The Power of Encouragement
(Joshua 2; Numbers 13)
Sermon Notes
Encourage – to fill with courage or strength of purpose, to spur on, to attempt to persuade.
Both Moses and Joshua had a command of God. They sent spies ahead of Israel to spy out the land and report back. However, there was a different report from the two sets of spies.
Why was the response different? Encouragement.
Encouragement can come from unlikely places
The men spies went to the home of a harlot (Josh. 2:1). Important note is we can’t dictate where our encouragement will come from.
Encouragement can come from unlikely people
God used Rahab, a harlot, to bring encouragement to the people (Josh. 2:8 &9). She used their own history to encourage them. We can, at times, forget our own story, and need others to encourage and remind us.
When reporting back to Joshua, the spies used the very words that encouraged them
They spoke the same words to Joshua as Rahab spoke to them (Josh. 2: 24).
Some principles:
What you hear affects what you see
What you see affects what you say
What you say affects what you do
It is important to not limit ourselves by what we see and say.
Closing questions:
Who are you encouraging? Who is encouraging you?
Learn to encourage yourself and be an encourager.
