Steven A. Bush - January 2, 2022
Come Close, Cling Tight, Confer Courage
Listen to the "Let Us" exhortations found in Hebrews 10:22-24: "...let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds..." (NIV) With respect to drawing close to God, James 4:8a echoes: "Come close to God [with a contrite heart] and He will come close to you." (AMP) Asaph writes as follows in Psalm 73:28: "But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Thy works." (NASB/77) Besides drawing near to God, the author of Hebrews instructs us to "hold unswervingly." Sometimes clinging tight to Him is really all we can do. And then thirdly he exhorts us to "spur one another toward love and good deeds." To en-courage means we're to instill or confer courage to others. At some point every believer needs bolstered by encouragement. When God's Word says, "Let Us" it means we're all in this together. This whole faith walk is a corporate venture or perhaps better said it's a family adventure and it's certainly not one to be traversed alone. Having one another is one of the greatest blessings God bestows...