Online Sermons
Discouragement
Bible Study – Discouragement
What does the Bible say about discouragement? How about those who strive to be good people yet fail in their life? Why do good Christians get discouraged? What can we do to get rid of discouragement?” I would like to spend some time thinking about this subject.
Have you ever been discouraged in your Christian walk? Or maybe you are discouraged now? I have to admit that I have had times over the years where I became discouraged.
Let’s note what discouragement is. Webster’s dictionary defines the word discouragement as the depravation of confidence, hope, or spirit. The opposites of discouragement include: encouragement, edification, and exhortation. How can we be depraved of confidence, hope, or spirit? The answer to that question will help us understand how to battle discouragement itself.
I don’t think that discouragement is something we should be embarrassed about as Christians. Let’s look at some of the potential causes of discouragement. It is possible that we may become discouraged due to the influence of sin in our life. When we sin (and we all do), we feel guilty (because we are guilty) and may get discouraged for doing things we should not do as Christians. Read Romans 3:19 & 20. The discouragement that comes from our sin is designed by God to continually aid us in coming to the conclusion that a sinful lifestyle is not the appropriate course of action to pursue.
There are many today, however, who are discouraged in such a fashion, but fail to come to the appropriate conclusions regarding what to do. Instead of rejecting their sin and changing their lives, they choose to ease their consciences through “counselors” that persuade them to accept that their life choices are not truly evil. These seek to rationalize sinful behavior instead of confront and eliminate that behavior. Redefining good and evil may temporarily deal with discouragement, but ultimately this cannot provide the right solution. Isaiah 5:20 says: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” Those of us who do these things end up continuing to be discouraged and wondering why we are in such a depressing situation. The sad answer is that discouragement may have started with our own sinful choices. The good news for us is that we are able to repent, accept God’s standards for behavior, and have a happy life. Read Acts 26:17-20
We may become discouraged due to a concerted effort of others. Sometimes these efforts are intentional and sometimes they are not. It could be as simple as suggesting an idea that someone else intentionally discourages because he or she doesn’t like or support the idea. On the other hand, someone may unintentionally discourage an idea by bringing up obstacles to the idea. It may not be the intention of the other person to squash the idea, but nonetheless, he or she can discourage the one who suggested it by behaving the way they do. In such situations, the discouragement is not necessarily the fault of the individual who is discouraged (as it would be if sin were involved), but rather, it is due to the circumstances surrounding our personal confidence, hope, and spirit.
When we have been intentionally discouraged, we may fight such discouragement by prayer, pleading our case, trying again, or going at it in a different way. Just because we have been discouraged, doesn’t mean we have to quit in our efforts. Recall Jesus parable of the unjust judge who daily refused to hear a woman’s pleas, but because of her much pleading he eventually ruled on her behalf. Read Luke 18: 2 – 5 Jesus said this parable was to teach us always to pray and not give up.
In situations where the discouragement is not intentional, we should look for other explanations as opposed to assuming that the discourager merely does not want to help. Are we all working toward the same goal? If so, then we should view words that discourage in a positive light, not as destructive criticism, but constructive. Knowing that another’s intentions are not to discourage goes a long way toward battling personal discouragement. When we love our brethren, we “bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, endure all things” (1 Corinthians 13:7).
Sometimes, however, there seems to be no one individual “cause” to discouragement. We may simply get discouraged due to the many pressures, stresses, and unfortunate downturns of unpredictable life. As we have studied with Terry over the past several weeks (the book of Job). We may face sickness, loss of jobs, an accident, or even death of someone dear to us. All of these situations of life can all take their toll on our personal optimism. Many times discouragement is not the result of one thing, but the combination of many things. So what can we (as Christians) do to fight this type of discouragement?
First, we should recognize that we always have reason to rejoice. Paul wrote from a prison cell “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice” (Philippians 4:4). When we are suffering trials and temptations, the Christian is to rejoice Read James 1: 2 & 3. Even in times of persecution, the attitude of the Christian is to be to rejoice Read Matthew 5: 10 – 12. It is encouraging to note that there is nothing that the Christian can do (as long as he is following Christ) that God cannot use for good. And as long as we are serving the Lord, then we can KNOW that our actions are profitable 1st Corinthians 15: 58 says: “Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” With such things in mind, we can proclaim along with Paul, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).
The second truth we need to keep in mind is that there is no such thing as failure with the faithful Christian. What we perceive as failure should be viewed with optimism, not pessimism. The old sayings are true: All sunshine makes a desert, and you’ve got to have a little rain to make the flowers grow! When we fail we should look at that as an opportunity to grow and learn. Even failures that are associated with sin can be turned into something positive if we learn from those failures and cease to behave in the ways which lead us to those failures, i.e. we repent.
Tom Landry was once overheard saying, “We don’t learn very much from the games that we win.” There is truth in that. Failure has many lessons to teach us, and we can grow stronger from it if we are open to allowing God’s truth to work in our lives. Don’t look at failures as “setbacks” look at failure as “opportunities!” Paul the apostle wrote, “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10).
Third, the best solution to discouragement is to get to work. You have probably heard the saying that dreading is worse than doing. If we allow our discouragement to stop us from doing the work that God has set before us to do, then we have allowed dread and discouragement to overcome our actions. However, if we say to ourselves, “Yes, I feel miserable right now, but I am going to do God’s work anyway,” then we will be able to overcome. We must not allow dreading to prevent us from doing. Hebrews 6:9-20 is a great passage to encourage us to continue faithfully in God’s work as we press toward the goal of heaven. Read passage.
If you want to get rid of discouragement, then get busy doing something productive in the kingdom of God! Visit the sick; go to a nursing home; volunteer somewhere; help someone in need; help with mission work; or maybe something as simple as helping at the church building; anything that we can do for the Lord, we should do it!
Discouragement is a reality with which every Christian must deal, however, let us remember that we are not mere animals, that simply react to every stimulus with which we are presented; we are made in the image of God, and that means when confronted with discouragement, we have a choice. We can choose to mope, groan, and laze about, or we can choose to act positively toward such situations and resolve to be invigorated and seek to overcome the causes of our present distress. As Christians, let’s choose to act and not give in to discouragement. And when we do become discouraged, let’s strive to work together as a family to glorify the Lord.
