Spur on...

Week 52:

Hebrews 10:24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

One of the things we must do in the kingdom is to encourage one another in our walk with Jesus. This world is very tough on us as we try and be a disciple of Christ. I need my brothers and sisters in my life to encourage me to continue in the work of the Father. 



Nestled within a passage encouraging perseverance is the above verse. The whole section is addressed to many, a group of Christians. It is bathed in the idea of community. As we all know, it takes community to stand strong in our faith. Satan would love nothing more than to separate/single us out and make us think we are walking this walk all alone. The Hebrew author is encouraging community here. This single verse (10:24) gives those in community a simple instruction for each other.

I love the NIV translation of “spur one another”. Other versions use “provoke”, “watching”, and “stimulate”. I just love the edginess of “spur”. When thinking of a cowboy on a horse, spurring makes the horse react and go. Bronco-riders in a rodeo really get the horse going when they spur the animal. So, to “spur one another toward love and good deeds” has such a strong and somewhat urgent charge. To me it means to take an active role in holding my brothers and sisters accountable to love and take part in good deeds. It also challenges them to do the same for me. 



When thinking of the word love, I tend to fall into the trap that in order to encourage a person to love, I must be gentle in my approach. This verse tells me to challenge others to love and practice good deeds. Even the words “provoke” and “stimulate” are challenging words. Therefore, I believe that there comes a time to challenge others toward love and good deeds. This is especially needed during a time when perseverance is call for. When times seem tough and discouraging, I need to be “spurred” to keep moving with love and toward good deeds. 

As we come to the end of another year, think about your Christian community. Do you need to be the cowboy or the horse? As the cowboy, who do you need to spur on? As the horse, who do you need to hear from to be spurred on?

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.”

Questions/Challenges:

1. As the question said above, which are you the cowboy or the horse? 
2. What is your current circumstance that would prompt you to believe you are?
3. Who do you need to spur on?
4. Who do you need to hear from to be spurred on?
5. What is God telling you with this passage?

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