Title: “Sword, not Peace? ”
Contents
“A sword, not peace? ”
September 23, 2007
4th Sunday of Creation Day / Thanksgiving Day
Matthew 10:34-39
"[34] "Do not think that I came to bring peace to the world. I came not to bring peace, but a sword. [35] I make a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her own. [36] A man's enemies will be members of his own household.[37] Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not suitable for me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not suitable for me. [38] And anyone who does not take up his cross and follow me is not fit for me. [39] He who seeks his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
1. Before Chuseok
Holidays are a time to meet relatives who have been away for a long time.
Looking forward to a pleasant time when we meet happy faces we forgot about each other in our busy daily life, ask about each other's well-being, and flowers of stories we haven't shared in the past.
Everyone is running to their hometown without hesitation.
However, when friends and family meet, it is best if the whole family lives a life of faith together, but otherwise, there are many difficulties.
First of all, there is a difficulty that the time when we can meet each other does not fit well. It is very difficult to make an appointment when the family reunion falls on a Sunday.
In that case, attending church and living a religious life are sometimes pointed out as the cause of harming family harmony.
2. The Family as God's Concern
God is interested in the creation of a perfect family according to the will of the first creation of our family.
- Is the church first? Does the family come first?
Of course, the family comes first. In the beginning, God created the family. Forming one body, helping each other, raising children, and interacting with nature is the first image of Eden.
- Also, among the Ten Commandments, there is a law to honor your parents. The book of Ephesians tells us that this law of honoring parents is the first commandment God has promised blessings. (Ephesians 6:2)
- And looking at the Gospel of John, what is interesting is that Jesus' first miracle was to make wine of blessing at a wedding to form a family (John 2).
As such, everywhere in the Bible, God pays great attention to the kind of family we live in. And he expects peace and love to abound in the family that God has allowed.
3. What is our home like?
So what do our holidays look like?
A place with friends and relatives you haven't seen in a long time on a holiday is easy to show off and boast. (Moving to a large house, promotion, business prosperity, stocks, children's studies, good college ..)
Or the weather, sports, or these days, while talking about the presidential election, we hide the awkwardness caused by not knowing each other's deep circumstances. In some cases, the face is blushed over the sad events of the past, and in the end there is a loud voice.
The rites and sacrifices are very difficult for women and Protestants.
Are we offering our turn or sacrifices with a heart to convey the spirit of filial piety to our ancestors who gave us thanks and longing for our lives?
Or do you not have the image of trying to keep only customs and authority under the weight of tradition? Perhaps this spirit has disappeared and the shamanic belief in ups and downs is not yet established.
The issue of ancestral rites was in conflict with the introduction of Protestantism to Joseon, but it became particularly prominent after the 1920s, when Protestantism attempted to establish ecclesiastical authority and doctrine.
In the Dong-A Ilbo, dated September 1, 1920, there is a story of a daughter-in-law who committed suicide by hanging herself because of her Protestant husband who rejected the common sense of her deceased parents. Regarding this incident, Lee Sang-jae of the Christian Youth Association at the time said that it is more important to sincerely express longing for parents and gratitude than formality.
In addition, the Dong-A Ilbo editorial dated September 10, 1920 pointed out that foreign missionaries did not know the culture of Joseon well and that idolatry was a problem, and that formality and obscurity were also a big problem. There is. At that time, it is true that the economic pressure was so severe that it was said that the family would be ruined if the parents died and the family had to pay tribute for three years in a row.
4. A sword, not peace
What is the sacrifice of the daughter-in-law who laid down this life for?
We often use the expression “to protect our home”. But what do you mean by protecting your home? authority? Is it tradition? format? What should we protect at home?
The family is not the object of building thick walls and protecting it, but it is building the complete kingdom of God. Tradition and authority, pretentiousness and prestige are not respected by the family.
Under the heavy authority, custom, and tradition, there are pains, sufferings, and trials that we cannot reveal in our family. These things must be revealed and healed by the hand of God. We have wounds from unforeseen accidents, sudden economic failures, and discord in our families.
First of all, today's message is that you will perform surgery with a knife on a fake peace on a family that is stagnant inside like this.
I came to have a son against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man's enemies will be members of his own household.
This is a sign that the Old Testament prophet Micah will be at the end of the world, the so-called end of the world. But Jesus says: This is a declaration to destroy the world and create a new one, to break the old order of this world. So to believe in Him and take up the cross and follow Him is not submission to the old authorities and traditions, but entering the new order.
5. God's Family
Jesus called God Father. And he taught us that God is also the Father of our followers of Jesus. He taught us that God is our Father, and that we, who have one Father, are brothers and sisters to each other, families.
So, a new family of God, a holy family, was born. God expects our families to be reborn through Jesus Christ.
He wants us to change the discord and mistrust, sorrow and resentment, duty and coercion in our family into understanding and love. Even in this family, I hope that you will give up the thoughts of only satisfying my own comfort and selfish desires, and the attitude of building up my authority. He wants you to get rid of your habitual melancholy and hopeless lamentations.
In fact, there are many examples of households living a religious life where the family is ruined twice in three years, but the families who live because they are afraid of the eyes of others or are crushed by the weight of tradition they have kept so far.
He declares that Jesus came to this earth to cut this weight and pain with the sword.
We all want attention, encouragement, and comfort about what kind of difficulties and frustrations there are in the hearts of relatives we haven't seen in a while.
The loss of the sense of community in this society means that it has lost the sense of community that it once enjoyed as a large family. Already today, the family has become a nuclear family, so it is impossible to form an extended family community.
We need to expand the arms of our families.
God wants my family to expand.
Especially during the holidays, the God of ‘orphans, widows and strangers’ asks them to become families with them.
Building a complete family, and expanding the fence of the home, is impossible without each other's help. It is the church's job to help you do these things well. It is the role of the church to receive strength through the church, study and pray, and help build a family well. The church is also the union of families. Then the church can play the role of an extended family.
Let's think about whether our family is living fully and enjoying God's will, and whether we can do well and pay attention to the work of expanding the fence away from the selfish greed of my family.
6. This Chuseok
I hope this Chuseok will be a time to think about the following four things together.
The first is to remember the Creator. Let's remember the parents who gave birth to me, and the Creator God who made them. Let us also go to the Holy Sepulcher and remember the God who created nature, who protected us and our ancestors. Our turn and the Holy Sepulcher are to remember and worship God our Creator.
The second is to be grateful. Chuseok is a time to look back on the year and run towards the end. I hope that it will be a time to remember the care of the Holy Spirit and to express our gratitude to family members, friends, and church members who have been concerned and prayed for this year.
Third, encourage each other. Specially weary and weary friends and family
let's see. And let's pray for the children with a few days left for the entrance exam.
The last thing is to pray for a caring family. In an era armed with limitless competition and family selfishness, there are people who are lonely and afraid because they do not have a family. I hope that it will be a time to consider who is ‘orphans, widows, and strangers’ by my side and to think and plan what our family can and should do for them.
Let's help each other to become a whole family that does these things well. Let's pray for each other. Let's join forces. This is how the family and the family unite with each other, and thus forming a new family, this is what constitutes the church of Christ.