Atta Boy!

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:23-25 ESV). We all need an attaboy every-now-and-then. Unfortunately there don’t seem to be enough of them to go around right now. So many people second-guess what they are doing and are so afraid of failing. We live in an incredibly negative and competitive society. The result has been a serious decline in the number of attaboys. This is a serious problem because marriages, families, and workplaces are severely compromised in their effectiveness, joy, and productivity because of the decline in attaboys. I guess I never really saw the theological importance of attaboys until I read the story of the baptism of Jesus recently. I was doing some study of the Holy Spirit in Luke-Acts and was focusing on the significance of the Holy Spirit in the ministry of Jesus. I had studied the theological implications of Jesus’ baptism in Luke many times. It is the inauguration of Jesus’ ministry, it is the fulfillment of the enthronement Psalms, it is Jesus entering into his role as God’s Messiah, it is the hand-off of John the Baptist’s ministry to Jesus. But this time, I saw something different. It struck me that God’s words to his Son were the most powerful example of an attaboy I had ever heard! “You are my Son, whom I love, with you I am well pleased.” God affirmed his relationship, his love, and his pleasure in his Son. What’s more, he did it to prepare Jesus for the battle with Satan that was about to take place in the desert. Remember what the first thing the Evil One says to Jesus in the temptation? “If you really are the Son of God...” “Sorry about that Satan, but I’ve got that one nailed down. I’m his beloved Son who gives him pleasure. He just told me.” Jesus could have confidently told him. A similar thing happens just before his final trip to Jerusalem. “This is my Son, whom I love...” Jesus goes into his most important and heartbreaking battle with a divine attaboy from his Father! No wonder the writer of Hebrews instructs his readers to encourage one another as they gather together for worship. Truthfully that is good advice for everyday of our lives. So now that you know what an attaboy is, why not start looking for them so you can share them! Incredibly, they will reproduce fastest in an environment where they are frequently passed on!