June 4th, 2023
Our Mutual Ministry Of Exhortation
But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
— Hebrews 3:13
If you want to fulfill God’s plan for your life, there’s one thing you must not do: Don’t forsake the daily fellowship and encouragement of other believers! Hebrews 3:13 tells us that we need to “...exhort one another daily....” But what does it mean to “exhort”?
The word for “exhort” that is used in this verse comes from the Greek word parakaleo. It is a compound of the words para and kaleo. The word para means alongside, and the word kaleo means to call, to invite, to speak, or to beckon. When these two words are compounded into one, it gives the picture of someone who has come closely alongside of another person for the sake of speaking to him, consoling him, comforting him, or assisting him with instruction, counsel, or advice.
Because it is so helpful when someone comes alongside to support you in this manner, this word is often translated in the New Testament as the word encouragement. Jesus used the word paraklete, a derivative of parakaleo, to describe the Holy Spirit as the “Comforter” in John 14:16.
These verses make it abundantly clear that we need to both give and receive encouragement from other believers on a daily basis. This is such a vital principle that the tense used in the Greek language calls for continual action. In other words, we are not to just encourage one another once a week; we are to make this a matter of lifestyle. We must get into the habit of encouraging one another, doing it so often that it becomes a daily practice!
Think how encouraging it is when someone cares enough to take you to lunch, call you on the telephone, write you a note, or go out of his way at the office or church to come to you and ask how you are doing. It is especially very strengthening to know that someone really cares about you if you’re going through challenging times!
But rather than fixate only on your need to be encouraged, try taking your eyes off yourself to see those around you who are also in need of strength. Think of someone you know whom you can strengthen by coming alongside him to speak words of comfort, consolation, or bravery. Maybe you can take that person to lunch; call him on the telephone; drop him a note; or go out of your way to see how he is doing. Remember, you’re not the only one who needs encouragement!
We all need encouragement from brothers and sisters in the Lord who will lovingly attach themselves to us — watching us, making observations about us, and finding ways to provoke us unto love and good deeds. But we must also turn around and do the same for other believers. That’s what the Body of Christ is all about!
So recognize that when you’re feeling down and left out, you need fellowship with people of faith more than ever. Jesus understood this principle. When He went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray the night before His crucifixion, He asked Peter, James, and John to come pray with Him. Jesus needed their fellowship and strength that night, or He wouldn’t have requested it.
Recognize your need for others — and acknowledge that others need you as well. The daily exhortation and encouragement of other believers will help you stir up your faith to hold fast to your confession until it becomes a reality. And as an added side benefit, you will experience more deeply the Presence of the Lord in your life through the joy of knowing and loving other people of like faith!
MY PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord, I want to be a major source of blessing to people in my life! Help me to quit being so fixated on myself and to see how I can become a strength and encouragement to others who are around me. Your Word commands me to be involved in giving daily encouragement. And since I am seriously committed to obeying Your Word, I intend to find a way to encourage someone who needs strength today!
I pray this in Jesus’ name!
MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY
I confess that I need to be encouraged! God’s Word commands me to be encouraged daily, so I choose to believe that encouragement is what I need. I recognize my need for others, and I acknowledge that others need my encouragement as well. The daily exhortation and encouragement of other believers will stir up my faith and help me hold fast to my confession of faith!
I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!
QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER
.
. . . Source: Sparkling Gems From The Greek Vol. 1: 365 Greek Word Studies For Every Day Of The Year To Sharpen Your Understanding Of God's Word | Rick Renner
But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
— Hebrews 3:13
If you want to fulfill God’s plan for your life, there’s one thing you must not do: Don’t forsake the daily fellowship and encouragement of other believers! Hebrews 3:13 tells us that we need to “...exhort one another daily....” But what does it mean to “exhort”?
The word for “exhort” that is used in this verse comes from the Greek word parakaleo. It is a compound of the words para and kaleo. The word para means alongside, and the word kaleo means to call, to invite, to speak, or to beckon. When these two words are compounded into one, it gives the picture of someone who has come closely alongside of another person for the sake of speaking to him, consoling him, comforting him, or assisting him with instruction, counsel, or advice.
Because it is so helpful when someone comes alongside to support you in this manner, this word is often translated in the New Testament as the word encouragement. Jesus used the word paraklete, a derivative of parakaleo, to describe the Holy Spirit as the “Comforter” in John 14:16.
These verses make it abundantly clear that we need to both give and receive encouragement from other believers on a daily basis. This is such a vital principle that the tense used in the Greek language calls for continual action. In other words, we are not to just encourage one another once a week; we are to make this a matter of lifestyle. We must get into the habit of encouraging one another, doing it so often that it becomes a daily practice!
Think how encouraging it is when someone cares enough to take you to lunch, call you on the telephone, write you a note, or go out of his way at the office or church to come to you and ask how you are doing. It is especially very strengthening to know that someone really cares about you if you’re going through challenging times!
But rather than fixate only on your need to be encouraged, try taking your eyes off yourself to see those around you who are also in need of strength. Think of someone you know whom you can strengthen by coming alongside him to speak words of comfort, consolation, or bravery. Maybe you can take that person to lunch; call him on the telephone; drop him a note; or go out of your way to see how he is doing. Remember, you’re not the only one who needs encouragement!
We all need encouragement from brothers and sisters in the Lord who will lovingly attach themselves to us — watching us, making observations about us, and finding ways to provoke us unto love and good deeds. But we must also turn around and do the same for other believers. That’s what the Body of Christ is all about!
So recognize that when you’re feeling down and left out, you need fellowship with people of faith more than ever. Jesus understood this principle. When He went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray the night before His crucifixion, He asked Peter, James, and John to come pray with Him. Jesus needed their fellowship and strength that night, or He wouldn’t have requested it.
Recognize your need for others — and acknowledge that others need you as well. The daily exhortation and encouragement of other believers will help you stir up your faith to hold fast to your confession until it becomes a reality. And as an added side benefit, you will experience more deeply the Presence of the Lord in your life through the joy of knowing and loving other people of like faith!
MY PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord, I want to be a major source of blessing to people in my life! Help me to quit being so fixated on myself and to see how I can become a strength and encouragement to others who are around me. Your Word commands me to be involved in giving daily encouragement. And since I am seriously committed to obeying Your Word, I intend to find a way to encourage someone who needs strength today!
I pray this in Jesus’ name!
MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY
I confess that I need to be encouraged! God’s Word commands me to be encouraged daily, so I choose to believe that encouragement is what I need. I recognize my need for others, and I acknowledge that others need my encouragement as well. The daily exhortation and encouragement of other believers will stir up my faith and help me hold fast to my confession of faith!
I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!
QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER
- How does it affect you when someone goes out of his way to check on you or to see how you are doing?
- How does it affect you when no one ever asks how you are doing or what is new in your life — when it seems like everyone is ignoring the fact that you also have needs in your life?
- Are you involved in giving strength and encouragement to others, or are you just concerned about receiving it from others? Where is your focus? Is it on yourself or on the needs of other people as well?
.
. . . Source: Sparkling Gems From The Greek Vol. 1: 365 Greek Word Studies For Every Day Of The Year To Sharpen Your Understanding Of God's Word | Rick Renner
Recent
Archive
2023
January
Do Not Grieve the Holy Spirit!Dealing With Wrong Attitudes The Right WayHow To Remedy Spiritual Boredom in Your Life!It’s Time for You To Act Fast!Have You Said ‘Thank You’ Today?Learning To ‘Follow the Leader’When Your Attitude Stinks So Badly That It Affects Everyone Around You!A Unique Receptacle Specially Made for the Power of God!Where Should You Go When You Get Discouraged?Preparing the Troops For Battle!It’s Time To Get Creative In ‘Doing the Word’Have You Paid Attention To Yourself Lately?What Should You Do When Your Plans Seem Hindered?The Dead-End Places Of LifeComrades In the Lord Jesus ChristNever Forget That You Are More Than a Conqueror!A Spirit of Wisdom And Revelation for YouA Time To Forcefully Speak the Truth in LoveHow To Be A Spiritual BillionaireYou Are Never Alone!Staying Untangled From the WorldA Fight Always Follows IlluminationIs It Time To Make a Change In Your Environment?You’re Not a Spiritual Orphan!Royal Ambassadors For ChristIs It Ever Right To Hate Something?Unshackled From The Tyranny and Cruelty of Sin!
February
Does God’s Word Feel at Home in Your Life?The Greatest Price Ever Paid To Set a Slave Free!Do Whatever Is Necessary To Keep Envy and Strife Out of Your Life!Don’t Ignore the Last Words!A Divine Stream Of Supernatural RevelationWhat Does It Mean To Have a ‘Sound Mind’?It’s Time for You To Start Acting Like God!It’s Time for You To Stop Acting Like You’re a Victim!The Holy Spirit Wants To Place A Razor-Sharp Sword in Your HandsIf You’re Feeling Unwanted, Abandoned, Or Rejected, It’s Time To Rejoice!God Will Make Sure You Get Rewarded For Your Work of FaithSet the Spiritual Hostages Free!He’s Still the Lord Of the Wind and the Waves!‘X’ Marks the Spot!The Holy Spirit Earnestly Yearns for You!Be a ‘Holy Terror’ To the Kingdom of Darkness!Don’t Put Out The Spirit’s Fire!A Great Cloud of WitnessesGod Uses the Weak To Baffle Those Who Think They Are So High and MightyDiligence Is Required For Success in GodHow Do You Make A Dead Man See?Effective Spiritual Weapons Require Effective Spiritual StrategiesYou Have a Two-Edged Sword!The Holy Spirit — A Partner Who Wants To Take Responsibility For You in This Life!It’s Time for You To Lay Aside Every Unnecessary WeightYou Are a Shrine For the Holy SpiritTake Advantage Of All Kinds of PrayerA Picture of Who You Used To Be!Your Redemption Is a Done Deal!
March
God’s Power Is Yours For the Taking!Stopping Satan At His Own Game‘Filthy Stinking Rich!’Laziness and Slothfulness— Don’t Allow Either in Your Life!Does Jesus Find You To Be Therapeutic, Refreshing, or Disgusting?It’s Time for You To Start Acting Like God!A Guaranteed Way To Infuriate the Holy Spirit!Relax From the Stresses of Life!‘Perilous Times’ In the Last DaysHang In There And Don’t Give Up!Why Not Bring Others Into the Project?You Are One Of God’s Pillars!Who Said You Had To Deserve What God Gives You?Payday Is on the Way!Are You Wearing Your Killer Shoes?Whose Faith Are You Following?Stick Your Neck Out — Commit Yourself to Someone!Don’t Be A ‘Bone out of Joint’!The Necessary Attitude for SuccessRefuse To Ever Let Go Of Your Dream!Doing Things Decently and in OrderHow Is Your Memory Working?Do You Have the Right To Demand Anything From God?The Most Essential Weapon In Your Spiritual ArsenalKeep the Devil Where He Belongs — Under Your Feet!The Lord Will Reckon With You When He Comes!Run Like You Are In the Race of Your Life!Are You an ‘Amateur’ Or a ‘Professional’?The Supernatural Intercessory Ministry Of the Holy SpiritDon’t Get in a Hurry!Jesus’ Last Lesson For the Disciples
April
How the Devil Turned A Friend Into a Betrayer!Have You Ever Felt ‘Agony’ Over Situations You Have Faced in Life?Supernatural Assistance When You Don’t Know Where To Turn for Help!The Right Way To Die!How Many Soldiers Does It Take To Arrest One Man?A Full Moon, Lanterns, Torches, and Weapons!The Judas KissHave Disagreements Revealed Your Level of Submission to Authority?When Roman Soldiers Were Knocked Flat by the Power of God!Peter Swings for the Head — But Gets an Ear!Jesus Cleans Up Peter’s Mess!Twelve Legions of AngelsWho Was the Naked Boy In the Garden of Gethsemane?
Categories
Tags
no tags
No Comments