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And
so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven's Most Holy Place
because of the blood of Jesus. This is the new, life-giving way that Christ has
opened up for us through the sacred curtain, by means of his death for us. And
since we have a great High Priest who rules over God's people, let us go right
into the presence of God, with true hearts fully trusting him. For our evil
consciences have been sprinkled with Christ's blood to make us clean, and our
bodies have been washed with pure water. Without wavering, let us hold tightly
to the hope we say we have, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Think of
ways to encourage one another to outbursts of love and good deeds. And let us
not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage and warn each
other, especially now that the day of his coming back again is drawing near.
(Hebrews 10:19-25 NLV). Wildebeests, a type of African antelope also known as gnus, migrate yearly in huge herds to the plains of Tanzania's Serengeti to mate and to birth their young. Also on the Serengeti Plain roam vicious predators, including the hyena. In this hostile setting a newborn wildebeest has about 15 minutes to get up and run with the adult herd. Slow starters risk becoming easy prey for the hyena. National Geographic Magazine did an article recently in which a series of pictures were published of a wildebeest giving birth on the Serengeti. Her baby barely had time to get used to breathing when the mother nudged it to get it standing. Picture the newborn on wobbly hind legs with its forelegs still bent underneath its bobbing head. Between the mother's nudging and the baby's inexperience, the newborn is worn out after five minutes of repeated attempts to stand. Then the camera picks up a hyena approaching stiff-legged with lowered head and slightly bared teeth. The mother wildebeest bravely steps between the hyena and the baby, but another hyena appears, followed closely by a third. The mother lunges at the newcomer. Although it backs away, another skulks in closer to the helpless infant. Before long a circle of hyenas occupies the mother wildebeest while other hyenas eat the baby. Meanwhile, spread out nearby, literally thousands of other wildebeest graze, now and then lifting their heads to watch the desperate mother attempt to fight off the hyenas. Any of them could easily help save the newborn, but not a single one does. Satan, like the hyena, is on the prowl. He also has lots of help. If you try to stand up to him alone, you're almost guaranteed defeat, just like that mother wildebeest. You can't survive spiritually without other Christians who support you, encourage you, pray for you, and help you grow into a strong follower of Jesus Christ. That's why Jesus established the church. Our habit in today's world is to live our lives alone. To stay out of each other's affairs, to keep our distance. That's not God's way, though. He asks us to love each other and to care for each other, as brothers and sisters in Christ. We weren't made to be like all those wildebeest in the herd that stood off to the side watching one of their own get eaten alive by hyenas. |
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