Heb. 3:13, “But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” No one who has been alive for any amount of time will disagree that life is hard. Before we become Christians we wallow in the darkness of sin, and we are not highly valued targets of the devil. Why would he consider us worthwhile adversaries if we are doing his bidding? Jesus’ scathing remarks to the Jews who were seeking to harm Him clearly illustrate where the ultimate loyalty of some lie – John 8:44, “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires.”
On the other hand, those of us who freely give ourselves in obedient faithfulness to the Father through His Son, Jesus Christ, will surely be targets of the devil. And there is no escape from that reality – John 15:20, “Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you…” That we will have to overcome challenges is as certain as the fact that the sun shone today, and unless Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead, tomorrow as well. The evil one is crafty and will use our greatest weakness against us, dangling it in front of us like the proverbial carrot in front of a donkey. Then he will impatiently and eagerly wait for us to stumble along as we try and chase that which will remove us from God’s loving arms.
Now, it is certainly not impossible to overcome our sinful nature on our own but doing so leaves us vulnerable to attacks we do not see coming. You see, the devil will not always dangle a carrot, sometimes he will sneakily introduce sinful practices into your life through much subtler means. He can use the constant influence of music, movies, or video games to wear our defenses down over time. Our resolve not to indulge in wrongdoings or support those who do may be worn down and before long our Christianity is a mere speck in the rearview mirror of life. And as I mentioned previously – whether we actively participate in sin or not still places the consequences thereof at our feet.
Rom. 1:32, “Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” Here is something worth remembering today, “The easiest participatory medal to win is in the game of silence when sin abounds around us.” OK, so trying to defeat the wily ways of the father of all lies is doable, but it can and will be dangerous. There is, however, an easier way for someone to stand up to the devil. I remember an army sergeant drilling this saying into our heads as new recruits, “There is strength in numbers.” It is easy to break one matchstick, but have you ever tried breaking 25 of them at once? All it takes is for us to do something rather simple, as we are told in today’s scripture – exhort one another.
the Bible is replete with scriptures about exhortation/encouragement. We read of a similar sentiment in 1 The. 5:11, “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” While Christianity is an individual decision and results in a personal relationship with Christ, we were never meant to be alone, or fight the good fight alone. We may be individuals, but we find our ultimate strength in the bond of Christian fellowship. Heb. 10:25, “…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.” What a great reason to attend a local church.
There are times when we cannot see the forest for the tree that is in front of us. I write these articles almost daily and every now and then I make a mistake. Sometimes I read it over and over, but my mind automatically corrects an obvious, glaring mistake and I post the article. Kind brothers and sisters then reply to me and inform me of the mistake, and I correct it. I fail to see what is staring me right in the face. At times, we also need encouragement to stay on the “straight and narrow path.” Sin may be staring us right in the face, or we may already be weakened by its influence, only to have a loving, caring brother or sister in Christ encourage us away from it. Their constant exhortation wells up inside us a determined strength that drives us back from the dangerous path we are taking. Were it not for those words, we may be “hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
Their encouragement may also have an intended consequence, despite how far we have strayed from the path of righteousness. Jam. 5:19-20, “My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” Encourage someone today because it may save them.
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