Our next study, “Our God Who Pursues: Guiding Us Back to Him,” starts on March 3rd! Stay tuned for more details in the coming days – but for the remainder of February, we will be focusing on Love. Short and sweet treasures from some of my favorite bloggers and teachers/authors I follow. As always, I appreciate your feedback and welcome any questions. – 🦋
The first week of this two-week break between studies is from Michele Morin. I find myself encouraged by her words and her heart for God and her family. If you haven’t followed her from one of my past posts, I encourage you to do so. Today’s post is from five years back, during the season leading up to Easter – but it is fitting for everyday wisdom and living when our goal is to live and love like Jesus.
And let us take thought of how to spur one another on to love and good works, 25 not abandoning our own meetings, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and even more so because you see the day drawing near.
Hebrews 10: 24-25. NET
Observation and Application From the Journey
To fully understand and appreciate the writers message here we need to go back and look at what he said before verse 19. Knowing that chapters 1-9 and more specifically, verses 1-18 of chapter 10 concerned the sacrifices of the OT law being a shadow of what was to come. The passages pointed out that the old sacrificial way was never perfect and had to be continually repeated – because the blood of bulls and goats could not truly take sin away. Only the blood of Christ could do this. The single sacrifice of Christ on the cross cancels out the old – for His one offering forever made perfect those who came to Hm through faith.
This is why the writer points out that we can have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus. Our Great High Priest, Jesus, is not behind a curtain as the priest was in the OT, but rather He is seated at the right hand of the throne of God and we are able to approach that throne because we have been made acceptable by Jesus’ blood. – This great hope is our confession of faith and should be the truth that spurs us on in our faith and encourages us to spur others on in theirs – namely to love and live like Jesus.
This great hope of our faith makes it all the more important to not abandon meeting with other believers. As Paul wrote to the Church of Rome, we are meant to function together as a body (Rom 12:4-5). We are meant to have an influence on and be influenced by other believers (Heb 3:13); and as the writer of Hebrew makes clear in today’s passage and Paul made clear to the Colossians we are not meant to live as islands to ourselves. for we have been charged with an obligation to other believers for a three-fold purpose:
discipleship
encouragement
meeting other’s needs (Col 3:16)
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and exhorting one another with all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, all with grace in your hearts to God.
Colossians 3:16
Prayer: A Heart’s Response to the Journey
Father, it isn’t always easy to know how to encourage one another and if we are honest it isn’t always easy to know how to take or make the time to gather together to teach and encourage one another – but we understand the need for it and pray for Your help in being faithful to this command. We pray that You will help us to take time to think about how we can spur one another on to love and good works and that we will not neglect gathering with other believers so that we might not only encourage but be encouraged to run the race of faith well – and be found living and loving like Jesus in our everyday lives. For as we are strengthened as Your body we will be brighter lights in the darkness around us – and You will be glorified and the Church will grow. As the days approach for Your return, let us not shrink back but press on with strength and an urgent love and desire to reach others with the message of Jesus. – In His name I pray – AMEN!
At that time a root from Jesse will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance, and his residence will be majestic.
Isaiah 11:10 NET
Observations: The Root of Jesse and a signal flag
The root from Jesse represents the Messiah, Jesus Christ. He is the shoot, the bud, the root out of the stump of Jesse. (See verse 1 and Acts 13:22-23).
The Root, our Messiah, would be a banner or a “signal flag for the nations”.
He will be one who stands out and is sought after. (see: Luke 2:32; John 3:14-15, 12:32: Romans 15:12; and Revelation 5:5)
Application: How then should we live?
There are probably many more, but the applications that came to mind were –
Celebrate the birth, the life, and the death of Jesus, who came from the stump of Jesse.
Wait with confident expectation knowing that He will one day come again. In this we can trust and rejoice.
Keep the celebration for His first coming flowing and the anticipation growing for His second coming by staying grounded, rooted, and fixed on Him. This means faithfully dwelling in and living out His Word. Remember, it is living and active, a light to our feet, a weapon against sin and discouragement as we wait, and it is the power of God that leads to the salvation of all who believe!
Prayer: Response to God’s Word
Father, how great You are! Jesus what a beautiful gift You are, a signal flag of HOPE, assurance, and guidance as we wait for Your return. Holy Spirit, who rested upon Jesus and now lives in us, You fill us with POWER and HOPE as we wait for what is to come; and You stir us to celebrate and rejoice as we remember Bethlehem and the gift, Your gift, of the baby in the manger. Strengthen us as we wait, keep us faithfully living and loving like Jesus, and use us as salt and light in this dark world. Blessed be the name of the Lord, the God who restores! Thank You in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior – Amen!
Me From the Inside Out 