by Zane Hodges, excerpted from The Journey of Faith: Sermons on Henbrews

Let us consider “one another.” “Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together” (Heb 10:24-25a). Not giving up church. “But Exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching” (Heb 10:25b).

I was in a man’s home years ago. I was inviting him to church, and he said to me, “I really don’t go to church. I can worship God, you know, out in the field, out by the lake. I don’t need church” My, what a familiar refrain. I bet your pastor has heard it in every stanza and verse in which it can be sung, “I don’t need to go to church because everybody at church is a hypocrite.” “I don’t need to go to church because the folks at church are unfriendly.” “I don’t need to go to church because I don’t get anything out of it.” “I don’t need to go to church because________.” Fill in the blank. Fill in the blank with almost anything.

You know what is wrong with all of those excuses? They consider only ourselves. Try this on for size. “I’m going to church because my brothers and sisters down at church need me. They need my encouragement. They need my love. They need my concern. They need my exhortation. They need to have me help them while they help me along the road as we wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Now that is a good reason for going to church. Do you know something? To try out that approach would be doing yourself, I mean yourself, one of the biggest favors you can possibly do.

You know the Bible says, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35c). The Bible says, “He who waters will also be watered himself” (Prov 11:25b). Jesus said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). One of the best things you can do for yourself is to stop thinking so much about yourself, and to begin to think about others. Therefore, one of the secrets of spiritual victory is, “And let us consider one another in order to stir up to love and good works” (Heb 10:24).