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A Desire to Encourage the Builders
In the body of Christ there needs to be a continuing desire to encourage all the builders to build the church.
Desire is what motivates you to put into action anything that is accomplished in this world. Without desire nothing would ever get done. You're not going to want to do anything if you don't feel like doing it. Desire is something God put into us from birth. When you are hungry you desire food. When you are thirsty you desire water. Remember your creator in the days of your youth before desire fails because of age. Before your body is no longer able to do the things you want to do. Do not wait until the time is right for you to get going. Tomorrow is not the perfect time to start because tomorrow will never come.
Faith is something you need to have a desire to encourage one another. Faith that what you are doing has eternal rewards. Faith that the rewards are for you and the ones you are encouraging. We get that faith because of what the word of God says assuring us that our labor is not vain in the Lord. 1 cor.15:58. We do not need to grow weary in doing good because we have the assurance from God that he is faithful and just to do good to those who Love him.
Endurance is something else you need to accomplish the building up of the church. To have endurance to not quit and not give up is very helpful. The word of God tells us to not grow weary in doing good. Endurance is a characteristic of Love that helps you not to give up even though you get discouraged because things are not progressing the way you want them to go. Forgetting those things which lay behind you and reaching forward to the goal that is set before you will keep you going.
Compassion is also a characteristic that you need that will give you the desire to encourage one another to build up the church. When you see that someone needs help to accomplish something it gives you a desire to give them that help. God desires compassion in his people. Jesus had compassion on many people that motivated him to act on giving them help. Do not hesitate to give someone encouragement that you have compassion on because of the situation they are in.
Humility will also help you in the desire to encourage the builders. Realizing that we are nothing without God helps you realize where you stand. This will motivate you to encourage others knowing how much you need their love just as much as they need yours. Love does not exalt itself nor does it parade itself. Remember to be humble as the people of God to accomplish the work of building up one another.
This desire is not of the flesh but is of the spirit. The desire and longing for the love of God to grow in all people is what we all need to pursue. Just as the Lord desires that all the world should not perish but come to repentance so should we. This desire is of the spirit which produces fruits of godliness which is in Love and described in Galatians 5:22. When we work to live by the spirit we work to belong to Christ and have crucified the flesh with its passions. Paul told the disciples at Ephesus that after his departure among yourselves men will rise up drawing the disciples away to follow them. This desire is a desire of the flesh and not of the spirit and leads people away from the truth. These people teach as doctrine the commandments of men just as the Pharisees did and what Jesus told us to be aware of.
Do not count the cost. The desire to encourage one another in building up the church can be discouraging to hold on to. When it comes to Love which motivates the desire, it does not count the cost. To the world our work is foolishness, but to those who are being saved us is the power to salvation. The suffering is this world cannot be compared to the glory which shall be revealed in heaven. This is just the things you do for Love. Remember what the disciples of the 1st century went through and the opposition they had from the world. Even though they were persecuted the word of God still spread because they did not count the cost but desired a better country not only for them but for everyone else.
May we all continually have this desire to encourage all our builders as we strive to build the church which is the pillar and ground of the truth and which the love of God dwells.
