“And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near” (Hebr 10:25; NLT). In Hebrews 10:24-25, we in the church are told to call each other on in attendance, love and caring for each other. The church is to be the: “pillar and foundation of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15b; NLT). An important part of our church leaders caring role is to build us up in faith, unity and knowledge of God’s word so we can become more and more like Christ (Eph 4:11-13; NKJV). Leaders are to shepherd or care for the church (1 Peter 5:2; Acts 20:28). As in the early church (Acts 2:42; NKJV) we should also experience a beautiful, caring fellowship (Greek koinonia) with each other. This is more than just social events but a deep spiritual union with God and each other as we focus on his word and prayer together. We should love one another as Christ loves us (John 13:43-35; Rom 12:9-10); this love and caring must be demonstrated: “Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other, let us show the truth by our actions” (1 John 3:18; NLT). The apostle Paul encouraged us to look out: “for the interests of others” (Phil 2:4; NKJV) and even seek the good of others before our own (1 Cor 10:24). We are all called to be servants (Gal 5:13; Matt 23;11). A strong, caring church will impact the world around us. I believe that’s God's desire.

In the Old Testament we read how Jacob stole his brother Esau’s birthright and father’s blessing (Gen 25:29-34; 27:1-40). Later In Genesis is the account of how Jacob wrestled all night with the angel of God (Gen 32:24-30). The angel asked Jacob what his name was and to his discomfort he had to admit it was Jacob which means supplanter, schemer and swindler. However, the angel told Jacob that his name was to be changed to “Israel” which means, “one who struggled with God and prevailed”; the angel blessed Jacob. Jacob’s change of name to Israel marked a significant transformation in his life and character from supplanter to the first person to bear the name of God’s people, Israel. Praise God that we as Christians have not had to wrestle with God. However, think about it, when we asked Jesus into our lives as Lord and Saviour (Rom 10:9-10) we experienced a more significant transformation in our lives than Jacob did. We were spiritually born again (John 3:3,5-7) transformed from sinner to child of God (Eph 2:1; John 1:12), forgiven of all our sins, past, present and future (1 John 1:8-10), delivered from satan’s darkness into God’s kingdom of light (Col 1:13-14), and given abundant life (John 10:10b) to be God’s witnesses on this earth (Mark 16:15-18). More than this, God gave us His word in our Bibles to show us how to walk in all God has for us and the Holy Spirit (2 Cor 1:22) to empower us to do it.

The word for “know” in the Old and New Testament means to know someone personally, not just know about them. There are 3 people in the Bible that come to mind when I think about “knowing” God – Moses, David and Saul. When God asked Moses to take the children of Israel into the promised land Moses said to God, “Show me your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight” (Ex 33:13; NKJV). He even went to tell God that if His presence did not go with them, he would rather stay in the wilderness (verse 15). King David reveals his desire to know God in Psalm 63:1 when he says, “Early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water” (NKJV). (See also Psalm 42:1,2). By reading the Psalms we can see how deep David’s knowledge of God actually became. In addition, he was called a man after God’s heart (1 Sam 13:4; Acts 13:22). Then we read in Philippians chapter 3, where Paul says that everything is worthless (even garbage) compared to being able to know Jesus (verses 7,8). In verse 10 he says, “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead” (NLT). Let’s pray today for a hunger and thirst to know God like these men of old did and to make this quest more important than anything else in our lives.

When we become Christians by believing in Jesus and asking Him into our lives as Lord and Saviour, our lives should change (Rom 10:9,10). People should see the change in us (Acts 2:47). Becoming a Christian is a glorious starting point but we should have a desire to grow to be more and more like Jesus (Acts 2:42), to live the abundant life God has for us (John 10:10b) and tell others how to become a Christian (Matt 28:19-20). How do we grow in our Christian Walk? Christians in the early church were zealous for God and committed to growth, they were constant in prayer and studying what the apostles taught (Acts 2:42). The apostle Matthew exhorted us to, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matt 6:33; NKJV) and the apostle Paul taught us not to focus on things on the earth but on the things of God (Col 3:2). We need to be zealous for God’s word as it will reveal God’s plans for us and how to grow into all He has for us (2 Tim 3:16-17; Josh 1:8; Heb 4:12). We should pray about all things with thankful hearts (Phil 4:6,7), constantly bringing our praise before God, just like the early Christians (Acts 2:47). Not only are we to love God with all our heart, soul and mind but we are to love each other as we love ourselves (Matt 22:37-39). As in the early church, this love will be seen in our care for each other (Acts 4:34).