Title: Failure and Success / Matthew 14:22-23
Contents Failures and Successes / Matthew 14:22-23 Rev. Kiho Um
On October 18, 1879, inventor Thomas Edison was weary of 13 months of research to create a filament that could withstand constant voltage. Then a disciple said: “Sir, I have failed 110,000 times.” Then Edison replied: “What kind of failure is failure, I found out 110,000 ways not to do this. What wealth is greater than this?”
Joseph was hated by his brothers and eventually sold into Egypt as a slave. He served as a slave in Potiphar's house for 11 years. It was also falsely framed and went to jail. I was imprisoned there for two years. Indeed, Joseph was a failure. But he didn't give up. Because he knew that God was with him. He knew that failure in God was never a failure. Therefore, he did his best in whatever situation he was assigned to, and God led him to become the prime minister of Egypt.
Most of the characters in the Bible were transformed into people of faith through the experiences of failure. Geniuses fail, and knowledgeable people fail. Even those born into good circumstances will fail. Failure like this can happen to anyone. However, the successful person is the person who realizes the lessons of failure and rises from it.
All people live with their own dreams and goals in order to be successful. I work hard day and night to make that dream come true. Humans have a natural desire to succeed. So, if one's dreams and desires are fulfilled, it is a success, and if not, it is a failure. They measure success and failure in their own mind, and when they do not have a clear consciousness and evaluation criteria, they live their entire lives unhappy with feelings of inferiority, frustration, and disappointment because of wrong thoughts. But there is no failure in Christ. There is always only success. Failure is a process on the road to success, because in the end you will succeed.
Life does not always go as smooth as a sailboat in the wind. There are times when rainstorms and storms are raging in the dark clouds, and there are times when life is difficult due to a series of failures. Christians must be different from the rest of the world when they succeed or fail. A successful person is a person who has a good purpose, is clear, and does his or her best. If you are clearly doing your part in the work God has entrusted to you, that is success.
He looked up to heaven with five barley loaves and two fish, gave thanks and gave them to the crowd. Five thousand men, including women and children, all ate and had 12 baskets of leftover pieces. After that, Jesus went to the mountain to pray, and the disciples sailed through the Sea of Galilee. When we went from Bethsaida, our starting point, to the middle of the lake, the wind was harsh and we were faced with turbulence.
Surprised to see him walking on the sea where there is a storm in the fourth quarter of the night, the disciples called it a ghost and cried out in fear. Jesus immediately said to his disciples, who were terrified, he comforted them by saying, “Take it easy, it is I, do not be afraid.” Here, “I am” refers to the existence of Jesus Christ Himself. These are words that confirm that He is the one who chose them as disciples (4:18~), gave them power (10:1), and taught them many lessons of truth (5:1) and even the secrets of the kingdom of heaven (13:11). .
Peter said, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Jesus told Peter to “come” on the water. Peter walked on the water and went to Jesus, but when he saw the wind, he was afraid and ran away. Struggling, he cried out, “Save me.” Jesus immediately stretched out his hand and grabbed him and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” Then he got him out of the water and got into the boat with him. The wind stopped and the people in the boat bowed down to him, saying, “Truly, the Son of God! So,” he said.
both failure and success
It must be based on the words of Jesus.
If you want a successful life of faith, you must first return to the Word of God. Without the Word, there is no church revival, without the Word, there is no family happiness, and without the Word, there is no success or blessing. Without the Word, we are just beings left behind in darkness. Life without the Word is a wanderer without a compass. Without the Word, we lose the strength to endure until we reach eternal life, we cannot enjoy true freedom, and it is difficult to live a holy life. Therefore, I pray that you will be blessed by hearing the Word, being moved, learning the Word, rejoicing, and obeying the Word.
What we do with the Word is success, and what we do without the Word is failure. In the text, Peter said, “Lord, if it is Lord, command me to come on the water” (14:28). Peter did not try to go over the water with his wit or power. He asked them to walk by the power of the word of the Lord. A Christian must be grounded in the Word of God, whether he succeeds or fails. Faith is believing what God has promised. The Word is our life.
Abraham followed the word and entered Canaan. When Jesus says come, he comes; when he says go, he goes, and when he says do this, you have to do it. All successes and failures without the words of Jesus are unhappy. Peter trusted the word and walked on the water with faith, but he fell into the water because he turned his eyes to the storm without looking at Jesus. Even though we have a precious experience of the grace of Jesus Christ, we do not look to the cross, but because we are attached to the lusts and temptations of the world, we become failures and cry out, “Lord, save me.”
With all our heart, all our soul, and all our strength (Deuteronomy 6:4, 30:2), let us strive to have faith and trust in YHWH alone (Psalm 119:2, 34; Proverbs 3:5). If you follow the Word, you walk on water, and if you lose the Word, you will fall into failure from that moment on. The assurance of faith based on the Word is led by Jesus to a successful person.
Both losers and successful people must hold onto the hand of Jesus.
As Peter was walking on the water, when he saw a storm, and fell into the water, he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Jesus immediately took Peter's hand. At this time today, the question is whether we are holding the hand of the Lord or the hand of a human, whether we are holding the cross or the rope of the world, whether we are holding the rope of the Holy Spirit or the rope of the devil.
You will be asked what kind of business you are working with and who you are partnering with, even when you are in politics. Those who hold on to the hand of Jesus even when they are in a predicament do not have to worry about failure. The Lord makes you successful. When many people succeed, they become arrogant and let go of the hand of the Lord. When it is difficult, they blame Jesus and hate others and let go of Jesus.
All human tragedy lies in letting go of Jesus and turning his back on him. The Lord is still saying, “Do not be afraid, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, yea, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).
The hand of the Lord is the hand of power that restored the withered hand. It is the hand of power that opened the eyes of the blind, and the hand that performed the miracle of five fish in the wilderness of Bethsaida. It is the hand of salvation that was nailed to both hands on the cross. The Lord's hand is the hand of love, the hand of blessing, the hand of prosperity, and the hand of authority. Those who hold on to the Lord's hand are the greatest success from that moment, and those who let go of the Lord's hand become the greatest failure from that moment on. Even the losers must hold the hand of Jesus. Then it will succeed. Even successful people must hold the hand of Jesus. Then you will have greater success.
both failure and success
Let's glorify God.
The purpose of life is to glorify God. This is the most basic of the duties of a saint. This is at the same time a privilege given to the saints. The purpose of all creation, not just life, is to glorify God, the Creator. God created the heavens and the earth to receive glory.
Today, when Peter got into the boat with Jesus, he bowed down to Jesus and confessed, “Truly, you are the Son of God. In the latter days, when Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?”, the confession of Peter, who fully understood the existence of Jesus Christ, fully understood the confession of faith, saying, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). has been
When our work goes well, we say, 'Oh! Lord, thank you. I give all the glory to the Lord,' and when I fail and make a mistake, I say, 'Lord, it's too much. How can this be?’ Let us not complain. Whether I am healthy or weak, poor or rich, prosper or perish, in season or out of season, I kneel to Jesus and say, “Truly, you are the Son of God. Glory to Jesus.” I bless you all who confess.
Even when I succeed, many people do not kneel before me but kneel before Jesus. Even if I fail, even if I perish, Jesus never perishes, so we must give glory to Jesus. Peter is a disciple even when he makes mistakes, and he is a disciple even when he falls. Even if we fail, we are children of God, and even if we succeed, we are children of God. Even if we succeed, we should give glory to God, and if we fail, we should give glory to God. No matter the circumstances, Jesus Christ is my Lord and my everything, so we give glory to the Lord alone.