Exhorting One Another

Hebrews 10:25

Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as you see the day approaching.

We often look at this verse to teach the importance of being faithful to church, which is a correct interpretation of this verse. However, God did not stop at commanding us to attend church faithfully, but He furthered this command by telling us that we should be exhorting one another. In other words, If I attend church faithfully but do not exhort people while I am at church, I am not being obedient to God’s command. Likewise, if I am exhorting people while I am at church but am unfaithful to attend all the services, I am still being disobedient to the Lord’s command. God’s command is to be faithful to all services and to exhort one another while I am at the services. If we are to exhort one another while we attend faithfully, what does it mean to exhort?

First, exhorting one another means to be encouraging to others. You will not be an encouragement to others at church if you arrive late and leave early, or if you go straight to your seat and sit down until the services start. You ought to be an encouragement by being friendly to others. There is something about going to a church service early and hearing the buzz of voices as they visit with each other. It brings an excitement to the services. You could be an encouragement to others if you would be friendly to people before and after the services. Don't just come to church to sit, but come to church to be an encouragement to others.

Second, exhorting one another means to lean on others. There are times when you come to church, and you need the strength of others. Now, you must be careful not to make yourself the dump truck of negative on others at every service. However, leaning on others means you ask them for their help in prayer when you go through difficult times. A church family should lift others up when they are down and not kick them when they are down. Be a person who exhorts others by allowing them to lean on you for encouragement when they go through difficult times.

Third, exhorting one another means to spur others on. You should be the cheerleader for the younger believer who is growing in the Lord. Instead of being the spiritual police who tells everyone they are doing something wrong, be the exhorting believer who spurs the young believer on by telling them you enjoy seeing their growth. Part of your time at church should be spent to spur others not to quit when they don't feel like they are doing a good job.

Fourth, exhorting one another means to put pressure on others. Now, you don't need to go tell someone they need to do more, but your life example should put pressure on others that they need to do more. If you are busy serving in the church, bringing converts to the services, and seen as someone who is one of those responsible for the numerical growth of the church, it will put pressure on others that they need to step up.

My friend, you cannot exhort one another if you are not faithful all the time. You cannot exhort one another if you are not involved in the ministries of the church. Let me challenge you not only to be faithful to all the services, but to also be an exhorter to others so your church will be a place that visitors will want to come back to because of the phenomenal spirit of your church.