The Great EncouragerLesson 1:

Define: Encourage• In English, to “encourage” means:– To give courage– To give confidence– To give comfort– To give cheer

• In Greek, “encourage” comes from parakaleo (verb):– Compound word – para (“beside”) + kaleo (“to call”)• “To call to one’s side”

– To ask to come and be present, to call to one’s side; to urge strongly, appeal to, urge, exhort; to instill someone with courage, cheer, or comfort

• In Greek, the noun form is paraklesis.

The Encourager: God• “The God who gives…paraklesis” (Rom. 15:5, NASB)• “God, who parakaleo…, parakaleo us” (2 Cor. 7:6)• “Blessed be the God…of all paraklesis, who parakaleo

us….we ourselves are parakaleo by God…Our paraklesis also abounds through Christ…we know that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the paraklesis” (2 Cor. 1:3-7).

• “Our God…has loved us and given us everlasting paraklesis and good hope by grace, parakaleo your hearts…” (2 Thess. 2:16-17).

• “God…parakaleo us…that we may be able to parakaleo those who are in any trouble, with the paraklesis with which we ourselves are parakaleo by God” (2 Cor. 1:4).

God Is the Great Encourager!

• God gives courage!– Deuteronomy 31:1-8, 23; Joshua 1:5-9

• God gives confidence!– Joshua 3:7-17; 6:1-21

• God gives comfort!– Joshua 7:5-15, 26

• God gives cheer!– Joshua 10:42; 11:23; 21:43-45; 23:3; 24:15b

• The Great Encourager!– Psalm 23:1-6; Isaiah 41:10; Hebrews 13:6