Consider One Another
Hebrews 10:25 and the instruction to be faithful to church is a commonly known passage of Scripture.
“Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience,and our bodies washed with pure water.
"Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
“And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”—Vss. 22–25.
We know that we are to be in the Lord’s house for church every time the doors are open. However, the one phrase I want to consider in this article is the phrase “consider one another."
I was having a conversation a few months ago with a gentleman who had come to meet with me at my request. Due to his many years of work experience, I had asked him to help me understand apart of my work and responsibility as a pastor. One of those areas was that of communication. This is a part of our conversation that day.
When we speak, we say at least three things:
What we think we said What we intended to say
What they heard us say
I love the joke of the three older men who were talking one morning. The first said, “It is windy today!” The second said, “I thought it was Thursday.” To which the third said, “I am too—I’d like a bottle of cold water.”
In our conversation he asked me if I had taken a speech class. I replied, “Yes, I have taken speech classes as well as classes on homiletics.”
He then asked, “Have you ever taken a class on listening?”
I smiled and said, “I’ve never even heard of one.” We then discussed the importance of listening.
Our “communication” is not communication at all; it is simply stating out loud what we know in our minds.
Communication is when we transfer a thought, idea or truth from one person to another. Successful preaching is not the display of a truth; it is the transfer of a truth from the Word of God through the man of God. That illustrates this article.
Hebrews 10:24 says, “And let us consider one another.” Listening is perhaps the best way to demonstrate that you are interested in or are considering others in your mind and heart.
If we are to be successful in ministry, we must have communication and teamwork that ‘considers one another’ and is not a one-way conversation and work.
I ask, Do we consider others’ feelings, thoughts, experience, understanding, education or circumstances? I promise you that this Bible principle will increase the effort and production of your teamwork in the various ministries of your church.
Everyone knows something that we do not know; hence, every man is our teacher. However, we will never know that if we never consider one another!
Jesus was the Son of God, yet He was considerate of others. It is obvious that He was genuinely concerned about the ten lepers, the two blind men, the widow whose son had died in the city of Nain, the feelings of Mary and Martha—“Jesus wept” (John 11:35)—as well as the hungry and the hurting.
A few weeks ago I had the privilege of meeting President Trump while he was visiting in Kentucky. I was invited by him to ride with him in the presidential limousine. The ride was about twenty minutes and the total time I spent with him that day was about three and a half hours.
One of the several things about him that got my attention and that I was impressed with was that he not only asked me questions, but he also listened until I was finished answering. He then commented on my answers. He did not just have things to say to me; he was also interested in my opinion, views and answers.
He was “considerate” of me. That is what the Bible is telling us here in Hebrews 10:24. We are to attend church not only to have our needs met, but also to consider others and how we may help meet their needs as well. I am convinced that the way my needs are met best are by helping to meet the needs of others.
May I close by saying let’s consider our young people and teenagers. They too have feelings, burdens and responsibilities. Consider the teenagers living in this present world. The Devil is using more tools than ever to ruin their lives—from the internet to the TV to adults who throw them into the den of lions to make a dollar. There are so many to consider: the homeless, poor, lonely, hurting and broken. While we may not meet the needs of all, by considering them we will keep our hearts humble so that we can help many more.
Until next time let’s keep those classes growing and the buses rolling!
