IN, UP, & OUT
This is the second post on Hebrews 10:19-25. This time we’ll focus on verses 23-25:
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
There are three main ideas that the author of hebrews says are to mark this community. He says let us hold fast the confession of our hope; Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works; And let us encourage one another. These three commands correspond to three key relationships: with God, the church, and the world. What we call UP, IN, and OUT. So let’s look at each of these.
UP
He says “let us hold fast the confession of our hope for he who promised is faithful.” He’s saying that a mark of our togetherness is that we cling to the truth together; Because we are so prone to wander, Lord I feel it! That is why the author says in chapter 2, “therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it” And he says “how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” So we help each other hold fast to the truth that is the foundation of our hope.
He says we do this because he who promised is faithful. God is faithful to his promises, so we should speak these promises to one another and look at his promises together, and and tell each other stories from the Bible and from experience that bolster our faith that God will indeed keep his promises to us.
And this is what makes christian community greater and deeper than other forms of community christian community unites people around more than the common bonds of looking similar and liking the same stuff. A church community frees you to be part of something bigger than yourself, because we are a community indwelt by one who is faithful to his promises. And together we hold fast to the truth he has communicated to us that brings us true life-changing hope.
Holding fast to the confession of our hope is a community project. As much as I have read and studied the Bible on my own, and listened to lectures and sermons about the Bible; by far the majority of the greatest insights and times when God has spoken to me clearly and powerfully in memorable and transformative ways have been through discussing God’s word with other people. Hearing from him together and hearing how he is speaking to others and through others and processing it together and internalizing it as a community of good news. We discuss God’s word together to discover what he is speaking to us. We unite around the truth so that it will bolster us and make us unwavering in our hope. that is the first component of community
IN
He also says that we are to “encourage one another.” Some translations say “comfort one another.” This is the second of the three components of community. The word he uses for “encourage” is the greek word “parakaleo.” It is a form of the word paraclete which is what Jesus calls the Holy Spirit in the gospel of John. It is often translated helper, comforter, or advocate.
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that he is calling us to be for one anther what the holy spirit is to us, because the holy spirit is precisely the one working in and through us. The Paraklete lives in us and unites us and calls us to parakaleo one another. So we encourage, and comfort, and help, and advocate for one another; lifting each other up before the father intentionally and specifically. This means we really have to know one another, and that prayer isn’t just a tacked on transition. So It takes time and intentionality and genuine care for others.
The author says this is all the more necessary as you see the day drawing near. He is referring to the idea that the end of the age will bring great stress and evil and temptation and when these things arise in our lives we need each other more than ever. Because when life is easy breezy and going good it’s easy to think that we’re fine with a couple casual friends and some netflix. But that’s a self-centered fog that the devil wants to place over us, because it’s not putting others before ourselves; others whose lives may not be so rosy.
It is dangerous for us because then when calamity strikes and we need comfort and encouragement most we won’t have a natural place to go. So we need to build this into our rhythms of life. Encouraging one another, weeping with those who weep, rejoicing with those who rejoice, comforting and praying for one another regularly.
We also need encouragement to be steadfast as we follow Jesus and pursue holiness. The author uses the same word in chapter 3 when he says, “take care brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort (parakaleo) one another every day, as long as it is called “today” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
We need to be encouraged and exhorted to turn toward, rather than away from, the living God. Sin is deceitful. It tells us that it is better to live in sin than in God. We need encouragement in walking the way of Jesus to continue on this path.
OUT
This leads to the third component of community in this text which is in verse 24 “let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works.” This begins with considering one another; thinking about each other; Intentional attentiveness to the state of others and their lives for the purpose of helping them become who they are called to be, to live out the calling of love. The ESV says “stir up one another.” Another translation I like says “provoke one another.” We are called to intentional thoughtfulness about those in our community so that we can spur them on, inspire them, and challenge them to live lives marked by loving God and others and acting on that love.
The biblical idea of love is radical others-centeredness; committing to the good and flourishing of others above even yourself. This does not come naturally to us. The author of Hebrews knows this and so does Jesus so they call us to help each other, to point out blindspots, to look for opportunities to partner together in ministry and service and to hold one another accountable to grow in love in our daily lives.
We stir up love through intentional thoughtfulness, challenging one another, inspiring one another, partnering with one another, and holding one another accountable. These are what it means to consider how to stir one another up to love and good works. We like two of these and we hate two of these. We like being inspired and we like for people to partner with us. But we dislike being challenged and we dislike being held accountable.
If you’ve ever partnered with someone in ministry or in acts of service or love. You know it’s a powerful and stirring bond. Although it takes time and thought and energy, it’s generally on the more positive side in our minds. But Once our anger problem is brought up or our spending habits are commented on or how we don’t follow through on commitments…Then things are a little too personal. We don’t want to sign up for that.
I want to challenge you to get those categories of like and dislike out of your head because that’s thinking about you again. Think about others and how you can help them flourish in who Christ has called them to be. Think about how you can do these things for them because you love them, and you love the God who called them, and you love the people in their life who will also benefit from you helping them grow in love.
Love is so centrally important to Jesus and he is telling us that it will not be manifested the way it ought to be if we are not stirring it up in one another and provoking one anther to love and act in love. Jesus told us that the love of many will grow cold and those who persevere to the end will be saved. The purpose of community is to keep love warm. To fan the flames of love.
Gracious Commands
I’ll end by saying something that may seem a little obvious, but I think it needs saying. When Jesus gives us these commands, it implies that we need to do these things in order to be living the Christian life rightly. In other words, these aren’t just suggestions. He saying that you aren’t going to love others the way you should if you don’t have people in your life spurring you on to do so. You are going to be overcome by the weight of this fallen world if you don’t have people in your life encouraging you. You are going to drift from the confession of our hope if you aren’t committed to a group of people that together are clinging to it for dear life. You aren’t going to be able to draw near to god if you aren’t drawing near to his people.
However, When we are obedient to commit to a community like this, God uses it as the means to transform us into who he is calling us to be. And the creation of a community like this takes God working in and through people to rewire their hearts to be others-centered rather than self-centered. We can’t just create it. We are dependent on God, so join me in praying that he will do this among us.