“And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:24-25).

Provoke one another? 

Provoke is not a nice word. To provoke means to chide, press, stir someone up to react negatively and strongly. 

The Greek word literally means to jab or cut someone so they “must” respond. 

The writer of Hebrews exhorts the believers to provoke one another to love and good deeds, and not to neglect meeting together (worship). What an interesting combination. 

Why would the writer use this word?

I think it might have something to do with the fact that left to ourselves, we choose self-interest and that which is easy. Loving, doing good, and being committed to worship – none of these things are easy. These take commitment and intentionality. Therefore, we are encouraged to provoke one another to react in a way where we cannot help but love, do good, and gather.

I recently came across a study by the Barna group that says that one in three practicing Christians have stopped worshiping during Covid-19. 

I encourage, provoke, press, stir you up to react and respond so that you commit to worship. Because if you are not worshiping, you are not growing, your are not maturing, you are not thriving. Just because you worship doesn’t necessarily mean you are growing, maturing, and thriving. But if you are not worshiping, it makes growing, maturing, and thriving impossible. 

Jesus himself declared, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them” (Matthew 18:20).

Worship is not about meeting and seeing one another – while that is something I really miss about our online worship right now – but it is about encountering the living God. Jesus promises to be present with us in a real way to encounter us when we gather for worship. And it is we who need this so desperately. We need to be reminded of who God is – sovereign, good, loving, kind, forgiving, patient, holy, awesome – so we get a clear picture of who we are. 

It is easy to let worship slip by. Particularly when it takes intentionality to log on and be mindful about worshiping. But I want to encourage, urge, provoke you to stay committed to worship because I love you and because I want you to thrive. And part of what it means to be thriving is to be committed to and being intentional about worship. 

Thank you for your continued commitment to be God’s people through the Little Church and Lakewoodgrace. I thank God for you. 

See you Sunday at worship!

“The LORD struck the child that Uriah’s wife bore to David, and it became very ill. David therefore pleaded with God for the child; David fasted, and went in and lay all night on the ground. The elders of his house stood beside him, urging him to rise from the ground; but he would not, nor did he eat food with them. On the seventh day the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead; for they said, ‘While the child was alive, we spoke to him, and he did not listen to us; how then can we tell him the child is dead? He may do himself some harm.’ But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, he perceived that the child was dead; and David said to his servants, ‘Is the child dead?’ They said, ‘He is dead.’

Then David rose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes. He went into the house of the LORD, and worshipped”  (2 Samuel 12:15b-20).

This is the account of the child born to Bathsheba and David after David took advantage of Bathsheba. After all the prayer, fasting for a week, and groveling on the ground pleading with God for the life of the child, when the child died, David worshiped.

Isn’t that odd?

In this pericope, we come to see the nature of prayer. Prayer is not about having our way, but surrendering and submitting to the sovereign will of God.

More than ever our world needs the prayers of God’s people. The prayers of the faithful for our country, our cities, and our churches are more vital than ever before. But praying is not about demanding God to heed our wishes and prayers. Prayer is letting God know what our desires are but ultimately submitting and surrendering to God and God’s will.

The reason why David worshiped when the child died is because God made his will crystal clear. David worshiped because God had answered his prayer!

Pray, church. Pray! Let God know what is in our hearts and what we would like to see happen in the world. Then surrender and submit to God’s will and God’s sovereignty, and worship. God is God. We are not.

God loves to hear and answer our prayers. God always answers our prayers. God may not answer our prayers the way we want them answered, but God always answers our prayers according to his sovereign will. And because God is a good and loving God, we worship!

That is the posture of prayer.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2).

There’s a battle going on in the world. It is fought not on battlefields, but through media, news networks, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok. The prize for which everyone is after is not more territory and lands, but the minds and hearts of people. There is a narrative that the educated, powerful, and the influencers of this world demand that others accept.

John Lilly is quoted as saying, “In the province of the mind, what one believes to be true either is true or becomes true.”

Please read that quote again. It is so important that we get our thinking right; that we protect the minds of Christians.

It is absolutely vital Christ-followers protect and guard our minds and our thoughts. What we believe absolutely matters. When we are not careful to guard our minds, we allow narratives that are contrary to the revealed truth of God to seep into our minds. And before we know it, Christ-followers have a difficult time discerning between the truth revealed to us in Scriptures from the truth that the world is feeding us.

Friends, our baseline is the revealed word of God. That is the truth by which all others are measured by. Protect your mind by staying close to God’s word on a daily basis.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2).