn’t cure discouragement. That doesn’t cure our fears and worries. Jesus didn’t run away and hide. He reached out and loved despite the differences.
Encourage one another as the day is drawing near! Every day will give each of us more reason to complain and criticize but we need to buck the trend. Look to Jesus who is our peace and joy and solid rock. We don’t look to the circumstances around us. God is Lord and he reigns on the throne.
Encourage one other with what God is doing. Encourage one another with what God plans on doing in each others lives.
Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-- think about such things.”
Notice. Tell others. Draw people’s eyes on the promises of God. These are three very practical ways to encourage and stimulate others to follow the Lord. It’s our privilege to do this ministry as his children. God’s put it in our hands. Will you be someone who builds up or someone who tears down today?
In closing I’d like to read a beautiful old gospel song: SOMEONE NEEDS YOU
Someone needs you to speak a word of cheer
To help some soul along life’s rugged way
To lend a hand when life seems dark and drear
To those whose feet might wander far astray
Chorus:
Someone needs you, though small the need may be
God from His heaven the loving thought will see
Give to yourself in service good and true
Do not forget someone needs you, just you!
Someone needs you, O do not question why,
A weaker one who bears a heavy load,
With kindly thought, ere yet you pass them by,
Bid them “God speed” along the weary road.
Someone needs you to tell the story old,
The saving power of Christ to others show.
Turn not aside, but lead them to the fold,
That they salvation free may fully know.
