Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Reaching Out To Reach In
Recently I listened to a few different presentations on CD that were really very amazing. They told a story of how to keep going in the face of overwhelming odds. One of the ideas was to be someone that reaches out to others. As I listened to the speaker it occurred to me that this is really true in the scriptures as well. We are often encouraged to reach out to our fellow believers to encourage them.
1 Thesallonians 5:8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
Here we see Paul telling us to edify one another, to build each other up, just as we comfort ourselves in the faith, love, and salvation of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus) in our everyday lives. And we are to walk mindful of those around us that we do not cause them to stumble.
Romans 14:19 Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.
Again, we see this encouragement to edify one another, to build each other up. Now, it is true that we need to be responsible for our own walk in Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). We each personally need to seek the Father and walk in His ways. But there is also this call for us to reach out to others. But let’s think about that for just a minute.
If I only consider my own attempts to walk after Yahuah (Lord) and do His will, then I take on the whole burden. Truly, if I am all alone and there is just Yahuah (Lord) and me, then I do well to cry out to Him and seek His assistance to walk after His commands. But when we can, if we reach out to others to lift them up, then we create this giant network of many points of contact for each of us that is encouraging each other. Instead of just us trying to help ourselves, which is only one person, one string, bearing the load, we end up with this mesh, this rope, this huge support structure where each of us has many voices shouting that encouragement to cross the finish line in the race… “Keep going! You can do this!!! You are a winner!!!” This is just a portion of the brilliance behind the second portion of the summing up of the law by the Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus).
Mark 12:28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?
29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:
30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
32 And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:
33 And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.
Just as we each individually need encouragement and edification, so also do those all around us that name the name of Yeshua (Jesus). If we reach out to our brothers and sisters in Messiah with words of encouragement, with hope, and with the testimony the greatness of Yahuah (Lord) our God, then we are loving them, just as we love ourselves when we attempt to encourage ourselves.
By all of us reaching out, we are really reaching into our own hearts, and encouraging ourselves to stick by our Father’s commands, and to love Him. And when we trust in Yahuah, it really does not matter what the world sens our way. Our Father is with us always, to the very end, and beyond. Praise the name of Yahuah!
Deuteronomy 31:5 And the Lord shall give them up before your face, that ye may do unto them according unto all the commandments which I have commanded you.
6 Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are the King we have searched for all of our lives. You are the One that is always there to comfort us. We bless the name Yahuah! Let the kingdom of our Yahuah reign now upon the earth! Send us today Your overwhelming blessing. Forgive us our sins, and help us to overcome the temptations to sin. Heal up our hearts. Deliver us from those that would steal from us what You alone have provided. We need You in our lives, Father. We can only trust in You to defend us. Come to our defense. We ask these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.