Better Together Through HebrewsНамуна

Sticking Together

With service being such a valued character trait it should not surprise us that the writer of Hebrews instructs his readers not to give up connecting with God together. 

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.

Hebrews 10:25 NLT

We live in a culture where the average church attendance has dropped to one out of every three Sundays. It doesn’t sound too bad to say, “I go every three weeks.” But it sounds different to say, “Last year, I went to church fourteen times.” And if the weekend attendance is that low, the extra gatherings of small groups, mission trips, service projects, and Bible studies are even less. That means in a given year we only engage with the community of believers fourteen times.

The author of Hebrews saw this coming and warned us: Don’t give up meeting together. We need to recognize that our faith grows better together. But, is it possible to burn out? Is it possible to have too much church? Maybe you’re at a place where community once made you happy and encouraged you, but now it’s a pain. Almost as if it has become too much of a good thing.

Why is it possible for there to be too much of a good thing in the first place? Why is it that what makes us happy one day may not another? Why is it that what brings me great pleasure at one season of my life may not at another?

Here’s the difference: Happiness is an experience. Joy is a choice. Happiness comes and goes, but trying to keep happy is like trying to catch the wind. And we do our best to catch the wind. We spend much of our lives looking for joy through happiness. We wonder what will make us happy NOW? Not what used to, that doesn’t work anymore, but what will satisfy us today? The church is by no means exempt from this; in fact, I’ve observed that it can amplify it.

Happiness I can find. And it can find me. But joy is something else. Call it fulfillment; call it contentment, real true deep-seated joy is not whimsical. It does not come and go. It is a result of something. It is a choice.

One of the first thoughts we have about joy is that it is a fruit of the Spirit. Paul tells us that the result of being in Christ and the Holy Spirit living in us is that we will be known for our love, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control, and yes, our joy.

For much of my life, I’ve seen that to be something that I need to do on my own. Oh, sure, the Holy Spirit is there to assist, but I always viewed him as more of a foreman—standing around making sure that I was working. “Hurry up and have more patience!” “Watch yourself . . . you need more self-control!” So, the idea of producing joy, or choosing joy, was up to me. On my own. Try harder. 

Yet, when you look at the entirety of Scripture, you see that not only is joy produced by the Holy Spirit, it is rarely just inward. Especially in the Old Testament, you see that joy has a cause and an expression—sometimes in feasts, other times in festivals—but joy was a choice. Joy was a celebration. And joy was with others—not just the Holy Spirit and me. It’s as if joy is the result of our freedom found in God, but best expressed together. 

What if it’s just you and the Holy Spirit? Sure. I won’t limit what the Holy Spirit can do in your life. But it does seem that the Holy Spirit uses others around us to help us produce joy. Joy is found more quickly together.

The ancient Hebrew people seemed to understand this. Collected in our Scriptures is a grouping of songs that were written by David, Solomon, and some believe Hezekiah and Isaiah. The Psalms are 150 prayers and songs to God that were collected over a period of hundreds of years, particularly in the time of exile in Babylon, by the Hebrew people. Within these 150 Psalms are a group of songs called the Songs of Ascent (120–134). They are named the Songs of Ascent because they all carry that title as their first line. They were sung by Hebrew pilgrims who went to worship at the Temple in Jerusalem three times each year (Feast of Tabernacles, Passover, and Pentecost). They marched toward joy and fulfillment together. This journey not only engaged the community, but it also engaged them with God. In doing this, they achieved a state of joy. 

This idea is not only in the Old Testament with the ancient Hebrews but also in the New Testament with the church. Being a follower of Jesus is not just being a disciple, but Hebrews draws parallels to us as fellow pilgrims like Abraham (Hebrews 11:9–16). The differences are distinct: as a disciple, or learner, we spend our lives learning from our master and appropriating that knowledge. But as a pilgrim, we spend our lives traveling, sometimes without a particular destination other than the heart of God. And we do this together. 

Look at this rich imagery here. When we are together, unified, at peace with one another, it is as if the anointing of God has been poured out on us. Perhaps we could learn something from this Hebrew sojourn. We can choose to worship with others. We can choose to encourage one another during the week. We can choose to be grateful for what we have and whom we have in our lives. After all, these gifts are all from God. 

Maybe you’re getting burnt out on church and this whole community thing, but remember that joy is a choice and sometimes it is a hard one to make. However, we must travel this journey of life together. It can be so easy to disengage from the caravan, but when we stick together, no matter how hard it can be at times, God is present among us.